Sentai Filmworks and Ripple Junction Partnership to offer anime apparel

Wear Your Favorite New Shows and More Thanks to

Sentai Filmworks and Ripple Junction Partnership

New anime apparel to bring

Flying Witch, Haven’t You Heard? I’m Sakamoto,

and more to your wardrobe

Sentai Filmworks, a leading global anime licensor, and Ripple Junction, one of the nation’s leading developers of pop-culture apparel, will partner to bring a new line of high-quality merchandise to mass market and specialty retailers across the country, including leading pop-culture apparel giant, Hot Topic. The new line of merchandise will feature hit titles from the Sentai Filmworks catalog like My Love Story as well as titles from the Spring 2016 lineup, including Haven’t You Heard? I’m Sakamoto, Onigiri, Flying Witch, Bakuon!!, and RIN-NE.

This partnership marks the second time Sentai Filmworks and Ripple Junction have joined forces. It follows Ripple Junction’s successful rollout of Sentai fan-favorite styles for Is it Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?, Akame ga Kill!, Parasyte –the maxim-, and No Game, No Life, including the latter’s best-selling “I Heart Humanity” tee. The rollout included exclusive Hot Topic styles, online and in-store distribution, including to popular online retailers like ThinkGeek.

Ripple Junction’s initial merchandise partnership included the best-selling “I Heart Humanity” t-shirt, inspired by the design of the main character Sora’s outfit from the popular Sentai Filmworks title No Game, No Life.

“Sentai Filmworks houses such a unique roster of imaginative, entertaining anime titles,” says Neil Hoynes, President, Ripple Junction, “It’s truly exciting to be working alongside them to develop high-quality, fresh, and fun apparel. Anime fans are in for something special.”

The upcoming line of Sentai Filmworks’ and Ripple Junction apparel will deliver something for lovers of moe, magic, monsters… and even motorcycles.

“Anime apparel helps the fans feel closer to their favorite shows,” says John Ledford, CEO, Sentai Filmworks, “This partnership with Ripple Junction allows us to make creative, high-quality products easily accessible to the fans.”

The new Sentai Filmworks and Ripple Junction merchandise is anticipated to land in retailers for the 2016 holiday season. For more information on the upcoming new anime apparel releases, follow Sentai Filmworks and Ripple Junction on social media.

THE BODYGUARD to debut on digital August 2nd, Blu-ray & DVD on September 9th from Well Go USA

Well Go USA

Presents

The Bodyguard / Wo de te gong ye ye

Directed by Sammo Hung

China/Hong Kong, 2016, 99 minutes

Legendary actor/fight choreographer Sammo Hung (Once Upon a Time in China and America) returns to the director’s chair for the action-packed drama The Bodyguard (a.k.a. My Beloved Bodyguard), debuting on digital August 2, before landing on Blu-ray™ and DVD September 9 from Well Go USA Entertainment. In addition to directing, Hung also stars with Andy Lau (Saving Mr. Wu, Shaolin) in the tale of a retired bodyguard who befriends a young girl whose father’s connection with a local crime lord puts their lives in danger and forces the bodyguard to come out of retirement. The Bodyguard also stars Li Qinqin (The Case of the Silver Snake), newcomer Jacqueline Chan, Hu Jun (Let the Bullets Fly), Feng Shaofeng (Tai Chio Hero), Eddie Peng (Rise of the Legend) and Song Jia (The Final Master). In addition, many Hong Kong cinema legends make cameos, including Yuen Wah, Yuen Biao, Dean Shek, Karl Maka and Tsui Hark.

Synopsis:
In a small town bordering China and Russia, a retired bodyguard with early dementia (Sammo Hung) makes friends with a young girl. But when she and her father disappear, he must recall long-abandoned skills to take down the mob and save her.

THE TIGER set to debut on Blu-ray, DVD & digital on August 9th

Well Go USA

Presents

The Tiger / Daeho

Directed by PARK Hoon-jung

South Korea,  2015, 140 minutes

From writer/director PARK Hoon-jung (New World) comes the critically-acclaimed drama The Tiger, debuting on Blu-ray™, DVD and digital August 9 from Well Go USA Entertainment. The film features a remarkable performance from Korean superstar CHOI Min-sik (Oldboy, Lucy, The Admiral: Roaring Currents) in return to action in the role of retired sharpshooter facing off against the last surviving tiger in Japanese-occupied Korea in 1925. The film also stars JUNG Man-sik (Chronicle of a Blood Merchant), KIM Sang-ho (The Beauty Inside), REN OSUGI (the upcoming Godzilla Resurgence) and feature film newcomers SUNG Yu-bin and JEONG Seok-won.

