Netflix and Pokémon Team for New Stop-Motion Animated Series ‘Pokémon Concierge’ (Video)

Marta Balaga Everyone says: “I love you,” at least in Lille, where Japanese star Tomohisa Yamashita – in town to promote “Drops of God” – brought fans to tears. With one admitting that thanks to his 2005 series “Nobuta Wo Produce,” where he played the character of Akira, she decided not to commit suicide 14 years ago.  “You saved my life,” she said. In between interacting with a clearly overwhelmed audience, Japanese singer, dancer, talk show host and actor (“Call me Tomo,” he told his fans) discussed his multifaceted career, one that started when he was just 11 years old. 

Django Django have shared a new single titled ‘Don’t Touch That Dial’ alongside the release of the second part of their new album ‘Off Planet’.‘Off Planet’ is the band’s fifth album, and is set to be released in four parts – each representing a separate “planet”. The full 21-song album will arrive on June 16 via Because Music – you can pre-order/pre-save it here.Last month, the band shared the first part of the album (comprising of five tracks) and shared its lead single ‘Complete Me’, featuring Self Esteem.Now, part two of the album (another five songs) has arrived, along with ‘Don’t Touch That Dial’, a new single that features Japanese rapper Yuuko.Of the new single, the band’s Dave Maclean said: “This was a weird instrumental track that came out of looping some little chopped up bits of a studio jam.“I liked the odd groove of the track and I wanted a vocalist on there but I wanted something quite different, so I reached out to Yuuko and she totally got it, and delivered this outstanding top line.”Listen to the new track below.‘Off Planet’ also features guest spots from Jack Peñate, Stealing Sheep, Toya Delazy and more.

Pink Parrot, for example, unveiled a bevy of pre-sales on comedy romp “4 Days Before Christmas,” led by deals with Germany’s Splendid and Kaleidoscope in the U.K. FilmSharks has closed Latin America with The Walt Disney Co./Star Distribution on “Dalia and the Red Book,” as well as Germany, Russia/CIS and Taiwan with the U.S., France, Japan, Spain and Italy in discussions. Open-market international sales for theatrical distribution have sagged terribly in the past two decades on all but standout titles. One exception, which can still deliver seven figure returns, is animation.  Despite a slowing sales cycle, Mafiz and the Spanish Screenings still saw a dizzying slew of announcements. Following, a selection: 

EXCLUSIVE: Drift director Anthony Chen is gearing up to direct his first US-set project, Heartbeat: A New York Story, about the rarely-told experiences of the Asian gay community during the AIDS epidemic in 1980s New York.

Primavera Sound Festival has announced its final headliner for its 2023 line-up – New Order.The 2023 instalment of the festival, which will take place in both Barcelona and Madrid, will see the Manchester legends perform at the former’s Parc del Fòrum on June 1 and at the and at the latter’s Ciudad del Rock in Arganda del Rey on June 8.They join previously announced headliners Depeche Mode, Blur, Kendrick Lamar, Rosalía along with the likes of Halsey, FKA twigs, Skrillex, St.

Suga, Stray Kids and TXT, the next major act to land stateside is NCT Dream.Their upcoming seven-concert ‘The Dream Show 2: In a Dream World Tour’ will hit North American arenas from April 5-21.And New York and New Jersey-based fans, you’re in luck.That quick run of shows includes a gig at Newark, NJ’s Prudential Center on April 5 to kick off the short run of shows.For NCTzens that can’t wait to get see Jaemin, Jisung, Renjun, Jeno, Haechan, Chenle and Mark Lee, we come bearing even more good news.Although inventory isn’t available on Ticketmaster until Friday, March 10, fans who want to ensure they have tickets ahead of time can purchase on sites like Vivid Seats before tickets are officially on sale.Vivid Seats is a secondary market ticketing platform, and prices may be higher or lower than face value, depending on demand.They have a 100% buyer guarantee that states your transaction will be safe and secure and will be delivered before the event.A complete calendar including all tour dates, venues and links to buy tickets can be found below.Want to brush up on your NCT Dream knowledge?We’re here to help — here’s the role each member of the group plays as part of their live stage show.Jaemin – lead dancerJisung – main dancerRenjun – main vocalsJeno – lead dancerHaechan – main vocalsChenle – main vocalsMark Lee – main rapperThis year, NCT Dream dropped their first-ever Japanese single “Best Friend Ever.”Prior to that, the group released the six-song “Candy,” which they’ve dubbed a Winter Special Mini Album.You can hear “Candy’s” brand of energetic pop and emotional ballads here.Still, for our money, the best NCT Dream track is undoubtedly the hip-hop anthem “Hot Sauce.”There may be a K-Pop concert coming to a city near

Frank Doelger’s eco-thriller drama The Swarm has made a splash on German TV.

Netflix will splash the cash in the APAC region this year, boosting content investment by 15% as revenues grow by 12%, according to a report from Media Partners Asia (MPA).

