ADV Films Announces Street Date for Lady Death®: The Motion Picture

HOUSTON, 8/25/04?ADV Films, North America?s #1 producer and distributor of anime, today announced a street date of October 5, 2004 for the DVD of Lady Death®: The Motion Picture, the first animated feature produced by the company?s original content division. The advance trailer for the feature, as well as the latest production updates and an amazing character gallery, are now available for viewing at the official Lady Death website: www.ladydeathtmp.com The Making of the Film Bringing Death to life isn?t the easiest of tasks, but the wizards assembled by ADV were more than up to the task. To put fire into the extremely ample lungs of the popular Chaos! Comics? character, ADV Films summoned together a who?s who list of the hottest artists and creators in the animation industry. Working closely with Lady Death creator, Brian Pulido, first time Director and conceptual designer Andrew Orjuela was joined by renowned writer Carl Macek, (developer and story editor of the famed Robotech series, and producer/director of the English language version of Vampire Hunter D ,) and together the three would craft a unique vision of epic scope. Finally, to invoke music that captured the true essence of the diva of death, ADV tapped famed composer Bill Brown, whose previous work scoring for such larger than life characters as directors Steven Spielberg, Clive Barker and Oliver Stone on films such as Any Given Sunday, Ali and Finding Forrester, made him a logical choice to pen the danse macabre that accompanies the adventures of the immortal avatar of Death herself. The Story A powerful story of innocence lost, savage betrayal and glorious rebirth, Lady Death begins in 15th Century Sweden, where Hope, the beautiful daughter of Matthias?a skilled mercenary who is in actuality Lucifer, the Lord of Lies?is accused of being the devil?s consort following a hellish incident witnessed by local villagers. Sentenced by the town priest to be burned at the stake, Hope is visited by the malevolent Pagan as she writhes in pain. Unable to think clearly, she accepts Lucifer?s offer of life in Hell over a hideously painful death? only to discover that there are far worse fates than dying. Lucifer?s grand plan to corrupt a soul of pure innocence meets unanticipated resistance, as Hope rejects Lucifer's scheme and eventually finds herself transformed into the powerful warrior LADY DEATH, who challenges the Lord of Lies for control of Hell itself. The Players Creator: Brian Pulido is best known as the founder of Chaos! Comics, the place ?where darkness dwells? with titles such as Lady Death, Evil Ernie, Purgatori, Chastity and The Chosen. Nominated by Diamond Comic Distribution as new publisher of the year in 1994, Chaos! was Wizard Magazine?s publisher of the year in 1996 and winner of two Comic Buyer?s Guide Awards in 1997 and 1998. Chaos! Comics was also known as the number one publisher of supernatural comics, appealing to a range of readers who like their comic fiction with teeth. Producer / Director: Andrew Orjuela also served as producer and art director of ADV Films? animation co-production, SIN, and has over ten years experience with ADV Films. In addition to taking the wheel for the first time as a director, Mr. Orjuela was also responsible for fashioning an original environment populated by unique characters that are both fresh and familiar at the same time. ?It?s a very exciting time for ADV Films and myself, said Orjuela. ?As a huge fan of comic books and anime films, I hope to incorporate the best of both worlds and deliver a film that will entertain fans by staying true to the integrity of the character, while using both old and new animation techniques to tell an epic story that all people can relate to.? Screenwriter: Carl Macek began his career in 1984, and has amassed credits as a writer, producer and story editor for animation. Hailed as one of the early proponents of anime, Macek contributed to anime?s rise as a pop culture phenomenon in Western society. Joining Harmony Gold in 1985, Macek?s television work includes producing, story editing and script writing, most notably for Robotech. In fact, Macek also authored the screenplay for Robotech: The Movie, which he co-produced and co-directed. He was the scriptwriter for the original C.O.P.S. while at DIC, and worked on Mattel?s Computer Warriors. In 1989, he served as artistic director/producer for Streamline Pictures. Macek also produced the first English-language version of Miyazaki's classic My Neighbor Totoro and produced/directed the English language version of Vampire Hunter D. In 2000, he joined ADV Films, where he developed and scripted the feature film Lady Death. About ADV Films: In the 12 years since its inception, ADV Films has become the #1 producer-distributor of Japanese animation (?anime?) for the North American market and has also developed a leadership position in the UK. With best-selling titles such as Neon Genesis Evangelion, RahXephon, Robotech, Full Metal Panic!, Hello Kitty and Azumanga Daioh, ADV Films' extensive catalog is fueling the popularity of anime around the globe. ADV Films' library also includes popular live-action science fiction programs such as The Jim Henson Company's Farscape, the nationally syndicated Gene Roddenberry?s Andromeda and the Saturn Award-nominated Mutant X. Parent company, A.D. Vision, Inc., encompasses a multitude of complementary media divisions, spanning publishing, television, licensing and merchandising and continues to expand into new areas. Its Anime Network? is America's first and only television network dedicated to bringing anime and anime-related programming to consumers nationwide via digital cable 24 hours a day. The company has two publishing arms: Newtype USA, the premier anime and manga monthly magazine, and ADV Manga, dedicated to publishing graphic novels. Most recently, the company formed ADV Toys, creating exclusive toys and collectible merchandise based upon the company's extensive original content holdings. Headquartered in Houston, the company has offices in Europe and Japan. For more information, visit www.advfilms.com. LADY DEATH: THE MOTION PICTURE Volume: 1 of 1 Running Time: 80 minutes Age Rating: 17+ CAT: DLD/001 UPC: 702727054723 Pre-Book Date: 9/7/04 Street Date: 10/5/04 Format: DVD SRP: $29.98 -30-

Posted on Wednesday, August 25, 2004 (Archive on Saturday, September 25, 2004)