Synopsis:
An ex-sharpshooter for the Kingdom of Korea (CHOI Min-sik, Oldboy) is hunting the country’s last tiger. But Japanese forces and vicious local poachers also seek “The Four-Legged Mountain Lord,” and will stop at nothing to claim their prey.

ONE NIGHT ONLY coming to North American theaters on July 22nd

Cheng Cheng Films

Presents

One Night Only

Directed by Matt Wu

Produced by Leste Chen

Starring Aaron Kwok, Yang Zishan,

Andy On, and Hao Lei

China, 2016, 90 minutes

One Night Only, a crime romance drama starring Hong Kong pop icon Aaron Kwok (Port of Call, Cold War) and mainland sweetheart Yang Zishan (So Young, 20 Once Again) will be released by Cheng Cheng Films in North American theaters starting on July 22nd, day and date with its domestic opening in CHina. The film, nominated for Best Picture at recently concluded Shanghai International Film Festival and ongoing Taipei Film Festival, is a highly anticipated second collaboration between the actress and Taiwanese director and producer Leste Chen (20 Once Again, The Great Hypnotist) after the duo’s massively successful Chinese remake of Korean drama Miss Granny. It is also the debut feature of Taiwanese actor Matt Wu, who has previously won awards at Taiwan Golden Horse Film Awards and Busan International Film Festival for a short he wrote and directed.

The story follows Gao Ye (Aaron Kwok), a gambling addict who has lost all his inherited fortune and loved ones, as he tricks a beautiful prostitute Momo (Yang Zishan) into throwing her savings on all kinds of gambling games in Bangkok’s streets, hoping the money they win will make himself rich again. But things immediately spin wildly out of control as they find themselves fallen into a bigger scheme set up by the city’s underground. It is also revealed that Momo actually has always been behind something unknown to Gao Ye. The two wait anxiously as the night falls not knowing if they will survive to see another sunrise.

The list of theaters at which One Night Only will be shown is being updated at 1NightOnlyMovie.com.

Many Asian films to screen at Fantasia International Film Festival

THE TOP SECRET: MURDER IN MIND (Japan)

Montreal's Fantasia International Film Festival celebrates its epic 20th Anniversary this month, running from July 14th through August 2nd.

For two decades, this mammoth three-week festival has embraced a wide variety of genre - but it still continues to boast one of the most dynamic and outstanding Asian films programs from any genre fest. This year, with over 130 new films screening at Fantasia, the festival has brought together a selection of the best Asian films from all over the region - everything from martial arts masters, terrifying hauntings, giant battling monsters and animated epics can be found.

The wide variety of Asian films at Fantasia 2016 includes:

AS THE GODS WILL (Japan) Canadian Premiere
ASSASSINATION CLASSROOM: THE GRADUATION (Japan) North American Premiere
BAAGHI (India) Quebec Premiere
THE BACCHUS LADY (South Korea) Canadian Premiere
BAKUMAN (Japan) Canadian Premiere
THE BODYGUARD (China) Canadian Premiere
A BRIDE FOR RIP VAN WINKLE (Japan) Canadian Premiere
CHIHAYAFURU: PART 1 (Japan) North American Premiere
CHIHAYAFURU: PART 2 (Japan) North American Premiere
COLLECTIVE INVENTION (South Korea) Quebec Premiere
CREEPY (Japan) Canadian Premiere
THE EXCLUSIVE: BEAT THE DEVIL'S TATTOO (South Korea) Canadian Premiere
FAMILYHOOD (South Korea) International Premiere
FOURTH PLACE (South Korea) Canadian Premiere
HARMONY (Japan) Quebec Premiere
HENTAI KAMEN 2: THE ABNORMAL CRISIS (Japan) International Premiere
IF CATS DISAPPEARED FROM THE WORLD (Japan) Canadian Premiere
THE INERASABLE (Japan) Quebec Premiere
KAIJU MONO (Japan) International Premiere
KARAOKE CRAZIES (South Korea) Quebec Premiere
KILL ZONE 2 (SPL 2: A TIME FOR CONSEQUENCE) (Hong Kong) Quebec Premiere
KIYAMACHI DARUMA (Japan) Canadian Premiere
LAZY HAZY CRAZY (Japan) Canadian Premiere
LIBRARY WARS: THE LAST MISSION (Japan) Canadian Premiere
LOWLIFE LOVE (Japan) Canadian Premiere
MIRUTHAN (India) Canadian Premiere
MOMOTARO, SACRED SAILOR (1945) (Japan) Canadian Premiere
PARASYTE: PART 1 (Japan) Quebec Premiere
PARASYTE: PART 2 (Japan) Quebec Premiere
THE PHANTOM DETECTIVE (DETECTIVE HONG GIL-DONG) (South Korea) Quebec Premiere
THE PIPER (South Korea)
THE PRIESTS (South Korea)
PSYCHO RAMAN (India) Cannes Cut
SEOUL STATION (South Korea) Canadian Premiere
SKIPTRACE (Hong Kong) North American Premiere
SORI: VOICE FROM THE HEART (South Korea) Quebec Premiere
TERRAFORMARS (Japan) North American Premiere
THREE (Hong Kong) Quebec Premiere
TOO YOUNG TO DIE! (Japan) Canadian Premiere
THE TOP SECRET: MURDER IN MIND (Japan) World Premiere
TRAIN TO BUSAN (South Korea) North American Premiere
ULTRAMAN X: THE MOVIE (Japan) International Premiere
UNDER THE SHADOW (Iran/UK/Jordan) Quebec Premiere
A VIOLENT PROSECUTOR (South Korea) Quebec Premiere
THE WAILING (South Korea) Quebec Premiere
WHAT A WONDERFUL FAMILY! (Japan) Canadian Premiere

