VIZ Cinema Announces Anime and Drama at New People for February

NEW PEOPLE PRESENTS SPECIAL THEATRICAL EVENTS FOR THE GARDEN OF SINNERS, KIM KI-DUK’S BREATH AND GANTZ IN FEBRUARY

 

VIZ Cinema at NEW PEOPLE, the nation’s only movie theatre dedicated to Japanese and Asian film, presents a trio of special movie events taking place at the venue in February. Trailers, screening times and tickets are available at www.VIZCinema.com. The venue is located inside NEW PEOPLE at 1746 Post Street in San Francisco’s Japantown.

The month begins as Aniplex of America, Inc. and NEW PEOPLE present the U.S. premiere of the anime feature film, THE GARDEN OF SINNERS, on February 5th, to be followed by a discussion panel with key members of the movie’s production staff. This one-day-only event will celebrate the highly anticipated release of the film’s Blu-ray Box Set which will be released in North America on February 8th (a week after the Japanese release).

Also slated to screen on February 19th will be the acclaimed Korean director Kim Ki-duk’s romantic prison drama, BREATH, which will be followed by a reception with The Red Lantern: Bay Area Asian Cinephiles, based in San Francisco and the world's largest Meetup group for Asian films - http://www.meetup.com/sf-asian-film.

Finally, by popular demand, VIZ Cinema at NEW PEOPLE will offer a special one-night-only screening on February 19th of the live-action sci-fi thriller GANTZ (in Japanese with English subtitles). GANTZ is based on the smash hit manga and anime series and was world-premiered at 334 theatres nationwide in January.

THE GARDEN OF SINNERS
Saturday, 2/5 at 1:30pm – ONE DAY ONLY! Tickets: $15.00
(Directed by Ei Aoki, Takuya Nonaka, Shinsuke Takizaw, Japan, 49min, 58min, and 119min, Digital, Japanese with English subtitles)

After spending two years in a coma caused by a traffic accident, Shiki Ryougi awakens with amnesia. Inexplicably, she finds that she has also obtained the “Mystic Eyes of Death Perception” in which she can see the invisible lines of mortality that hold every living and non-living thing together. Working for a small independent agency, Shiki attempts to unravel the baffling mystery behind a series of abnormal, horrifying incidents, but are they a foreshadowing that leads to something even more tragic and ominous? Things are not what they appear to be on the surface, but what dark revelations lie underneath? This is a modern occult-action thriller where Shiki must tackle supernatural incidents with her special abilities while searching for a reason to live.

This screening will be immediately followed by a special discussion session with key members of the movie’s production staff.

BREATH
Saturday, 2/19 at 5:00pm – ONE NIGHT ONLY! Tickets: $12.00
(Directed by Kim Ki-duk, Korea, 83min, 2007, Digital, Korean with English subtitles)

On a cold winter day, after learning her husband has found a new woman, Yeon absent-mindedly heads for a prison where an inmate name Jin is confined. Although she doesn’t know him personally, repeated news of his suicide attempts on TV have subconsciously grown in her mind which now is leading her to seek him. Jin has no visitors and normally would not agree to meet a complete stranger, but hearing that it’s a woman, he accepts her request out of curiosity. Their first encounter is awkward. Yeon treats Jin like an old friend whereas Jin doesn’t open up so easily. To Jin’s surprise, Yeon comes back for a second visit…One day her husband follows her to the prison and witnesses an intimate exchange between Yeon and Jin. The jealous husband drags her home and tries to separate the new couple. While forced to be apart, time winds down for Jin’s execution. But the two are already attached to one another more than her husband assumed – more than life and death. And desperate Yeon finds a way to elude her husband and help Jin out of his misery.

GANTZ (English Subtitled Version)
Saturday, 2/19 at 7:15pm – ONE NIGHT ONLY!
Tickets: $12.00 (attendees will also receive a special GANTZ poster)
(Directed by Shinsuke Sato, Japan, 129min, 2011, Digital, Japanese with English subtitles)

GANTZ is based on a hit manga series created by Hiroya Oku and stars leading Japanese actors Kazunari Ninomiya (Letters from Iwo Jima) and Kenichi Matsuyama (Death Note, Detroit Metal City). The film tells the story of two childhood friends that are accidentally killed while trying to save another man’s life. Rather than find themselves in the hereafter, however, they awaken in a strange apartment in which they find a mysterious black orb they come to know as “GANTZ.” Along with similar abductees, they are provided with equipment and weaponry and manipulated into playing a kind of game in which they are sent back out to the greater world to do battle with alien beings, all while never quite knowing whether this game is an illusion or their new reality.

VIZ Cinema at NEW PEOPLE is the nation’s only movie theatre devoted exclusively to Japanese film and anime. The 143-seat subterranean theatre is located in the basement of the NEW PEOPLE building and features plush seating, digital as well as 35mm projection, and a THX®-certified sound system.

VIZ Cinema to Screen Two Evangelion Films

VIZ CINEMA BEGINS 2011 WITH SCREENINGS OF EVANGELION 1.0: YOU ARE (NOT) ALONE AND EVANGELION 2.0: YOU CAN (NOT) ADVANCE

Director Hideki Anno’s Feature Film Adaptations Of One Of The Most Celebrated Anime Properties Of All Time To Screen In January

VIZ Cinema, the nation’s only movie theatre dedicated to Japanese film, opens 2011 with just-announced screenings of director Hideki Anno’s EVANGELION 1.0 YOU ARE (NOT) ALONE, playing Tuesday, January 18th thru Wednesday, January 19th, and EVANGELION 2.0 YOU CAN (NOT) ADVANCE, playing Friday, January 21st thru Thursday January 27th. Screenings times and ticket information are also available at www.vizcinema.com.

EVANGELION 1.0: YOU ARE (NOT) ALONE: Monday, 1/17 – Thursday, 1/20; Tickets: $10.00
(Directed by Hideaki Anno, Japan, 2009, 98mins, Digital, Japanese with English subtitles)

There was no foreseeable warning before it happened – a catastrophe of unparalleled scale and magnitude overwhelmed the entire globe. This event, recorded in history as “The Second Impact,” caused half the population of the Earth to perish and devastated the world. All that remains of Japan is Tokyo-3, a city that is now being attacked by giant creatures that seek to destroy mankind. These creatures are called Angels.

Fourteen year old Shinji Ikari is called to Tokyo-3 by his father who he hasn’t seen in more than eight years. He is asked to come to the NERV headquarters to meet his father. His father reveals to him a gigantic humanoid weapons system that the special governmental agency has secretly developed to fight the Angels and then orders Shinji to pilot the giant artificial human Evangelion Unit One. With the fate of the world resting on his shoulders, how will the 14 year old boy Shinji fight? What is the truth behind “The Human Instrumentality Project,” an operation somehow related to the “Second Impact?” And who is the true enemy? The Angels, NERV, the mysterious SEELE, or the demons held within the hearts of the people involved? Gendō Ikari, a man who holds many answers to these questions, watches silently and attentively as his son fights a desperate battle…

EVANGELION 2.0: YOU CAN (NOT) ADVANCE: Friday 1/21 – Thursday, 1/27; Tickets: $12.00

The landmark anime property evolves, reaching new heights of intensity in the new feature film, EVANGELION 2.0. In an explosive new story full of brutal action and primal emotion, a group of young pilots maneuver their towering, cyborg Eva Units into combat against a deadly and disturbing enemy. In the battle to prevent the apocalyptic Third Impact, Shinji and Rei were forced to carry humanity’s hopes on their shoulders. Now, as the onslaught of the bizarre, monstrous Angels escalates, they find their burden shared by two new Eva pilots: the fiery Asuka and the mysterious Mari. In this thrilling new experience for fans of giant robot action, the young pilots fight desperately to save mankind – and struggle to save themselves.

Animation and film director Hideki Anno is best-known for his work on the hugely popular anime television series Neon Genesis Evangelion, which ran on TV Tokyo in the mid 1990’s. Anno had been involved in the production of amateur films from his days in high school and began his film career as an animator in numerous commercial projects including Hayao Miyazaki’s landmark 1984 film Nausicaa of the Valley of Wind. Later that year, Anno helped found the animation production studio Gainax – a group that rose from the independent film production company Daicon Film – with others he had met while enrolled in Osaka University of Arts. In 2006, he established the film development and production company, Studio Khara. Anno is currently involved in the production of a new series of Evangelion films, the latest of which is EVANGELION 2.0: YOU CAN (NOT) ADVANCE.

VIZ Cinema is the nation’s only movie theatre devoted exclusively to Japanese film and anime. The 143-seat subterranean theatre is located in the basement of the NEW PEOPLE building and features plush seating, digital as well as 35mm projection, and a THX®-certified sound system.


About NEW PEOPLE
NEW PEOPLE offers the latest films, art, fashion and retail brands from Japan and is the creative vision of the J-Pop Center Project and VIZ Pictures, a distributor and producer of Japanese live action film. Located at 1746 Post Street, the 20,000 square foot structure features a striking 3-floor transparent glass façade that frames a fun and exotic new environment to engage the imagination into the 21st Century. A dedicated web site is also now available at: http://www.newpeopleworld.com/.

Japanese Sci-Fi Film, "Gantz," to Screen One-Night Only

ACTION-PACKED ‘GANTZ’ HITS BIG SCREENS NATIONWIDE IN ONE-NIGHT WORLD PREMIERE

 

NCM Fathom, NEW PEOPLE and Dark Horse Comics Bring Exclusive Event Featuring Two of Japan’s Biggest Stars to 325 Select Movie Theaters LIVE on January 20

GANTZ, a live-action Japanese feature event, is making its world premiere in 325 movie theaters in an exclusive one-night Fathom event on Thursday, January 20th, 2011 at 8:00 p.m. ET / 7:00 p.m. CT / 6:00 p.m. MT / 8:30 p.m. PT (tape delayed). Following the feature, GANTZ’s two leading actors, Kazunari Ninomiya (Letters from Iwo Jima) and Kenichi Matsuyama (Death Note, Detroit Metal City) will participate in an exclusive live interview that can only be seen at this event.

