Tokyopop has announced the appointment of Rene Garcia as Vice President, Film & Television. Garcia, who has over twenty years of experience in film and television production and development, headed up horror helmer Wes Craven's production company, Craven-Maddalena. Tokyopop, which publishes more manga titles in English than any other company in the world, already has several movie projects in development including Priest, a "manhwa" western with supernatural overtones. The company has also produced and distributed documentary DVDs about the California street racing scene.
Given the growing interest in Japanese pop culture around the world and the fact that numerous anime and manga titles including Evangelion, Sailor Moon, Initial D, Lupin III, Gigantor, Witch Hunter Robin, and Blood: the Last Vampire have all be optioned for live action movies or TV series, Tokyopop's hiring of a VP for Film & Television makes perfect sense.