Interesting facts about Japan and anime. Interesting facts about anime and manga that you didn't know
Good morning, afternoon or any other time, dear totoriki!
In the vastness of the great and mighty RuNet, any avid anime fan can find gigabytes of anime. But what do we know about this amazingly colorful and eventful (including fillers) world?
Let's start with a portion of six of the most delicious facts about anime. Bend the fingers of your right hand if you knew about the fact, with your left - if you didn’t know. If the fingers of your own right or left hand are not enough, involve friends, younger brothers/sisters and other assistants, because finding out your anime skill is the main task of this evening (or whatever you have now?). Well, let's start!
1. The word " Anime" is Japanese animation. The word itself is a Japaneseized abbreviation of the English word “Animation” (reproduction of a cartoon, inspiration, liveliness). The English word is old, but the term “anime”, derived from it, appeared quite recently. Before this, the phrase "manga-eiga" ("movie-comic") was used, which is still used by old-school anime fans to this day.
2. The word " Manga” was invented by the famous artist Katsushika Hokusai back in 1814 for a series of his prints. This artist was one of the most famous Japanese engravers in the West, a true master of Japanese woodcuts (what a word, but these are just drawings on wood). The word "mango" means "strange (or funny) pictures" and is used only to name Japanese comics.
3. And who? Tell me, who doesn't know a great anime director? Hayao Miyadaki? Find this person and send his photo! We'll figure out where... ahem ahem... Miyazaki is the only anime director to win an Oscar. At the 62nd Venice Film Festival, he even received the Golden Lion for his contribution to world cinema.
4. Another great animator of all time left his mark on the world of anime. You won't believe it - this is Walt Disney! The author of Mickey Mouse, Bambi and the most beautiful princesses has played almost the most important role in anime culture. The Japanese figured out how to draw the hair and bodies of their heroes themselves, and the style of the eyes was copied from the characters of Walt Disney. By the way, none of the residents of the island of Japan hides this fact. At the same time, I propose to shake the old days and guess the Disney princesses by their eyes.
5. " Pokemon"was originally a game for the GameBoy (something like prehistoric Tetris. Well, Tetris, you know?). Even more interesting is the fact that Pokemon has become the second most popular computer game in the world after Mario. Only later, manga and anime were made from the virtual adventure. Hmm... Which game would you make an anime out of?
6. Ask your moms and dads about a simple Soviet cartoon " The Adventures of Little Penguin Lolo", full of kindness and cuteness. Little did they know that the Soviet adventures of the penguins were filmed together with Japanese animation studios (at the very beginning you can even see which ones). Of course, the cartoon is Russian, and everyone speaks Russian, and there are no Japanese words at all, but this wonderful cartoon can be considered one of the first Russian anime.
How many fingers are bent on the right hand “I knew”?
1. 60 percent of all animation that exists on our planet is Japanese anime.
2. The first anime to become famous outside of Japan was the 1963 Astro Boy series.
3. The first anime that was shown in the USSR was “Flying Ghost Ship”.
4. The Japanese invented hair and body drawing in anime, and the eye style was copied from Walt Disney, which the Japanese, by the way, do not deny.
5. According to the unspoken law of anime, the more important the hero, the more detailed his eyes are drawn.
6. In Japan, comic books use more paper than toilet rolls.
7. Unlike American and European comics, which are read mainly by teenagers and nerds, manga is created for people of all ages.
8. In Japan, the term "otaku" is used negatively to describe people who are obsessed with something. Not only anime, as is customary in Russia.
9. There is a rule to which there have been no exceptions: if an anime is released based on a manga, sales of the former increase by at least 10 percent. On average - by 30-40, and in the case of "Attack on Titan" even by 70. That is, you can release a crappy manga, make a crappy series based on it and - profit! - swim in gold.
10. Hair color in anime is not chosen randomly. Everything here is cunning and thoughtful: hair color indicates certain personality traits of the hero. There is even a certain conspiracy theory.