Tickets are available at participating theater box offices and online at http://www.fathomevents.com/. For a complete list of theater locations and prices, please visit the web site (theaters and participants are subject to change).

Presented by NCM Fathom and NEW PEOPLE, in association with Dark Horse Comics, GANTZ (English dubbed) tells the story of childhood friends Kei Kurono and Masaru Kato who are accidentally killed while trying to save another man’s life. Rather than find themselves in the hereafter, however, they awaken in a strange apartment in which they find a mysterious black orb they come to know as “GANTZ.” Along with similar abductees, they are provided with equipment and weaponry and manipulated into playing a kind of game in which they are sent back out to the greater world to do battle with alien beings, all while never quite knowing whether this game is an illusion or their new reality.

Ninomiya and Matsuyama are two of Japan’s biggest stars. Ninomiya, best known in America for his role in Clint Eastwood’s 2006 blockbuster, Letters from Iwo Jima, is both an actor and a singer. He is world-renowned as a member of the Japanese boy band “Arashi,” which topped Japan’s music charts in 2009 with the three best-selling singles. Matsuyama has been one of the most sought-after actors in Japanese film and has won several awards including Japanese Academy Awards Best New Actor (2007) and Most Popular Actor (2009). Matsuyama is recognized for his part as L in Death Note (2006), Death Note II: the Last Name (2006) and Death Note: L, change the WorLd (2008).

“GANTZ is the kind of kinetic action film that pushes the boundaries of the sci-fi genre,” said Seiji Horibuchi, founder of NEW PEOPLE. “We’re very excited to work with NCM Fathom and Dark Horse Comics to organize this special event and look forward to the property’s domestic popularity growing even more following this new release.”

GANTZ will appear in 325 theaters, including AMC Entertainment Inc., Cinemark USA Inc., Clearview Cinemas, Cobb Theatres, Goodrich Quality Theatres, Hollywood Theaters, Marcus Theatres, National Amusements, Rave Motion Pictures, R/C Theatres and Regal Entertainment Group movie theaters, as well as The Beacon Cinema (Pittsfield, MA), The Carolina Theatre (Asheville, NC) and Palace Cinema 9 (South Burlington, VT), through NCM’s exclusive Digital Broadcast Network —North America’s largest cinema broadcast network.

“GANTZ offers a thrilling world that nobody has ever seen in live-action,” said Dan Diamond, vice president of NCM Fathom. “Incredibly popular in Japan as well as among American manga and anime enthusiasts, this new GANTZ rendition is sure to thrill audiences in local movie theaters around the country.”


About National CineMedia (NCM)
NCM operates NCM Media Networks, a leading integrated media company reaching U.S. consumers in movie theaters, online and through mobile technology. The NCM Cinema Network and NCM Fathom present cinema advertising and events across the nation’s largest digital in-theater network, comprised of theaters owned by AMC Entertainment Inc., Cinemark Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: CNK), Regal Entertainment Group (NYSE: RGC) and other leading regional theater circuits. NCM’s theater network covers 170 Designated Market Areas® (49 of the top 50) and includes approximately 17,300 screens (15,700 digital). During 2009, over 690 million patrons attended movies shown in theaters currently included in NCM’s network (excluding Consolidated Theatres, Rave Cinemas and R/C Theatres). The NCM Fathom Events broadcast network is comprised of over 550 locations in 156 Designated Market Areas® (49 of the top 50). The NCM Interactive Network offers 360-degree integrated marketing opportunities in combination with cinema, encompassing over 40 entertainment-related web sites, online widgets and mobile applications. National CineMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ: NCMI) owns a 48.2% interest in and is the managing member of National CineMedia LLC. For more information, visit http://www.ncm.com/ or http://www.fathomevents.com/.

About NEW PEOPLE
Based in San Francisco, California, NEW PEOPLE offers the latest films, art, fashion and retail brands from Japan through its unique entertainment destination as well as licensing and distribution of selective Japanese films. NEW PEOPLE strives to offer the most entertaining motion pictures straight from the "Kingdom of Pop" for audiences of all ages, especially the manga and anime generation, in North America. Some titles include DEATH NOTE, KAMIKAZE GIRLS, and THE TASTE OF TEA. For more information about films, please visit www.viz-pictures.com. To learn more about NEW PEOPLE in San Francisco, please visit http://www.newpeopleworld.com/.

About Dark Horse Comics
Since 1986, Dark Horse Comics has proven to be a solid example of how integrity and innovation can help broaden a unique storytelling medium and establish a small, homegrown company as an industry giant. The company is known for the progressive and creator friendly atmosphere it provides for writers and artists. In addition to publishing comics from top talent like Frank Miller, Mike Mignola, Neil Gaiman, Gerard Way and comics legend Will Eisner, Dark Horse has developed such successful characters as The Mask, Timecop, and SpyBoy. Additionally, their highly successful line of comics and products based on popular properties includes Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Aliens, Conan, Emily the Strange, Tim Burton, Trigun, Serenity and Domo. Today Dark Horse Comics is the largest independent comic-book publisher in the U.S. and is recognized as one of the world's leading publisher of licensed comics material.

VIZ Cinema Wraps Up 2010 with Films from China and Japan

PERCEPTIONS OF REALITY ARE EXPLORED IN DECEMBER FILMS AT VIZ CINEMA  
More Than 20 Films Present Engaging Documentaries, Anime, Romantic Comedies, A Special New Year’s Samurai Celebration, And A Free Screening For Seniors
 
VIZ Cinema wraps up 2010 with a December roster of screenings that introduce various ways to look at reality. Trailers, screening times and tickets are available at http://www.vizcinema.com/. VIZ Cinema is located inside NEW PEOPLE at 1746 Post Street in San Francisco’s Japantown.

December offers more than twenty films, featuring new titles as well as encore presentations of some of the most popular movies to play at the theatre this year. Included will be a pair of unique film festivals - the 8x8x8 Film Festival presented by The Hub, and also China Underground, which offers a range of documentaries that focus on a variety of controversial topics such as homosexuality, the role of women in society, the forced relocation of citizens which preceded the 2008 Beijing Olympics, drug use, and the inner workings of Chinese law enforcement, are examined in unflinching detail in 7 documentaries. Also scheduled for December is Mifune x Kurosawa, a mini-festival offering 8 films directed by the great Akira Kurosawa and starring the incomparable Toshiro Mifune. Included will be a special New Year’s screening of the classic Seven Samurai.

Anime is always a favorite and VIZ Cinema is proud to offer encore screenings of the fast-paced, futuristic racing film, Redline, as well as a live-action adaptation of the popular The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya.

Also not to be missed is the romantic comedy Cast Me If You Can, which was featured as “Japan’s answer to Woody Allen” in Metropolis magazine. Director Atsushi Ogata’s globetrotting comedy combines wit, humor, romance and family relations. Finally, VIZ Cinema welcomes San Francisco’s senior community for a special free showing of Ping Pong, a charming comedy built around the sport of table tennis.

8x8x8 Film Festival Presented By The Hub; Thursday, 12/2 at 7:00pm, San Francisco Premiere!
The Hub presents the 8 x 8 x 8 Film Festival screening 8 short films, supported by Schmaltz Brew Company and Dynamo Donuts. Films are curated by the San Francisco Jewish Film Festival.

Reception / Food: 7:00 pm • Screening: 8:00 pm • Tickets: $12.00

China Underground; Friday, 12/3 – Sunday, 12/5, San Francisco Premiere!
This series focuses on a new vanguard of Chinese independent filmmakers, whose innovative uses of digital filmmaking deliver provocative insights into the world’s largest nation. All of the documentary films to be shown at the festival were made outside the official Chinese film system – unauthorized, uncensored, and totally independent. These groundbreaking films introduce a new generation of filmmakers who represent the future of Chinese cinema, using new technology to present a vision of China as never seen before.

Queer China, ‘Comrade’ China, Friday, 12/3 at 7:15pm
(Directed by Cui Zi’en, China, 2008, 60min, Mandarin with English subtitles)

China’s most prolific queer filmmaker opens the festival with a comprehensive historical account of the queer movement in modern China. Unlike any before, this film explores the historical milestones and ongoing advocacy efforts of the Chinese LGBT community. Preceded by a screening of Digital Underground in the People’s Republic (18 mins, Dir: Rachel Tejada), a look at the Chinese independent film scene as documented firsthand by dGenerate Films. The screening will include a Q&A session with several guest speakers and an after-party that will immediately follow. Tickets are $15.00.

Super, Girls! Saturday, 12/4 at 1:00pm
(Directed by Jian Yi, China, 2007, Documentary, 73min. Mandarin with English subtitles)

SUPER, GIRLS! follows ten teenagers on their quest to become superstars on China’s biggest tv show. Through candid interviews and footage of nail-biting auditions, SUPER, GIRLS! offers a fascinating look inside what the Chinese media have dubbed “the Lost Generation.” Tickets are $10.00.

Meishi Street, Saturday, 12/4 at 2:45pm
(Directed by Ou Ning, China, 2006, Documentary, 85min, Mandarin with English subtitles)

MEISHI STREET shows ordinary citizens taking a stand against the planned destruction of their homes for the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Acclaimed at over two dozen museums and galleries around the world, Meishi Street, by renowned visual artist Ou Ning, works as both art and activism, calling worldwide attention to lives being demolished in the name of progress.

Tickets are $10.00.

Using, Saturday, 12/4 at 4:45pm
(Directed by Zhou Hao, China, 2008, Documentary, 105min, Mandarin with English subtitles)

A twisted relationship develops between an urban Chinese couple struggling with heroin and a filmmaker chronicling their addiction, in this provocative documentary on drug abuse, filmmaking and friendship. Zhou’s unflinching depiction of his friends’ repeated attempts to quit blurs the line between filmmaker and subject, and raises provocative questions about the ways in which each uses the other. Tickets are $10.00.

Ghost Town, Saturday, 12/4 at 7:15pm
(Directed by Zhao Dayong, China, 2008, Documentary, 169min, Mandarin, Nu, & Lisu dialects with English subtitles)

Zhiziluo is a town barely clinging to life. Tucked away in a rugged corner of Southwest China, the village is haunted by traces of China’s cultural past while its residents piece together a day-by-day existence. “Directed with scrupulous attention to detail” (Manohla Dargis, New York Times), Ghost Town, which debuted at the New York Film Festival, “is one of the most important films to have emerged from the booming (but still unexplored) field of Chinese independent documentaries (Dennis Lim, Moving Image Source).Tickets are $10.00.

