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There is an impression that there are many facial differences between different American animated characters. Japanese animated characters, on the other hand, tend to be typecast, with large eyes, sharp chins, and angular faces. In essence, the subject matter of animation is primarily based on the culture of the people who make it, and the designers of the characters also have their own sense of national belonging; therefore, is it possible that the characters in animation are designed with more reference to their own people? In this study, the facial features of characters are extracted from the data of animation with high awards, box office, and ratings in America and Japan. R-language analysis of four sets of facial features data, comparing American and Japanese animated characters, was conducted using: U.S. and Japanese live action; American animated characters with American live action; and Japanese animated characters with Japanese live action. Results revealed that 23 of the 42 observations for the American animated character sample and the American live action sample were ≤0.05. Among them, 15 reference values were ≤0.001. In the group of Japanese animated characters, compared to Japanese live action, only 12 of the 42 observations were ≤0.05. Among them, seven reference values ≤ 0.001. These data prove that the design of faces of American and Japanese animated characters are exaggerated and, based on proportions of their own faces, American animators prefer to design a diverse cast of characters, which is perhaps related to the diverse ethnic structure of the United States. It is true that Japanese animated characters mostly have a single face design, and although this face has Western characteristics, it retains more of its own Japanese characteristics. However, the ‘formulaic’ style of Japanese animated characters can easily lead to aesthetic fatigue, and without continued innovation in storytelling, the character-based Japanese animation industry may be in decline.

This qualitative study explores the transformation of Japanese animation (anime) media consumption in Thailand, focusing on Generation Z. The research examines communication strategies within the anime ecosystem and related consumption behaviors through a multi-stakeholder lens, addressing gaps in understanding community-driven influence and identity construction. Semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted with 23 participants across four stakeholder groups—event organizers, influencers, casual viewers, and niche community members—in Bangkok. Data were analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis. Four key findings emerge: (1) anime has undergone a social transformation from stigmatized activity to mainstream cultural practice; (2) a Trust-Network Model operates in which intimate word-of-mouth supersedes algorithmic reach in driving consumption decisions; (3) fan communities and events function as ‘identity laboratories’ enabling safe self-exploration; and (4) dedicated fans wield significant economic power, challenging conventional ‘otaku’ stereotypes. Theoretically, the study advances cultural globalization theory through an ‘Organic Globalization’ framework, extends participatory culture theory by validating lurker participation along an engagement spectrum, and introduces an ‘Identity Laboratories’ framework highlighting the psychosocial developmental functions of media fandoms. These findings offer practical insights for content creators, marketers, and cultural industry stakeholders seeking authentic engagement with Generation Z.

This collection charts the terrain of contemporary Japanese animation, one of the most explosive forms of visual culture to emerge at the crossroads of transnational cultural production in the last twenty-five years. The essays offer bold and insightful engagement with animé's concerns with gender identity, anxieties about body mutation and technological monstrosity, and apocalyptic fantasies of the end of history. The contributors dismantle the distinction between 'high' and 'low' culture and offer compelling arguments for the value and importance of the study of animé and popular culture as a key link in the translation from the local to the global.

During the Anthropocene, science and folklore have been efficient explanatory models of the world. However, numerous studies suggest a convergence of both perspectives in contemporary mass media productions, being Japanese animation a clear example. The aim of the research presented here was to analyse how science and folklore are integrated and opposed in Aoyama’s Detective Conan, an anime where cases often happen in rural Japan and where folk references confront Conan’s detective reasoning. To reach this objective, a comprehensive qualitative and quantitative study of the presence of folklore in this work—through aspects such as characterisation or narratives—was conducted in 75 cases and over 155 episodes which include references to folklore in their background, plot, or characters. The analysis revealed that, when folklore and science interact, rational thinking is usually preferred over folk beliefs; characters are stereotyped according to their genre or origins; and, more importantly, supernatural beliefs can be included in detective fiction without being ridiculed by the most rational characters.