Red - love adventure, passionate;
Green - tolerant, quiet, soft, sometimes envious, but not aggressive;
White is the most iconic, embodies the connection with the cosmos, maturity, the character exists as if outside the world of people;
Purple - often means a threat; basically they are secretive, withdrawn, often suffer from narcissism, and are stingy in showing emotions;
Blue - intellectually developed, reason dominates feelings, polite, calm, shy;
Pink - they always stand out from the crowd in some way, are ardent in battle, have not heard about the rules and conventions;
Red - cunning, temperamental, possessed;
Brown - soft, touching, not capable of offending, often with a tragic past;
Blue - iron-disciplined, persistent, calm, restraining feelings.
11. Ghost in the Shell had a huge impact on cinema. He inspired the Wachowskis to create The Matrix, gave a great push to the development of sci-fi, and Cameron and Spielberg do not hide the fact that they are not childish fans of the film and would rather watch it than waste time on some expected blockbuster.
12. "Pokemon" was originally a game for the GameBoy (if you don't know what that is, don't forget to pack your schoolbag and do your homework for tomorrow). Only then did manga and anime catch up.
13. Evangelion was created to test what was acceptable in anime and what was not. And everything would be ok - but the ending...
14. The longest anime series is Sazae-san, which has been running since 1969 to this day. It has more than 7 thousand episodes. The vaunted "Santa Barbara", for comparison, is almost 3.5 times shorter.
15. The Soviet “The Adventures of Little Penguin Lolo” was filmed jointly with Japanese animation studios. That is, technically this cartoon can be considered Russian anime.
16. Death Note was banned in China because local fans of the anime began buying notebooks in droves and writing the names of everyone they hated in the hope that they would die.
18. The publisher of "Big Jackpot" was afraid that the series would not survive even 5 years. Meanwhile, outside the window is 2016 - the 19th year of the manga’s existence.
19. The highest-grossing anime ever is “Spirited Away” by Hayao Miyazaki. The film grossed $275 million worldwide.
One of the most mysterious and isolated cultures in the world is Japanese. Despite the fact that after World War II, Japan made a giant leap in technological development and integration into the world community, this nation remains one of the most mysterious in the world. We offer you a selection of anime that will help you understand the history and culture of this country.
Grave of the Fireflies, 1988
Grave of the Fireflies is considered one of the best war films. It is based on the autobiographical novel by Akiyuki Nosaka, who buried two sisters one after another in the spring and summer of 1945. According to the plot of the novel, a boy and his younger sister are trying to survive in a war-weakened, hungry Japan.Nobody needs children; Four-year-old Setsuko eats rocks while her older brother Seita tries to get some food. After Setsuko's death, 14-year-old Seita realizes that he has nothing left to live for and soon dies of exhaustion in Kobe. The novel on which Grave of the Fireflies is based is an important attempt to understand Japanese militarism in the first half of the 20th century and its dire consequences for the nation.
Grave of the Fireflies: Trailer
Ghost in the Shell, 1995
In Japan, a huge amount of anime is filmed on dystopian stories about the near future - just take the series “Animatrix”, connected to the blockbuster by Lana and Lilly Wachowski. But 1995’s “Ghost in the Shell” is deservedly considered a classic of the genre. 
The film follows Major Motoko Kusanagi, who works in the counter-cyberterrorism department and questions her humanity. The editors of uznayvsyo.rf also note that in 2017, in the film adaptation of Ghost in the Shell, the role of Motoko was played by Scarlett Johansson.
Ghost in the Shell has been filmed several times
Spring and Chaos, 1996
This film is an animated declaration of love to Japanese children's writer Kenji Miyazawa, who would have turned 100 years old the year Spring and Chaos was released. Miyazawa worked as a school teacher and wrote poetry and stories. He was a follower of Buddhism and died early from tuberculosis. A significant part of his works was published after his death. 
In the film "Spring and Chaos", all the characters are represented as cats, just like Miyazawa's character himself. The film tells the story of an eccentric teacher in a small Japanese town who tries to instill in his students a Buddhist view of the world and teach them to see beauty everywhere.
Trailer for the cartoon “Spring and Chaos”
My neighbors Yamada, 1999
Despite the fact that the comedy about a Japanese family is filled with a specifically Japanese flavor, the situations are recognizable to people not familiar with this culture. The Yamadas are represented by four generations, and the stories told in the cartoon give a more or less complete picture of how a modern Japanese family lives. 
