V&R Planning
Encyclopedia
is a Japanese film production and distribution company based in Tokyo
which specializes in adult videos (AV).
(安達かおる ) who had previously worked in TV, mostly as an import agent. The V&R stands for "Visual and Retail". This was a period when the VCR was becoming widely available in Japan and home viewing of movies became possible. Several other Japanese AV studios were founded about this same time including h.m.p.
, CineMagic
, Crystal-Eizou
and Alice Japan
. The company started small with just two employees in a one-room Tokyo apartment and even two years later when director Company Matsuo
joined the firm, he was only the fourth employee. By March 1991 V&R had moved into its own building in Tokyo's Setagaya ward
and the company incorporated in May 1991.
In October 1991 director Yamashita Bakushishi (バクシーシ山下) joined V&R and started producing simulated rape videos which drew the ire of feminist groups and censors. V&R Planning had joined the voluntary censorship group Nihon Ethics of Video Association
(NEVA) in May 1986 but after some of Bakushishi's videos were rejected by NEVA, V&R withdrew from membership in the organization in March 1993. Bakushishi left the company in 1996.
The most recent financial figures for V&R Planning list show a capital of 10 million yen (about $100,000) and sales revenue of 700 million yen (about $7 million). Head of the company is Susumu Saegusa (三枝 進), the real name of founder and director Kaoru Adachi
. Former director Company Matsuo
describes the firm as a middle-sized company in the AV world and "definitely one of the weirdest". He jokes that V&R does not stand for "Violence and Rape" as many people think.
As with other AV companies, V&R has made use of the internet for advertisement and sales. In 2003, managing director Machiki Katsumi estimated that 10% of the company income came from the internet and expected that this would become "a crucial part of this business".
was also making documentaries. Adachi was interested in death videos and V&R distributed the Japanese versions of the US Faces of Death
as Janku or Junk. About 1989, the company sent director Company Matsuo
and a cameraman to Brazil to film death scenes for V&R's continuation of the Junk series. A 2001 documentary Orozco El Embalsamador co-produced by V&R focused on a Colombian embalmer.
The company also produced porn director Katsuyuki Hirano
's trilogy of bike-trip films. The first, Yumika, about a trip with AV Idol
Yumika Hayashi
, was released in 1997, followed by Encyclopedia of a Drifter (Nagaremono zukan) in 1998, and the series was completed by the award-winning 1999 account of a solo bike ride to the northern tip of Hokkaido
in the midst of a blizzard, Shiro - The White.
, Brazil to bring Japanese AV to the international market. Since it is not located in Japan, V&R International is able to offer uncensored versions of V&R products (which do not have the mosaic pixelation to obscure the genitals mandated by Japanese law) to countries outside of Japan. In the United States, its products are released through the Oriental Dream label.
In January 2009, V&R International opened the website CRAZY JAPAN with a motto of "The best of Japanese hentai at your fingertips". The site provides Pay-per-view
(PPV) streaming video of "extreme Japanese porn" including "amateur, scat, S&M, gay, as well as the unique Japanese phenomenon 'chikan', the art of groping young girls on crowded trains and buses".
who wanted more freedom of expression and the chance to pursue a less extreme course than the usual V&R Planning genres. Shingo Takemoto was the president of the new company which distributed its products through porn conglomerate Soft On Demand
. In a review of one of their videos in 2006, the studio was described as another AV producer making "strange and funny genre videos like Soft On Demand".
But in 2007 when V&R Products asked for full independence, the parent company balked and Takemoto and the rest of the original staff were removed. Takemoto and the others went on to found a new AV company Rocket. The new head of V&R Products is Kaoru Yoshikawa (吉川 薫).
In August 2009, the V&R Products' website listed a total of 403 videos available from the company or about 80 videos a year produced over the firm's five year existence.
contest. Its entry, labeled with the production code OPEN-0653, Tokyo Shinjuku Ward Office 24: Slut Division (こちら!東京24区 痴女区の区役所の痴女○○課) directed by Uzumaki Sasaki
took the 3rd Place prize in the Challenge Stage. V&R Products also entered the 2007 AV Open with the novelty video, 100 Beautiful Women Come to My House (ある朝起きたら、家に美女が100人来た！), labeled OPEN-0711.
and Reiko Miyazaki (宮崎レイコ) made a number of early videos with V&R for directors Company Matsuo
and Kaoru Adachi
, because of the company's emphasis on amateurs and extreme fetishes, only a few AV Idol
s have worked for V&R and usually just briefly:
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
which specializes in adult videos (AV).