In the same way that all forms of art have a history, in the special case of animation, there are many stories that are still being investigated. One of them corresponds to the particular model of Japanese animation known as anime. In spite of its indisputable worldwide expansion, the origin of Japanese animation can still arouse some relevant controversy, especially if this involves changing the date of certain milestones that have been considered unquestionable in animation history. This article carries out a review of recent discoveries about the origins of Japanese animation as well as a description of its earliest animation ─ just after 1900 ─ which provides valuable information despite the fact the found material is very scarce and quite deteriorated. In particular, the distinctive contributions of the film animation pioneers, as presently dated and recorded, are contrasted with recent findings of cinematographic archeology made in Japan, which could challenge the stylistic hegemony of Western animation accepted for decades.

Despite the longevity of animation and its significance within the history of cinema, film theorists have focused on live-action motion pictures and largely ignored hand-drawn and computer-generated movies. Thomas Lamarre contends that animation demands sustained engagement, and in The Anime Machine he lays the foundation for a new critical theory for reading Japanese animation, showing how anime fundamentally differs from other visual media.

Video-sharing sites like YouTube and streaming services like Amazon Prime Video and Netflix, along with unlawful platforms such as Anitube, are environments of consumption enabled by increasing transnational consumption that are pushing for transformations in the Japanese animation industry. Among these platforms, the Kadokawa Dwango Corporation is known to rely on the integration of consumers’ practices and the needs of the animation industry in a changing and challenging era of transnational content flows. In this paper, I focus on the Kadokawa Dwango Corporation, a major player in the contemporary media mix, and its pushing forward of the creation of an environment that integrates two different stances on cultural content: one which represents the industry’s needs regarding cultural content as intellectual property, and another that represents consumers’ practices and which regards content as a common or free resource for enabling participation in digital networks. I argue that rather than the production of content, it is the production of value through the management of fictional worlds and user’s participation in media platforms that lies at the core of the Kadokawa Dwango Corporation’s self-proclaimed ‘ecosystem’. This case represents the transformations in the Japanese content industry to survive the increasing transnationalisation of consumption and production.

A través de algunos largometrajes de animación de Hayao Miyazaki es posible reconocer las principales manifestaciones del sintoísmo. La veneración a los antepasados asociada al culto al emperador, el culto a la naturaleza manifestado en los irui-kon o matrimonios con seres sobrenaturales además de otros aspectos como la purificación, el más allá, los vuelos y el sacerdocio sintoísta son analizados en estas películas japonesas.

What you will learnWrite outlines and screenplays for your projectsExplore using 3D models, actions, ruler tools, and creating projects to save you timeDraw your very own cartoon character with an impressive set of draw and fill tools.Rig a character using the advanced bone systemTake advantage of the different layer types such as Vectors, Bones, and SwitchesUse the Channels, Sequencer, and Motion Graph timelines to control the animation in every aspect of your productionCreate unique effects using different brushes and layer settingsDesign props and set pieces for your character to inhabitCombine your animated scenes with video editing softwareRender your videos for distribution on websites such as YouTube and Vimeo

Japanese anime has long fascinated the world, and its mythical heroes and dazzling colors increasingly influence popular culture genres in the West. Tze-yue G. Hu analyzes the “language-medium” of this remarkable expressive platform and its many socio-cultural dimensions from a distinctly Asian frame of reference, tracing its layers of concentric radiation from Japan throughout Asia. Her work, rooted in archival investigations, interviews with animators and producers in Japan as well as other Asian animation studios, and interdisciplinary research in linguistics and performance theory, shows how dialectical aspects of anime are linked to Japan’s unique experience of modernity and its cultural associations in Asia, including its reliance on low-wage outsourcing. Her study also provides English readers with insights on numerous Japanese secondary sources, as well as a number of original illustrations offered by animators and producers she interviewed.