ANIMATIONISM - All Creativity Welcomed -
Project Theme
When I ask Japanese animation creators about their motivation for producing work, many say they want to do “omoshiroi-things in Japanese.” However, when I try to translate this into English, the nuances are very difficult to convey. "Funny," "Interesting," "Fabulous." None of these words really apply. I suppose what might be more appropriate are phrases like, "produce things that I've never seen before," "produce things that make fans surprised and pleased," "produce things that make other professionals feel jealous," or something like, "challenge myself."
Japanese animation creators’ themes, motifs, storytelling, animation techniques such as drawing and art, staff composition, production systems, music, and performers, etc., are their modes of expression. Their motto is to pursue “omoshiroi” at every stage of production and as a result, the Japanese animation scene is "a state where there is a wide variety of unique things all together." Japanese animation creators create a diverse range of work for all audience groups, from adults to toddlers. Works range from boy and girl heroes, to robots, to unique characters and micro worlds, from traditional culture to sports, to music, and from artistic expression to 3D, and recently, VR. Up until this point in time, all kinds of creations have been made and are accepted in Japan. Moreover, the animation scene continues to change dynamically every year.
I think that this state in which all kinds of creations are welcomed is Japanese "ANIMATIONISM". In order to help a global audience feel and understand the current Japanese animation scene, we have curated works based on the following three themes.
- A special feature from the creative studios "Studio4℃," "Science SARU," "TRIGGER," and "TECARAT," which are producing "interesting" works one after another.
- A short animation program that showcases the creativity of the featured creators.
- "Creator’s File 2020" an introduction of notable creators who drive the Japanese animation scene.
In 2020, due to the spread of COVID-19, the world was forced to change the way society operates. The Annecy International Animation Film Festival, which is an important yearly event, is to be held online instead, and this special "ANIMATIONISM" feature will also be posted on the web.
Owing to the many changes to our societies and daily lives at present, I expect that human creativity will flourish. Therefore, I think that it is meaningful at this time to introduce the Japanese animation scene where all creativity is welcomed.
I hope that people from all over the world will come to understand and appreciate "ANIMATIONISM" in Japan through this site, and that young people from around the globe will be interested in the Japanese animation world.
June 2020
Japan Media Arts Festival Overseas Promotion Animation division
Director OKAMOTO Mitsuko
OKAMOTO Mitsuko Profile
Producer/Vice President, Tokyo University of the Arts; Professor, Department of Animation, Postgraduate School of Film and New Media.
Produces and curates numerous TV programs, visual works, and events.
Notable produced programs are "Digital Stadium" (2000-2006), NHK Educational TV Monday-Friday broadcasting "2355," "0655" (2010 to present), and "TECHNE: The Visual Workshop" (2011 to present).
Major production events include "Digital Art Festival Tokyo" (2003-2005), "Tokyo University of the Arts, Visual Department of Games" (2017), "Tokyo University of the Arts, Department of Games - Vertical Slice" (2018), "ART of 8K" exhibition (2018).
She was a judge for Mainichi Film Awards, Best Animation Film division (2019), and was the general director for the Annecy International Animation Festival in 2018, 2019 and 2020 as an overseas exhibition of the Japan Media Arts Festival.