Company information
V&R Planning was founded in April 1986 by Kaoru AdachiKaoru Adachi
is a Japanese film director, producer and editor, and founder of the Japanese documentary and adult video studio V&R Planning.-Life and career:Kaoru Adachi was born in Tokyo on January 27, 1956...
(安達かおる ) who had previously worked in TV, mostly as an import agent. The V&R stands for "Visual and Retail". This was a period when the VCR was becoming widely available in Japan and home viewing of movies became possible. Several other Japanese AV studios were founded about this same time including h.m.p.
H.m.p. (Japan)
h.m.p. is a Japanese company which is involved in adult entertainment including the production and sales of adult videos and the marketing of adult toys and sex aids.-Company information:...
, CineMagic
CineMagic Co.
, is a Japanese adult film studio, producing and distributing its own films, usually of the bondage, S&M and simulated rape genre, as well as those produced externally.-Company information:...
, Crystal-Eizou
Crystal-Eizou
, known in English as Crystal Image or Crystal Video, is a Japanese corporation involved in the production and distribution of adult videos.-Company history:...
and Alice Japan
Alice Japan
was established on April 4, 1986 as the adult video label for Japan Home Video .-Company information:The early AVs produced by JHV went under the Penguin label, the first title being the 30 minute long softcore Asobinasareya, Tadakurue starring Hidemi Nakajima released May 21, 1984 with...
. The company started small with just two employees in a one-room Tokyo apartment and even two years later when director Company Matsuo
Company Matsuo
is an innovative Japanese adult video director, producer and entrepreneur. He is credited with popularizing the Japanese porn genre of "hamedori" where the director/actor performs sexually with the actress and also films the action. He has been called "a master of shooting pornography with...
joined the firm, he was only the fourth employee. By March 1991 V&R had moved into its own building in Tokyo's Setagaya ward
Setagaya, Tokyo
is one of the 23 special wards of Tokyo in Japan. It is also the name of a neighborhood within the ward. The ward calls itself the City of Setagaya in English...
and the company incorporated in May 1991.
In October 1991 director Yamashita Bakushishi (バクシーシ山下) joined V&R and started producing simulated rape videos which drew the ire of feminist groups and censors. V&R Planning had joined the voluntary censorship group Nihon Ethics of Video Association
Nihon Ethics of Video Association
The , usually abbreviated as Viderin or Biderin , was a Japanese video rating organization. NEVA was founded in 1972 and had its headquarters in the Chūō ward of Tokyo. It was a voluntary organization to ensure adherence to Japanese obscenity laws which prohibit any display of genitals...
(NEVA) in May 1986 but after some of Bakushishi's videos were rejected by NEVA, V&R withdrew from membership in the organization in March 1993. Bakushishi left the company in 1996.
The most recent financial figures for V&R Planning list show a capital of 10 million yen (about $100,000) and sales revenue of 700 million yen (about $7 million). Head of the company is Susumu Saegusa (三枝 進), the real name of founder and director Kaoru Adachi
Kaoru Adachi
is a Japanese film director, producer and editor, and founder of the Japanese documentary and adult video studio V&R Planning.-Life and career:Kaoru Adachi was born in Tokyo on January 27, 1956...
. Former director Company Matsuo
Company Matsuo
is an innovative Japanese adult video director, producer and entrepreneur. He is credited with popularizing the Japanese porn genre of "hamedori" where the director/actor performs sexually with the actress and also films the action. He has been called "a master of shooting pornography with...
describes the firm as a middle-sized company in the AV world and "definitely one of the weirdest". He jokes that V&R does not stand for "Violence and Rape" as many people think.
As with other AV companies, V&R has made use of the internet for advertisement and sales. In 2003, managing director Machiki Katsumi estimated that 10% of the company income came from the internet and expected that this would become "a crucial part of this business".