1428 Sunday, 12/5 at 1:00pm
(Directed by Du Haibin, China, 2009, Documentary, 117min. Mandarin and Sichuan dialects w/ English subtitles)

Du Haibin’s award-winning documentary of the earthquake that devastated China’s Sichuan province in 2008 explores how victims, citizens and government respond to a national tragedy. Du depicts a world in chaos, both material and moral. “Without judgment but with a deep compassion for their subjects, the filmmakers of 1428 bring us a myriad of individual stories of absurdity, confusion and grief.”(Cherise Fong, CNN). Tickets are $10.00.

Crime and Punishment, Sunday, 12/5 at 3:30pm
(Directed by Zhao Liang, China, 2007, Documentary, 122min, Mandarin with English subtitles)

“Zhao’s artistry is instantly apparent.” (Robert Koehler, Variety)

A prime example of how independent documentaries are on the vanguard of Chinese cinema, Crime and Punishment is an unprecedented look at the everyday workings of law enforcement in the world’s largest authoritarian society. With penetrating camerawork, Zhao Liang (Petition, 2009 Cannes Film Festival) patiently reveals the methods police use to interrogate and coerce suspects to confess crimes – and the consequences when such techniques backfire.

Tickets are $10.00.

Before the Flood, Sunday, 12/5 at 5:45pm
(Directed by Li Yifan and Yan Yu, China, 2005, Documentary, 147min. Mandarin and Sichuan dialects with English subtitles)

A landmark documentary following the residents of the historic city of Fengjie as they clash with officials forcing them to evacuate their homes to make way for the world’s largest dam. Shot over two years, Before the Flood is a breathtaking achievement in verité-style documentary filmmaking. This profound film shows the human effects of one of history’s grandest social engineering projects, reflecting on the loss of both home and heritage. Tickets are $10.00.

Redline, Monday, 12/6 – Thursday 12/9
(Directed by Takeshi Koike, 2010, 100 min, Digital, English Subtitles)

Redline is a racing film created by studio Madhouse (Paprika, The Girl Who Leapt Through Time, Summer Wars). The toughest and the most destructive underground car race in the universe, REDLINE, has just begun! JP is a reckless driver oblivious to speed limits, and Sonoshee, one of his competitors with whom JP is secretly in love with, is a hot girl determined to do whatever it takes to stand on the winner’s podium. They’re up against the craziest drivers with their heavily armed and awesome road-tearing vehicles. On top of that, during the race, they have to avoid military crackdown by the government because the race is actually prohibited in Roboworld. The only help JP wants is the engine obtained and custom tuned by his long time buddies, Frisbee the mechanic and Mogura Oyaji the junk shop. While cars crash and burn into flames, the race course becomes a merciless hell and JP whips his ride into a dead heat. Who will survive to win in this mass-destruction race? Tickets are $10.00.

Cast Me If You Can, Friday, 12/10 – Sunday, 12/19
(Directed by Atsushi Ogata, 2010, 97min, Digital, Japanese with English subtitles)

A sold-out film at Mill Valley Film Festival and a charming romantic comedy written and directed by Atsushi Ogata, Cast Me If You Can comes to VIZ Cinema for a special Bay Area limited theatrical release, following its popular recent theatrical run in Japan.

Featured as “Japan’s answer to Woody Allen” in Metropolis magazine, globetrotting comedy director Atsushi Ogata combines wit, humor, romance and family relations, in collaboration with veteran Japanese star actors and an international crew, to present a romantic comedy which transcends national and cultural borders. Cast Me If You Can is Ogata’s feature film debut.

Premiering at the 13th Shanghai International Film Festival in June, Cast Me If You Can also screened at festivals in California, New York, Indiana, Korea and India, won prizes for “Best Title Sequence” and “Best Original Score” in Los Angeles, and has also been adapted into a novel and published in Japan by Takeshobo Co. Ltd. Tickets are $10.00.

The Disappearance Of Haruhi Suzumiya, Friday, 12/17 at 7:15pm
(Directed by Jun-ichi Mori, 2010, 163min, 35mm, Japanese with English Subtitles)

Don’t miss the special encore screening of mega hit anime movie “The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya” in association with Bandai Entertainment! Ten days before Christmas, Haruhi came up with another one of her crazy ideas to hold a Christmas party in the club room. The next day, however, Kyon woke up to a world in which Haruhi didn’t exist and no one besides him had any memory of her. How can someone like Haruhi Suzumiya who’s supposed to be the center of the universe just vanish? Tickets are $10.00.

Mifune x Kurosawa, Saturday, 12/18 – Thursday 1/6

Toshiro Mifune graced Japanese cinema with his good looks, fierceness, and charisma. VIZ Cinema brings you Akira Kurosawa’s films featuring Mifune at his finest moments. Tickets are $10.00.

Red Beard, Saturday, 12/18 – Sunday, 12/26
(1965, 185 minutes, 35mm, Japanese with English Subtitles)

Red Beard (Akahige) chronicles the tumultuous relationship between an arrogant young doctor and a compassionate clinic director. Toshiro Mifune, in his last role for Kurosawa, gives a powerhouse performance as the dignified yet empathic director who guides his pupil to maturity.

The Idiot, Saturday, 12/18 – Thursday, 12/23
(1965, 185 minutes, 35mm, Japanese with English Subtitles)

The Idiot, an adaptation of Fyodor Dostoyevsky’s nineteenth-century masterpiece about a wayward, pure soul’s reintegration into society—updated by Kurosawa to capture Japan’s postwar aimlessness—was a victim of studio interference and, finally, public indifference.

The Lower Depths, Sunday, 12/19 – Monday, 12/27
(1957, 125 minutes, 35mm, Japanese with English Subtitles)

Mifune and Kurosawa transform Maxim Gorky’s classic proletariat play The Lower Depths in their own way firmly situated in the postwar world. Remaining faithful to the original with its focus on the conflict between illusion and reality, their film making styles converge to create unique masterpieces.

High And Low, Monday, 12/27 – Thursday, 1/6
(1957, 125 minutes, 35mm, Japanese with English Subtitles)

Toshiro Mifune is unforgettable as Kingo Gondo, a wealthy industrialist whose family becomes the target of a cold-blooded kidnapper in Akira Kurosawa’s highly influential High and Low, a compelling race-against-time thriller and a penetrating portrait of contemporary Japanese society.

Stray Dog, Tuesday, 12/28 – Thursday, 1/6
(1949, 122min, 35mm, Japanese with English Subtitles)

When a pickpocket steals a rookie detective’s gun on a hot crowded bus, the cop goes undercover in a desperate attempt to right the wrong. Kurosawa’s thrilling noir probes the squalid world of postwar Japan and the nature of the criminal mind.

Drunken Angel, Wednesday, 12/29 – Wednesday, 1/5
(1948, 98min, 35mm, Japanese with English Subtitles)

In this powerful early noir from the great Akira Kurosawa, Toshiro Mifune bursts onto the screen as a volatile, tubercular criminal who strikes up an unlikely relationship with Takashi Shimura’s jaded physician.

Seven Samurai, Sunday, 1/2 at 1:30pm
(1954, 207 minutes, 35mm, Japanese with English Subtitles)

Kick-off 2011 with one of the most thrilling movie epics of all time, Seven Samurai! This three-hour ride featuring Toshiro Mifune and Takashi Shimura tells the story of a sixteenth-century village whose desperate inhabitants hire eponymous warriors to protect them from the invading bandits. Screening will include a special New Year’s reception party.

VIZ Cinema’s last SENIOR FREE MOVIE DAY of the year is our all-time-favorite film Ping Pong!

Ping Pong ; Wednesday, 12/22 at 1:30pm
(Directed by SORI, 2002, 114min, Digital, Japanese with English Subtitles)

Best friends Peco and Smile have been playing ping pong since they were little kids. While the unique and brazen Peco plays to win and loves the sport, the quiet and introverted Smile thinks of it as just a way to kill time with friends, but plays only because he looks up to Peco as his hero. And though Smile is the more talented player, he frequently and intentionally loses to Peco out of a misguided sense of friendship

VIZ Cinema is the nation’s only movie theatre devoted exclusively to Japanese film and anime. The 143-seat subterranean theatre is located in the basement of the NEW PEOPLE building and features plush seating, digital as well as 35mm projection, and a THX®-certified sound system.


About NEW PEOPLE
NEW PEOPLE offers the latest films, art, fashion and retail brands from Japan and is the creative vision of the J-Pop Center Project and VIZ Pictures, a distributor and producer of Japanese live action film. Located at 1746 Post Street, the 20,000 square foot structure features a striking 3-floor transparent glass façade that frames a fun and exotic new environment to engage the imagination into the 21st Century. A dedicated web site is also now available at: http://www.newpeopleworld.com/.

TokyoScope Talks About the Ninja

TOKYOSCOPE TALK AT VIZ CINEMA EXPLORES THE HIDDEN & DEADLY WORLD OF THE NINJA NEXT WEEK

 

NEW PEOPLE and VIZ Cinema offer an intriguing exploration of Japan’s famed shadow warriors of legend in the next TokyoScope Talk film event. TokyoScope Talk, Vol. 7 – NINJA ATTACK! will commence on Saturday, November 20th at 7:15pm. Tickets are $10.00.

Presented by host Patrick Macias (Editor, Otaku USA) and produced in association with Matt Alt, co-author of the new book Ninja Attack! True Tales of Assassins, Samurai, and Outlaws (published by Kodansha International), this lecture will explore the historical and pop culture legacy of the original men (and women!) in black. All attendees will be entered into a raffle to win free copies of the Ninja Attack! book, which will also be for sale in the NEW PEOPLE retail store.

