Breaking the Animation Age Ghetto

How about animated films based on the director's personal experiences? That worked out well for Comics.

Wow, It's almost as if people want to deliberately ignore how Reverse Psychology works between certain works in the media and real life, especially since I often tend to treat being brave as a lion in terms of content tolerance like Serious Business.

edited 7th Jul '11 4:54:13 AM by fungal88

@Buzz: You are aware that less than 1% of non-American movies and TV shows that get exported to America are edited these days, right?

(Not that America imports much foreign stuff, but what does get in stays pretty much the same with the occasional exception of puns).

Dude, Buzz is saying that the reason we get less edits is because of the internet.

I was reading Gore Verbinski's comments about Adults animation(Where are the Ralph Bakshi's in the world). While I agree that animation boundaries should be pushed, I'm also kind of annoyed that the approach is to "make an R-rated animated film". Of course you can, but I feel that mentality just leads to another ghetto.

Yes, we try to "aim at certain audiences". But that just sets this strange, arbitrary standard.

edited 18th Apr '12 10:10:52 AM by blueflame724

Hmm how about Sandman The Animated series? Oh wait how bout they adapt Greek myths (not in the christianized Hercules kind of way) into a series. Also I would love to see the Trojan Cycle adapted into an animated film.

The big studios might not be doing anything to break the ghetto, but luckily the internet is here to do the work for them. Ever since 2000, there's been an explosion of more mature animation. Sure, they're mostly comedies, but at least they try to aim towards a more adult audience.

As for what classic literature they should adapt into an animated series, I wish they would make an adaptation of Gilgamesh.

edited 19th Apr '12 8:23:20 PM by BreadGod

The problem is many of Western Animation's attempts to break out of the ghetto are met with the former trope All Adult Animation Is South Park. Where some will concede that not all animation is for kids but the stuff that isn't for kids is all Refuge in Vulgarity style jokes about sex, over the top violence, and toilet humor.

Of course this isn't helped much by the fact that's pretty much the only kind of "adult" western animation style shows networks are willing to try while serious adventures and dramas are pretty much limited to anime.

I'd make a cartoon for all ages.........with a man-on-man kissing scene.....and totally NOT played for laughs.

edited 26th Apr '12 4:21:52 AM by nervmeister

To be honest, I keep asking myself, "Why does the 'Animation Age Ghetto' NEED to be broken"?

After all, a lot of the best cartoons were made for kids, or at least made under the kind of protocols a show made for kids called for. Didn't stop us from getting decades of great animation.

And, seriously, I've seen a lot of live-action shows made (obstensibly) for adults, and I'm like "how is this any better?"

I personally prefer not to segregate works by age group. If a work has swearing, gore, etc. then so be it; we'd find some things reprehensible (and some funny) regardless of age. I don't think a kid is forbidden to view it. Let me be clear, though I don't really condone such a thing. But if there's enough explanation..

Or perhaps that's too bold

Someone mentioned anime earlier. I'd like to point out that a lot of anime are actually children's shows. Yes, that includes Death Note, which lest we forget started out as a comic that ran in a children's magazine.

Really it seems like the problem is less "cartoons are seen as for kids" and more "American media has ridiculously strict standards of 'Acceptable Content'." Even at "supposedly-for-adult" levels the level of content tends to be kind of juvenile, even in live-action. Like when I watch House or Law and Order I seriously can't understand how they can say those shows are for adults. Yeah they talk about sex or whatever (indeed, 99% of House's cast of characters do nothing but talk about banging each other) but I remember High School well enough to know that's not maturity.

edited 26th Apr '12 9:08:27 AM by MoeDantes

Gurren Lagaan was aired on Saturday mornings in Japan!

Here? One small perverse comment by a character and parents sue the networks!

Dear Lord this discussion keeps going in circles.

Actually the death note anime ran later at night.

there are anime that can run at 2 different time slots" soul eater comes to mind.

Why is it that for something to be considered to be "breaking out of the ghetto" has to be gory or completely adult-content?

Considering how a lot of children's shows have a Periphery Demographic, why not aim a cartoon at adults without it being Ultra Super Death Gore Fest Chainsawer 3000?

edited 24th Jan '13 5:35:31 AM by MagcargoMan

Don't fret, people. I can feel the Ghetto weakening. Were the best shows on Cartoon Network in the past this mature? Fans and critics rave over Regular Show and Adventure Time.

On a personal note, mother has two friends of different backgrounds, and all three of those dinosaurs rave over some animated works. God willing, a new era is rubbing it's sleepy, boogery eyes.

The field of animation is growing, and I will be a part of it. To fellow asperating animators and screenwriters, remember the three greats: Ghibli, Pixar, and Classic Disney.

And Classic WB. Never forget classic WB.

I'd break the Ghetto by making shows accessible to both groups; chi;dren and adults, and now like a kid's show with Parental Bonus either. I mean a show that's funny for both and is enjoyable to watch for everyone.

I think it would be possible. Difficult, but possible.

edited 9th Feb '13 4:56:50 PM by QuarterDollar

Good shows should always be that way: able to be enjoyed by all.

It should have a really good story with a deep plot though, not just comedy. And lovable characters, of course.

I've come to realize the ghetto won't fall down until society as a whole changes.

Quarter Dollar just summerised basically what I meant, but explained it better. So yeah, what I meant before was that just because something is aimed at adults, doesn't mean it has to be adults only.

The thing about the Ghetto is that it is, more than anything else, a mindset. You can't just demolish a mindset in one go, and we've seen that no individual work or set of works will change that on their own. If the ghetto is to be destroyed, it must be worn down and removed brick by brick.

It would help to see the new generation take control of entertainment. As said before, a lot of people who are in charge are old-generation who will just never be able to see thing's without the ghetto veiling their eyes. You can't just remove these guys willy-nilly, but a gradual shift in power would help.

But above everything else, the most important thing is to stop treating animation like it's special. Writers for children's shows have to stop seeing animation as the best way to connect to kids, writers for adult's shows have to stop thinking that animating their content automatically makes them edgy, and the general public has to stop treating animation as though it's in its own special category.

Honestly, the greatest thing about the anime industry that the West should really take on is the variety. Anime's been used to cover the whole spectrum, from action to romance to comedy to horror to everything in between. The West is convinced that everything animated has to be either an action show for 10-year-old boys, a comedy for 10-year-old boys, or a raunchy comedy for 20-year-old men. I don't care if it's making cartoon versions of Rambo and Twilight, the West could really use some different tastes in the palate.

edited 10th Feb '13 7:28:23 AM by Watchtower

I agree with everything you said except for the Twilight bit. Twilight is a disgrace to literature, don't let it do the same to western animation.

edited 10th Feb '13 3:40:20 PM by MagcargoMan