Documentaries
V&R Planning doesn't only make AV - from the beginning founder Kaoru AdachiKaoru Adachi
is a Japanese film director, producer and editor, and founder of the Japanese documentary and adult video studio V&R Planning.-Life and career:Kaoru Adachi was born in Tokyo on January 27, 1956...
was also making documentaries. Adachi was interested in death videos and V&R distributed the Japanese versions of the US Faces of Death
Faces of Death
Faces of Death is a 1978 mondo film which guides viewers through explicit scenes depicting a variety of ways to die and violent acts....
as Janku or Junk. About 1989, the company sent director Company Matsuo
Company Matsuo
is an innovative Japanese adult video director, producer and entrepreneur. He is credited with popularizing the Japanese porn genre of "hamedori" where the director/actor performs sexually with the actress and also films the action. He has been called "a master of shooting pornography with...
and a cameraman to Brazil to film death scenes for V&R's continuation of the Junk series. A 2001 documentary Orozco El Embalsamador co-produced by V&R focused on a Colombian embalmer.
The company also produced porn director Katsuyuki Hirano
Katsuyuki Hirano
is a Japanese director of adult videos and documentaries. He should be differentiated from the manga artist .-Life and career:Hirano was born in 1964 in Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan and was an aspiring cartoonist until he began making amateur films from the time he was 18. Three of his early films...
's trilogy of bike-trip films. The first, Yumika, about a trip with AV Idol
AV Idol
An AV idol is a Japanese idol who works in the pornographic business, often both as an actress as well as a model as the video performances have a wide range, from just the idol strolling around their house doing chores in bikinis to hardcore porn...
Yumika Hayashi
Yumika Hayashi
was a Japanese AV idol and pink film actress. She earned the title of "Japan's Original Adult Video Queen" during a 16-year career in which she starred in nearly 200 AVs and appeared in over 180 films...
, was released in 1997, followed by Encyclopedia of a Drifter (Nagaremono zukan) in 1998, and the series was completed by the award-winning 1999 account of a solo bike ride to the northern tip of Hokkaido
Hokkaido
, formerly known as Ezo, Yezo, Yeso, or Yesso, is Japan's second largest island; it is also the largest and northernmost of Japan's 47 prefectural-level subdivisions. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaido from Honshu, although the two islands are connected by the underwater railway Seikan Tunnel...
in the midst of a blizzard, Shiro - The White.
V&R International
V&R International was formed as a subsidiary company in August 2001 with headquarters in São PauloSão Paulo
São Paulo is the largest city in Brazil, the largest city in the southern hemisphere and South America, and the world's seventh largest city by population. The metropolis is anchor to the São Paulo metropolitan area, ranked as the second-most populous metropolitan area in the Americas and among...
, Brazil to bring Japanese AV to the international market. Since it is not located in Japan, V&R International is able to offer uncensored versions of V&R products (which do not have the mosaic pixelation to obscure the genitals mandated by Japanese law) to countries outside of Japan. In the United States, its products are released through the Oriental Dream label.
In January 2009, V&R International opened the website CRAZY JAPAN with a motto of "The best of Japanese hentai at your fingertips". The site provides Pay-per-view
Pay-per-view
Pay-per-view provides a service by which a television audience can purchase events to view via private telecast. The broadcaster shows the event at the same time to everyone ordering it...
(PPV) streaming video of "extreme Japanese porn" including "amateur, scat, S&M, gay, as well as the unique Japanese phenomenon 'chikan', the art of groping young girls on crowded trains and buses".
V&R Products
was created as a V&R Planning subsidiary in August 2004 by a group of V&R Planning directors, Shingo Takemoto, Temple Suwa, Taro Kanbe and Uzumaki SasakiUzumaki Sasaki
is a Japanese adult video director and co-founder of two AV production studios.-Life and career:Uzumaki Sasaki was born in Kyoto, Japan on March 16, 1978. Soon after graduating from Ritsumeikan University in Kyoto, he began working in the AV industry...
who wanted more freedom of expression and the chance to pursue a less extreme course than the usual V&R Planning genres. Shingo Takemoto was the president of the new company which distributed its products through porn conglomerate Soft On Demand
Soft on Demand
, often known as SOD, is a Japanese adult video group of companies which has its headquarters in the Nakano ward of Tokyo. SOD was founded in December 1995 by Ganari Takahashi, who retired from the company in March 2005 and is currently working in agriculture...
