Active Outline

General Information

Course ID (CB01A and CB01B)
F/TV D075K
Course Title (CB02)
Japanese Animation
Course Credit Status
Credit - Degree Applicable
Effective Term
Fall 2023
Course Description
An examination of the post-1960's evolution of animated films in Japan, a national cinema famed for its range of subject matter and outstanding graphics. Provides a critical methodology for analysis of exemplary and influential works by distinguished artists, writing collectives and production studios from aesthetic, sociopolitical, economic and technological perspectives.
Faculty Requirements
Course Family
Not Applicable

Course Justification

This course is CSU transferable. It is part of the AA Degree in Film/Television: Animation, as well as the CTE program in Animation. This course teaches the history and critical analysis of Japanese animation.

Foothill Equivalency

Does the course have a Foothill equivalent?
No
Foothill Course ID

Course Philosophy

Formerly Statement

Course Development Options

Basic Skill Status (CB08)
Course is not a basic skills course.
Grade Options
  • Letter Grade
  • Pass/No Pass
Repeat Limit
0

Transferability & Gen. Ed. Options

Transferability
Transferable to CSU only

Units and Hours

Summary

Minimum Credit Units
4.0
Maximum Credit Units
4.0

Weekly Student Hours

TypeIn ClassOut of Class
Lecture Hours4.08.0
Laboratory Hours0.00.0

Course Student Hours

Course Duration (Weeks)
12.0
Hours per unit divisor
36.0
Course In-Class (Contact) Hours
Lecture
48.0
Laboratory
0.0
Total
48.0
Course Out-of-Class Hours
Lecture
96.0
Laboratory
0.0
NA
0.0
Total
96.0

Prerequisite(s)

Corequisite(s)

Advisory(ies)

EWRT D001A or EWRT D01AH or ESL D005.

Limitation(s) on Enrollment

Entrance Skill(s)

General Course Statement(s)

Methods of Instruction

Lecture and visual aids

Discussion of assigned reading

In-class essays

In-class exploration of Internet sites

Quiz and examination review performed in class

Guest speakers

Other: Film screenings and facilitated group discussions

Collaborative learning and small group exercises

Assignments

  1. Assigned readings from required textbook and/or supplemental readers, periodicals, scholarly articles on Internet sites and class handouts
  2. Write an analytical paper applying a critical methodology learned in class to relevant feature-length animated films screened outside of class
  3. View in-class screenings, and participate in discussion and analysis of significant Japanese animated films.

Methods of Evaluation

  1. Midterm and two-hour final examinations using a combination of objective, short answer and essay questions to evaluate the student's grasp of the terminology, theories, core concepts, and methods of analysis that comprise the course content. The essay component will require critical thinking and analysis.
  2. A critical analysis paper demonstrating the student's abilities to examine a significant issue or problem of Japanese animation study. The assignment will involve summary, synthesis, and critical analysis of theoretical perspectives pertaining to the history of Japanese animation and applied to selected films and artists, as viewed and discussed in the course.
  3. Participation in and contribution toward classroom discussions and in-class collaborative work, including analyses of films screened during class

Essential Student Materials/Essential College Facilities

Essential Student Materials: 
  • None.
Essential College Facilities:
  • Lecture room with 16mm film projection equipment in the control room, DVD/Blu-ray deck, laserdisc player and multi-format (PAL-SECAM-NTSC) VHS deck

Examples of Primary Texts and References

AuthorTitlePublisherDate/EditionISBN
LaMarre, Thomas. "The Anime Machine: A Media Theory of Animation." Minneapolis, MN: University of Minnesota Press, 2009.
McCarthy, Helen. "Hayao Miyazaki: Master of Japanese Animation." Berkeley, CA: Stone Bridge Press, 1999.
Napier, Susan J. "Anime from Akira to Howl's Moving Castle." New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan, 2005.

Examples of Supporting Texts and References

AuthorTitlePublisher
Bendazzi, Giannalberto. "Cartoons: 100 Years of Cinema Animation." Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press, 1994.
Cavallaro, Dani. "Cinema of Mamoru Oshii: Fantasy, Technology and Politics." McFarland, 2006.
Clements, Jonathan and Helen McCarthy. "The Erotic Anime Guide." New York, NY: Overlook, 1999.
Cavallaro, Dani. "The Anime Art of Hayao Miyazaki." McFarland, 2006.
Condry, Ian. "The Soul of Anime: Collaborative Creativity and Japan's Media Success Story." Duke University Press Books, 2013.
Ledoux, Trish, ed. "Anime Interviews: First Five Years of Animerica." San Francisco, CA: Cadence Books, 1997.
Ledoux, Trish, Doug Ranney and Fred Patten. "The Complete Anime Guide: Japanese Animation Video Directory & Resource Guide." Issaquah, WA: Tiger Mountain Press, 1997.
Levi, Antonia. "Samurai from Outer Space: Understanding Japanese Animation." Chicago, IL: Open Court, 1998.
McCarthy, Helen. "500 Essential Anime Movies: The Ultimate Guide." New York, NY: Harper Design, 2009.
Poitras, Gilles. "The Anime Companion: What's Japanese in Japanese Animation?" Berkeley, CA: Stone Bridge Press, 1999.
Poitras, Gilles. "The Anime Companion 2: What's Japanese in Japanese Animation?" Berkeley, CA: Stone Bridge Press, 2005.
Richmond, Simon. "The Rough Guide to Anime 1." Rough Guides, 2009.
Schodt, Frederick L. and Osama Tezuka. "Manga! Manga! The World of Japanese Comics." New York, NY: Kodansha, 2013.
Schodt, Frederick. "Dreamland Japan: Writings on Modern Manga." New York, NY: Kodansha, 1996.
Steiff, Joseph and Tristan D. Tamplin, eds. "Anime and Philosophy: Wide Eyed Wonder." Open Court, 2010.

