Tokyo-based anime studio Genco has formed an alliance with Spacemaker Productions, the independent film company from the United States, combining American money with Japanese artistic skill for joint productions across borders. This arrangement follows on from the work of Spacemaker’s Tokyo office, Barravento, which keeps pushing ahead with its mission to connect the U.S. and Japanese film industries.
The arrangement pairs Spacemaker’s U.S.-based operations with Genco, the planning and production company behind Satoshi Kon’s Millennium Actress, Sunao Katabuchi’s In This Corner Of The World, and the Netflix series Pluto. Together, the companies are exploring international co-productions backed by U.S. financing, live-action adaptations of Japanese source material and IP, and original projects by Japanese creators for the U.S. market.
The Deal Behind Barravento
Spacemaker founded Barravento in collaboration with producer Hiroto Ogi, who produced Drops Of God and Titanic Ocean. Barravento serves as Spacemaker’s principal hub for Asian production, focusing on local productions in Japan, providing production services to foreign productions navigating Japan’s incentive system, and covering all aspects of production.
Ogi’s depth of experience in international production is uncommon, according to Spacemaker’s founder, Alex Hughes. He understands how films are financed and executed on both sides of the Pacific, an understanding that foreign productions shooting in Japan most often require.
“Making Japan our principal hub for Asian production is a natural evolution of that work and we are pleased to be expanding Barravento in partnership with Hiroto.”
Vintage Violence Leads the Way
The partnership launches with Spacemaker’s first project: Vintage Violence, directed by Eugene Kotylarenko. The film world-premiered in TIFF’s Midnight Madness section and stars Cole Sprouse and Kiko Mizuhara.
A disgraced livestreamer stumbles upon a cache of rare vintage denim inside a Colorado mine, then tracks it across the Pacific to Tokyo, where he becomes caught up in underground battles, yakuza, and a history that will not remain hidden. WME manages U.S. domestic sales for the project, with Best Friend Forever holding international rights.
Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) made a location attraction tax rebate available, and the Visual Industry Promotion Organization (VIPO) handled it. The film was among those to receive it.
Why Japan Makes Sense
Spacemaker Productions’ president Riccardo Maddalosso says Japan is among the most compelling production opportunities available right now.
“Japan is also highly competitive on cost, with a consistently high standard of crew,” Maddalosso said. “Taken together, we believe that represents one of the strongest production propositions in today’s market.”
The company has long admired Japanese cinema and has developed projects there for some time, which Hughes cited as the foundation for the expansion. He framed the move as a natural extension of Spacemaker’s existing work in Japan.
Ogi on Cross-Border Creativity
Hiroto Ogi expressed confidence in the new chapter of international collaboration.
“We are thrilled to partner with Genco, a company behind some of Japan’s most distinctive and original works, and are confident that this new chapter of international collaboration will be an incredibly exciting journey,” he said.
The case was made that works from Japan are reaching viewers across borders, and the production methods behind them need to become more open and international.
“Filmmakers from abroad can bring perspectives to Japan that we might not see from the inside, while Japan has extraordinary talent that deserves to be discovered beyond its borders,” Ogi said. “Barravento is about creating those encounters and seeing where they lead.”
What Barravento Does Beyond the Partnership
Barravento goes beyond its partnership with Genco to offer a complete set of services to productions coming from abroad. The firm assists with navigating Japan’s incentive system, securing access to Japanese intellectual property for development and adaptation, and handling every aspect of production.
Among Barravento’s additional projects in development is an English-language remake of Kanteo Shindo’s cult horror classic Onibaba.
Spacemaker’s Track Record
Spacemaker has built up a record of developing and producing independent features on its own, with credits that include:
- How to Blow Up A Pipeline by Daniel Goldhaber, starring Ariela Barer, Sasha Lane and Lukas Gage, which premiered at TIFF 2022
- Oscar Boyson’s Our Hero, Balthazar starring Jaeden Martell and Asa Butterfield
- Sebastain Silva’s Rotting In The Sun, starring Jordan Firstman
- The recently announced The Lonely Woman, directed by Boy Harsher and starring Chloë Sevigny, FKA Twigs, Sturgill Simpson and Will Oldham
The Road Ahead
The partnership brings together Ogi’s international production experience and Genco’s slate of acclaimed titles. The arrangement explores financing and creative opportunities across the U.S. and Japanese markets.
For Ogi, the appeal is simple: discovery through encounter.
“For me, that sense of discovery is what makes filmmaking exciting,” he said.
Both companies are joined by common purpose and mutual regard, and they work together on co-productions, adaptations, and original projects to advance those shared aims.
What to Watch Next
The first project to come from the arrangement is Vintage Violence, which made its world premiere at TIFF’s Midnight Madness section marks the project’.
The Onibaba remake under development proves the partnership reaches past anime properties. It involves taking Japanese intellectual property and adapting it for audiences worldwide.
Spacemaker and Genco’s goal is plain to see: they want to join U.S. funding with Japanese creative skill.
Source material: “‘Vintage Violence’ Producers Spacemaker & Barravento Strike Partnership With Japanese Anime Studio Genco,” Deadline.
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