JLGC Researcher Benjamin Preece has written a new case study looking at how Japanese local authorities use their unique ties to manga and anime characters for place identity and promotion.
Among Japan’s most popular exports of the past several decades are Japanese comics and cartoons, or manga and anime as they are better known. There is a current trend in Japanese cities with ties to manga and anime (either as the home of the author or the setting of the manga/anime itself) that has seen local governments and NPOs contributing to the construction (and promotion) of statues immortalising some of the most popular characters. While cartoonish mascots or Yurukyara are a mainstay of regional promotion in Japan, they usually appear as souvenirs, logos on local attractions and goods, or “in person” at events. On the other hand, “character monuments”, such as the ones explored below serve as more permanent fixtures within a region’s place promotion and identity. They also add another dimension to the ways in which local governments in Japan can capitalise on the spread of Japanese manga and anime as global cultural phenomena.
The case study can be downloaded here (PDF), with archived case studies looking at how Japanese local authorities use pop culture and inventive PR campaigns to revitalise their local areas and create a distinctive identity, here.
