Rahul Purini, President of Crunchyroll, recently commented on the debate surrounding the definition of “anime” – and took a clear position.
Crunchyroll draws a clear line
In a conversation with The Hollywood Reporter, Purini explained that Crunchyroll continues to closely associate the medium of anime with Japan and that in his opinion a work can only be described as “authentic anime” if it was actually conceived and produced in Japan.
In this way, the streaming service consciously differentiates itself from productions that are strongly inspired by anime but originate outside of Japan. Series such as “Avatar – The Lord of the Elements”, “Castlevania” and “RWBY” are well-known examples.
Interestingly, this definition would also apply to some well-known Crunchyroll titles such as “Solo Leveling” or “The Beginning After the End,” as their original stories also do not come from Japan.
Discussion about anime remains
For years, fans and industry representatives around the world have been grappling with the question of how the term “anime” should actually be defined. A few days ago, former Manga Entertainment managing director Jerome Mazandarani sparked new discussions on this topic with his comments.
Among other things, he explained that many animators from the West would like to implement projects with anime influences more often. However, such productions are often difficult to realize outside of Japan, even though anime is no longer viewed exclusively as a Japanese medium.
The Crunchyroll president, on the other hand, takes a much stricter stance, but at the same time made it clear that anime is no longer a genre, but rather an independent medium with a wide variety of stories and target groups. The cultural influence continues to grow worldwide.
But what do you think of this discussion? Should “anime” only refer to productions from Japan or is it more the style and presentation of a work that counts for you? Please let us know in the comments!
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Via The Hollywood Reporter
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