Ask John: Will Genius Party Ever Be Released in America?

Question:
I found out about Genius Party a few months ago. Just seeing trailers of it and learning about the sequel made me angry that something so good totally missed any kind of promotion in America. Even finding hard information on Genius Party in English takes some serious digging. Is there any chance of Genius Party and Genius Party Beyond getting legit US releases of any kind?

Answer:
This is a difficult prediction to make. Genius Party and its sequel, Genius Party Beyond, had official American screenings at Washington D.C.’s Kennedy Center in February 2008. So the films aren’t totally foreign to American release. However, neither film has ever had a wide American release, nor has either been mentioned for possible American home video release. On a related side note, the acclaimed 2004 anime film Mind Game, from the same studio that produced Genius Party, Studio 4C, also remains unlicensed for American distribution.

I don’t know if corporate or legal red tape stands in the way of American licenses for these Studio 4C productions, although the fact that they’ve had limited North American distribution suggests that’s not the case. Speculatively, I can guess that the primary obstacle preventing these films from reaching America is uncertainty about their market potential. Unlike conventional anime films that thrill viewers with exhilarating action or enthralling story, the Genius Party movies are distinctively “art films.” Consider that similar anime “art films” like Robot Carnival, Angel’s Egg, the Twilight Q OVA series, and the work of animators including Koji Yamamura and Kunio Kato are likewise unavailable in America. Even the few “anime art films” that are available in America, like Labyrinth Tales (“Neo-Tokyo”) and Nekojiru-so (“Cat Soup”) have never been especially successful. The audience for this type of anime is just too small in America to make a major licensing investment a viable business decision.

Works from Studio 4C including Tweeny Witches, Spriggan, and segments of Memories, Batman: Gotham Knight, and The Animatrix have received major American distribution and home video release. So there’s certainly precedent for an American release of Studio 4C works like Genius Party, Mind Game, Princess Arete, and Amazing Nuts. There’s no reason to entirely give up hope on ever seeing the Genius Party movies become conveniently available to American consumers. However, at the same time, a probable domestic release seems anything but.