Named after Yasujiro Ozu’s custom-made, tatami-level, crab-like tripod, Kani Releasing is a new home video label dedicated to leveling the gaze and furthering the understanding of Asian cinema in North America. Focused on genre-defying films, Kani aims to expand the canon, bolster up-and-coming filmmakers and reintroduce repertory classics in context.
Kani will send out a monthly newsletter with information on upcoming and recent releases.
Crabitalism will be a bit meatier: dispatches, reviews, recommendations, criticism, on semi-regular basis… for those who want more!
Why home video?
We have a deep anxiety about the future and the continued access to film culture. Home video - not yet dead format! - circumvents expiring licenses and the ubiquity of streaming culture and allows us to release films in a much more careful manner.
What sort of films are you releasing?
Our two main goals are as follows: 1) to support exciting up-and-coming filmmakers and 2) reintroduce classic films from an emic perspective, in a variety of genres.
Who are you?
Ariel Esteban Cayer is writer and programmer, co-director of Asian Programming and director of the Camera Lucida section at the Fantasia International Film Festival.
Pearl Chan is a community and film worker. She founded the boutique sales agency Good Move Media in 2016 with a focus on South East Asian films.
