Japanamerica in BEST OF 2010, US & JP
In US Here:
V・S氏 クランチロール株式会社
[Yoshi Domoto - Executive Director, Japan-America Society of Georgia]
"Japanamerica: How Japanese Pop Culture Has Invaded the U.S. " by Roland Kelts
Roland Kelts visited Kennesaw State University in March 2010 for a lecture event, which was organized by KSU's Dr. Edward Chan and Atsuo Nishikata, the chair of the Japan-America Society of Georgia's Young Professionals group. The JASG was a promotional partner of the event and many of our members enjoyed the lecture very much. Roland Kelts has both Japanese and American ancestry like myself, and I was particularly interested in his views of the relationship between Japanese and American pop culture.
The book gave me a better understanding of how Japanese popular culture developed to what it is today and how it has spread across the world. Although Japan is still a huge contributor to the world economy, its cultural influence, especially its pop culture, may now be more influential. Japanese pop culture has spread throughout the world and has defined what is "cool" in many countries (the theme of JapanFest 2009 in Atlanta was "Cool Japan" and attracted over 17,000 visitors). Manga and anime alone are now a multi-billion dollar industries in the U.S. Japanese pop culture is everywhere you look these days and I think it is important for The Japan-America Society to be part of this trend and use the influences of Japanese culture to bring together the Japanese and American communities here in Georgia.
I highly recommend this book. It is a very easy and fun read and it will give you a better appreciation for how popular culture has evolved and how it will continue to evolve.
Roland Kelts visited Kennesaw State University in March 2010 for a lecture event, which was organized by KSU's Dr. Edward Chan and Atsuo Nishikata, the chair of the Japan-America Society of Georgia's Young Professionals group. The JASG was a promotional partner of the event and many of our members enjoyed the lecture very much. Roland Kelts has both Japanese and American ancestry like myself, and I was particularly interested in his views of the relationship between Japanese and American pop culture.
The book gave me a better understanding of how Japanese popular culture developed to what it is today and how it has spread across the world. Although Japan is still a huge contributor to the world economy, its cultural influence, especially its pop culture, may now be more influential. Japanese pop culture has spread throughout the world and has defined what is "cool" in many countries (the theme of JapanFest 2009 in Atlanta was "Cool Japan" and attracted over 17,000 visitors). Manga and anime alone are now a multi-billion dollar industries in the U.S. Japanese pop culture is everywhere you look these days and I think it is important for The Japan-America Society to be part of this trend and use the influences of Japanese culture to bring together the Japanese and American communities here in Georgia.
I highly recommend this book. It is a very easy and fun read and it will give you a better appreciation for how popular culture has evolved and how it will continue to evolve.
In JP Here:
『ジャパナメリカ 日本発ポップカルチャー革命』 ローランド・ケルツ著、永田医訳 武田ランダムハウスジャパン刊
V・S氏 クランチロール株式会社
40代、男性、アメリカ
友人に薦められて読みました。アメリカ人がアメリカ人向けに書いた本ですが、日本語翻訳版も出ています。
クランチロールは世界で一番大きなアニメ・ソーシャル・ネットワークを運営し、日本のアニメを中心とするアジアのコンテンツを世界に配信するベンチャー企業です。私の会社はその日本法人で、08年に設立されたばかり。新丸の内ビルにある日本創生ビレッジにオフィスを置く若い会社です。私の仕事は、人気のタイトルを日本での放映後すぐインターネット配信できるよう、ライセンサーと交渉し、正式契約まで持っていくこと。ただ、私自身はアニメファンというわけではないので、「最新のエピソードをいち早く見たい！」という熱心なファンの気持ちを理解するために、この本を読んだのです。
単に、日本のマンガやアニメが“クール”だという話だけでなく、日本のアニメがアメリカでどんなふうに受容されているか、日本の文化がアメリカの文化にどんな影響を与えてきているかにも触れており、なかなか面白かったです。
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