Recent News
Australia!
One of the big events coming up for us in November is a trip to two cities in Australia for Sushi Typhoon-related events organized by our Oz licensor, the fabulous Monster Pictures. Even though most of the Sushi Typhoon films have been sold to Australia (and Monster also owns the rights to their films in the UK), we rarely participate in events there, simply because it’s so far from both Japan and the U.S., places where we’re based as a company.
That’s all changed, due to the tireless efforts of Monster‘s manager Neil Foley. And so, on November 3rd, HELLDRIVER director Yoshihiro Nishimura and Sushi Typhoon USA rep Marc Walkow will travel first to to the beautiful port city of Brisbane, where they’ll participate in both the Brisbane International Film Festival (which will screen HELLDRIVER on November 4th) and the Supanova Pop Culture Expo, a gigantic comic and fan convention where Nishimura will appear as a guest.
Then, Nishimura and Marc will travel south to Melbourne, where a terrific film festival is being organized by Monster and other partners. It’s the Fantastic Asia Film Festival, running from Nov. 10th – 13th, and they’ll be screening the best in transgressive, over-the-top and just plain crazy cinema from all over Asia. Fantastic Asia will host Nishimura and HELLDRIVER as their Opening Night Film, followed by what promises to be an insane party, and continues through the weekend with screenings of Sushi Typhoon’s DEADBALL, KARATE-ROBO ZABORGAR and YAKUZA WEAPON, as well as films featuring Sushi talent like actress Asami, who gets an afternoon devoted just to her with shows of EROTIBOT and YAKUZA HUNTERS. Asami also appears in Noboru Iguchi’s ZOMBIE ASS, screening at FAFF, and Iguchi is further represented with TOMIE: UNLIMITED. Sushi Typhoon director Sion Sono’s GUILTY OF ROMANCE will screen, as well as Korean films, HK and Chinese films and more! It’s an amazing event and we’re happy to be a part of it, on what marks the first trip to Australia for all of us involved. We can’t wait to get there, and hope to see some of you Down Under.
News Yakuza Weapon Yoshihiro Nishimura
More from Fantastic Fest
Check out some coverage of Noboru Iguchi’s KARATE-ROBO ZABORGAR (as well as his new film ZOMBIE ASS) here.
And a roundup of Day 4 at the festival, with lots of photos from the “Japan Night” karaoke party here.
Noboru Iguchi wins Director prize at Fantastic Fest!
A huge congratulations to director Noboru Iguchi, who won the Best Director prize (Fantastic Features section) at Fantastic Fest 2011 in Austin, Texas! Iguchi had returned to Japan that morning from Texas, unfortunately, but Special Effects Supervisor / Character Designer Yoshihiro Nishimura and actor Demo Tanaka accepted the award on his behalf. Congratulations, director Iguchi!
Sushi Typhoon – coming soon to a DVD or Blu-ray in your own home!
Big news for our North American fans and customers – Sushi Typhoon recently signed a deal for domestic distribution of all our remaining films with stellar Asian film specialist WellGo USA!
This includes YAKUZA WEAPON, MUTANT GIRLS SQUAD, KARATE-ROBO ZABORGAR, DEADBALL and Yoshihiro Nishimura’s zombie epic HELLDRIVER, which will be the first Sushi Typhoon / WellGo USA out of the starting gate, coming to DVD, Blu-ray, VOD and various streaming or download sites this November!
Anyone familiar with WellGo’s track record releasing gorgeous, extras-laden DVDs and Blu-rays of Hong Kong action films like IP MAN 2 and LEGEND OF THE FIST will know what to expect from our upcoming Sushi Typhoon discs. Great-looking, hi-def transfers, lots of extras, beautiful packaging, and wide availability at a bunch of retailers in the US and Canada. To say that we’re all very excited about this partnership is a big understatement – we’re overjoyed!
Watch for an official announcement and release date for HELLDRIVER very soon. In the meantime, check out WellGo’s information page for the film, like them on Facebook, follow them on Twitter, and definitely like their HELLDRIVER Facebook page! Watch for more title-specific pages coming soon, too.
We hope to be doing some additional HELLDRIVER theatrical and midnight screenings around Halloween, too, so if you’ve got a favorite cinematheque in your hometown, give us a shout about it via the Contact page.
Oh, and here’s a tidbit of information you won’t see (yet) anywhere else: the WellGo USA DVD and Blu-ray of HELLDRIVER will feature the longer, uncut, directors version, which has only screened a few times in the world outside of Japan! Along with WellGo, we’re dedicated to bringing our fans only the bloody best, fully uncut and in its original language format. Watch this space for more info, coming soon!
Watch live or archived Q&As in Tokyo via UStream!
Do you UStream? UStream is a popular live streaming / social networking site in Japan, but not so frequently used in North America. The domestic Japanese Sushi Typhoon promotions team have been hard at work doing live-streaming of onstage Q&As from our “Sushi Typhoon Matsuri” in Tokyo, and have also been conducting wall-to-wall lobby interviews with filmmakers and assorted other people during the shows. All in Japanese, of course, but occasionally with a few exceptions or special foreigner guests. They’re well worth watching, at any rate, simply to experience the crazed, wild enthusiasm of the team on their home turf.
If you want to watch live UStream footage from Ginza’s Cine-Pathos, bookmark this link. For a catalog of archived UStream footage, check here.
