The Japanese Government Funds DBZ

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QxZamhtx4SM

The Japanese government is funding the new Dragon Ball Z film’s release with a huge donation to Toei, the animators of DBZ. What does this mean for DBZ fans?

CrunchyRoll reports that UNIJAPAN, a non-profit organization established by the Japanese film industry under the supervision of the Government of Japan, is giving Toei Animation 50 million yen ($636,000 USD) to help support the new DBZ film project.

As part of the “Co-production Certification Program” UNIJAPAN promotes and supports the international endeavors of Japanese filmmakers. They work in association with other Japanese governmental sectors, including the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) and the Agency for Cultural Affairs (Bunka-cho).

These are the same organizations promoting the exportation of Japanese pop culture, including anime and video games, which you can see in full force at events like Anime Expo.

There were four qualifying projects to receive financial support, and Toei’s new DBZ film was the only animated feature.

CrunchyRoll states that “Their collaboration country is the United States. It’s enduring international popularity was probably strong enough to convince the judges and the commissioner of the Agency.”

What does that mean for an American release of the film by FUNimation? Will there be a dub? Will the movie premiere in American theaters?

As a fan, do you think this is a smart move by the Japanese government?

My guess is that they’ll make their money back ten fold in J-pop exports.

And I’m glad that DBZ is back in the spotlight! How about you?