. In a review of one of their videos in 2006, the studio was described as another AV producer making "strange and funny genre videos like Soft On Demand".
But in 2007 when V&R Products asked for full independence, the parent company balked and Takemoto and the rest of the original staff were removed. Takemoto and the others went on to found a new AV company Rocket. The new head of V&R Products is Kaoru Yoshikawa (吉川 薫).
In August 2009, the V&R Products' website listed a total of 403 videos available from the company or about 80 videos a year produced over the firm's five year existence.
AV Open
V&R Products was one of the 16 companies invited to compete in the 2006 AV OpenAV Open
AV Open is a major awards contest for the Japanese adult video industry. It has gone from a limited sales contest in 2006 to become, via its successor the AV GrandPrix, the major Japanese AV award with nearly 100 participating companies competing for the 2009 awards.-AV Open Origins:The AV Open...
contest. Its entry, labeled with the production code OPEN-0653, Tokyo Shinjuku Ward Office 24: Slut Division (こちら!東京24区 痴女区の区役所の痴女○○課) directed by Uzumaki Sasaki
Uzumaki Sasaki
is a Japanese adult video director and co-founder of two AV production studios.-Life and career:Uzumaki Sasaki was born in Kyoto, Japan on March 16, 1978. Soon after graduating from Ritsumeikan University in Kyoto, he began working in the AV industry...
took the 3rd Place prize in the Challenge Stage. V&R Products also entered the 2007 AV Open with the novelty video, 100 Beautiful Women Come to My House (ある朝起きたら、家に美女が100人来た！), labeled OPEN-0711.
Labels
V&R has released videos under a number of labels in addition to V&R Planning, V&R Products and V&R International:- Noah Select (from 1986)
- Noah Select Special (from 1989)
- Virgin (from 1991)
- Vogue
- Pandore
- Desire
- Ume Gold
Directors
Over the more than 25 years since V&R was founded, several prominent directors have worked with the company including:- Kaoru AdachiKaoru Adachiis a Japanese film director, producer and editor, and founder of the Japanese documentary and adult video studio V&R Planning.-Life and career:Kaoru Adachi was born in Tokyo on January 27, 1956...
- Yamashita Bakushishi (バクシーシ山下)
- Kunihiro HasegawaKunihiro Hasegawais a Japanese adult video director who has helmed more than 200 videos during his long career.-Life and career:Hasegawa began directing adult videos at least as early as June 1987 with , starring actress Keiko Nakazawa, for V&R Planning, a studio which had been founded just the year before by...
- Noboru IguchiNoboru Iguchiis a Japanese film director, screenwriter and actor. He has worked as a director in adult video as well as in the horror and gore genres.-Life and career:Iguchi was born on June 28, 1969...
- Injan Koga AKA Innjean Koga (インジャン古河)
- Company MatsuoCompany Matsuois an innovative Japanese adult video director, producer and entrepreneur. He is credited with popularizing the Japanese porn genre of "hamedori" where the director/actor performs sexually with the actress and also films the action. He has been called "a master of shooting pornography with...
- Eigo Mochizuki (望月英吾)
- Uzumaki SasakiUzumaki Sasakiis a Japanese adult video director and co-founder of two AV production studios.-Life and career:Uzumaki Sasaki was born in Kyoto, Japan on March 16, 1978. Soon after graduating from Ritsumeikan University in Kyoto, he began working in the AV industry...
- Temple Suwa (テンプルすわ)
- Shingo Takemoto (竹本シンゴ)
- TOHJIROTohjiroTohjiro or TOHJIRO is an adult video director and the founder of the AV studio Dogma who has been described as a "charismatic director" and has been called the "greatest porn director in the world.-Life and career:...
