 Animation can provide wide open vistas for stories ; the French film Fantastic Planet ( 1972 ) explored ideas beyond the limits of traditional , live @-@ action science fiction films . Phil Hoad of The Guardian identifies Akira ( 1988 ) as introducing violent , adult Japanese animation ( known as anime ) to the West and paving the way for later works . Anime , according to academic Brian Ruh , is not a cult genre , but the lack of individual fandoms inside anime fandom itself lends itself to a bleeding over of cult attention and can help spread works internationally . Anime , which is often highly franchised , provides its fans with alternative fictional canons and points of view that can drive fan activity . The Ghost in the Shell franchise , for example , provided Japanese fans with enough bonus material and spinoffs that it encouraged cult tendencies . Markets that did not support the sale of these materials saw less cult activity . Ralph Bakshi 's career has been marked with controversy : Fritz the Cat ( 1972 ) , the first animated film to be rated " X " by the MPAA , provoked outrage for its racial caricatures and graphic depictions of sex , and Coonskin ( 1975 ) was decried as racist . Bakshi recalls that older animators had tired of " kid stuff " and desired edgier work , whereas younger animators hated his work for " destroying the Disney images " . Eventually , his work would be reassessed and cult followings , which include Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez , developed around several of his films . Heavy Metal ( 1981 ) faced similar denunciations from critics ; Donald Liebenson of the Los Angeles Times cites the violence and sexual imagery as alienating critics , who did not know what to make of the film . It would go on to become a popular midnight movie and frequently bootlegged by fans , as licensing issues kept it from being released on video for many years . 