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Global streaming operation Netflix is forecast to spend $1.9 billion on local content in the Asia-Pacific region this year as group revenue from the region accelerates to 12%, according to a new report. The content investment spending figure represents a 15% hike. Netflix will grow revenues this year by 12% year-on-year to exceed $4 billion compared with 9% growth in 2022, says a new report published on Monday by Media Partners Asia.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor AMC Networks’ Sentai Filmworks unit reached an agreement with Japan’s Mainichi Broadcasting System (MBS) that provides exclusive rights for AMC’s anime-focused HIDIVE streaming service to distribute part of MBS’s future programming lineup in all global markets outside of Asia. The pact is Sentai’s biggest-ever deal for anime content, according to the company. The output deal encompasses MBS’s programming slate based on a collection of popular manga and light novel titles. All of the shows will be available exclusively on HIDIVE outside of Asia. Among the shows covered in the Sentai-MBS output is “The Most Heretical Last Boss Queen: From Villainess to Savior” (pictured above). The new show, scheduled to premiere in July 2023, is a 12-episode series based on hit fantasy light novel by Tenichi and published by Ichijinsha. The series is being directed by Norio Nitta and written by Deko Akao with animation by OLM.

The latest entry in the Pokémon franchise is coming.

Netflix has announced a new Pokémon series is set to launch on the platform, but fans of the franchise have been left hugely divided. In celebration of Pokémon Day on Monday (February 27), the streaming giant confirmed new series Pokémon Concierge is coming soon.

Jordan Moreau Netflix has gotta catch ’em all. The streamer is teaming up with The Pokémon Company to create “Pokémon Concierge,” an upcoming stop-motion animated series. The series will follow “Haru, a concierge at the Pokémon Resort, and her interactions with Pokémon and their owners who visit as guests,” the logline says. A short teaser for “Pokémon Concierge,” announced on Monday, Feb. 27, a.k.a. Pokémon Day 2023, showed a blissful, sandy beach with a Psyduck waddling along the shore. “This is the Pokémon Resort. Pokémon are the guests here. Here is the story of the resort’s concierge,” a narrator says. The official poster for the show revealed Haru, a young, red-headed girl in a floral, Hawaiian-style shirt (covered with grass-type Oddishes), with her Psyduck.

Netflix has teamed with The Pokémon Company on a stop-motion animated series marking 17 years since the release of the firstPokémon game. Scroll down for a teaser.

There are scores of apps aiming to help us monitor our mental health, but sometimes the best approach is to turn off technology. Getting outdoors in parks, woodland and other natural settings has long been known to improve people’s mood – the Japanese call it shinrin-yoku, or “forest bathing”. But recently researchers have been investigating whether spending time with animals can have similar benefits.

Japanese broadcaster Nippon TV has finalized a deal with Netflix to produce ten-part unscripted comedy series Ariyoshi Assists. 

“I think we need to find a way to avoid the U.S. brainwash,” said Newen Connect CEO Rodolphe Buet at this morning’s Berlinale Series Adapting to the Market session.

John Hopewell Chief International Correspondent The latest series from Alex de la Iglesia and “Veneno” creators Javier Ambrossi and Javier Calvo feature at a first-look Next from Spain Showcase which marks a massive step-up in the country’s presence at the Berlinale Series Market. Running Feb. 20-22, the showcase also unveils “Rapa” Season 2, with its first season proving Movistar+’s biggest 2022 bow, and “This Is Not Sweden,” a pioneering Spanish co-production with Scandinavia and Germany.  The Showcase titles are joined by Isaki Lacuesta’s “The Chauffeur’s Son,” a Co-Pro Series project from “Elite’s” Zeta Studios, and “Selftape,” a Filmin Original from Filmax and a Series Market Screening.

Mark Schilling Japan Correspondent One of Japan’s most commercially successful and highly acclaimed animators, Shinkai Makoto has been called a successor to anime titan Miyazaki Hayao. Known for his mix of photo-realistic visuals and gorgeously realized fantasies, Shinkai surpassed the master when his 2016 smash “Your Name” became the highest-earning Japanese film of all time worldwide, beating Miyazaki’s 2001 “Spirited Away.” (That record was later broken by the 2020 anime sensation “Demon Slayer.”) His latest film, “Suzume,” about a teen girl’s quest to halt an apocalypse triggered by the opening of magical doors all over Japan, is also the first Japanese animated feature to screen in the Berlin competition since “Spirited Away” in 2002. Variety sat down with Shinkai to hear his views on his own work and the state of the anime industry.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Brazilian animated feature “Perlimps,” Alê Abreu’s follow up to Oscar-nominated “Boy and the World,” has been sold in key territories by Best Friend Forever ahead of the European Film Market. “Perlimps” has been picked up for Japan (Child Film and New Deer), China (DDDream), CIS and baltics (Kinologistica), Sweden (Njutafilm) and Portugal (Films4you). BFF is in advanced discussions to close German Speaking territories, Benelux, Spain, Italy and North America. As previously announced, UFO Distribution will release the feature in France. “Perlimps” was just released last week in Brazil by leading independent outfit Vitrine Filmes and Sony Pictures, which holds Latin American rights.