TokyoScope Talk will also discuss elements from the new ninja action film Kamui Gaidian, which opens at VIZ Cinema on Friday, November 19th and runs thru Wednesday, December 1st (Tickets are $10.00). Based on the legendary 1970’s manga comic by Sampei Shirato, Kamui Gaidan boasts one of the biggest budgets in the history of Japanese film. Set in 17th Century Japan, Kamui, an outcast from society who dreams of escaping his miserable existence, trains to become a deadly ninja and embarks on a bloody adventure to find eventual redemption. NEW PEOPLE will host a special opening party for the Kamui Gaidan premiere on Friday, November 19th at 7:15pm.

Gasp in amazement as Macias offers rare clips from other assorted movies, anime, and TV programs such as Shinobi no Mono, Red Mask, Shogun Assassin, Dagger of Kamui, and Alien vs. Ninja reveal the over-the-top skills, weapons, and deadly techniques of these fearsome martial artists!

In the new book, Ninja Attack! True Tales of Assassins, Samurai, and Outlaws (Kodansha International), Hiroko Yoda and Matt Alt introduce dozens of real-life ninja straight out of the annals of Japanese history. Ninja Attack! chronicles the true stories of Japan’s most famous – and feared – fighters. The book covers ninja ranging from clan leaders to solo artists, occult masters, warlords, and vicious assassins, presented with full-page illustrations along with detailed descriptions and anecdotes about their lives, weapons, weaknesses… and how each met his doom. The book includes “The Illustrated Ninja,” a guide that explains the weapons, tools, tricks and techniques of these legendary warriors; and includes a ninja tour of Tokyo. Yoda and Alt also discuss clothing styles, tools and the basics of the ninja diet.

VIZ Cinema is the nation’s first movie theatre devoted exclusively to Japanese film and anime. The 143-seat subterranean theatre is located in the basement of the NEW PEOPLE building and features plush seating, digital as well as 35mm projection, and a THX®-certified sound system.


About NEW PEOPLE
NEW PEOPLE offers the latest films, art, fashion and retail brands from Japan and is the creative vision of the J-Pop Center Project and VIZ Pictures, a distributor and producer of Japanese live action film. Located at 1746 Post Street, the 20,000 square foot structure features a striking 3-floor transparent glass façade that frames a fun and exotic new environment to engage the imagination into the 21st Century. A dedicated web site is also now available at: http://www.newpeopleworld.com/.

VIZ Cinema to Screen "Live from Tokyo" for One Night Only

VIZ CINEMA TAKES AUDIENCES ON A SONIC TRIP TO EXPLORE TOKYO’S UNDERGROUND MUSIC CULTURE IN LIVE FROM TOKYO – PLAYING FOR ONE NIGHT ONLY!

Documentary Blends Live Performances And Interviews To Offer New Insights On Unique Music Culture; VIZ Cinema Screening Event To Feature A Live Simulcast Of Performances By Saijanu, Kirihito, And Others From The Forest Limit Club In Tokyo

VIZ Cinema, the nation’s only movie theatre dedicated to Japanese film, takes audiences on a sonic tour through Tokyo’s vibrant and varied underground music culture in LIVE FROM TOKYO, a new documentary directed by Lewis Rapkin. After a sold out premiere at the Asia Society in New York City, LIVE FROM TOKYO’s San Francisco premiere opens at VIZ Cinema for a one-night-only showing and special event beginning at 7:15pm. Tickets, trailers and more information are available at: www.vizcinema.com.

Immediately following the screening, VIZ Cinema and goforaloop Gallery are proud to present a special simulcast of performances from the bands Kirihito, Sajjanu, Yudaya Jazz, and Onnacodomo (all featured in the film), streamed live from the Forest Limit club in Tokyo.

Tokyo’s reputation as a media-saturated hub for global information and cutting-edge innovation makes it the perfect setting for addressing a new outlook on music culture. LIVE FROM TOKYO takes the viewer through the back streets in Shinjuku, the intersections of Shibuya, narrow alleys in Koenji, and all over the city, as it highlights the innovative musicians who create this multi-faceted artistic culture. The film features interviews and live performances by DMBQ, Tenniscoats, Shugo Tokumaru, Nisennenmondai, PARA (ex-Boredoms members), Kirihito, d.v.d., and many more.


Bands and artists featured in Live From Tokyo include:

Saijunu
Sajjanu is a ripping new unit from Tokyo that performs incredibly complex through-composed compositions with few if any repetition. Combining the intensity of the Ruins with the quirkiness of the Boredoms and the compositional integrity of Zappa, Zorn and more, Sajjanu is creating a new Japanese music of infinite possibilities. In addition to releases in Japan, Sajjanu’s album Pechiku!! was released in 2009 on John Zorn’s New York-based Tzadik label.

Kirihito:
"With a reputation for furious, hypnotic live performances, and a sound that evades all attempts to pin it down with the usual genre clichés, Tokyo-based duo Kirihito have gradually carved themselves a position as legends in the underground-music scene." - The Japan Times

Yudaya Jazz:
As a video artist, Yudaya Jazz, juxtaposes multi-media in a way most people cannot imagine. He synchronizes the images and sounds on an audio/visual platform outfitted with a set of turntables, a laptop, video camera, microphone, multiple projectors and sometimes a piano.

Onnacodomo:
"DJ Codomo, Yasuko Seki and Ruka Noguchi perform in real time using a video camera to capture their spontaneous creations. Shimmering projections are created using water, mirrors and an array of lights, while a world of fantastic images is constructed with found photos, kitchen utensils, toys, stationary, and improvised artwork. Kaleidoscopic, absurd and unreal, Onnacodomo takes you into a slightly-unhinged world that is absolutely original in its conception."

d.v.d
This electronic art trio blends Japanese technology and artistic innovation in a band. Visual artist Ymg was a CG game developer for Namco, Itoken has provided soundtracks for popular Playstation video games and Jimanica has been a professional drummer in both Tokyo and New York City. Their interactive “live installation” blurs the borders of visual art and music, leaving audiences wondering if they are at a concert, video arcade or art exhibit.

Shugo Tokumaru
Shugo Tokumaru is a multi-instrumentalist claiming to play over 100 instruments on his most recent release and one of today’s most talked-about Japanese musicians. With three albums under his belt, Shugo made his US debut in September of 2009, touring with the Magnetic Fields and performing with members of the National and Beirut. Shugo has also been featured twice on NPR in an in-studio performance and on the World Café.

NISENNENMONDAI
This all-female rock trio from Tokyo has been making noisy, technically challenging, experimental rock for the past decade. Their efforts have not gone unnoticed, as reputable American bands such as Prefuse 73, Lightning Bolt, Battles, and No Age have all shared the stage and spoken outwardly of their admiration for Nisennenmondai.

DMBQ
Drawing heavily from Western rock and roll, garage and noise influences, DMBQ’s high-energy performances and several international tours have made them one of Tokyo’s most lauded underground acts. They have also appeared in SPIN magazine.

Tenniscoats
Tenniscoats is an avant-garde folk duo made up of Saya and Takashi Ueno. Since 2000, Tenniscoats have released albums and also collaborated with a variety of other artists, both Japanese and foreign. In 2008, Tenniscoats collaborated with US-based Indie band Deerhoof in a project called OneOne. Most recently, Tenniscoats collaborated with long-running Scottish band The Pastels on an album called Two Suns.

Tokyo Pinsalocks
Tokyo Pinsalocks is an all-female electro-pop trio who has toured the UK and US including the 2009 US Anime Fest in Boston. They curate and headline Spoon Market, an event series that features “the coolest of female artists – be they musicians, fashion designers, visual artists, or cooks.”

Other featured acts include: Kuruucrew, PARA, The Lady Spade, Makoto Oshiro, Sexy-Synthesizer, Umi No Yeah!, Samm Bennett, Shintaro Miyazaki, W. David Marx, Dr. Jennifer Matsue, Suishou no Fune, Plugdead + Yudaya Jazz, Secai, Nu Clear Classmate, Kelly Churko, Cal Lyall, Kenichi Fumoto, The Muzenji Monk, Taguchi Fumihito, Tayutau, My Pal Foot Foot, Elevation, The Lady Spade, Makoto Oshiro, Henrytennis, Mahiruno, ECD & DJ Illicit Tsuboi, Uhnellys, The Fadeaways and more...


VIZ Cinema is the nation’s only movie theatre devoted exclusively to Japanese film and anime. The 143-seat subterranean theatre is located in the basement of the NEW PEOPLE building and features plush seating, digital as well as 35mm projection, and a THX®-certified sound system.

About NEW PEOPLE
NEW PEOPLE offers the latest films, art, fashion and retail brands from Japan and is the creative vision of the J-Pop Center Project and VIZ Pictures, a distributor and producer of Japanese live action film. Located at 1746 Post Street, the 20,000 square foot structure features a striking 3-floor transparent glass façade that frames a fun and exotic new environment to engage the imagination into the 21st Century. A dedicated web site is also now available at: http://www.newpeopleworld.com/.

VIZ Cinema is Passionate This Fall

THE THEMES OF PASSION & PROWESS USHER IN THE FALL SEASON AT VIZ CINEMA

Passion For Spirituality, Food, Music, Love And More Among The Topics Featured In New Films At NEW PEOPLE Movie Theatre This Month

VIZ Cinema makes November’s cinema programming about the theme of prowess. Passion turns into expertise as one's art and expression matures. It could simply save a soul, become a powerful weapon, or even lead a popular movement. Tickets, screening times and complete details for each film are available at: http://www.vizcinema.com/.

The month begins as the theatre proudly presents the opening night of the San Francisco International South Asian Film Festival 2010 on November 3rd with the premiere of Journey from Zanskar, a new film from the producers of Hoop Dreams that follows a group of monks and children across the breath-taking and dangerous Himalayas. Heavy metal comedy is up next with a special one-night-only show on November 4th of Detroit Metal City, to celebrate the film’s brand new DVD release from VIZ Pictures. The New Media Film Festival and S.F. Bay Area Market & Forum will be held this month at the venue, featuring work from innovative creators using the latest technology to develop visionary content.