Learning Outcomes and Objectives

Course Objectives

  • Recognize and evaluate the evolution of the Japanese feature-length animated film, including the significant works and contributions of film artists in several genres
  • Examine and apply filmic critical methodologies to Japanese animation
  • Compare the relationship between Japanese animated films and their live-action counterparts
  • Contrast the breadth of Anime subject matter to that of American animation, noting the Japanese experimentation with genre and documentary form
  • Evaluate the production techniques employed in these films, including adaptation from the comic book medium, and develop criteria by which to assess their quality

CSLOs

  • Identify and explain significant trends in the evolution of animation as an art form within the Japanese national cinema, as well as major contributions by individual directors and studios, from aesthetic, sociopolitical, economic and technological perspectives.

  • Refine and employ critical thinking skills to appraise the narrative, visual and aural elements of motion pictures from different time periods within the Japanese national cinema.

  • Analyze representations of race and ethnicity, gender and sexuality in the context of their historical period, demonstrating an understanding of the politics of representation and the techniques of propaganda learned in class.

Outline

  1. Recognize and evaluate the evolution of the Japanese feature-length animated film, including the significant works and contributions of film artists in several genres
    1. Development from an American sub-contractor into a cinema of enormous thematic range and global impact
      1. Toei Animation produced the first color anime feature "The Tale of the White Serpent" (1958), a Disney-like film with musical numbers and animal sidekicks
      2. Contributions of "Godfather of Anime" Osamu Tezuka, creator of the manga series "Astro Boy" (1952-1968), "Kimba the White Lion" (1950-1953), "Black Jack" (1973-1983), "Buddha" (1972-1983) and "Phoenix" (1967-1988), among others.
      3. Mushi Production pioneered TV animation in Japan from 1961-1973
      4. Mamoru Oshii's work as director and storyboard artist of the animated "Urusei Yatsura" TV series and "Urusei Yatsura" films (1981-1984), "Angel's Egg" (1985), "Ghost in the Shell" (1996), "Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence" (2004), among others
      5. Katsuhiro Ôtomo's "Akira" (1988) extends the popularity of anime outside of Japan
        1. Detailed scenes, pre-scored dialogue (a first for an anime production) and very fluid motion as realized in the film's more than 160,000 animation cels
        2. Forerunner of the second wave of anime fandom that began in the early 1990s
        3. Influenced live-action films, including "The Matrix" (Wachowski Brothers, 1999, USA), among others
    2. Hayao Miyazaki, Isao Takahata and Yasuyoshi Tokuma founded Studio Ghibli, the world's premier studio for original animation, in 1985
      1. Representative filmmakers and their films from the following list: Hayao Miyazaki ("Laputa: Castle in the Sky," 1986; "My Neighbor Totoro," 1988; "Kiki's Delivery Service," 1989; "Porco Rosso," 1992; "Princess Mononoke," 1997; "Spirited Away," 2001; "Howl's Moving Castle," 2004; "Ponyo," 2008; "Arrietty," 2010); Isao Takahata ("Grave of the Fireflies," 1988; "Only Yesterday," 1991; "Pom Poko," 1994; "My Neighbors the Yamadas," 1999); Yoshifumi Kondo ("Whisper of the Heart," 1995); Hiroyuki Morita ("The Cat Returns," 2002); Gorō Miyazaki ("Tales from Earthsea," 2006; "From up on Poppy Hill," 2011); among others
      2. Embraces new technology from computer graphics ("Pom Poko," 1994) to 100% digital process ("My Neighbors the Yamadas," 1999)
      3. "Spirited Away" (2001) becomes the top grossing film in the history of Japanese cinema
    3. Collaboration of CLAMP writing collective and Madhouse animation studio
      1. Comprised of eleven female Japanese comic writers/artists in 1989; only Nanase Okawa, Mokona Apapa, Satsuki Igarashi and Mikku Nekoi remained in 1992.
      2. Wrote the original Japanese manga "Angelic Layer" (2001) and "Chobits" (2002), which was adapted to a 26-episode anime television series broadcast on TBS and Animax from April to September 2002
      3. Female-character focus and often feature gay, lesbian or bisexual characters
    4. Collaborations of other important "auteuristic" or "progressive anime" writers and directors
    5. Original animated video/original video animation/original animation DVD (OAV/OVA/OAD) market, viable and international, and television series
      1. Direct-to-video releases and anime television series, including "Dallos" (1983), "Bubblegum Crisis" (1987-1991), "Tenchi Muyo!" (1992-2005), "Key the Metal Idol" (1994-1997), "Legend of the Galactic Heroes" (1998-2000), "GaoGaiGar FINAL" (2000-2003), "Saint Seiya" (2003-2008), among others
      2. Participating studios include Production I.G and Studio Deen
      3. Creative freedom, narrative detail and technical quality
