SEE Magazine
Copyright © 1998. All Rights Reserved.
ON SCREEN
BY KYLA SENTESPREVIEW
Animethon 5
Grant MacEwan Community College, City Centre Campus
9 a.m. to 9 p.m., July 11, 12Ah-h-h . . . remember the good old days of Scooby Doo, Deputy Dog and Bugs Bunny? Those comforting, Saturday-morning, pyjamas-and-Lucky-Charms shows we all love. Well, watch out Looney Toon devotees; a new breed of animation has arrived: Japanese Anime. I'll tell ya, cartoons sure ain't what they used to be. And the Animethon 5 festival July 11 and 12 is out to show just how much this medium has to offer.
Anime itself is not a new concept. However, its popularity in North America is a relatively new phenomenon. The release of films like the acclaimed Akira and the growing popularity of that infamous heroine Sailor Moon have paved the way for the introduction of these Betty Boop-eyed characters to North American audiences.
Members of the Banzai Anime Klub of Alberta (BAKA), who are organizing the group's fifth annual Animethon, hope the festival will ensure further exposure as well as a greater understanding of the medium. A primary goal of the festival, according to organizer Elijah van der Giessen is "to let people know that there is more to Anime than most people think."
Van der Giessen suggests that, too often, the focus is placed on the extremes of the medium: either the highly violent and/or pornographic films or the children's shows featuring various annoyingly cute and bouncy penguins and felines. In contrast, Animethon 5 offers a diverse mix of Anime, ranging all the way from sci-fi epics to dramatic stories of the French Revolution and outrageous comedies.
The two-day festival, taking place at Grant MacEwan Community College's City Centre Campus, features six rooms showing various Anime films, totalling 144 hours. Undoubtedly, there will be something there to suit any taste once viewers transcend the notion they're watching "cartoons" and allow themselves to get involved in the stories.
Van der Giessen also stresses that this event is very much family-oriented. Most of the films are geared for a general audience and ratings can be found in the schedule of events.
For Anime fans inclined to learn more about the art itself, there will be several information panels, including forums on subtitling, introductory Japanese and showcases of Anime artists from the Alberta community. There will also be several discussion panels on Anime including one on . . . yes, you betcha: the infectious Sailor Moon.
For those who find their cash burning a hole in their pockets, six dealers will host 15 tables of merchandise, including a wide range of Anime memorabilia and collectibles from both North America and Japan. Otherwise, admission to the festival is free, but donations to the Edmonton Food Bank will be readily accepted.
"Come with an open mind and prepare to change (your) perspectives (about Japanese animation)," said van der Giessen. And you never know, at this rate, we may find good ol' Elmer Fudd sporting ninja garb and a Samurai sword in the not so distant future.
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