The group began by gathering as many journals, essays, recorded talks, and books as possible to explore all the known topics from different authors’ perspectives. We separated the books between ourselves so that we could cover them all more efficiently. As we studied the papers we collected, we tried to connect and compare them to the lecture material on the other nations’ developments in animation, as well as how they affected each other over the centuries.
After brainstorming and discussing layouts during week 7, we decided to begin incorporating our interpretations into the block research, which we divided among ourselves, specifying the content in our writing. We were able to link our topics into a timeline that assisted in deciding our angle for the poster.
I focused on exploring the beginnings of animation in Japan, as well as events that influenced changes in styles and techniques. By reading books such as Japanese Art after 1945, I had a clear image of the slowly changing society through different art forms. By also participating in a talk about the history of the Studio Ghibli art, by Helen McCarthy, I could rewatch these movies understanding and noticing motifs connected to the artists’ interpretation of the incidents.
Although there were many interesting aspects we could dive into for the poster, such as the expansion of studios through Japan or the awarded movies produced by Hayao Miyazaki, we concluded that, by writing on the development of the style through its history, we would effectively implement all these as points in the rich history of the recognisable style.
We then started planning layouts for both the poster and presentation, making sure they looked cohesive together. By receiving assistance from the lecturer, we were able to clear many of our questions in each stage of the project. this not only reassured us but also gave us the confidence to continue working without any hiccups.
Although consumers of this type of content for years, it was incredible to research and learn more about all the events that lead to us being able to not only appreciate this art but also enter the industry ourselves to continue producing pieces such as the ones that brought us to the course. This was part of what made us choose Japan as our country of choice, and I believe we all took a lot from the material we read as reasons to appreciate this medium even more.
Although this module was heavy on writing and presenting academic research, I was glad to be able to introduce a bit of creativity into the visual appearance of our final content. The organisation of material took us the longest to figure out, as one of our group mates, who had joined us a few weeks late, had to be up to date with our process so far and start helping by starting their research. Nevertheless, week by week, we were able to make some progress as we discussed with the tutor.
Having an idea of how the presentation should be, visually and academically, from the past assignment, we made sure to keep the bulk of the information from both library and online resources separate, leaving the step of shortening and simplifying the text for later.
For the making of the poster, we decided to use the Canva website, which gave us a good number of possibilities for the layout, as well as graphs and chart templates to choose from. As one of our teammates decided to create a background image based on Ukiyo-e paintings, we then layered a paper texture on top, making the colours less vibrant and giving it a rich texture. The background also served as our colour palette, making it all look cohesive, but with the layered texture, it didn’t take the attention away from the text.
Our group met one last time before presenting to read over and adjust the text and any other areas that needed. We struggled to find a good layout that allowed the information sections to have a clear flow, as well as allowed us to add graphs and a timeline to it. Our timeline was set as our conclusion, as we decided to direct our research to the medium and style that are continuously changing. we put the current modern style as our stop point, but still hinting at its possibility to change soon.
Due to a lack of communication with some of the members in this project, we ended up putting the last of the information a bit late, losing some of our time to carefully review it. However, I believe that the work we produced was able to clearly communicate all the aspects we investigated, as well as displaying them in a proper academic manner.
For presenting, we followed the same order as used in the poster, and although we decided to use only the poster and not the supporting slides when presenting, due to our preparations the day before and written notes, we were able to follow it without any problems. The feedback given by the professors was immensely helpful to help me visualise changes that could develop this poster even further, such as the addition of our sources into the presentation as well as keeping the number of text consistent and simple throughout it.
For future projects, I will be practising and studying applications such as Canva and PowerPoint to be able to come up with more visually pleasing presentations.
Munroe, A., San Francisco Museum of art and Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum (1994) Japanese art after 1945: scream against the sky. New York: Harry N. Abrams in association with the Yokohama Museum of art.
References
Niemeier, B. (2024) ‘The Rise and Fall of the Western Anime Scene’, Kairos Publications. Kairos Publication, 14 November. Available at: https://www.kairospublications.com/blog/2024/11/the-rise-and-fall-of-the-western-anime-scene (Accessed: 20 March 2025).
Napier, Susan J. (unknown date) ‘The Problem of Existence in Japanese Animation’, Serial experiments Lain Wiki. University of Texas at Austin. Available at: https://lain.wiki/wiki/The_Problem_of_Existence_in_Japanese_Animation (Accessed: 20 March 2025).
Unknown (2025) ‘Japanese animation’, LibGuides at Eastern Arizona College. Eastern Arizona College, 11 March. Available at: https://eac.libguides.com/c.php?g=723550&p=5215189 (Accessed: 20 March 2025).
Iwabuchi, K. (2002) Recentering globalization: Popular culture and Japanese transnationalism. Durham, England: Duke University Press.
Hendry, J. (1995) Understanding Japanese society. 2nd edition. London, Croom Helm: Routledge (The Nissan institute/Routledge Japanese studies series).