The International Otaku Expo Association (IOEA) could be the title of one of those self-referential, po-mo anime shows that is as much about fandom as it is made for fans (think "Genshiken," an entire series about a college otaku fan club). But it's the ...
With the anime marking its 25th anniversary this year, the world's first permanent store for "Sailor Moon" goods opened Saturday in Tokyo's trendy Harajuku district. The Sailor Moon shop is inside the Laforet building and sells a variety of goods ranging from key chains and ...
The government is discussing plans to relax residency requirements for foreign students in Japan studying anime, design and culinary professions to make it easier for them to find jobs here after graduation.
A unique exhibition opened Wednesday in Kyoto featuring famous anime and manga characters, as well as other icons of Japanese pop culture, drawn in the style of traditional Japanese paintings. The exhibition, titled "Bokura-ga Nihon-wo Tsuideiku" ("We Will Inherit Japan"), shows a collection of 35 ...
Feeling trapped in her "boring" life as a member of China's modern workforce, "Yaorenmao" escapes online, where she prances and preens in cosplay outfits for her 1.3 million fans. Her alternative world is bilibili.com, a Shanghai-based video-sharing platform that has attracted more than 150 million ...
The popularity of the blockbuster anime film "Your Name." went beyond movie screens, with fans flocking to the real-world locales depicted in the romantic fantasy. Gifu Prefecture has seen more tourists since its sites appeared in the movie. The city of Hida attracted more than ...
More than 80 cities, towns and wards have been selected as destinations in what is being dubbed the "Anime Tourism 88-Stop Pilgrimage," an anime industry association announced Saturday. The municipalities listed contain sites that were depicted in or inspired scenes for anime productions. The campaign ...
Where else but Japan could you buy a miniature version of Edvard Munch's "The Scream" figure crouching over a squat toilet, horror-struck? It's one of thousands of ingeniously designed trinkets you can buy for a pittance from toy machines across the nation. They're subversive, ...
Summer is high season for live celebrations of Japan's pop culture exports. The two largest events in the West, Japan Expo in Paris and Anime Expo in LA, drew hundreds of thousands earlier this month. August will see the U.S. East Coast's biggest anime ...
"The Anime Man" has a busy summer ahead of him. The 23-year-old, whose real name is Joey Bizinger, will be on the road over the next two months making stops at anime conventions across the United States and Europe. It sounds like the kind ...
Last summer saw the release of what would become the highest grossing Japanese animation film to date, Makoto Shinkai's "Your Name.," which was also the country's top box-office draw of 2016. The surprise hit's main characters are a pair of body-swapping teenagers. A survey ...
