The Iron Giant got the shaft as far as publicity and screenings were concerned. It became a belated cult favorite on DVD, but would have held its own if nominated for an Oscar. Courtesy of and © 1999 Warner Bros.

Ours is not a quiet culture; we talk a good fight. We complain that movies just aren't very good anymore, that the comedies aren't all that funny and the dramas and action flicks are too derivative. We always want something different, challenging and imaginative. We are hip multiculturals, avatars of diversity, always eager to absorb new ideas. In fact, we aren't noisy enough and have been far too reticent to complain to the source of the problem, the studios and distributors themselves. When a film as important and unique as Persepolis shows up, we seem to settle for Mad Money. Two things need to happen in order for really good animated films to be given a wider audience. The first is that we must demand to see them. The second is that distributors and studios need to have the courage to put them out there and see whether the demand justifies the release. It seems to me that there is a failure of nerve on both sides, and a surfeit of blame to go around.

Cry out for Persepolis. There is nothing to lose by doing so. If you don't believe you have the power, think again. Witness the latest fight waged by those who did not have satellite TV; through their protests and harangues, the NFL (owners of the NFL network) relented and decided to simulcast the season-ending tilt between the New England Patriots and New York Giants on standard broadcast networks. The game was of intense interest to fans who wanted to see if the Patriots could complete an undefeated season, and the fact that many around the country were originally shut out of the broadcast led them to revolt. A similar situation occurred with the Big Ten Network, in which hundreds of thousands of college football fans took on the satellite channel. If we can be so roused by a few football games, can't we protest the fact that award-winning films are passing us by because of spineless corporate decisions?

Having audiences educate the distributors is certainly no crime. Perhaps the Sony executives believe animated films remain box office anathema, despite the success of many of the recent CGI hits. Perhaps they were too leery to release an Iranian film at a time when the Bush administration has incessantly rattled the saber towards that nation. Perhaps Sony believes that the public just won't support this film. I admit that Sony may have a minor point here: I read a blog entry written this summer by Studio Ghibli aficionado Daniel Thomas MacInnes in which he recalls Paprika playing to an audience of four or five in Minneapolis after it had been released to an art house theater. Still, I challenge almost anyone to go to an evening showing of The Water Horse right now -- tonight -- and find more than three times that number in attendance. Would Persepolis have found a better audience? The only answer I can give is -- we'll never know.

Martin Goodman.

Yes, because of Sony's failure of nerve and our own passivity, we'll never know. What can be done about this? The answer is not a complicated one. The coming year will doubtless produce some very fine animated films, several of them not produced between Maine and California. India, Korea, China, and other nations have entered the awards fray. Japan is a perennial contender, and these are just recent examples. When a film outstanding enough begins to pick up awards, generate Annie/Oscar buzz, or finds a worldwide audience, clamor for it. If you have friends who are not animation buffs or fanatics, have them demand the film as well; this is a wonderful chance to educate them and enrich their cinematic experiences. A film doesn't have to be shown on 2,700 screens in order to get good exposure and provide viewing pleasure for many; less than half that many would still put a film within reach of most, and likely still turn a profit for the suits.

In the final reckoning, this column is not about Persepolis alone. My rant concerns countless instances of fine animated films, many of them good enough to contend for and win major awards, going unseen. It is impossible to ascertain who deserves the greater share of blame for this, but let's put that aspect aside for the moment and consider this instead: It really doesn't have to be that way. If we want change, we can work for it. If the studios and/or distributors still want to make a profit (albeit a smaller one), it can still happen. We can, if we wish, vote with more than our wallets; that sort of voting gets us another dreary sequel to something that made some money. Next year, when a major distributor or studio gets hold of a truly deserving animated film, don't settle for a blank screen. We should not become passive consumers. We can vote with our keyboards, our voices, and ultimately, as animation fans, our hearts.

Martin "Dr. Toon" Goodman is a longtime student and fan of animation. He lives in Anderson, Indiana.