For a while now, I have bought physical copies of games, music CDs and even anime DVDs/Blu-rays since I prefer owning an actual copy. Nowadays, the trend has shifted towards digital distribution even though Japan still prefer physical formats over digital. Why is this the case and what effects does it have on the industry as a whole.
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industry
The Dark Side Behind the Glamor or Why Being a Voice Actor in Japan is Difficult
Earlier this year, I have focused on how being an animator is tough given the poor working conditions, salary and being overworked in general. However, I have not covered the other aspect of anime production, voice acting. As seen with Shizuka in Shirobako having extreme difficulty in landing in a role, there are a good number of people who want to become a voice actor or rather, a seiyuu (声優), but they do not realize how difficult it is to gain a role.
Like I did with my analysis on how much animators make, I will focus on some of the basic aspects in regards to how people become voice actors, how much they are paid, how roles are determined and issues they face.
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The Lifelong Question: Will Anime Become Mainstream Outside of Japan?
Since the late 1990s, Anime has grown tremendously popular mostly due to globalization and the Internet becoming widespread. When I read Moonlitasteria’s take on the topic on whether or not Anime as a whole have become mainstream in the West, I wanted to share my own thoughts on it.
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Challenges of Localization: The Never-Ending Debate
While I have talked a bit about the subtitles and dubbing debate early in my anime blogging career briefly, there is something that caught my attention regarding localization. Just this week, there has been news that Tecmo Koei won’t be having dual audio to the English version of Atelier Ayesha. As you would expect, the whole fandom blew up in rage just like that and advocating boycotts. However, there have been recent instances in Anime where licensing companies such as Sentai Filmworks excluded the Japanese Audio from Blu-rays, most notably the Persona 4 The Animation to make the release unattractive for reverse importation. Of course, that too had repercussions.
In general, localization and the whole sub vs. dub debate is a never-ending controversy for many reasons that I will explain. (Image Source)
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