WIT Life #145: Manga studies
Art, Translating/Interpreting, Uncategorized, WIT Life, Writers 
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WITLife is a periodic series written by professional Writer/Interpreter/Translator Stacy Smith (Kumamoto-ken CIR, 2000-03). She starts her day by watching Fujisankei’s newscast in Japanese, and here she shares some of the interesting tidbits and trends together with her own observations.
Coming off of yesterday’s post, I was surprised to find an article about manga and animation in this morning’s New York Times. It discusses how over the last decade, various programs that have evolved for formally studying these arts are attracting international students. The courses are offered only in Japanese which presents a bit of a challenge, but dedicated students see them as the key to advancing “their careers in animation, design, computer graphics and the business of promoting them.” The Japanese animation companies interviewed in the article said they would look at these graduates as potential employees provided they have the necessary skills and are able to pass the same tests all applicants must take.
A notable aspect of these programs is their unstructured nature. Manga artist Keiko Takemiya explains the reason for this as, “Manga flourished as a counterculture to the establishment academia. [Within the industry] there was actually a resistance to the idea of organizing the art into an academic program.” Interestingly enough, part of the curriculum is adult-themed manga and animation. This includes the sexually explicit content that most countries stay away from, and that is currently causing regulatory issues in Japan itself. Although manga has pretty much enjoyed free rein up until this point, Governor Ishihara’s recent ordinance to further restrict this art form indicates that the authorities might be increasing their supervisory capabilities going forward.
Incidentally, in a recent poll of Japanese junior high school students regarding their future careers, the third most popular choice was manga artist, behind athlete and doctor/nurse.
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