Who Said That Animation Is Just For Kids Essay

For decades animation has been a pinnacle for entertainment, but most of the content created since the dawn of animated entertainment have contained excruciatingly problematic aspects

As a 90’s born kid, I was exposed to various genre of children’s animation when I was

During the 1940’s America was fighting battles both at home and overseas, both on-screen and off. The reason being, World War II changed the possibilities of animation. Before the war, animation was only used for comedy and entertainment. Animation were these shorts played with color, music, and storytelling both hand drawn and computer animated. The attack on Pearl Harbor was a turning point in this form of entertainment because never before has the movie industry and nation been so aligned with interests and goals. To explain, “Film studios used animated characters to spread propaganda and educate Americans about their enemies. And the animators themselves were employed to make insignia for military units and equipment” (Stillich). In brief,

Manga and anime are a huge part in American and the Japanese culture. Anime and Manga were once used for war, propaganda, and recruitment, but is now used for entertainment and leisure. Anime was not just created by one man but by many working together. Anime has had a long line of history causing it to become more and more loved throughout the years. It not only caused Japan a great deal of money and working jobs but it also influenced more people to see the brighter things in life. Manga was not only just important in anime’s history but it was the cause of it. The time line of huge success in anime started in 1914 with the first manga being created.

Do you watch cartoons? I do. Not bugs bunny; I'm talking about anime. Do you know what that is?

With the rapid spread of television in the 1960’s, Japanese animators found a new way to sell their products. One of the first Japanese anime to see great success was Tetsuwan Atom also known as Astro Boy, seeing success in western countries such as the United States and Europe. Another popular series from this time period was Tetsujin 28-go or Gigantor. Unlike the cartoons being shown in the United States at this time period, such as Spiderman, The Flintstones, and The Jetsons, Astro Boy and Gigantor focused on bigger, more mature issues. Cartoons in the United States aimed more at entertaining children with superheros thwarting criminals, and both prehistoric and futuristic comedy. These types of cartoons were never meant for anything other than entertainment with a small side of morality lessons put in for good measure. While entertaining, very rarely did the cartoons that were from the United States create critical thinking or questions about morality amongst their young viewers.

Of course, when anime first came over to America, it had to be edited to go over well with the popular audience. Television stations would go through and remove excessively violent scenes, alter translations, and even change whole plots just to make the shows more suitable for American audiences, (Ladd & Deneroff, 2009). Of course, it didn’t help that Americans viewed anime in general as children’s cartoons when it wasn’t created to be that way.

Anime and cartoons had very similar origins. Gertie the Dinosaur from 1914 is considered the first American cartoon. Japan’s first anime is not as clear, but many believe it to be 1917’s An Obtuse Sword. Both of these animated features were short, silent, and black-and-white. Their rise in popularity and introduction of the style of animation seen in the modern world did not begin until their “Golden Age” of animation. In the US, the “Golden Age” was from the 1920’s to 1960’s; this was when Walt Disney created his own animation studio and began to put out longer cartoons with sound and color. Snow White from the late 30’s was Disney’s first big feature film hit. In the

“We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we’re curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths.” (“Walt Disney”) Curiosity is not a weapon; it is an advantageous tool. It leads to many things. But most importantly, it runs on creativity. As shown in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Walt Disney was a very creative individual.

“Animation offers a medium of storytelling and visual entertainment which can bring pleasure and information to people of all ages everywhere in the world,” said Walt Disney of his beloved cartoons. While it is true that cartoons are an interesting medium of visual entertainment, their unique ability to convey information to people, adults and children alike, make the animated film medium one of the most far reaching means of propaganda. Today it is impossible to imagine American animated cinema without Disney and its cartoons. The American captivation with Disney has not changed much in the seventy years since World War II. In the early 1940s, two thirds of Americans went to the movies every week and these moviegoers were enamored

Abrstract: This essay will explore why Americans feel the need to censor Japanese Animation, how the Japanese culture differs from American culture, and how to solve the growing debate of the censorship of Japanese media.

With the Japanese animation -- anime -- industry spreading across the globe, many American students have become enthralled with this form of Japanese pop culture. The Associated Press even covered the topic in 2006, discussing anime's appeal among American teenagers and pointing out that as many young women

The demographics of the population that like animation encompasses baby boomers, adults and large numbers of children alike, leads to an improvement in the revenue and exposure for the animation industry (See Exhibit 1 for Percentage of total births). Therefore the social factors are also favorable.

Anime is the Japanese take on the word "animation". It represents the Japanese style of animating cartoons. However, not all anime is for children. Majority imported to America is aimed at an adult audience- containing deep storylines, graphic violence, gore, as well as nudity and adult situations. This cinematic genre is a fast growing trend in the west and can now possibly be considered the most popular phenomenon among

To understand anime, it is fairly important to have at least a little understanding of Japanese culture itself. Anime and manga are currently produced for an exclusively Japanese audience--authors are often shocked to hear that they have American or European fans--and are thus based on cultural assumptions and references that Americans find puzzling at best. Some