Then work up an appetite for the premiere of Chef of the South Polar, based on the hilarious autobiographical essay of a chef on an Antarctic research team who brings gourmet cuisine to one of the most inhospitable place on earth. Live From Tokyo next takes audiences to the backstreets of Japan’s capital to sample the city’s burgeoning underground music scene. This screening will be complemented by a simulcast of a live set from the band Sajjunu (also featured in the film) broadcast from the Super Deluxe club in Tokyo. Anime fans won’t want to miss special screenings of Patlabor The Movie, and Patlabor The Movie 2, presented in partnership with Bandai Entertainment, and also a premiere showing of Kamui Gaidan, based on the legendary 1970’s Japanese comic book by Sampei Shirato.

Director Yuki Tanada’s Electric Button then brings erotic flavors to audiences and manages to be as sweet as it is unsentimental, while effortlessly dancing across the lines of comedy, drama, romance and eroticism. And don’t miss the return of the TokyoScope Talk film discussion series as it holds a special Saturday afternoon session on ninja cinema! The month wraps up with a special film retrospective on removed Japanese actor and author Yukio Mishima.

Journey from Zanskar, Wednesday, 11/3 at 7:20pm San Francisco Premiere!
(Directed by Frederick Marx, 2009, 90mins, English, Tibetan, and Hindi with English subtitles)

Oscar-winning filmmaker Frederick Marx follows a group of monks and children across the breath-taking and dangerous Himalayas as they journey from Zanskar, one of the most isolated places on earth, to a Buddhist school in Manali (India).

Detroit Metal City, November 4th 7:00pm, One Night Only!!!
(Directed by Toshio Lee, 2008, 104min, 35mm, Japanese with English Subtitles)

Detroit Metal City takes the zany rock antics inspired by films like Spinal Tap to hilarious new extremes in this story, based on a popular manga comic created by Kiminori Wakasugi that has sold more than 4.5 million copies in Japan and features notable appearances by Gene Simmons from the legendary band, KISS, and Marty Friedman of Megadeth.

In the film, Soichi Negishi (played by Kenichi Matsuyama) is a sweet and shy young man who dreams of becoming a trendy singer songwriter. But for some reason, he is forced into joining the devil worshiping death metal band “Detroit Metal City” (DMC). In full stage make-up and costume, he transforms into Johannes Krauser II the vulgar-mouthed lead vocalist of the band. Against Negishi’s will, DMC rises to stardom. Things get even more complicated when the legendary king of death metal, Jack IL Dark (played by Gene Simmons), challenges DMC to a duel in the film’s climatic finale. What will be the fate of innocent Negishi as he climbs to the top of the death metal world?

NEW MEDIA FILM FESTIVAL SF BAY AREA MARKET & FORUM
Friday, 11/5 & Saturday 11/6

Join as VIZ Cinema brings together several leaders and content creators in film, TV, games, publishing, web, mobile technology and screen mobile, webisodes and mobile series, shorts, animation, and much more. Film screenings include selections from Sundance, Cannes, Los Angeles Film Festival premieres as well as work by the best local Bay Area talent working in New Media. Competition Judges are industry professionals from Industrial Light & Magic, Pixar, Summit Entertainment, Creative Convergence and United Talent Agency.

More details and tickets are available at: www.newmediafilmfestival.com/newmediatickets.php

The Chef of South Polar Monday, 11/ 7 – Thursday, 11/12
(Directed by Shuichi Okita, 2009, 125mins, Japanese with English subtitles)

Based on the hilarious autobiography by the chef of an Antarctic research team!

Eight men join a research expedition to the Dome Fuji Station in Antarctica – an environment so cold that even viruses cannot exist, let alone living creatures. Jun Nishimura’s job is to cook for the members every day. He prepares the meals with the greatest care, sometimes with fine delicacies, and takes pleasure in watching everyone sitting down together and enjoying his food. In far away Japan, Nishimura has a family including a new-born son. The assignment lasts a year and a half and while his thoughts are with his family 14,000 kilometers away, the ultimate mission away from home must continue. Antarctic life is unlike anything in Japan. But as long as there is good food, it gives the team the strength to go on. Though the film is set in the coldest climate in the world, The Chef of South Polar will warm viewers up from the center of their hearts. Good food and human drama, full of laughter and love.

Live From Tokyo; Friday, 11/12 at 7:15pm
(Directed by Lewis Rapkin, 2010, 79min, HDCam, Japanese with English Subtitles,)

“Live From Tokyo” is a documentary film about underground music culture in Tokyo. The city’s reputation as a media-saturated hub for global information and cutting-edge innovation makes it the perfect setting for addressing a new outlook on music culture. This documentary takes the viewer through the back streets in Shinjuku, the intersections in Shibuya, the alleys in Koenji, and all over Tokyo, as it highlights the innovative musicians who create this multi-faceted artistic culture. The film features interviews and performances by DMBQ, Tenniscoats, Shugo Tokumaru, Nisennenmondai, PARA (ex-Boredoms members), Kirihito, d.v.d., and many more.

After the film screening, the band Sajjanu (featured in the film) will simulcast a live performance from Tokyo!

Sajjanu is a ripping new unit from Tokyo that performs incredibly complex through-composed compositions with few if any repetition. Combining the intensity of the Ruins with the quirkiness of the Boredoms and the compositional integrity of Zappa, Zorn and more, Sajjanu is creating a new Japanese music of infinite possibilities. In addition to releases in Japan, Sajjanu’s album Pechiku!! was released in 2009 on John Zorn’s New York-based Tzadik label.

Patlabor The Movie, November 13th (Subtitled) & 14th (Dubbed)
(Directed by Mamoru Oshii, 1989, 99min, Digital, Japanese with English Subtitles)

Set in an alternate 1999 in Tokyo where advanced robotic vehicles called Labors are heavily relied on to reshape the city, a maverick team of the Metropolitan Police force tries to uncover and thwart a devilish computer crime aimed at the heart of the Labor industry. As a powerful typhoon approaches the city and the schemes of a mad genius start to take full effect, time is running out for the team of Special Vehicles Section 2 to act on the offensive, or risk citywide devastation by eight thousand Labors gone berserk!

Patlabor The Movie 2, November 13th (Subtitled) & 14th (Dubbed)
(Directed by Mamoru Oshii, 1993, 113min, Digital, Japanese with English Subtitles)

Set three years after the first film, PATLABOR 2 draws police commanders Ki'ichi Gotoh and Shinobu Nagumo into the hunt for Tsuge, a rogue officer of the Japan Self-Defense Forces connected with an escalating wave of terrorist attacks. But the investigation into the plot is guarded by secrets both personal and political, as the awakening fear of terror in Tokyo is slowly answered by the dream-like fade of democracy into martial law... Ominous, beautiful, suspenseful, and poetic, Patlabor 2 deserves the term visionary in every sense of the word.

Electric Button (Moon & Cherry), Saturday, 11/13 – Thursday, 11/18, San Francisco Premiere!

Recalling the traditional “Pink Film” in form – but radically different in the particulars, Yuki Tanada’s ELECTRIC BUTTON manages to be as sweet as it is unsentimental, while effortlessly dancing across the lines of comedy, drama, romance and eroticism.

21 year-old Kenichi Tadokoro (Tasuku Nagaoka) has finally been accepted into a university after his third try at the entrance exam. One day he is virtually shanghaied into joining an erotic fiction writing club by an odd character who seems much too old to be a proper student (veteran film actor Akira Emoto). The club is populated by an odd assortment of characters, including the sole female member, Hazuki Mayama (Noriko Eguchi), who, under a male nom de porn, is also the club’s only published member. When the group engages in a sexually explicit round of shop talk, Tadokoro regales them with his expertise. Mayama, however, to Tadakoro’s horror, easily identifies him as a virgin – out loud, casually, and in front of everyone.

Kamui Gaidan, Friday, 11/19 – Wednesday, 12/1, San Francisco Premiere!
(Directed by Yoichi Sai, 2009, 120min, Digital, Japanese with English subtitles)

Based on the legendary 1970’s Japanese comic book by Sampei Shirato, Kamui Gaidan boasts one of the largest budgets in the history of Japanese film history. Taking you on a journey by land and by sea, Kamui Gaidan is sure to capture the attention of audiences world-wide with its amazing action and colorful story. Set in 17th Century Japan, Kamui Gaidan tells the story of Kamui, an outcast from society who dreams of someday escaping his miserable existence. Feeling that he is left with no alternative, Kamui trains to become a deadly Ninja, killing just to survive. A life of that revolves around kill after kill starts to get to the warrior. Kamui grows to despise the lethal rules that govern the Ninja, prompting him to leave the only world he knows. Now a fugitive from his former clan, Kamui goes on the run towards an uncertain future. The Ninja’s view on life changes after an incident brings him to a fisherman’s family. It is there he finally starts to open up to other people. Meanwhile, those hunting him are setting their trap.

TokyoScope Talk, Vol. 7 – NINJA ATTACK! Saturday, 11/20 at 12:15pm

The ninja – Japan’s famed shadow warriors of legend – are the subject of the next TokyoScope Talk film event.

Presented by host Patrick Macias (Editor, Otaku USA) and produced in association with Matt Alt, co-author of the new book Ninja Attack! True Tales of Assassins, Samurai, and Outlaws (published by Kodansha International), this presentation will explore the historical and pop culture legacy of the original men (and women!) in black.

Gasp in amazement as rare clips from assorted movies, anime, and TV programs such as Shinobi no Mono, Red Mask, Shogun Assassin, Dagger of Kamui, and Alien vs. Ninja reveal the over-the-top skills, weapons, and deadly techniques of these fearsome martial artists!

All attendees will be entered into a raffle to win free copies of the Ninja Attack! book!

Mishima Retrospective: 11/26 Fri – 12/1 Wed
To honor the 40th anniversary of the death of renowned actor Yukio Mishima on November 25th, 1970, VIZ Cinema proudly presents the Mishima Retrospective which showcases three films inspired by his novel, his life and his work as an actor.

Ken
Directed by Kenji Misumi, 1964, 94min, Japanese with English subtitles)

Based on Yukio Mishima's short story published in 1963, the story revolves around the story of the captain of a university kendo club – Kokubu – and his relationships with other members of the club, his family, women, and modern society in general.

Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters
(Directed by Paul Schrader, 1985, 120min, Japanese with English subtitles)

A visually stunning, collage-like portrait of acclaimed Japanese author and playwright Yukio Mishima (played by Ken Ogata), this film investigates the inner turmoil and contradictions of a man who attempted an impossible harmony between self, art, and society. Taking place on Mishima’s last day, when he famously committed public seppuku, the film is punctuated by extended flashbacks to the writer’s life as well as by gloriously stylized evocations of his fictional works.

Afraid to Die
(Directed by Yasuzo Masumura, 1960, 96min, Japanese with English subtitles)

Yukio Mishima stars in this New Wave cult film playing the role of Takeo, a youthful yakuza who turns back to his criminal ways after leaving prison. Takeo finds himself embroiled in the business of assassinations, revenge and violence, and must struggle to keep alive for the love of his family and girlfriend, Yoshie.

VIZ Cinema is the nation’s only movie theatre devoted exclusively to Japanese film and anime. The 143-seat subterranean theatre is located in the basement of the NEW PEOPLE building and features plush seating, digital as well as 35mm projection, and a THX®-certified sound system.


About NEW PEOPLE
NEW PEOPLE offers the latest films, art, fashion and retail brands from Japan and is the creative vision of the J-Pop Center Project and VIZ Pictures, a distributor and producer of Japanese live action film. Located at 1746 Post Street, the 20,000 square foot structure features a striking 3-floor transparent glass façade that frames a fun and exotic new environment to engage the imagination into the 21st Century. A dedicated web site is also now available at: http://www.newpeopleworld.com/.

"Detroit Metal City" Arriving on DVD in November

THE MOST DIOBOLOCAL HEAVY METAL SINGER FROM JAPAN IS UNLEASHED ON THE U.S. IN HILARIOUS COMEDY DETROIT METAL CITY NEW ON DVD FROM VIZ PICTURES

Film Based On A Popular Manga Series And Features Appearances By Gene Simmons Of KISS And Marty Friedman Of MEGADETH

VIZ Pictures, an affiliate of VIZ Media, LLC that focuses on Japanese live-action film distribution, has announced the DVD release on November 9th of Detroit Metal City. The live-action comedy, directed by Toshio Lee and based on the popular manga comic created by Kiminori Wakasugi, is presented in Japanese with English subtitles and will carry an MSRP of $24.92 U.S. / $35.99 CAN.

To celebrate the release, VIZ Pictures has scheduled a special one-night-only screening of Detroit Metal City at 7:15pm on Tuesday, November 4th at VIZ Cinema, located inside NEW PEOPLE in the heart of San Francisco’s Japantown (1746 Post St., San Francisco CA 94115).

Deluxe tickets to the screening are $25.00 and include a pass to the film, a copy of the new DVD, a poster and stickers, and entry into a raffle for several fun DETROIT METAL CITY premiums. Prizes will be awarded and attendees are invited to also enjoy complementary beverages before the show. Regular admission tickets are $10.00 (for film only). Please visit www.viz-pictures.com or www.vizcinema.com for complete details.

Detroit Metal City takes the zany rock antics inspired by films like Spinal Tap to hilarious new extremes in this story, based on a popular manga comic created by Kiminori Wakasugi that has sold more than 4.5 million copies in Japan (and published in North America by VIZ Media). It features notable appearances by Gene Simmons from the legendary band, KISS, and Marty Friedman of Megadeth, and stars Kenichi Matsuyama, one of the most adored actors in Japan today and known widely for his role as 'L' in the Death Note films (also available from VIZ Pictures).

“Detroit Metal City is a delightfully funny film that is a must-see for any rock fan,” says Seiji Horibuchi, President and CEO of VIZ Pictures. “Actor Kenichi Matsuyama brings the character of Johannes Krauser II to life in an inventive slapstick performance takes hints from Jim Carrey, Johnny Rotten and Alice Cooper. We look forward to audiences discovering this hilarious comedy that shows how fame isn’t all it’s cracked up to be when you’re the most diabolical, foul – and popular – heavy metal singer in Japan.”

In the film, Soichi Negishi (played by Kenichi Matsuyama) is a sweet and shy young man who dreams of becoming a trendy singer songwriter. But for some reason, he is forced into joining the devil worshiping death metal band “Detroit Metal City” (DMC). In full stage make-up and costume, he transforms into Johannes Krauser II the vulgar-mouthed lead vocalist of the band. But he must keep this a secret from his crush, Yuri Aikawa, who despises death metal. What would she think if she found out? But against Negishi’s will, DMC rises to stardom. Things get even more complicated when the legendary king of death metal, Jack IL Dark (played by Gene Simmons), challenges DMC to a duel in the film’s climatic finale. What will be the fate of innocent Negishi as he climbs to the top of the death metal world?

For more information on Detroit Metal City or other VIZ Pictures titles, please visit http://www.viz-pictures.com/.


About VIZ Pictures, Inc.:
Based in San Francisco, California, VIZ Pictures, Inc. licenses and distributes selective Japanese live-action films and DVDs, with focus on Japanese "kawaii (cute) and cool" pop culture. VIZ Pictures strives to offer the most entertaining motion pictures straight from the "Kingdom of Pop" for audiences of all ages, especially the manga and anime generation, in North America. Some titles include DEATH NOTE, 20TH CENTURY BOYS, and TRAIN MAN: DENSHA OTOKO. VIZ Pictures is also the producer of NEW PEOPLE, a part of the J-Pop Center Project, a unique entertainment destination bringing Japanese pop culture through film, art, fashion, and retail products. For more information please visit www.viz-pictures.com or http://www.newpeopleworld.com/.

Music Documentary "77 Boadrum" at New People

NOISE POP MEETS J-POP IN A MUSICAL SCREENING OF 77 BOADRUM AS A SPECIAL WEEK OF NIGHTLY EVENTS CONTINUES AT NEW PEOPLE

J-Pop Week Offers 5 Nights Of Pop Culture Inspired Film, Fashion, Music And Anime Events That Culminate In J-Pop Summit Festival On Saturday September 18th

NEW PEOPLE teams up with Noise Pop, organizers of the leading independent music festival in the Bay Area, for a special theatrical presentation of 77 Boadrum on Thursday, September 16th at 7:30pm at VIZ Cinema. A pre-screening reception begins at 6:00pm, hosted by Shochu distiller Haamomii.

77 Boadrum is a documentary of the Japanese free-rock group the Boredoms’s astounding concert that took place July 7th, 2007 at 7:07pm in the Empire-Fulton Ferry State Park in Brooklyn, NY and featured 77 drummers performing simultaneously. The film will be preceded by a music video screening of Cornelius’ Synchronized & Sensurround. General admission tickets for the film screening are $10.00.

The Boredoms are one of Japan’s most iconoclastic experimental musical acts. Formed in Osaka in 1986 by Eye Yamataka, along with frequent collaborator Yoshimi, the Boredoms acknowledge no limits of genre or form, there are no boundaries, and no ceiling on the possibilities of experience and expression. For more than 20 years, the band has redefined the concept of noise and experimentation within pop, punk, and psychedelic music.

For a pre-event reception beginning at 6:00pm, NEW PEOPLE will offer J-Pop gift bags and present inventive spirits and beverages provided by Bay Area Shochu distiller, Haamonii. Haamonii is a new low calorie Japanese spirit created from over 400 years of tradition that mixes like vodka but with far less calories and a very smooth, floral-inspired taste. Haamonii, which means harmony in Japanese, also won a gold medal from the Beverage Tasting Institute.

J-Pop Week continues at NEW PEOPLE every night through Friday, September 17th with a variety of events celebrating Japanese and Asian film, anime, fashion design, music and other forms of pop culture. Special gift bags containing a variety of fun premiums will be given to all ticket holders each night. Check www.J-Pop.com for a complete list of nightly events.

The J-Pop Summit Festival 2010 takes place Saturday, September 18th in San Francisco’s Japantown and will present a variety of fun Japanese pop-inspired attractions including fashion shows, a theatrical film premiere, live art performances, and mini-concerts by some of Japan’s hottest bands. Innovative artists and companies from the Bay area and Japan will join in with an array of products for sale in open air displays on both sides of Post Street and a food court highlighting Japanese cuisine will further complement the celebration. Complete details are available at: www.J-Pop.com.

VIZ Cinema is the nation’s first movie theatre devoted exclusively to Japanese film and anime. The 143-seat subterranean theatre is located in the basement of the NEW PEOPLE building and features plush seating, digital as well as 35mm projection, and a THX®-certified sound system.


About Noise Pop
Established in San Francisco in 1993, Noise Pop started as a yearly festival of independent music that featured the best local bands the city had to offer. Over the last 16 years it has grown into a widely respected brand. Noise Pop prides itself on bringing exposure to emerging artists, many of whom have gone on to widespread acclaim, including the White Stripes, Modest Mouse, The Flaming Lips, Death Cab for Cutie, The Shins, Bright Eyes, The Donnas, Jeff Tweedy (of Wilco) and Silversun Pickups. More info at: www.noisepop.com

About NEW PEOPLE
NEW PEOPLE offers the latest films, art, fashion and retail brands from Japan and is the creative vision of the J-Pop Center Project and VIZ Pictures, a distributor and producer of Japanese live action film. Located at 1746 Post Street, the 20,000 square foot structure features a striking 3-floor transparent glass façade that frames a fun and exotic new environment to engage the imagination into the 21st Century. A dedicated web site is also now available at: www.NewPeopleWorld.com.

VIZ Cinema Presents "5 Centimeters Per Second"

J-POP WEEK CONTINUES AS NEW PEOPLE, ANIME ON DISPLAY AND CRUNCHYROLL PRESENT

5 CENTIMETERS PER SECOND FILM EVENT AT VIZ CINEMA

Fans Are Invited To A Week Of Nightly Events Leading Up To The J-Pop Summit Fest 2010

Next Tuesday, September 14th, NEW PEOPLE and VIZ Cinema partner with leading online content provider Crunchyroll and San Francisco’s very own anime convention, Animation On Display (AOD), for a special theatrical event for director Makoto Shinkai's acclaimed anime feature film 5 Centimeters Per Second.