Interestingly, My Neighbors Yamada contains references to Japanese mythology; for example, the head of the family finds his son in a giant peach - this is a quote from the fairy tale about Momotaro, a hero who resembles the European Thumb; Father Yamada finds a girl in a bamboo stalk - this is from the myth of Princess Kaguya.
“My Neighbors Yamada”: trailer
Spirited Away, 2001
The editors of the site believe that in a story about anime it is impossible not to mention the patriarch of Japanese animation, Hayao Miyazaki. The founder of Studio Ghibli has made many masterpieces over the years. Spirited Away is one of them, which won an Oscar. 
There is an opinion that Chihiro's story is an allegorical satire on the Japanese sex industry, which does not disdain child labor. It's no secret that Japanese men have specific sexual tastes, and most "adult films" in the country are made involuntarily.
Spirited Away is one of the most famous anime in the world.
Aoi Bungaku, 2009
The Aoi Bungaku series is based on the works of Japanese writers, including texts from recognized classics of the 20th century - for example, the 1914 novel “Heart” by Natsume Soseki. This is a novel about the growing up of a young man and his dialogues with an unnamed Teacher. There is also a love conflict in the short story, based on the novel. 
Aoi Bungaku includes two short stories based on texts by Ryunosuke Akutagawa, a powerful Japanese author who gained recognition quite early in the country and then abroad, and wrote several dozen short stories and novellas. Akutagawa committed suicide at the age of 35 in 1927.
Aoi Bungaku: trailer
House of Five Leaves, 2010
The twenty-episode film is dedicated to the end of the Edo era (early-mid 19th century), when the number of ronin - samurai without a suzerain - in Japan increased sharply. Many of them became robbers or wanderers. 
The House of Five Leaves tells the story of the ronin Akitsu Masanotsuke, who cannot get hired and joins a semi-gangster group. This series is one of the easy and enjoyable ways to get acquainted with the history of Japan during the decline of the Edo era.
"House of Five Leaves" is one of the most unusual anime
The Tale of Princess Kaguya, 2013
The film is based on the ancient national legend of the 10th century about the Princess of the Moon, who was found by peasants in a bamboo stalk. “The Tale of Princess Kaguya” received an Oscar nomination and for good reason – it is a stunningly beautiful and convincing cartoon. 
The best thing about the story is the rhythm and the change in manner of depiction depending on the mood. In the scene when Kaguya runs distraught from the palace, neat watercolor strokes give way to sweeping charcoal strokes; In addition, one cannot help but note the typically Japanese minimalism, when a huge story is hidden under one or two strokes.
So, in the initiation episode (they want to turn Princess Kaguya into a beauty with blackened teeth and no eyebrows), the older woman brings tweezers to her eyebrow and pulls out the first hair - and in the frame we see a tear rolling down the princess’s cheek.
"The Tale of Princess Kaguya" - an anime of amazing beauty
In addition to the fact that Japan is one of the most beautiful countries in the world with a carefully cultivated attitude towards ecology and nature, it is also an amazing place where protected places of wondrous beauty have been preserved on several islands. We invite you to read about the most beautiful islands in the world.
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The word “manga” was coined by the famous artist Katsushika Hokusai in 1814 for a series of his prints. It means “grotesque”, “strange (or funny) pictures”, so the term “manga” refers exclusively to Japanese comics. And in 1917, the first anime cartoons began to be produced.
"Anime" is Japanese animation. The word “anime” itself is nothing more than a Japaneseized abbreviation for English animation, and the term itself appeared relatively recently. Before this, the expression "manga-eiga" ("movie-comic") was used, which is still used by older generation anime fans.
As you know, in Japan they read from right to left. Manga from right to left is read all over the world.
Using characters' big eyes to convey emotions was not invented in Japan. Osamu Tezuka, the man considered the founder of the anime tradition, did not deny the fact that he borrowed this technique from Walt Disney. By the way, according to the canons of anime, it is believed that the more significant the hero, the better the artists draw his eyes. The exception is for villains - sometimes they can simply have black “pits” attached to them.