For additional information on any of the above titles, please visit http://www.fantasiafestival.com/2016/en/films-schedule/films.

Sentai Filmworks to dub 7 anime titles

Sentai Filmworks officially announced plans to dub, not one, but seven fan favorite anime titles from the Spring 2015 through Summer 2015 simulcast seasons. The titles were announced during the Sentai Filmworks panel at Anime Expo 2016.

 

Monster Musume: Everyday Life With Monster Girls simulcasted during the Summer 2015 anime season, following the exciting (in more ways than one) exploits of a young man who finds himself housing one beautiful monster girl after another.

 

The Spring 2015 fantasy Is it Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? follows the Hestia Familia’s only adventurer Bell Cranel as he fights monsters in an underground labyrinth.

 

Food Wars! simulcasted during the Spring 2015 and Summer 2015 anime season. This delicious adventure pits Yukihira Soma head-to-head with talented chefs in the world’s most competitive culinary high school.

 

The hit comedy Himouto! Umaru-chan demonstrates that the differences between your “outside face” and “inside face” can be shocking. Umaru is a refined beauty in public and cola-binging, potato-chip-eating otaku at home where she becomes her big brother’s problem.

 

Ushio & Tora is an action-packed shounen anime that ties the fate of a headstrong young boy with the fate of a fearsome yokai trapped by the Legendary Beast Spear. With a common enemy, Ushio and Tora find themselves working together to save the world.

 

GATE follows Yoji Itami through the mysterious gate that appears suddenly in Japan, bringing with it legions of invaders. He’s sent with the JSDF to the “Special Region” where he meets and befriends an elf, a demigoddess, and a mage despite political tensions between the Empire and Japan.  

 

Amagi Brilliant Park is an adventure within the walls of a theme park like no other, where much of a park’s otherworldly staff is nourished by the energy created by humans having fun! Seiya must use his many talents to successfully manage the park before it, and its employees, disappear.

VIZ & Overdrive to provide digital manga to U.S. & Canadian libraries

Vampire Knight © Matsuri Hino 2004/HAKUSENSHA, Inc.

VIZ MEDIA PARTNERS WITH OVERDRIVE TO PROVIDE

POPULAR DIGITAL MANGA TITLES TO LIBRARIES

Acclaimed VIZ Media Manga Series Available For Digital Lending

At Participating Libraries With Leading eBook Platform

VIZ Media has announced an agreement with OverDrive to provide a wide variety of its most popular digital manga (graphic novel) titles at participating libraries in the U.S. and Canada.

OverDrive is a leading digital distribution platform, supplying the industry’s largest catalog of eBooks, audiobooks, streaming video and periodicals to 34,000 libraries, schools and retailers worldwide, including 90 percent of all public libraries in the U.S.

For the initial manga offerings, OverDrive will feature several popular and award-winning VIZ Media titles such as NARUTO, DEADMAN WONDERLAND, VAMPIRE KNIGHT, and NEON GENESIS EVANGELION that will be carried by participating libraries on a digital lending basis. The catalog of available manga titles will continue to expand with new series to be added throughout the year; the full list of titles now available may be viewed at www.overdrive.com/publishers/vizmedia.

“OverDrive’s digital platform offers an innovative, cloud-based and fully scalable channel to offer a diverse selection of age-appropriate digital manga content to library patrons and our partnership with the company will ensure that users have access to some of the most popular titles from the VIZ Media catalog,” says Kevin Hamric, Senior Director, Publishing Sales & Marketing, VIZ Media.

