- Madman Entertainment
"Madman Entertainment" is an Australian company that specialises in the distribution of Japanese
anime andmanga inAustralia andNew Zealand .According to current market research, Madman accounts for 97% of the total anime DVD market in Australia. During the past 10 years, Madman has secured the local release rights to a number of very popular titles including "
One Piece ", "Dragon Ball Z ", "Neon Genesis Evangelion", "Akira", and almost all ofStudio Ghibli 's catalogue. In addition to DVD sales, Madman also manages the theatrical release of some of their titles, particularly the Studio Ghibli movies.Madman Entertainment was founded in 1996 solely to distribute anime from
Manga Entertainment Australia along withPolygram and Siren Entertainment. Later on in 1997, Madman started to distribute anime from ADV Films along with Siren Entertainment. Madman now sublicense anime from ADV Films, Funimation, Harmony Gold, and formerlyGeneon . Madman has always acted as the distributor for Manga's products until 2003 when Manga Entertainment Australia Ltd merged with Madman. This happened so if Manga lost a license in Australia, Madman would pick it up. If Madman Entertainment lost the license for anime from American companies, Manga UK would sub-license anime to Madman. As of 2008, only some of Manga Entertainment Australia's titles from the 90's have been distributed by Madman. Battle Angel Alita was to be released in Australia by Manga and Madman in 2001, but this was cancelled becauseADV Films had the rights to the OVA's in North America and tried to market it in Australia with a brand new dub.Some of their DVD releases have been jointly mastered with Britain's
MVM Films orRevelation Films to save costs, and are therefore dual-region (Region 2 and Region 4). A few DVD titles from Madman, such as the "Oh My Goddess! " OVAs, are all-region or multi-region DVDs in theNTSC format, imported from the US and repackaged for sale in Australia and New Zealand (which normally usePAL colour).A growing selection of manga titles translated by
TOKYOPOP in theUnited States andChuang Yi inSingapore are being imported and distributed through Madman Entertainment. In February 2008, Madman announced that they would also be distributing manga titles fromViz Media . [ [http://www.madman.com.au/actions/news.do?method=view&newsId=1049 Madman Entertainment - Viz Media & Madman Entertainment Join Forces ] ]Madman launched in 1996 solely as an anime distribution company, but has since expanded exponentially. They manage the distribution of live-action titles through their labels Madman Films, Directors Suite, Madman Sports, Madman Laughs, Madman Television, Bollywood Masala and
Eastern Eye and also children's entertainment through their Planet Mad and Mad4Kids labels. Madman also has a theatrical distribution arm called Madman Cinema. In addition, Madman distributes original series produced by Australia'sSpecial Broadcasting Service onDVD . [ [http://www.madman.com.au/actions/news.do?method=view&newsId=782 Madman Entertainment - Madman and SBS launch Partnership ] ]In 2007, Madman began a licensing agreement to release original
Cartoon Network andAdult Swim series onDVD inAustralia andNew Zealand . [ [http://www.madman.com.au/htmlmail/cartoonnetwork/2007_02_feb/ CARTOON NETWORK & ADULT SWIM | The Inbox Update | February 2007 ] ] Madman also programmedAdult Swim 's anime block in the two countries [ [http://www.madman.com.au/actions/news.do?method=view&newsId=923 Madman Entertainment - Madman takes over Adult Swim Anime from TONIGHT! ] ] until Cartoon Network Australia dropped its entireAdult Swim lineup on January 1, 2008 [ [http://www.animenewsnetwork.com.au/news/2007-12-17/madman-announcements-from-wai-con Madman Announcements from Wai-Con - Anime News Network|AU ] ] .At the 2008
Supanova Pop Culture Expo , Madman announced plans to explore new distribution methods. The company will offer online streaming of selected anime episodes, beginning with the first episode of "School Rumble ". Madman also plans to releaseBlu-ray titles, although no specific titles have been confirmed yet. [ [http://www.animenewsnetwork.com.au/news/2008-03-31/madman-from-supanova-expo Madman News from Supanova Expo] ]In April 2008, Madman announced "a collaboration" with British company
Warp Films . Warp and Madman plan to make "at least 2 films together over the next 3 years." [ [http://www.madman.com.au/actions/news.do?method=view&newsId=1081 Warp Teams with Madman] ]The company is owned by the ASX listed Funtastic Limited. It employs 130 people and has an annual turnover of around $AU50 million. [ [http://www.madman.com.au/actions/about.do?pageId=1 Madman Entertainment ] ]
Otaku Wear
Madman Entertainment has its own Otaku apparel and merchandise that utilises features of popular anime series, such as the Hidden Leaf Sign from "
Naruto ", as well as Madman's own logo.References
External links
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* [http://www.madman.co.nz Madman Entertainment New Zealand home page]
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