The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry appears to be getting serious about exporting pop culture. The ministry plans to set up a new department with dozens of experts on the "Cool Japan" fad to promote exports of animation, manga, fashion, food and other cultural items as Japan attempts to profit from "soft power."
The creation of the new unit is one of the organizational changes the ministry has listed for fiscal 2011. The department will give financial aid to related firms and help them secure sales distributors overseas. "We'd like send out 'value' overseas that can never be imitated by South Korea or China," a ministry official said. South Korea has a committee specializing in the overseas promotion of cultural products.
Japanese Pop Culture is a highly influential combination of film, television, manga, and pop music throughout the world. Dating back to the early manga and films of the 1950s, the Japanese pop culture movement has taken off since the 1980s and 90s around the world to become one of the most influential sources of entertainment in the world.
One major factor of Japanese Pop Culture is defined by the Japanese term "kawaii", meaning "cute". In Japan nearly everything has its cute site, from the ever-present Hello Kitty to articles of daily neccessity like toilet paper. (The Japan Times)
One major factor of Japanese Pop Culture is defined by the Japanese term "kawaii", meaning "cute". In Japan nearly everything has its cute site, from the ever-present Hello Kitty to articles of daily neccessity like toilet paper. (The Japan Times)
