Stu Levy

Credentials

Levy holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics/Business from UCLA and a Juris Doctor from Georgetown University Law Center. He studied at Tokyo University and Keio University in Japan and is a California attorney. Currently, Levy chairs the Producers Guild of America's International Committee and Online Video Committie, and he was previously a Board Member of its New Media Council. An expert in the film industry, Stu Levy has spoken on panels at various film festivals and markets around the world, including the Hong Kong Filmart, PIFAN, NATPE, and the Produced By Conference. In 2014, Stu Levy served as a jury member for NAFF.

Early projects

Levy designed and produced JapanOnline.com in 1995, for which he won the New Media Invision Award for "Best Design on the Web." From 1994 to 1997, he produced and distributed CD-ROM multimedia edutainment titles in Tokyo. Receiving investment from Mitsui Ventures, NVCC and angels, Levy moved back to the U.S. to form Tokyopop (formerly Mixx Entertainment) in 1997, a business venture designed to introduce the Western world to manga entertainment of all forms.

TOKYOPOP

Stu Levy founded TOKYOPOP in 1997. At its peak, the company had offices in Los Angeles, California, Tokyo, Japan, Hamburg, Germany, and London, United Kingdom, as well as distribution and licensing arrangements with over 40 countries worldwide.

TOKYOPOP's first manga graphic novel release was Sailor Moon. TOKYOPOP engineered prominent book distribution via retail stores, standardized book trim size, created a basic industry-wide rating system, developed the first-ever retail manga displays and introduced the world of graphic novels to a previously untapped audience—teenage girls. In 2002, TOKYOPOP launched its line of 100% Authentic Manga (printed right-to-left), which became the industry standard. TOKYOPOP launched their Global Manga publishing program in 2003 via the introduction of its "Rising Stars of Manga" talent competition.

TOKYOPOP helped to pioneer the Cine-Manga format, a blend of cinematic properties and sequential art that uses imagery from movies and television series. Levy secured licenses to publish Cine-Manga with major entertainment brands including Disney, Nickelodeon, DreamWorks, Paramount, Universal, and the NBA.

In 2006, the company launched an international line of teen fiction and began syndicating manga to U.S. newspapers and teen fashion magazine CosmoGIRL!. That same year, TOKYOPOP entered into a publishing agreement with HarperCollins Publishing to distribute TOKYOPOP manga and to co-publish sequential art based on HarperCollins' top youth novels.

Levy also expanded TOKYOPOP's property reach beyond publishing into television series and DVD distribution, with many of its shows broadcast in the United States on Cartoon Network, Showtime and G4techTV and released on DVD.

In 2007, Levy formed TOKYOPOP Media to focus on digital, film and television adaptations of TOKYOPOP's licensed manga content. TOKYOPOP Media chose William Morris to represent TOKYOPOP and Levy as writer, director, and producer of entertainment content. Under Levy's guidance, TOKYOPOP Media began producing a number of animated web shows based on TOKYOPOP properties including I Luv Halloween, by Ben Roman and Keith Giffen; Bizenghast, by M. Alice LeGrow; Riding Shotgun, by Nate Bowden and Tracy Yardley, and A Midnight Opera, by Hans Steinbach, which were launched in conjunction with MySpace.

In 2008, TOKYOPOP announced a major restructuring that will create two separate divisions—the TOKYOPOP Inc. publishing unit and TOKYOPOP Media, a digital and comics-to-films unit—under the TOKYOPOP Group’s holding company. The moves will result in the layoffs of about 79 Tokyopop staffers.

In 2010, TOKYOPOP Media produced Stu Levy’s feature film directorial debut, Van Von Hunter, based on the TOKYOPOP manga series. The following year, the production company produced the 8-part docu-series America’s Greatest Otaku, which is available on both Hulu and YouTube. TOKYOPOP Media received an “in association with” credit on the Sony Pictures feature film adaptation of Priest, which starred Paul Bettany and Maggie Q.

Due to Borders’ bankruptcy in 2011, as well as the detrimental effects of piracy and an over-crowding of the market, TOYKOPOP was forced to close down its publishing operations in the United States and United Kingdom.

On December 10, 2012, TOKYOPOP's website relaunched with a letter from management stating that the company was down to a few select employees who were starting a 'new incarnation' of the company. They partnered with 'Right Stuf on Demand' to offer ebooks of various titles for which they retained the rights.

Throughout the publishing closure, TOYKOPOP Media remained open for business, continuing its efforts to produce film and TV adaptations of TOKYOPOP’s manga. In 2013, TOKYOPOP partnered with MondoMedia to release an animated short film based on the TOKYOPOP manga Riding Shotgun, which was directed by Michael Davis and starred the voices of Yuri Lowenthal and Jessy Schram. The short film garnered over a million views in its first month, and led to an IndieGoGo campaign to finance a full animated series.

At Anime Expo and San Diego Comic-Con in 2015, TOKYOPOP announced that it would be relaunching its publishing operations in North America in 2016 and hinted that its first major licensor would be Disney.

