The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim

full credits
Company credits
All the information that I could currently find about it. Possibly outsourced to Sola Entertainment, but will have to wait and see.
I for one will likely watch this one, regardless if it is added to MAL.

@Fleeting_Dream

oh god, not this again

I didn't know about this movie's existence before. Sounds grand.

Sadly, I think it is not in the database, simply because it's not eligible due to not being an anime. An animated Western movie, even if the director is Japanese, doesn't meet the MAL requirements to be called as an anime.

@Adnash The director is Japanese, Kamiyama Kenji even directed an episode of Star Wars: Visions wich is on fact in MAL, also one of the 3 studios involved is also Japanese, Sola Entertainment of Sola Digital Arts, wich made animes like Tower of God, The God of High School among others, and all of them are in MAL's database. So yes, LOTR: The War of Rohirrim is an anime, by MAL's standars.

@perocles98 That's assuming Kamiyama is the sole director. It he's merely co-directing, and the other director is not Japanese, then it's not eligible for inclusion. Let's wait and see.

Meanwhile I can't browse the popular anime tab without being flooded with pin'yin """""anime""""" titles cluttering the results.
It's been 8 years and no filtering options have been added.

I suggest that if Westerners want their fake anime to be included in the Database, then they should learn the Xi Ji Ping style of diplomacy and start making generous donations to MAL behind the curtains. That's the best definition for anime you can find out there.

@Old_School_Akira, we'll have to wait to see if AniDB, and Anilist add this title to their database. If they do it, then it's an anime. Then by default, MAL will have to add it no matter what. Although I am baffled why Catwoman: Hunted is not counted as anime despite animation being done by OLM Inc, and directed by a well-known Japanese director who has racked up a huge resume. I mean look at this, and tell me how is this not anime:

I don't know if it ever received a Japanese dub @JoeChip, but then again Afro Samurai and Cipher don't have any Japanese language audio at all, and yet they're still count as anime (and are both on MAL database). If Afro Samurai and Cipher can be considered as anime despite not having any Japanese voice-acting at all, then Catwoman: Hunted should also be in the same rank, and should be classified as anime too.

@mdo7

Afro Samurai and Cipher are entirely Japanese productions though whereas Catwoman Hunted is largely an American proıduction based on a comic book. I am not sure if it's even released for Japanese market unlike Afro Samurai and Cipher.

@JoeChip Batman: Gotham Knights, Halo Legends, Star Wars: Visions, and even Afro Samurai: Resurrection (the sequel to Afro Samurai) were US-Japanese co-productions. Hell Little Nemo was a US-Japanese co-production and animated film has been re-classified as an anime due to new evidence (ie: the 3 anime pilots that pre-dated the final product, and the fact that Little Nemo came out in Japan first before the US), and even MAL recognized the anime as anime on their database despite being a co-production.

Afro Samurai was a co-production between US and Japan given that the voice-acting was done in English, and RZA of the Wu-Tang Clan contributed to the soundtrack, and it was broadcasted first in the US before Japan. And Afro Samurai is still an anime despite whatever I just mention. So if Afro Samurai can still be an anime despite whatever I said, then Catwoman: Hunted should be classified as an anime.

@Barusamikosu Uh, you do know that MAL has Korean titles on there too, we have a lot of Korean and Chinese titles on MAL too. So how's that any different?

They added Terminator Zero. So they can add this too.

They added Terminator Zero. So they can add this too.

new trailer https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gCUg6Td5fgQ

the director is japanese so it fits the database rules of at least one creative staff from japan

New poster. Please add it.

Sorry people, but this movie will not be added. Kenji Kamiyama's involvement is not enough to make it eligible. It's still considered to be an American production.

@AnimeCAC, who is producer?
who pays?

if japanese producer gives the all fund for movie is anime
if western producer gives the all fund for movie is "Western product"
if japanese producer gives 30% fund and western producer gives 70% fund is co production but is "Western product"

no matter who animate it is important who pays for this

japanese producer can hire western animators or english voice actors to make anime for japanese market and is anime

@AnimeCAC,



Source: https://myanimelist.net/forum/?topicid=141101

Who pays for everything or more than others have rights for movie.
That's why some producers don't want to share the costs with others producers and invest in everything because they want to get the most profit.
if movie become hit and Japanese manufacturer will want to make figurines or other merchandise with character from this movie, they will have to get licenses and project approval from USA producers and have to share profits with them.

Lord of the Rings is anime, because is made by japanese studio in compare to other anime-influenced,
but doesn't qualify to MAL datebase.

Some countries co-finance movies, to keep "rights", but some even if is made/created, shot in the director's country,
if producer is from diffrent country it will be marked as that other country production.

When manga gets anime, publishing magazine get more money than mangaka who made it.
If you want know how anime/manga industry works.
Just go to watch Bakuman or Shirobako, they show quite realistically show how is it.

@LittleStar I hear you, but I think this definition is unclear, yet I would argue even with this unclear definition it should still be accepted.

Lord of the Rings: War of the Rohirrim is made in Japan for the Japanese market. It is also made for the Western market after being created in Japan, like so many Anime dubs we enjoy today. A classic case of "both and"...

This is why the western studios who held the rights to Lord of the Rings made the partnership. It expands western media into Japan in a way that is by Japan and for Japan, and it also helps popularize anime in the west, and enables grand story-telling in a way that is very difficult to achieve in live-action.

It is a partnership that hands off the creation, animation and directing to be authentically Japanese and authentically anime. The funding, again, is somewhat arbitrary to real question - is it made by the Japanese and for the Japanese? Yes. It also made for more than just the Japanese market, but this doesn't invalidate the former. To repeat myself, it is "both and", and therefore fits the criteria quite clearly imo. All anime has in mind the worldwide market, even if it is secondary to their concerns. "For Japan" doesn't indicate exclusivity, even if I think the definition doesn't strike the heart of the definition.

@AnimeCAC
In what way is this movie "made by Japan and for Japan"? The script is Western, design works and creative direction lie largely with Western creators (who previously worked on the LOTR movie series), the music is composed by a New Zealand composer (who was the music editor for The Hobbit), the original voice cast is Western, even the animation is done on the basis of motion capture recorded by the cast, presumably outside of Japan. They haven't even revealed a Japanese cast. The producer side of things is also dominated by Western names. Sola are the only Japanese name on there. So how much creative work is really left for the Japanese staff? How does a movie that doesn't even have a Japanese version appeal to Japanese audiences? I can see that this isn't just Rankin-Bass style outsourcing, but can you really say that this is a Japanese film made for Japan? Isn't this really a largely western affair with the minimal amount of importance ceded to Japanese creators to be able to maybe claim it's anime and profit from that marketing bonus?