The Tokyo portion of the Sushi Typhoon Matsuri lasts until August 19th, so there are only a few remaining events. US schedules are a bit difficult because of the time difference, these will all be archived for more convenient viewing.
Upcoming Tokyo Q&As include…
August 12, approx. 8:15 am Eastern time – YAKUZA WEAPON directors Yudai Yamaguchi and Tak Sakaguchi conduct a dream Q&A with master manga creator Go Nagai!
August 13, approx. 6:30 am Eastern time – after HELLDRIVER, Noboru Iguchi will host a preview of the upcoming omnibus film YAMAGAMI-KUN, directed by Iguchi, Yoshihiro Nishimura and Jun Shiozaki, plus a preview of a song debut by actress Maki Mizui!
August 16, approx. 8:00 am Eastern time – ALIEN VS NINJA director Seiji Chiba discusses the film with action director Kensuke Sonomura & special makeup effects creator Soichiro Umezawa, plus other guests.
August 17, approx. 8:00 am Eastern time – ALIEN VS NINJA director Seiji Chiba joins J-horror director Yumeaki Hirayama for a discussion.
August 19, approx. 8:00 am Eastern time – a big blow-out for the final talk event in Tokyo! It’s an all-Sushi Typhoon assembly, with Seiji Chiba, Yudai Yamaguchi, Tak Sakaguchi, Yoshihiro Nishimura, and even Karate-Robo Zaborgar himself!
Past events – archived here – include the following:
July 23 – opening day with all films & tons of guests
July 26 – HELLDRIVER director Yoshihiro Nishimura & actor Takumi Saitoh
July 29 – Zombie Day with HELLDRIVER actor Ken Kishi in full zombie makeup and host Yoshiki Takahashi
August 2 – BATTLEFIELD BASEBALL reunion with star Tak Sakaguchi, director Yudai Yamaguchi, and others
August 5 – DEADBALL director Yudai Yamaguchi, screenwriter Keita Tokaji and band Piano Zombie
August 9 – YAKUZA WEAPON is really going to be made into a game? Find out with director Yudai Yamaguchi
August 10 – YAKUZA WEAPON director Tak Sakaguchi takes on COLD FISH director Sion Sono
Incidentally, the Matsuri moves to Osaka on August 20th, so watch for more events coming soon, from western Japan!
COLD FISH opens this Friday!
Fresh off of its screening at the Fantasia Film Festival in Montreal, Sion Sono’s critically-acclaimed, Japanese box office smash finally comes to US theatres (courtesy of The Collective / Salient Media) starting this Friday, August 5th! Bloody Disgusting has the full details.
After the theatrical run, COLD FISH will come to DVD and iTunes starting 8/23, and to video-on-demand beginning 9/23.
Full theatrical screening details:
NY: August 5 – 12. 9pm evening shows, 1pm Sat & Sun. $1 sake shots during intermission!
-reRun Gastropub Theater, 147 Front Street, Brooklyn, NY 11201
LA: August 6 and 7. 10pm Sat, 6:30pm & 9:50pm on Sun.
-Cinefamily, 611 N. Fairfax Ave., Los Angeles, 90036.
Austin: August 15 thru 18. Check local listings for show times.
-Alamo Drafthouse, 1120 S. Lamar Blvd., Austin TX 78704. (512)476-1320
Phoenix: August 19 thru 20. Check local listings for show times.
-The Royale, 108 W. Main St., Mesa, AZ 85201
Salem, MA: August 26 thru Sept. 1. Check local listings for show times.
-Cinema Salem, 1 East India Square, Salem MA 01970 (978)744-0660
Domestic trailer for COLD FISH!
Twitchfilm has the first look at the North American trailer for director Sion Sono’s acclaimed thriller COLD FISH! Coming to theatres, video-on-demand and home video in August and September, courtesy of The Collective and Bloody Disgusting! Check out the initial list of cinemas where you can see this intense film in its fully uncut, unrated, original language version.
Special trailer for domestic Japanese “Sushi Typhoon matsuri”!
Opening at Tokyo’s Ginza Cine-Pathos on July 23rd, and running for four weeks, is a special festival devoted to four Sushi Typhoon releases that haven’t had a domestic Japanese release yet. Check out the newly-created trailer for it at this link!
Daily screenings of ALIEN VS NINJA, HELLDRIVER, YAKUZA WEAPON and DEADBALL will all take place during this month-long festival, or “matsuri”. Certain ticket-buyers will also receive a special prize: overseas versions of the film’s posters on mini-postcards!
New Rue Morgue magazine hits the stands tomorrow!
And it’s the one with the cover story on Sushi Typhoon! Check out more info on it here.
You can also browse the Rue Morgue Shoppe online to order your very own Splatter Matters 18″ x 24″ art print, suitable for framing. All proceeds benefit victims of the 3/11 earthquake in Japan!
Finally, check out a trailer for the new issue of Rue Morgue here. So much to choose from!
We made the cover of Rue Morgue magazine!
Thanks to our friends at Toronto-based horror and genre magazine Rue Morgue, we’ve made the big time! Our bloody imagery graces the cover of their June issue, which features interviews with all our principal filmmakers and other information about our titles, as well as plenty of bloody stills. Check it out, on sale June 1st!