    6. Original net animation (ONA) released through streaming media sites
      1. Trailers and preview episodes of new anime such as "Pokémon: The Mastermind of Mirage Pokémon" (2006), anime movies such as "Megumi" (2008) and webisodes such as "Axis Powers Hetalia" (2009-2013), among others
      2. Shorter running time than traditional titles, from a few minutes per episode to 30 minutes
  2. Examine and apply filmic critical methodologies to Japanese animation
    1. Analyze the social/political/cultural context and how the films reflect Japanese attitudes, political situations and the time periods in which they were produced
      1. Representation of the stratified, imperial feudal order
      2. Reflections of Shintoism and Buddhism in narrative elements
      3. Depiction of men and women of the Samurai class and their adherence to Bushido
      4. Social upheaval following World War II and the redefinition of the bushi
      5. Filmic representation of the individual vs. the group in Japanese culture
      6. War and peace: styles of discourse
      7. Technology: Mecha and social commentary
    2. Analyze how film reflects the producer-writer-director's values in respect to representations of class, age, race/ethnicity, gender and sexuality
      1. Social class
        1. Political isolation and intransigence of social class
        2. Reflections of social class in romance
      2. Age
        1. Visions of childhood and innocence
        2. Images of the elder, death and reincarnation
        3. Representation of the Japanese family unit
      3. Representation of racial minorities (Ainu, Chinese, Europeans) in a culture already stratified by class and isolated by clan
      4. Representations of gender and sexuality
        1. Love and sensuality in renditions of classic Japanese literature
        2. "Magical girl" sub-genre and depiction of adolescent females
        3. Linkage of erotica and exploitation to aliens, the supernatural and the paranormal
        4. Prevalence of female spirits in the ghost story and its connotations
        5. Hermaphroditic characters
    3. Analyze the narrative, visual and aural elements of animated films from different time periods within the Japanese national cinema
    4. Examine and evaluate new media theories of animation, including Thomas Lamarre's concepts of "anime thinks technology," "exploded view" and "soulful body" and his seminal anime vocabulary ("multiplanarity," "animetic interval," "open compositing," "full limited animation," among others)
  3. Compare the relationship between Japanese animated films and their live-action counterparts
    1. Development of the Japanese live-action film industry
      1. Tradition of the "benshi" and the late arrival of sound
      2. Postwar makeover of the industry under American occupation and censorship
      3. Emergence as an international force in the 1950s
      4. Representation of the traditional culture, aesthetics and social values in the period film
      5. New Wave alteration of the industry with depictions of violence, eroticism and unrest
      6. Incorporation of nimaime and tateyaku roles for actors
    2. Shared Iconography
    3. Differences in cinematic vocabulary, narrative form, modes of authorship, representation of archetypes and anthropomorphic characterization
  4. Contrast the breadth of Anime subject matter to that of American animation, noting the Japanese experimentation with genre and documentary form
    1. Adult and family content, as well as films for children
      1. Comparison to American stereotypes concerning animation
      2. Distinction between truly mature subjects and those labeled "adult" as a euphemism for sexual
    2. Film genres
      1. War film: focus on civilian bombing victims, aerial warfare and the kamikaze
      2. Martial Arts: Samurai and ninja hybridization of genre and modification of history
      3. Science fiction: alien worlds and the Japanese robot fixation
      4. Adventure fantasy: multi-national environments
      5. Psychological thrillers: hallucination and narrative discontinuity new to animation
      6. Fusion of horror with erotica; comparison to similar American genre style
      7. Music video: cel animation production values not seen in the West
    3. Documentary: unique recreations of historical events
  5. Evaluate the production techniques employed in these films, including adaptation from the comic book medium, and develop criteria by which to assess their quality
    1. Source material: traditional myths and fables realized using native art styles
    2. Source material: literary adaptations to film
      1. Adaptations of classic literature
      2. The phenomenon of Manga
      3. Narrative difficulties of episodic comics transcription
      4. Stylistic graphics idiosyncrasies and their translations to film
    3. Graphics as a unique national style
      1. Character animation
      2. Effects animation
      3. Layout and visual design
    4. Character archetypes
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