The ANIME NIGHT premiere includes a pre-show reception party as well as a Q&A session about the film, which screens at 7:00pm and 8:45pm. VIZ Cinema is located inside NEW PEOPLE at 1746 Post St. in the heart of San Francisco’s Japantown. General admission tickets for the film screening are $10.00.

All attendees will also receive a special gift bag containing:

1. A re-mastered retail DVD of 5 Centimeters Per Second, courtesy of Crunchyroll.
2. Certificate for a "Buy One, Get One Free" tickets for AOD's upcoming 2011 convention
3. Free one-month Crunchyroll anime membership

Along with a myriad of other great gifts from Pocky, Red Bull and more! A $60 value for only $10!

The first 25 paid attendees for either screening will also receive a FREE one-day pass to Anime On Display 2011, the Bay Area’s largest annual anime convention.

Beginning with the lyrical image of cherry blossoms falling at five centimeters a second, Makoto Shinkai paints a breathtakingly vivid tableau of young love desire loss and hope. Told in three breathtaking chapters, audiences follow the young dreamer Takaki through his life as cruel winters, cold technology, silence, and finally, adult obligations and responsibility converge to crush the delicate petals of true love.

ANIME NIGHT is part of NEW PEOPLE’s J-Pop Week, offering five consecutive nights of pop culture inspired events that culminate with the J-Pop Summit Festival 2010, on Saturday, September 18th in San Francisco’s Japantown. Tickets and more information are now available on www.J-Pop.com.

The J-Pop Summit Festival 2010 presents a variety of fun Japanese pop-inspired attractions including fashion shows, a theatrical film premiere, live art performances, and mini-concerts by some of Japan’s hottest bands. Innovative artists and companies from the Bay area and Japan will join in with an array of products for sale in open air displays on both sides of Post Street and a food court highlighting Japanese cuisine will further complement the celebration. More details are available at: http://www.j-pop.com/.

VIZ Cinema is the nation’s first movie theatre devoted exclusively to Japanese film and anime. The 143-seat subterranean theatre is located in the basement of the NEW PEOPLE building and features plush seating, digital as well as 35mm projection, and a THX®-certified sound system.


About NEW PEOPLE
NEW PEOPLE offers the latest films, art, fashion and retail brands from Japan and is the creative vision of the J-Pop Center Project and VIZ Pictures, a distributor and producer of Japanese live action film. Located at 1746 Post Street, the 20,000 square foot structure features a striking 3-floor transparent glass façade that frames a fun and exotic new environment to engage the imagination into the 21st Century. A dedicated web site is also now available at: www.NewPeopleWorld.com.

VIZ Cinema Presents the Bad Girls

BAD GIRLS & WILD WOMEN OPEN A FUN FILLED WEEK OF J-POP INSPIRED EVENTS AT NEW PEOPLE

Shochu Distiller Haamonii Hosts Pre-Show Reception; TokyoScope DELUXE Is The 1st of 5 Nights Of Pure Japanese Pop Culture Leading Up To The J-Pop Summit Festival 2010 On September 18th

NEW PEOPLE and VIZ Cinema have announced a very special session of the popular TokyoScope Talk DELUXE film lecture series with a look at sexy cinematic vixens in Bad Girls & Wild Women on Monday, September, 13th at 6:00pm.

The evening will be complemented by a rare theatrical screening of the classic “pinky violence” prison film Female Prisoner #701: Scorpion. Adults only due to mature subject matter; 18+ General admission tickets for the discussion and film screening are $20.00.

TokyoScope Talk DELUXE: Bad Girls & Wild Women finds hosts Patrick Macias (Editor, Otaku USA), delving into the dark world of Stray Cats, Female Prisoners, Delinquent Bosses and other sexy bad girl roles from Japanese cult cinema. For the “DELUXE” session of the series, Macias will introduce the history of classic pinky violence, followed by director Shunya Ito’s film, Female Prisoner #701: Scorpion (1972), which is based on a manga comic series by Toru Shinohara, and epitomized the exploitation film genre that was popular in Japan the 70s. This event will also be followed by an after-party and Q&A.

For the pre-event reception beginning at 6:00pm, NEW PEOPLE will offer J-Pop gift bags and present inventive spirits and beverages from Shochu distiller Haamonii. Haamonii is a new low calorie Japanese spirit created from over 400 years of tradition that mixes like vodka but with far less calories and a very smooth, floral-inspired taste. Haamonii, which means harmony in Japanese, won a gold medal from the Beverage Tasting Institute and is hand‐crafted in small batches in the San Francisco Bay Area.

This lively event also kicks off J-Pop Week, offering five consecutive nights of pop culture inspired events that culminate with the J-Pop Summit Festival 2010, on Saturday, September 18th in San Francisco’s Japantown. Tickets are now available on www.J-Pop.com.

J-Pop Week continues at NEW PEOPLE every night through Friday, September 17th with a variety of events celebrating Japanese and Asian film, anime, fashion design, music and other forms of pop culture. Special gift bags containing a variety of fun premiums will be given to all ticket holders each night. Check www.J-Pop.com for a complete list of nightly events.

The J-Pop Summit Festival 2010 will present a variety of fun Japanese pop-inspired attractions including fashion shows, a theatrical film premiere, live art performances, and mini-concerts by some of Japan’s hottest bands. Innovative artists and companies from the Bay area and Japan will join in with an array of products for sale in open air displays on both sides of Post Street and a food court highlighting Japanese cuisine will further complement the celebration. More details are available at: www.J-Pop.com.

VIZ Cinema is the nation’s first movie theatre devoted exclusively to Japanese film and anime. The 143-seat subterranean theatre is located in the basement of the NEW PEOPLE building and features plush seating, digital as well as 35mm projection, and a THX®-certified sound system.


About NEW PEOPLE
NEW PEOPLE offers the latest films, art, fashion and retail brands from Japan and is the creative vision of the J-Pop Center Project and VIZ Pictures, a distributor and producer of Japanese live action film. Located at 1746 Post Street, the 20,000 square foot structure features a striking 3-floor transparent glass façade that frames a fun and exotic new environment to engage the imagination into the 21st Century. A dedicated web site is also now available at: http://www.newpeopleworld.com/.

VIZ Cinema Offers Summer Climax in "The People I've Slept With"

VIZ CINEMA ANNOUNCES A CLIMACTIC SUMMER ROSTER WITH SEPTMEBER FILM SCREENINGS

The People I’ve Slept With, Death Note Blu-Ray Celebration, Detroit Metal City, 9/11 Documentary Festival, And Special Events For J-POP Summit Week Are Announced!

VIZ Cinema, the nation’s only movie theatre dedicated to Japanese film, has announced an intriguing new line-up of films and premiere events set to take place at the venue throughout the month of September.

Also just announced are a range of very special events to kick off the J-Pop Summit Festival 2010, which spotlights Japanese pop culture in a unique all-day celebration that takes over San Francisco’s Japantown on Saturday, September 18th.

New films for September include the third installment of the Bay Area Filmmakers Series, which presents the romantic comedy, The People I’ve Slept With, directed by Quentin Lee. A highly anticipated screening of Death Note and Death Note II: the Last name, based on the popular manga/anime series, is next, and will also mark the release of the films in a new Blu-ray collection from VIZ Pictures. A special screening of Satoshi Kon’s anime masterpiece Paprika is also set.

Marking the anniversary of 9/11, VIZ Cinema presents the 9/11 Truth Film Festival which presents several documentaries that explore the tragic events from several new points of view and trace the global impact of the World Trade Center attacks in 2001.

And finally, NEW PEOPLE gets ready to celebrate the 2010 J-Pop Summit Festival with a series of pop culture cinematic events leading up to the premiere of the raucous death metal comedy Detroit Metal City on September 18th. More details on the J-Pop Summit Festival are available at www.J-Pop.com.

Advance tickets, screening times and more details are available at: www.vizcinema.com.

The People I’ve Slept With, September 3rd – September 9th
(Directed by Quentin Lee, 2009, 89 min, Digital, English Language)

The People I’ve Slept With is a sexy comedy about a promiscuous woman who finds herself with an unplanned pregnancy and needs to figure out who the baby daddy is…NOW. Film stars Karin Anna Cheung (Better Luck Tomorrow), Wilson Cruz (My So Called Life) and Archie Kao (CSI). Co-sponsored by Frameline. A special Opening Night Event is scheduled for Friday, September 3rd at 7:00pm and will include a reception and Q&A with Director Quentin Lee. Tickets are now available for $15.00. No discounts apply.

Death Note Day: Death Note Collection Blu-ray Release Special Event, September 4th
(Directed by Shusuke Kaneko, 2006, 120min (Death Note), 140 min (Death Note II), Digital, Japanese with English subtitles)

VIZ Pictures celebrates its first Blu-ray release Death Note Collection with Death Note Day showing both Death Note & Death Note II on the brand new Blu-ray version with the vivid high-def visuals and THX sound at VIZ Cinema. Death Note is a psycho thriller film based on the bestselling manga and anime series. Tickets are $10.00 for each film or $15.00 for both screenings. $35.00 Special Blu-ray Package includes tickets to both screenings, the new Blu-ray and poster!

Paprika, September 11th
(Directed by Satoshi Kon, 2006,Digital, Japanese with English subtitles)

In memory of one of the greatest anime directors Satoshi Kon, who passed away at the age of 49 on August 24th, VIZ Cinema celebrates his work with a screening his masterpiece Paprika. This sci-fi epic centers on a new invention called the DC-Mini. With this revolutionary device, psychiatrists are now able to enter a patient's dreams in a therapeutic setting. But when an unknown assailant steals the devices, using them to manipulate people’s minds and the thin line between the conscious and the unconscious begins to blur. Yes Paprika challenges the same theme as Inception over 4 years ahead, but in incredible and breathtaking world of anime. Tickets are $10.00.

9/11 Truth Film Festival; Friday, 9/10 – Sunday 9/12

Join VIZ Cinema for the 9/11 Truth Film Festival and delve into the investigations and efforts to uncover what really happened on September 11, 2001. Tickets are $10.00 for each film.