Voice actors in anime are called voice actors in Japanese. The seiyu profession is popular and developed in Japan, which makes voice acting for anime series compare favorably with similar work in other countries. Many voice actors are also pop performers.
The longest anime series, Sazae-san, began airing in 1969 based on the manga by Machiko Hasegawa, and its broadcast has not yet finished. Several generations of Japanese have grown up watching the adventures of Sazae and her family.
Based on the age of the viewership, anime is divided into:
Kodomo is a manga and anime intended for children (up to 12 years old). A distinctive feature of this genre is its “childishness”; there is no (sometimes simply greatly simplified) ideological content. You can also add a characteristic pattern here. Often Kodomo anime is very close to the European or American animation school and is very different from other types of anime not only in drawing, but also in the construction of the series.
Shonen is an anime for older boys and young men (from 12 to 16-18 years old). The main features of the genre: rapid development and pronounced dynamism of the plot (especially in comparison with shojo). The works contain many humorous scenes, based on the themes of strong male friendship, any kind of rivalry in life, sports or martial arts.
Shoujo - anime and manga for older girls and young women (from 12 to 16-18 years old). The plot of shoujo anime, as a rule, contains love relationships of varying degrees of intimacy, depending on the age of the target audience, and much attention is paid to the development of character images.
Seinen is an anime for adult men (from 18 to 25-40 years old). The characteristic features of this genre are elements of psychology, satire, erotica, and more attention is paid to character development.
Josei is an anime or manga for women. The plot most often describes the daily life of a woman living in Japan.
By genre: in addition to the standard Comedy, Action, History, Martial Arts, Drama, Detective, Science Fiction, there are also...
Mechs are complex mechanisms, usually self-propelled, without real prototypes. This term usually refers to “giant humanoid fighting robots,” huge human-controlled combat machines.
Cyberpunk is a world of the future, the life of which is completely determined by computer technology. At the same time, pictures of the future seem gloomy and dystopian.
Dobutsu is an anime about humanoid “furry” creatures. Derived from the Japanese word "doubutsu", which means "animal". Dobutsu includes anime with creatures “neko” (feline), “kitsune” (fox), “usagi” (rabbit), etc.
Idols is an anime that revolves around pop stars and the music business.
Hentai/Ecchi are pornographic or erotic anime or manga, respectively. Works can also be at the intersection between hentai and other genres and have a fairly well-developed plot.
Yaoi is a genre of anime depicting male homosexual relationships, usually aimed at women and girls.
Yuri is a genre of anime that depicts female lesbian relationships, usually aimed at women and girls.
Shotakon is a genre of anime that describes sexual relationships involving young boys of primary school and preschool age.
Lolicon is a genre of anime that depicts sexual relationships involving little girls.
Shoujo-ai is a genre of anime that describes the love of a girl for a girl. It differs from yuri in the absence of explicit scenes.
Shonen-ai is a genre of anime that describes the love of a young man for a young man. It differs from yaoi in the absence of explicit scenes.
Someone still continues to think that anime is something not very useful for children, alien and devoid of moral value. This point of view arises due to a lack of information, and the editors of Tlum.Ru decided to try to correct this. We tell you in a short and understandable format for parents about what Japanese animation is, how it appeared and developed, is it really that alien, and what is worth watching before making any statements on the topic “anime is…”.
Fact #1: Not earlier than everywhere else
The very first cartoon in Japan dates back to 1907. A short sketch about a boy drawing hieroglyphs came out almost ten years later than the pioneering American puppet cartoon “Circus of the Lilliputians” (1898), and although the anime makes full use of ancient folk motifs, this genre as a whole developed later than Western animation.
Fact #2: No further thanDisney
Fact #7: Miyazaki is so cool to begin with
And Isao Takahata too. The great masters created “Prince of the North,” a very experimental cartoon from 1968. This is where all the magnificent full-length Japanese films that you love so much began. - this is a complete alienation from the Disney canons, purely “anime” provocative moments and a little Scandinavian boy who defeated the great evil sorcerer.
