April 1990 Pt.1c UK Anime Fandom.

My own recollections Of EastCon'90 are of the late night screenings that had seen the 'word' spread, so much so that there was standing room only. So many wide-eyed people were willing to watch this fresh animation from Japan without narration, or sub-tiles, it was intoxicating!

Film cinematography's camera techniques are liberally used, the long shot, the panning & tilting shots, Dolly & tracking shots, and the close-up, as well as camera\video special effects of split screen, and circling shots that just blew people away and all well before the matrix had an array of cameras to do its time-slice photography of circling around a person (all done by hand with hand-painted cels numbering from 10 to 24 0r 25 or sometime 30 frames per second)!

There was disbelief also that the humble cartoon could display depictions of violence in a realistic manner (NO more of the ubiquitous Tom & Jerry frying-pan in the face, that you just shrugged off), and in horrific detail that would rival any live-action horror movie that went before!

[Note: I do vividly remember people so shocked and ill at ease that they left the auditorium in one of the very late-night adult showings of an episode of “Wondering kid” (you may know the edited together and cut film, under the title “Urotsukidōji”) in it's now legendary tentacle scene.]

In contrast Japanese Animation had a “U” certificate, as Kids Cartoons straight to video in the UK, and the MY-TV label did turn up a t EastCon'90, - recently Helen McCarthy was able to fill me on the details surrounding this company's appearance at the convention.

“MY-TV was a label part-owned by one of the directors at the music and video company I worked for at the time. They re-badged and distributed US material, mostly from Harmony Gold, which is how the UK got releases of some great Anime like Birth and Crushers so early on - short-lived but still there.

I just told my boss about the event and he decided they should show up and try to sell a few tapes.

He had no idea there was a market for "this Japanese kids' stuff" outside the children's market.

Of course this was before Island world/Manga Entertainment started the fifteening of the industry.”

[Note: INTERVISION VIDEO LIMITED was the parent company of MY-TV, the Editing, rewriting\dubbing, and renaming had been done by US company Harmony Gold, and I think video (VHS) distribution licensed though Streamline Pictures. ]

Once Upon a Time (VHS release 1987,1988,1989) 

Original Title 'Windaria' (1986)

Crushers (VHS release1987,1988,1989)

Original Title 'Crusher Joe: The Movie' (1983)

Star Fleet: The Thalian Space Wars (VHS release1987,1988,1989)

Original Title 'X-Bomber' (1980)

 [UK DVD Box-Set released in 2009]

[NOTE: World of the Talisman (VHS release1987,1988,1989) Original Title ' Birth' (1985)] 

 

To be continued..........