Japanese Popular Press and Film PDF

Japanese Popular Press and Film Contemporary Popular Culture in East Asia K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė Print media alert us to the idealized models of society people are orienting to or challenging. (Miller 2008) K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė The main genres of popular press Manga Magazines N...

Japanese Popular Press and Film Contemporary Popular Culture in East Asia K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė Print media alert us to the idealized models of society people are orienting to or challenging. (Miller 2008) K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė The main genres of popular press Manga Magazines Non-fiction literature (informational, advice, popular psychology etc.) New literature genres: cell phone novels, light novels K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė Historical guidelines Magazines, books Manga  Edo (1603-1868)  Edo (1603-1868) 1770- The term ’manga’ appears (Hokusai ukiyo-e) -City libraries for samurai, merchants and literate farmers -Basis for self-help and practical advice books  Meiji (1868-1912) Language unification (standard language) Printing technologies: mass printing The first magazine: Seiyo zasshi (1867)  1970-80s Women’s style magazines („New women’s magazines“)  2 kinds of manga: children’s manga and political caricatures  1940-50s -Picture show (kamishibai), manga for rent (kashinohonya), manga booklets (yokabon) -The most popular artist of manga: Osamu Tezuka (Shin Takarajima, Jungeru Taitei, Tetsuwan Atomu etc.) -Kawaii style manga getting popular  1970s 1950s Bunko- small books that can slide into a pocket   1920-30s - Shojo manga Tankobon format- manga books 1983- Eastablishment of Comic Market: institution that promotes the development of Dojinshi manga  1990s Flourishing of adult manga, otaku 1980-90s Men’s style magazines; light novel genre K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė  2000s Japanese manga gains international popularity; keitai novels; light novels gaining popularity Nonfiction popular press  Practical advice books Topics: Usage of keigo (polite speech), good manners, etiquette, self-help manuals, body language (sitting on cushions, bowing etc.) Aim: Self improvement, improvement of one’s social position. In Edo period it is popular to try serving the society/state as good as possible, this way assuring one’s personal welfare. K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė New literature genres: cell phone novels and light novels  Characteristics of light novels: simple, chatty, entertaining writing style, target audience is young adults, illustrated with manga/anime art style, long titles, genres correspond to manga/anime rather than literature  Characteristics of cell phone (keitai) novels: literary techniques combined with visual qualities, format adapted to cell phone screen, stories do not provide solutions to the raised problems („inspire tears but not activism“ Friedman, 2018: 330), written in the first person to create a sense of reading messages from friends, casual writing style K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė Maho no i-rando: website for circulating cellphone novels https://maho.jp/ K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė Average number of characters from the novels’ titles, and number of light novels published per year, considering only “original” novels. Source: Tomotani, J.V., 2020: 122 K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė The most popular genres of light novels  Fantasy  Comedy  Romance  Action  Adventure  Isekai/Virtual reality  Drama  Sci-fi  Harem  Mystery K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė Classification of manga  Yonkoma manga (4 panels )- since 1920s  Gekiga manga (aimed at adults) since 1950s  Kodomomuke manga (aimed at children)- since 1950s  Shonen manga (aimed at young men)- since 1960s  Shojo manga (aimed at young girls)since 1970s K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė Development of manga  Origins: Choju Jinbutsu Giga (“Birds and animals play human”), 12th century emakimono (picture scroll)  Origins2: ukiyo-e woodblock prints with illustrated novels, 17th century No series of frames or speech balloons yet  Manga with frames and speech balloons appeared in 1800s  Later developments since 1950s: from four-panel layout (yonkoma manga) to diverse panel sizes (Tezuka), dramatism, action, psychological treatment of characters in shojo manga, OEL manga (Originally English Language): non-Japanese manga for non-Japanese audience created in a Japanese design/format  (Choju jinbutsu giga by Ghibli) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9qBFTgzGtK8  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RHcGN-brzPk  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KY5WmcfGj-g K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ob8jf5Ge2vw Development of manga 12th c. 17th c. K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė Gekiga as alternative to mainstream manga  Story manga with little or no comical effect, oriented at young adult or adult male readers.  The most famous artists of gekiga: Tatsumi Yoshihiro (1935-2015) and Shirato Senpei (1932-).  Themes: thriller, mystery, suspense, social issues etc.  