“VIZ Media is a proven leader in manga publishing and we are very excited to add some of their most popular series to our service,” says Karen Estrovich, Director, Collection Development at OverDrive. “OverDrive delivers a large catalog combined with intuitive, easy to use eReading apps. Manga continues to be one of the most popular categories at libraries and we invite readers to discover all of the exciting new VIZ Media titles with our service.”

For more information on VIZ Media manga titles, please visit www.VIZ.com.

THE MERMAID reviewed; debuts on home video today from SPHE

Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

Presents

The Mermaid / Mei ren yu

Directed by Stephen Chow

China, 2016, 94 minutes

Renowned director Stephen Chow's The Mermaid debuts on Blu-ray and DVD today, July 5th from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. (It has been available in digital form since May 17th.)  China’s highest grossing film of all time, The Mermaid's domestic theatrical release in the U.S. scored the biggest opening day and weekend box office ever by a limited release Chinese-language film.

Newcomer Jelly Lin (a.k.a. Yun Lin) plays Shan, a lovely if simple-minded mermaid, who is tasked with seducing industrialist Liu Xuan (Chao Deng, The Four and Detective Dee: Mystery of the Phantom Flame). He and Ruo-lan (actress Yuqi Zhang, who was also featured in Chow's CJ7) plan to develop Green Gulf. This is the only place where the world's few remaining mermaids and mermen, and their friend an octopus man (Show Luo, seen in Chow's Journey to the West), reside. Seduction is to be but a prelude to killing Liu Xuan, the only way Shan and her people believe they can preserve their habitat.

Shen (Jelly Lin)

Jelly Lin gives a remarkable performance in this, her cinematic debut. She is an incredibly talented comedienne with a remarkably expressive face. She is a true revelation, and it's no surprise that she received the Screen International Rising Star Asia Award at the New York Asian Film Festival, where The Mermaid was screened, on July 2nd.

The film also features some interesting cameos, including one by another legendary Hong Kong producer/director, Tsui Hark.

The Mermaid is part comedy, part romance, part fantasy, and part fairy tale, all of which add up to a charming and delightful film.

Disc Specs:
-- Audio: Mandarin (PRC) 5.1 DTS-HD MA, English 5.1 DTS-HD MA, Thai 5.1 Dolby Digital
-- Subtitles: English, English SDJ, Chinese Traditional, French, Indonesian/Bahasa, Polish, Spanish, Thai, Off
-- Special Features:
  -- “The Making of The Mermaid”(13:25)
  -- Invincible Music Video about the film's theme song (1:34)
  -- “The Mermaid: Behind the Scenes”(1:49)

AsianCineFest Rating: 3.5 out of 4 stars; very highly recommended

VIZ launching supernatural manga series 7th GARDEN tomorrow

7thGARDEN © 2014 by Mitsu Izumi/SHUEISHA Inc.

VIZ MEDIA ANNOUNCES THIS SUMMER’S LAUNCH

OF THE SEXY NEW SUPERNATURAL MANGA SERIES

7thGARDEN

Action-Filled Shonen Jump Series Depicts A Battle

Between Powerful Angels, Sensual Demons And A

Mysterious Gardener For The Fate Of The World

VIZ Media delivers a brand new supernatural action series with the launch of 7thGARDEN tomorrow, Tuesday, July 5th.

The manga series, created by Mitsu Izumi, will be published in print and digitally under the Shonen Jump imprint with a rating of ‘T+’ for Older Teens. Print volumes will carry an MSRP of $9.99 U.S. / $12.99 CAN. 7thGARDEN launches digitally on July 5th on VIZManga.com and also will be available via the VIZ Manga App, as well as from the Nook, Kobo, Kindle, iBooks, comiXology, and Google Play stores. Future volumes of the ongoing series will be published in English on a quarterly basis.

Awyn Gardner will do anything to protect the beautiful mistress of the equally beautiful estate gardens he lovingly tends – even enslave himself to an also beautiful demon bent on world domination! The high-pitched battle is on between powerful angels, sexy demons and innocent people to dominate a world rife with political intrigue…and to win the heart of one hapless human man!

“Sexy demons, powerful angels, and handsome humans take center stage in this action- and humor-packed new series that’s rife with political intrigue” says Annette Roman, Editor. “We invite readers to spice up their summer manga reading with this hot new title!”

Mysterious manga artist / creator Mitsu Izumi is also the creator of the manga adaptation of Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day, which was originally serialized in Japan in Jump SQ.

