Japanese anime isn't just an import anymore, it's a high stakes market that is slowly changing the way entertainment companies on both sides of the Pacific make films and how we as fans perceive them. For example, Texas-based ADV developed the story and characters for their "Sin" release and then farmed the animation work out to Phoenix Entertainment in Japan. Bandai Entertainment in America acts as a consulting body to Bandai Visual in Japan for what will fly in the American market. And Viz Communications was built on America's mass consumption of "Pokemon." This union of western business and Japanese artistry has become increasingly entangled in the last decade and, consequentially, has had an effect on both anime production and the anime market.

One of the first such enterprises took place in 1995, when Britain's Manga Entertainment poured about a third of the budget into the development of Production I.G's "Ghost in the Shell" to secure distribution rights stateside.

"'Ghost in the Shell' is intended as a breakthrough film, aimed at theatrical release instead of a life on tape, disc and campus film societies. The ghost of anime can be seen here trying to dive into the shell of the movie mainstream," writes Chicago Sun film critic Roger Ebert in a "Ghost in the Shell" review from 1996.

Ebert hit upon something there as fans, creators and executives all seem to have strong opinions on the success of this ongoing fusion. Some are optimistic, while others are cautious or even downright hostile towards this new age of anime, but no one seems to be certain on how things will turn out. As is usual, the most immediate effects can be seen in the costs of licenses.

"Prices are being jacked up because of American money. People are seeing 'Cardcaptors.' People are seeing 'Pokemon' and 'Digimon.' So every Japanese company wants to sell the next hit to the United States," says Jerry Chu, Marketing Director for Bandai Entertainment.

Ten years ago an American company could acquire the license for an anime title at about $1,000 an episode. Now, post-"Pokemon," licenses have increased five-fold. This is nothing new - the phenomenon happens all across the entertainment spectrum once a niche takes on a public role. "The Blair Witch Project" initially cashed in at $50,000, but the follow up "Book of Witches" had a budget in the millions, and replaced the creative team to boot. Grunge bands could hardly sign a petition much less a record contract until Nirvana hit and record companies couldn't pay knock off bands enough to sell out arenas.

If absolute power corrupts absolutely, and money is absolute power then the syllogism indicts cash as the real trouble with globalized product - to get more product into more hands the product must appeal to the lowest common denominator. Anime fans as well as individuals who appreciate the stylistic and narrative nuances of film justifiably fear a corruption of their preferred screen entertainment by corporate money levying greater artistic control over stories and themes. "Ghost in the Shell" enjoyed a better success over here than it did in Japan. With rumors flying about an upcoming sequel, with even more American money attached, probability suggests that its creators will tailor the work for a wider American market.

But in the end it all comes down to a certain aestheticism. The inherent differences in the American and Japanese culture already preclude a film appealing to both on equal ground commercially. Arguably, then, it is up to the creative team to delve into a deeper human singularity rather than diluting potent themes to maintain artistic integrity. Perhaps this is where the American perception of anime corrupts the most, asserting that deeper understanding doesn't appeal to children for whom "cartoons" are meant; that Americans want to go to the cinema to escape not think; that anime can't convey genuine human emotions through its stenciled visage. In indulging that deeper human singularity, truly universal anime artists might find themselves alienating even more of the audience they attempt to reach.