30th APRIL 2009 – MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
After six years expanding and diversifying, establishing relationships and a strong presence in areas ranging from Arthouse Cinema to Feature Documentaries, Siren Visual turns their attention to the mainstream anime market in 2009 with a slate of new releases and re-issues. Beginning in May, Siren will aim to release two anime titles per month, building up the catalogue aggressively over the next year.
“Anime in Australia has reached a maturation point over the last few years” says General Manager Eric Cherry, “Madman has done an excellent job, but no market can achieve its true potential through only one company. With Siren’s history in the genre mixed with some fresh blood in the office, we’re in a good position to become a reliable supplier for the market.”
Siren plans to release Anime titles on DVD more in-line with the Japanese market. “The lag-time between the Japanese broadcast date and the English speaking world’s DVD release leaves no room for growth in the market” says Cherry. “Some factors behind this are unavoidable, but an English dub shouldn’t be one of them. A lot of people prefer the Japanese audio track and that’s who we’re targeting with the initial, subtitle-only releases.”
Siren plans to re-issue English dub versions of titles subject to their availability at a cheaper price point with incentives built-in for those who purchased the subtitle versions. Beginning in May, Siren will re-release the classic OVA IRIA and 13 Ep series NIGHTWALKER (both dubbed/sub versions), following in June with the brilliant, mind-bending GENIUS PARTY from Studio 4c and the TV series Tower of Druaga: The Aegis of Uruk (sub only versions).
Established in 1994, Siren Visual was the first company representing Anime in Australia, having distributed the Manga UK label, Madman and individual titles such as Pokémon throughout the 1990’s. In the year 2000 distribution activities ceased and Siren became a standalone licensing company, outsourcing distribution briefly to the AV Channel, followed by Shock Records and currently through Gryphon Entertainment in Australia, Vendetta Films in New Zealand.
Anime Enthusiasts are encouraged to provide feedback to Siren through details below.