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A grim outlook presents itself for those otaku moving to, or residing in, the UK. Unable to maintain a commercially viable audience, due in part to bad press and excessive censorship, UK anime distribution companies are falling by the wayside. And fans are left with little choice but to seek anime titles outside their own country, an effort that may outweigh any hopes that anime will reach mainstream audiences. In a recent article by Jonathan Clements (co-author of the "Erotic Anime Movie Guide" and award-winning former editor of Manga Max magazine) on the United Kingdom's stem of SciFi.com, Clements comments on the demise of the once powerful Manga Entertainment Limited (MEL), the UK distribution company that spawned the US branch, Manga Entertainment, Inc.. MEL drew widespread attention to anime when they released "Akira" in 1991, and remained a distribution powerhouse throughout most of the 90s. But poor financial planning surrounding the release of "Ghost in the Shell" forced the company to cut corners, and the quality of their acquisitions and presentation started slipping. "The company released a number of truly awful titles, not helped in the least by the movement of their dubbing operations out of London to a shed somewhere in Wales," reports Clements. Though not wholly defunct (MEL still releases titles through Palm Pictures), MEL itself currently wields little power. "There was once a time when MEL supposedly had first refusal on every anime made in Japan," Clements notes. "But with the forthcoming 'Ghost in the Shell 2' sold to Miramax instead, the writing was on the wall."
Manga Entertainment, Inc., however, is still a formidable presence in the anime distribution skyline, though it runs most of its operations out of Chicago. "Our Manga UK office runs the UK and has divisions in the rest of Europe," says Danielle Garnier, Public Relations Director at Manga Entertainment. "So, Manga Entertainment is worldwide. We are the same company. The UK office does its own marketing, etc., but the Chicago office is the worldwide headquarters for Europe and the rest of the world, including the U.S. and Canada." A few other distribution companies still inhabit the UK market, but none have yet reached the heights of MEL's initial success. Not surprisingly, ADV Films created a UK branch in 1996, and has since become the most prolific UK anime company. Most distribution companies in the UK, however, have either crumbled or concentrated on releasing UK editions of titles already produced by US companies. In the latest revised edition of the "UK Anime FAQ" by Jonathan Weeks, a list of UK anime distribution companies highlights this unfortunate situation: Out of nine companies that had distributed anime in the UK at one time, none currently produce projects, and only MEL, ADV, Kiseki Films and MVM continue to release titles (although MVM's main page features ADV, MEL and Kiseki Films banners).
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