Executive producer, feature film and TV

In 1996, Mixx Entertainment acquired the rights to Spring and Chaos, the anime biopic of Japanese poet Kenji Miyazawa, which Levy produced and directed the English dub of.

From 2000 to 2004, Stu Levy served as executive producer for multiple film, television and DVD projects. His TV credits include Street Fury, which he created, the English dubs of GTO, Rave Master, and Reign: The Conqueror. His DVD credits include the English dubs of Initial D, Marmalade Boy, Saint Tail, Samurai Girl: Real Bout High School, Vampire Princess Miyu, Brigadoon, Spring & Chaos, FMW, High School Ghostbusters, and Anime: Concept to Reality.

Levy is an executive producer on the 2011 film Priest, based on the TOKYOPOP manga series. Levy is also an executive producer on the 2011 docu-series America’s Greatest Otaku.

Producer, feature film

In 2007, Levy began to serve as Producer on a number of live-action and animated film and television adaptations of TOYKOPOP manga, including Knockouts, based on the manga Battle Vixens, by Yugi Shiozaki, Mail Order Ninja by Josh Elder, Poison Candy, by David Hine and Hans Steinbach, Princess Ai, by D.J. Milky, Misaho Kujiradou and Courtney Love, and Riding Shotgun, by Nate Bowden and Tracy Yardley.

Levy also produced the 2012 feature documentary film Pray for Japan about the tsunami recovery efforts in Tohoku. All proceeds from the film have been donated to charities in the affected regions.

Writer and director, feature film

Levy co-wrote and co-directed (with Steven Calcote) the mockumentary Van Von Hunter, based on the manga series by the same name. This feature earned him an award for Best Director at the 2010 Mockfest.

Author

Under the pen-name D.J. Milky, Levy has written both manga graphic novels and children's books. His writings include: Princess Ai, Juror 13, Karma Club, Kung Fu Klutz & Karate Cool, the novel adaptation of Sailor Moon, Stray Sheep and CD-ROM Best Selection '96. Current projects include Fright Elevator, Street Fury, Treasure Chess, and the upcoming sequel to Princess Ai, Prism of the Midnight Dawn. According to Nielsen BookScan sales reports, "Princess Ai" was the #1 selling the Adult Fiction Graphic Novels.

Music composer

Levy composed lyrics and songs for TOKYOPOP projects, including the theme songs for Initial D, Reign the Conqueror, Rave Master, GTO, and the soundtrack for TOKYOPOP's Princess Ai franchise.

Producer, broadband and mobile programming

Levy has produced a number of Web- and Mobile-based shows, distributed through MySpace, YouTube and Verizon's VCast. Web shows include I Luv Halloween, Riding Shotgun, A Midnight Opera, Bizenghast, Gyakushu, Sokora Refugees and a series of Princess Ai-based music videos.

TOKYOPOP's YouTube Channel, TOKYOPOP TV, is promoted as a hub of Japanese pop culture, featuring original web series, motion comics, trailers for Japanese anime, films, TV, and video games, and more.

Producer, Internet

In 1995, Levy launched Japan Online for which he won the New Media Invision Award for "Best Design on the Web." In 2007, Levy produced and launched a comprehensive social networking and UGC manga lifestyle website at www.Tokyopop.com.

Producer, Mobile Applications

In 2015, Levy produced the mobile puzzle game Sushi Cross, which is available for free in the App Store.

Levy also created the upcoming mobile comics app, POP Comics, which is a mobile application that allows manga artists to self-publish and monetize their original works. Levy provided the UX design and creative direction for the application, which is currently in a closed beta testing phase.

Philanthropy

Levy has volunteered his time to the Asian Pacific American Legal Center (APALC), a group that helps immigrant women who were taken advantage of by their husbands and did not know their own rights. He also supports the Make-a-Wish Foundation, a charity dedicated to granting the wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions.

Additionally, Levy regularly donates Tokyopop manga to libraries across the U.S. as well as to The Kids' Wish Network, a non-profit foundation that deploys toys and books to hospital emergency rooms across the nation.

Levy traveled to Tohoku, Japan, after the 2011 tsunami to help with recovery efforts, and during this time, he produced and directed his feature documentary film Pray for Japan, which donates all proceeds to charities in the affected regions in Tohoku, Japan.

Sports

At the infamous middle age of 40, Stu Levy came down with the painful disease shingles. This was in the summer of 2008, which was when TOKYOPOP was going through layoffs worldwide, and the Tokyo and London offices were being shutdown. Levy's doctor advised him to "get off the couch" and begin exercise. Levy began with daily walks. Those daily walks became runs, and after a year Levy ran his first marathon (the LA Marathon). Levy has since run 6 marathons including his first Boston Marathon (and PR time of 3:18) in April 2014. He has also participated in multiple triathlons, trail races, relay races, and even a 50-mile ultra-marathon. His birthday (August 24) in 2014 was the date of his first full Ironman triathlon, clocking in at 11:41:41.

As a simple hobby, Levy uploads fitness videos to his SUPER 40 YouTube channel. These videos are almost exclusively in Japanese and feature how-to instructional videos, runs in various cities throughout the world, and some v-logs.