Fact #8: The “Golden Age of Anime” is long over
Because it happened in the 80s. This was preceded by the active 70s with their emergence of such key genres as mecha (about robots), shojo (for girls) and the beginning of a modest penetration into the West. Before this, Japanese animation almost never crossed borders at all, and even if it did, it was in a very castrated version.
This is a still from the American adaptation of Robotech, which was collected from three completely different anime and all the dialogue was reworked.
Well, the “golden age” is a truly revolutionary one, with which the legendary Studio Ghibli began, the cult “Akira” with an extremely complex plot and 24 frames per second versus the usual 8-12, the progenitor of the shonen genre “Dragon Ball”.
Here it is worth mentioning the emergence of the otaku culture, which in Japan means fans of anything, and in the rest of the world fans of anime, and the emergence of the OVA format, that is, what was released directly to video. Bypassing censorship, directly to viewers hungry for different content.
Fact No. 9: Pokemon and Sailor Moon are not at all such megahits as we commonly believe
This is especially true for Sailor Moon. No, of course, this is a recognized representative of the popular maho-shojo genre, but for the Japanese - not much more, but for our compatriots - a great avant-garde revelation, with which the march of anime across Russia began. And “Pokemon” goes there, of course, although they have confidently taken over the whole world.
But what is really considered a bomb is Evangelion, released in 1995. An icon of the mecha genre, the “Bible” of anime fans and an incredibly vast cultural phenomenon that our ancestors will talk about in two hundred years as something decisive in the development of animation.
Fact #10: Anime represents every genre that exists.
Today, you can remember any cultural (and not so cultural) trend and find anime based on it. Many. This leads to a very simple and important conclusion: Japanese animation is a diverse cultural layer, in which there are purely children’s works, and purely adult materials, and epic-heroic series with incredible catchy plots, and uncomplicated light school romance in the background. For every taste.
Let us separately list the main specific genres for children and teenagers:
Kodomo- anime for viewers under 12 years of age of both genders. Beautiful, gentle and very useful.
Shonen- works for boys 12-16 years old, with a constant main character, endowed with special abilities and a great goal.
Here- purely for girls 12−16. In the latter, the already mentioned maho-shojo stands out, where the focus is on a magical girl. Wow, what a typical and important subgenre.
As for all other areas, these are comedies and detective stories, post-apocalyptic and cyberpunk, action films and sports (“spokon”), and so on, whatever you want. And after reading this paragraph, you shouldn’t think that anime is only “for someone.” For everyone.
Fact No. 11: You can watch anime with 0+
Yes, some Japanese cartoons can be watched from the cradle. Below we have compiled a list of recommended cartoons for different ages. Including for you, dear parents.
Anime for children 0+
Also pay attention to the following cartoons:
"Unico"- an incredibly good anime series about a magical unicorn. A dose of pure innocence and incredible kindness is guaranteed.
"Night Storm"- a touching story of friendship between a kid goat and a wolf cub with the right ending. It instills in the audience the values of friendship and loyalty with great effectiveness.
"Puss in Boots"- a classic fairy tale in the embodiment of a classic, time-tested anime. And the continuation.
"Ponyo Fish on the Cliff"
Anime for children 6+
Of course, Miyazaki is on a new level of difficulty: the same one. Perhaps for some children it is better to raise the bar a little, but at the age of 10 Spirited Away will definitely be understood correctly.
Also pay attention to these cartoons:
"The Wolf Children of Ame and Yuki"- a most valuable experience for children and parents in quality separation and self-acceptance. Moreover, it is interesting and very vitally executed.
"Your name"
Anime for adults
Without children, but with sparkle, interesting plots and complete freedom for the imagination of skilled Japanese animators. The best: "Death note" with an incredibly exciting confrontation between two intellects. The most epic "Gurren Laggan". Deliciously bloody "Invasion of the Titans". Dashing "Cowboy Bebop". swirled "Code Geass". Iconic "Ghost in the Shell".
Experienced “anime fans” complete this list to their own taste, but one thing we know for sure: if you get involved and discard prejudices like “for children” and “empty”, you will discover a multifaceted and never-endingly amazing world.
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