Opening Night: Double Feature with Q&A, Friday, September 10th

9/11: Press For Truth (Q&A with filmmakers to follow)
(Directed by Ray Nowosielski, 2006, 75min, Digital, English Language)

The political becomes personal in 9/11: Press for Truth, which examines the World Trade Center attacks from the perspective of the families that lost loved ones.

Hypothesis
(Directed by Brett Smith, 2010, 48 min, Digital, English Language)

Hypothesis is a short documentary on Dr. Steven Jones and his 9/11 research on the destruction of the Twin Towers and WTC 7. The film tells Dr. Jones’ story in his own words and reflects the explosive controversy that ensued which resulted in everything from threats and bribes to academic suspension.

Double Feature of 9/11: Press For Truth and Hypothesis will also be screened on Sunday, September 12th.

Zero: An investigation to 9/11, Saturday, September 11th
(Directed by Francesco Tre, Franco Fracassi, 2007, 104min, Digital, Italian w/ English subtitles)

This feature documentary from Italian production company Telemaco explores the new scientific evidence and reveals dramatic new eyewitness testimony which directly conflicts with the U.S. Government’s account. Featuring presentations from intellectual heavy weights, Gore Vidal, and Nobel Prize winner Dario Fo, the film challenges many assumptions surrounding the attacks.

Loose Change 9/11: An American Coup, Saturday, September 11th
(Directed by Dylan Avery, 2009, 99min, Digital, English Language)

With the departure of the Bush Administration and the arrival of an era of transparency, new information has been disclosed that sheds more light on the events that took place before and after 9/11. Dramatically narrated by Daniel Sunjata of FX’s Rescue Me, and an outspoken advocate for the First Responders, Loose Change 9/11: An American Coup presents a wide array of evidence both known and unknown…until now.

War Promises, Saturday, September 11th and Sunday, September 12th
(Edited by Frank Hofer, 2009, 75min, Digital, German with English Subtitles)

In German documentary War Promises, insiders and whistleblowers try to bring what they know about to the public, including Annie Machon, who was a spy with the British MI5, and Andreas von Bülow and Jürgen Elsässer, who possess enormous insider knowledge from their membership in the parliamentary committee supervising the secret services.

False Flag, Saturday, September 11th and Sunday, September 12th
(Edited by Frank Hofer, 2007, 75min, Digital, German w/ English subtitles)

False Flag focuses on the inconsistencies in the official version of the events and the evidence that has been suppressed regarding 9/11. It also seeks to answer why we still know nothing about it and why we are being deceived – as well as in Europe.

J-POP SUMMIT WEEK: Pre-Festival Events + Festival Day

Monday, September 13th – Saturday, September 18th
From September 13th to 17th (Mon-Fri), NEW PEOPLE and VIZ Cinema will host films, anime, fashion, music and other forms of J-pop culture in a series of nightly events! Special gift bags will be given to all ticket holders each night.

TOKYOSCOPE TALK, Vol. 6: Bad Girls & Wild Women featuring Female Prisoner #701: Scorpion

Monday, September 13th at 7:00pm (Happy Hour starts at 6:00pm)
★ followed by screening of Female Prisoner #701: Scorpion
(Directed by Shunya Ito, 1973, 87min. Japanese with English subtitles)

Join host Patrick Macias (Editor, Otaku USA) for a unique look at sexy Stray Cats, Female Prisoners, Delinquent Bosses and other captivating and sexy bad girl roles from Japanese cinema. The evening will be complemented by a theatrical screening of the lurid prison film Female Prisoner #701: Scorpion. Adults only due to mature subject matter; 18+ General admission tickets for the discussion and film screening are $20.00.

ANIME NIGHT with Anime On Display & Crunchyroll
Tuesday, September 14th at 7:00pm and 8:45pm (Happy Hour and VIP Party starts at 7:30pm)

★ 2 Screenings of 5 Centimeters Per Second at 7pm & 8:45pm

Animation On Display, S.F.’s very own anime convention, joins forces with online content provider Crunchyroll for a theatrical presentation of Makoto Shinkai’s 5 Centimeters Per Second. Come meet other anime fans and join the fun with a special evening celebrating anime! General admission tickets are $10.00.

NOISE POP MEETS J-POP: Film Screening of 77 Boadrum

Preceded by Cornelius’ Music Video – Synchronized & Sensurround
Thursday, September 16th at 7:30pm (Happy Hour starts at 6:00pm)

Join Noise Pop, organizers of the leading independent music festival in the Bay Area, for a special theatrical presentation of 77 Boadrum, the official live documentary of the Japanese free-rock group the Boredoms’s live performance featuring 77 drummers at the Empire-Fulton Ferry State Park in Brooklyn, NY. General admission tickets for the film screening are $10.00.

J-POP SUMMIT DAY – Saturday, September 18th

Detroit Metal City; San Francisco Premiere
(Directed by Toshio Lee, 2008, Japan, 104min, 35mm, Japanese with English Subtitles)

Based on the #1 death metal comedy manga series by Kiminori Wakasugi. Negishi (Kenichi Matsuyama) is a sweet and shy young man who dreams of becoming a trendy singer songwriter. But for some reason, he is forced into joining the devil worshiping death metal band “Detroit Metal City” (DMC). In full stage make-up and costume, he transforms into Johannes Krauser II (Sir Krauser) the vulgar-mouthed lead vocalist of the band. Against Negishi’s will, DMC rises to stardom. Now the legendary king of death metal Jack Il Dark (Gene Simmons) himself is challenging DMC to a duel. What is the fate of the innocent Negishi as he climbs to the top of the death metal world? Explicit language, viewer and parental discretion advised.

Also screens September 19th – September 30th

VIZ Cinema is the nation’s only movie theatre devoted exclusively to Japanese film and anime. The 143-seat subterranean theatre is located in the basement of the NEW PEOPLE building and features plush seating, digital as well as 35mm projection, and a THX®-certified sound system.


About NEW PEOPLE
NEW PEOPLE offers the latest films, art, fashion and retail brands from Japan and is the creative vision of the J-Pop Center Project and VIZ Pictures, a distributor and producer of Japanese live action film. Located at 1746 Post Street, the 20,000 square foot structure features a striking 3-floor transparent glass façade that frames a fun and exotic new environment to engage the imagination into the 21st Century. A dedicated web site is also now available at: www.NewPeopleWorld.com.

Death Note Films Coming to Blu-Ray

SHINIGAMI DEATH GODS AND THE HUNT FOR A SERIAL KILLER CONSPIRE IN NEW BLU-RAY DEATH NOTE COLLECTION

Highly Anticipated Double-Feature Release Is Based On Popular Manga And Anime Series And Includes Death Note, Death Note II: The Last Name Feature Films And Bonus Disc

VIZ Pictures, an affiliate of VIZ Media, LLC that focuses on Japanese live-action film distribution, will debut the Blu-ray Death Note Collection on August 24th, 2010. The 3-disc set includes 2 feature films – Death Note and Death Note II: the Last name – as well as a bonus disc containing more than two hours of all new behind-the-scenes footage. Both films feature Japanese audio with English subtitles as well as an English dubbed dialogue track. MSRP for the Death Note Collection is $39.98 U.S. / $57.99 CAN.

To celebrate the new release, VIZ Pictures will hold a special screening of both films at VIZ Cinema, located inside NEW PEOPLE in San Francisco’s Japantown (1746 Post St., San Francisco, CA 94115) on Saturday, September 4th. Death Note plays at 12:00 noon and Death Note II screens at 2:30pm. Special combo tickets are available for $35.00 and include passes for the screenings, the Blu-ray release and a poster. Regular combo tickets are $15.00 for tickets for both shows (no Blu-ray or poster), while general admission for one screening is $10.00. Tickets and information are available at www.vizcinema.com.

As a special offer to U.S. and Canadian Death Note fans, VIZ Pictures will award three lucky winners posters for Death Note and Death Note II along with an autograph from one of the three lead actors – Tatsuya Fujiwara (who played Light), Erika Toda (Misa) and actor Kenichi Matusyama (L/Ryuzaki), one of the most promising actors in Japan, who can also be seen in films such as NANA (2006), Linda Linda Linda (2005) and Detroit Metal City (2008). The campaign runs until September 24th. For more details about the campaign, visit www.viz-pictures.com.

“Death Note is an intense psychological crime thriller and we’re very proud to debut both films in a special new collection on Blu-ray,” says Seiji Horibuchi, President and CEO of VIZ Pictures. “Death Note established a new benchmark for Japanese anime, manga, and film and we invite domestic fans to savor all the tension and imaginative supernatural drama of this exciting new release from VIZ Pictures!”

Death Note is a battle of wits based on the acclaimed manga series written by Tsugumi Ohba and illustrated by Takeshi Obata (published in North America by VIZ Media, rated ‘T+’ for Older Teens). Law student Light is upset with the justice system and when he finds the Death Note dropped by a Shinigami death god, he vows to rid the world of evil. Any human whose name is written in the notebook dies. As criminals all over the world begin to perish mysteriously, a world-renowned detective known only as ‘L’ is put on the case to stop this serial killer that the public calls ‘Kira.” The battle between Light and L continues in Death Note II: the Last name as Light joins the investigation team. L suspects Light of being Kira while Light attempts to learn L’s real name. Time becomes even more crucial with the appearance of a second Kira. Whose name will be the last written in the Death Note?

For more information on Death Note or other VIZ Pictures titles, please visit http://www.viz-pictures.com/.


About VIZ Pictures, Inc.:
Based in San Francisco, California, VIZ Pictures, Inc. licenses and distributes selective Japanese live-action films and DVDs, with focus on Japanese "kawaii (cute) and cool" pop culture. VIZ Pictures strives to offer the most entertaining motion pictures straight from the "Kingdom of Pop" for audiences of all ages, especially the manga and anime generation, in North America. Some titles include DEATH NOTE, 20TH CENTURY BOYS, and TRAIN MAN: DENSHA OTOKO. VIZ Pictures is also the producer of NEW PEOPLE, a part of the J-Pop Center Project, a unique entertainment destination bringing Japanese pop culture through film, art, fashion, and retail products. For more information please visit www.viz-pictures.com or www.newpeopleworld.com.