Characteristics: “aspect-to-aspect” transition of narrative panels (when the same scene is shown from multiple perspectives without action of characters), newly invented onomatopoeia (in response to audiovisual media), realistic pictures  Development of gekiga: 1950s: looking for new target audience (adults); 1960s: arena for social activists, creation of sense of community between the readers and creators of manga; 1970s: massification and commercialization; 1980s: diminished alternativeness and integration into Japanese comics culture K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė GARO (monthly alternative comics magazine) K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė Shōjo manga magazines  Publishing houses use manga magazines for testing out the popularity of published manga  The structure of shōjo manga magazine: about 400 pages, out of them about 90% is serialized manga and the remaining 3040 pages include furoku (list of presents for the feedback), survey info, articles about manga artists etc. Close connection between shōjo manga and girls’ culture K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė  Editorial team consists of 3-7 editors, each of them is in charge of about 20 artists. Active collaboration in the creation process. Tankobon manga books Foto: https://davidcharlesfox.com K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė Manga’s effect on Japanese society  3 main areas of concern: 1) Too much information provided in manga format 2) In such areas as politics, education or religion information is treated as a tool to create appeal by conveying it in an entertaining format 3) Violent and sexually explicit manga can make a negative impact on young readers  Manga studies at Kyoto Seika University, Faculty of Manga  Intellectual property rights management: how to maintain cultural ownership of the increasingly hybrid manga and anime goods? K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė Exoticism of Japan through popular culture Paradox of Japanese culture,based on the principle of contradiction (traditionmodernity; different-familiar; conservative- open minded) MANGA and ANIME: a gate to Japanese culture? K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė Anime origins  20c.- kamishibai  During the WW2: propaganda anime „Momotarō no Umiwashi (1943) and Momotarō: Umi no Shinpei (1945)  Sice 1960s Japanese anime becomes popular in the West (USA). Osamu Tezuka establishes Mushi Production (1961)  1985: Hayao Miyazaki contributes to the establishment of Studio Ghibli K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė Tetsuwan atomu (Astro boy) 1963 https://davidcharlesfox.com/cultural-significance-of-manga-and-anime/ Ghibli museum in Mitaka K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė https://www.ghibli-museum.jp/en/ The most popular genres of contemporary anime  Action  Adventure  Comedy  Drama  Slice of Life  Fantasy  Magic  Supernatural  Horror  Mystery  Psychological  Romance  Sci-Fi K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė Sub-genre variety  Cyberpunk  Mecha  Shounen  Game  Music  Shounen-ai  Ecchi  Parody  Space  Demons  Police  Sports  Harem Super Power  Tragedy        Post Apocalyptic Josei   Reverse Martial Arts  Harem Kids   School Historical   Seinen Hentai  Shoujo Isekai  Shoujo-ai Military K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė Vampire Yuri Yaoi Otaku and Akihabara  Since 2000s Akihabara advertised as the “Holy Land of Otaku” (オタクの聖地）  “Akihabara boom”: otaku performances in Pedestrian Paradise on Sundays in Chūo-dori (the main street in Akihabara)  From 2008 06 12 till 2011 01 23 The Pedestrian Paradise was banned due to the illegal actions of otaku performers  Presently Akihabara is the 15th mostly recommended place for tourists, and the 8th most disappointing because of false advertising and associations with “Porno Japan” and “Weird Japan” instead of being a center for all manga and anime fans. K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė Akihabara Liberation Demonstration, 2007 K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė Japanese media mix: everybody can create their own world Manga/novel Anime Toys,figurines, games Press, advertising K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė Musical track Fan production Example of „Densha Otoko“ (2004) Cosplay Internet story Video games The movie Music (song from a the movie) Drama Worldwide (EN translation of the drama) Theatre Anime Light novels Manga Merchandising K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė Figurines The idea of overlapping worlds Present in the most popular genres of Japanese films overseas, namely in anime and horror movies, as well as light novels (isekai genre) The origins can be traced from the traditional Noh theatre K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė The case of anime. Overlapping worlds in “Your name.” by Makoto Shinkai Symbolic ties between the worlds through kuchikamizake, Musubi no kami deity K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė The case of J-horror: the space and Japaneseness  The concept of MA 間  Space in J-horror: both familiar and isolated, dreadful  Doubling of spatial layers (real world, underworld)  Feeling of claustrophobia, ghosts live in homely yet unhomely spaces  Women as victims and as monsters K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė The ancient horror and fantasy genres... K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė Appeal of J-horror outside of Japan Relies on digital technologies, easy to modify according to target audience Long cultural tradition of ghost, spirit stories Hybridity of J-horror filmmaking (local + global) Plot motifs that make J-horror relevant to international audiences: urban modernity in crisis; uncanny media devices; dissolution of the nuclear family (Scherer 2016, Wada-Marciano 2016) K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė Female ghost tradition: O-Iwa from Tokaido Yotsuya Kaidan https://www.moriareviews.com/horror/ghost-story-ofyotsuya-1959-yotsuya-kaidan.htm (1959) K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė https://www.imdb.com/video/vi1964947481/?playlistId=tt2916416&ref_=tt_ov_vi “Ringu” by Nakata Hideo (1998) K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė “Ju-On: The Grudge” by Shimizu Takashi (2003) K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė Magazines  Classification of magazines according to their target audience: age, occupation, marital status, gender  (www.j-magazine.or.jp ) JMAA http://www.zakko.or.jp/subwin/genre.html (magazine genres)  The role of magazines in creation and modification of culture  Advertising  Twin-magazines (versions for male and female readers) K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė Female and male counterparts of style magazines  Non-No K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė  Men’s Non-No Classification of magazines by audience Gender Age Marital status, social status, education, hobbies, profession K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė Depiction of body and race in magazines  Beauty ideology  Consumerism (of body and for body)  Westerness vs. Japanese-ness  Male/female perspective K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė Language of magazines  Unfinished sentences  Katakana script  Kawaii speech  Form of desire –tai  Authoritative tone  School tone, grading  Encouragement of imitation K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė Exporting Japanese popular culture to the world K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė CULTURAL EXPORT According to Kassalow (1983), a society’s ways of thinking about life can become a standard for other societies if 3 criteria are met: 1) society’s national economy surpluses over an extended period of time; 2) There is a consensus in an exporting society that their model is a good one; 3) Leaders of a given society are willing to export it. Japan’s case: 1980s “learnt from Japan boom”: exporting Japanese management system knowledge 1990s till now export of popular culture THEORIES EXPLAINING CULTURAL EXPORTS  Joseph Nye’s „soft power“ theory: instead of intimidating with its military or economic power, a country attempts to fascinate other countries by using its culture and ideals as means to create an attractive image of a country.  Peter van Ham’s „brand state“theory: by consuming a product, people also acquire a lifestyle, an attitude and sometimes respect associated with the product and the country that produces this product.  „Cultural emperialism“ theory: harmful effects brought about by the massive import from foreign cultures to local traditions and culture (“from West to the rest”) JAPANESE POPCULTURE EXPORT  Japanese cultural export started in 1980s, when the West started studying Japanese corporate culture.  Since 1990s- international interest in Japanese popular culture: manga, anime, fashion, popular music, movies, computer games, everyday lifestyle. (2000s: initiatives for Cool Japan campaign)  Since 2006: official trend of pop diplomacy carried out by the government JAPANESE POPULAR CULTURE POLICIES  First initiatives: in 2002 Prime Minister Koizumi proposed a policy if intellectual property-based nation, which included the strategic development of contents industry (‘contents’ includes movies, animated cartoons, game software etc.) “Japan’s Gross-National Cool”  2005: The Copyright Law (the center of attention is commercial value of ‘characters’)  In 2006 Prime Minister Abe initiated the cultural industry strategy to promote popular culture  In 2010 The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry established a new Creative Industries Promotion Office  In 2013 Japanese government launched the so-called “Cool Japan Fund” to support advertising and public relations of Japan’s creative industries overseas.  The aim: to create the image of Japan as a peaceful nation that loves beauty, enjoys a spirit of harmony and co-exists with nature. Literature  Craig, N. (2009). Manga, Anime, and Visual Art Culture. In: Sugimoto, Y. (ed.)Modern Japanese Culture. Cambridge University Press  Miller, L. (2008). There’s More than Manga: Popular Non-fiction Books and Magazines. In: A Companion to Anthropology of Japan. Blackwell Publishing  Tanaka, K. (2003). The Language of Japanese men’s Magazines: Young Men Who Don’t Want to Get Hurt. In: Benwell, B. (ed.) Masculinity and Men’s Lifestyle Magazines. Oxford: Blackwell Publishing Ltd.  Kinsella, Sh. (2000). Adult Manga: Culture and Power in Contemporary Japanese Society. Surrey: Curzon Press  Tanaka, K. (1998). Japanese Women’s Magazines: the Language of Aspiration. In: Martinez, D.P. (ed.) Japanese Popular Culture: Gender, Shifting Boundaries and Global Cultures. Cambridge University Press  Skov, L. & Moeran, B. (eds.) (1995). Women Media and Consumption in Japan. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press  Freedman, A. & T. Slade (eds.) (2018). Introducing Japanese Popular Culture. London and New York: Routledge  Yomota,K.Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė I. (2014). What is Japanese cinema? A history. New York: Columbia University press