Actresses
Although Yumika HayashiYumika Hayashi
was a Japanese AV idol and pink film actress. She earned the title of "Japan's Original Adult Video Queen" during a 16-year career in which she starred in nearly 200 AVs and appeared in over 180 films...
and Reiko Miyazaki (宮崎レイコ) made a number of early videos with V&R for directors Company Matsuo
Company Matsuo
is an innovative Japanese adult video director, producer and entrepreneur. He is credited with popularizing the Japanese porn genre of "hamedori" where the director/actor performs sexually with the actress and also films the action. He has been called "a master of shooting pornography with...
and Kaoru Adachi
Kaoru Adachi
is a Japanese film director, producer and editor, and founder of the Japanese documentary and adult video studio V&R Planning.-Life and career:Kaoru Adachi was born in Tokyo on January 27, 1956...
, because of the company's emphasis on amateurs and extreme fetishes, only a few AV Idol
AV Idol
An AV idol is a Japanese idol who works in the pornographic business, often both as an actress as well as a model as the video performances have a wide range, from just the idol strolling around their house doing chores in bikinis to hardcore porn...
s have worked for V&R and usually just briefly:
- Kyōko AizomeKyoko Aizomeis a Japanese erotic actress, singer, AV director, and writer who has been called, "the first hard-core porn actress in Japan."-Early life:Kyōko Aizome was born on February 9, 1958 in Noda Chiba Prefecture. Aizome grew up in a troubled household. Her father was a police officer who beat his wife,...
- Chihiro HasegawaChihiro Hasegawa, also known as Nami Funakura , is an award-winning Japanese AV idol who has starred in more than 200 adult videos on various labels.-Life and career:...
- Yumika HayashiYumika Hayashiwas a Japanese AV idol and pink film actress. She earned the title of "Japan's Original Adult Video Queen" during a 16-year career in which she starred in nearly 200 AVs and appeared in over 180 films...
- Milk IchigoMilk Ichigo, also often billed as Miruku Ichigo, is an award-winning Japanese adult video actress who has had an exceptionally long career.-Life and career:...
- Mariko KawanaMariko Kawanais a Japanese model and actress who has appeared in both softcore pink film and V-Cinema and has also been a hardcore adult video performer and director. She is now retired as an actress and has a second career as a writer.-Life and career:...
- Hitomi KobayashiHitomi Kobayashiis an important early Japanese AV idol. One of the founding figures of the Japanese adult video, she has been called indispensable to any discussion of the AV...
- Yuri KomuroYuri Komurois a Japanese AV idol, actress, and author. She was one of the top actresses in the AV field during the late 1990s.-Early life and AV career:Yuri Komuro was born in Japan's Kanagawa Prefecture on July 28, 1976,...
- Reiko Miyazaki
- Keiko NakazawaKeiko Nakazawa, born September 9, 1965, is an award-winning Japanese AV idol and pink film actress who gained popularity among AV viewers during the mid-1980s. She was described as "the most popular video queen in 1987".- Life and career :...
- Anna OhuraAnna Ohurais a Japanese AV performer and model, known for her very large natural breasts. In 2003, according to the Taipei Times, she claimed to have the largest breasts in the Japanese adult film industry...
- Nao SaejimaNao Saejimais a Japanese AV idol and model of the 1980s and 1990s who also starred in photobooks, V-Cinema, and feature films, including Nikkatsu's Roman Porno series.-AV career:...
- Sakura SakuradaSakura Sakuradais a Japanese actress, model and adult video star who has also used the name for still photo shoots. Her long and prolific career and international recognition mark her as an AV Idol.-Early career - "Uncensored Movies":...
- Miki SawaguchiMiki Sawaguchi, born September 1, 1975 in Yokohama, Japan) is one of Japan's best known adult video performers. On television she has appeared as a regular cast member on two shows and made several guest appearances on other shows...
- Maria YumenoMaria Yumenois a Japanese pink film and adult video actress. In 2003, she was called one of Japan's highest-earning AV performers and "probably its most famous." Many of her movies emphasized her large bust and thin body.-Life and career:...
Series
Video series produced by V&R include:- New Female Teacher Special (新・女教師スペシャル)
- Time Stop (時間よ止まれ！) - V&R Products series