News and reviews, contemplations and considerations of Asian films and filmmakers. With the occasional piece on manga, dance, music, or whatever else Asian that might be of interest. Written by Dr. Stan Glick, a columnist for Asian Cult Cinema magazine.
With Dada Chen at NYAFF 2013
Wednesday, June 26, 2013
ACF 1939: Sentai Filmworks acquires license for DI GI CHARAT
Get ready for cat girls, aliens and idol singers galore in Sentai Filmworks’ newest acquisition: Di Gi Charat! The original 16 episode TV series directed by Hiroaki Sakurai (Maid Sama!) features character designs by Koge Donbo (A Little Snow Fairy Sugar manga) and Yoshinobu Yamakawa, with music by Yusuke Sakamoto (Aquarian Age the Movie). Sentai Filmworks’ license also includes the Di Gi Charat Specials (14 episodes) and Di Gi Charat Winter Garden (2 episodes).
Di Gi Charat will be available soon through select digital outlets and on bilingual DVD later this year.
Synopsis: Dejiko is a perfectly normal princess from the planet Di Gi Charat, who arrives in Tokyo with dreams of becoming an idol. Unfortunately, girls with cat ears and a tail, and who can shoot ray beams out of their cat eyes, aren’t exactly what most prospective employers are looking for. But there’s one place where Dejiko does fit in perfectly: Akihabara, where a kindly game store owner offers a job to Dejiko, her sidekick Puchiko and their balloon-like protector Gema. But things still aren’t going to be simple, as Dejiko’s bunnysuit clad rival Rabi-en-Rose wants to become an idol too. And when the notorious Black Gema-Gema Gang, led by Princess Piyoko of the planet Analogue, lands in Tokyo, it will be all Dejiko can do to keep up with Piyoko’s nefarious plot of opening a rival game store across the street! (She’s kind of on a budget, since her parents spent all their money unsuccessfully trying to take over Di Gi Charat.) Can an interstellar cat princess really find happiness on Earth in the music industry? Find out in the Di Gi Charat.