For additional information on 7thGARDEN and other manga titles published in-print and digitally by VIZ Media, please visit www.VIZ.com.

“Food Wars! The Second Plate” set to return this month

Sentai Filmworks Serves Up “Food Wars! The Second Plate”
High-stakes culinary combat never tasted this good!

The culinary combat phenomenon, Food Wars!, returns this summer with its highly anticipated second season, Food Wars! The Second Plate. Sentai Filmworks picked up this sizzling hot series and is making it available for simulcast and streaming through select digital partners.

“Food Wars! has proven to be one of the most distinctive franchises in recent history,” says John Ledford, CEO, Sentai Filmworks, “We are extremely proud of its unmatched originality and fantastic blend of action and comedy which has inspired such a passionate fan following. We are thrilled to launch Food Wars! The Second Plate and look forward to making it available wherever fans choose to enjoy it.”

The 24-episode second season of Food Wars! picks up where the first season left off on the cusp of the contested Fall Selection. Eight of the most talented first-year students of the elite Tohtsuki Academy wage a culinary battle to advance to the next round of the Fall Selection, a kitchen-based showdown that will decide who will rise in the ranks and who will end up on the chopping block. Underdog Soma Yukihira’s cooking may leave his customers begging for another bite, but are his skills enough to face off with opponents as equally talented (and merciless) when it comes to the palate as him?

The team behind the first season returns for the second season, with Yoshitomo Yonetani as director, and Shogo Yasukawa (Chivalry of a Failed Knight) in charge of series composition. Character design was again helmed by Tomoyuki Shitaya with music by Tatsuya Katou. Animation production was handled by J. C. Staff, the same studio responsible for Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? and Flying Witch.

Food Wars! The Second Plate is scheduled for a July 2016 broadcast in Japan. It will soon be available through select digital outlets with a home video release to follow.

Sentai Filmworks has acquired the rights to MOMOKURI

Sentai Filmworks has acquired the rights to the slice-of-life romance Momokuri for the Summer 2016 simulcast season.

Yuki Kurihara took a chance one day and confessed her feelings to the boy she liked… and he said “yes”! The boy in question, Shinya Momotsuki (aka Momo-kun) is new when it comes to love, but soon they’re walking home from school, studying, and eating together. There’s just one problem with this otherwise cute couple: Kurihara is so obsessed with her Momo-kun that she’s sneaking photos of him on her phone, freaking out when they touch, and blushing at every adorable thing he does. Can Kurihara’s little heart handle her nearly manic love for her new boyfriend?

The series was directed by Yoshimasa Hiraike (Gugure! Kokkuri-san, Wagnaria!!) with character designs by chief animator Miwa Oshima (Gugure! Kokkuri-san, Anne-Happy). Animation production was handled by Satelight, the same studio responsible for Log Horizon and The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan.

Momokuri is scheduled for a July 2016 broadcast in Japan. It will soon be available through select digital outlets with a home video release to follow.

FOOD WARS! THE SECOND PLATE! available for simulcast and streaming

Sentai Filmworks Serves Up Food Wars! The Second Plate

High-stakes culinary combat never tasted this good!

The culinary combat phenomenon, Food Wars!, returns this summer with its highly anticipated second season, Food Wars! The Second Plate. Sentai Filmworks picked up this sizzling hot series and is making it available for simulcast and streaming through select digital partners.

“Food Wars! has proven to be one of the most distinctive franchises in recent history,” says John Ledford, CEO, Sentai Filmworks, “We are extremely proud of its unmatched originality and fantastic blend of action and comedy which has inspired such a passionate fan following. We are thrilled to launch Food Wars! The Second Plate and look forward to making it available wherever fans choose to enjoy it.”

The 13-episode second season of Food Wars! picks up where the first season left off on the cusp of the contested Fall Selection. Eight of the most talented first-year students of the elite Tohtsuki Academy wage a culinary battle to advance to the next round of the Fall Selection, a kitchen-based showdown that will decide who will rise in the ranks and who will end up on the chopping block. Underdog Soma Yukihira’s cooking may leave his customers begging for another bite, but are his skills enough to face off with opponents as equally talented (and merciless) when it comes to the palate as him?

The team behind the first season returns for the second season, with Yoshitomo Yonetani as director, and Shogo Yasukawa (Chivalry of a Failed Knight) in charge of series composition. Character design was again helmed by Tomoyuki Shitaya with music by Tatsuya Katou. Animation production was handled by J. C. Staff, the same studio responsible for Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? and Flying Witch.

Food Wars! The Second Plate is scheduled for a July 2016 broadcast in Japan. It will soon be available through select digital outlets with a home video release to follow.