What is the definition of Anime?

It’s a popular and logical conception that anime is an abbreviation of the word “animation”. Outside Japan, this term has connotations refering to animation originating in Japan. In the western world, not all animation is considered anime. There’s a noted difference between cartoon based animations such as those produced by Walt Disney, versus anime. Anime is considered a subset of TV animation in general.

Traditionally, anime has been hand drawn by the artists themselves. However, computer assisted animation techniques have become quite common in recent years. Like any entertainment medium, the story lines represent most major genres of fiction. Anime is broadcast on television, and more recently have been distributed on various media such as VCD, DVD, and VHS. Anime sequence plots are also an important part of video games such as Final Fantasy. Additionally, some are produced as full length motion pictures.

A surprisingly large percentage of anime series have already been in existence in the form of Manga comics, which are similar to comic books sold in the US. A lot of anime series draw their names from existing manga titles, and some are spinoffs or sequels to the original Manga series. Anime often draws influence from manga, light novels, and other cultures. Some anime storylines have been adapted into live action films and television series.

History and Conception of Anime

It’s an accepted belief that the actual history of anime began at the start of the 20th century, at the time when Japanese filmmakers were experimenting with the animation techniques that were being explored in France, Germany, the United States, and Russia.

Animation became popular in Japan as it provided an alternative format of storytelling compared to the underdeveloped live-action industry in Japan. Unlike America, where live-action shows and films have generous budgets, the live-action industry in Japan is a small market and suffered from budgeting, location, and casting restrictions. The lack of Western-looking actors, for example, made it next to impossible to shoot films set in Europe, America, or fantasy worlds that do not naturally involve Japan. The varied use of animation allowed artists to create any characters and settings.

During the 1970s, there was a surge of growth in the popularity of manga which were often later animated and put into television series, especially those of Osamu Tezuka, who has been called a “legend” and the “god of manga”. As a result of his work and that of other pioneers in the field, anime developed characteristics and genres that are fundamental elements of the art today. The giant robot genre (known as “mecha” outside Japan), for instance, took shape under Tezuka, developed under Go Nagai and others, and was revolutionized at the end of the decade by Yoshiyuki Tomino. Robot anime like Gundam and Macross became instant classics in the 80s, and the robot genre of anime is still one of the most popular in Japan and worldwide today. In the 1980s, anime was accepted in the mainstream in Japan, and experienced a boom in production (It should be noticed that, manga has significantly more mainstream exposure than anime in Japan). The popularity of anime was restricted almost exclusively to Japan until the mid-to-late 1990s, when the world was starting to discover the incredibly fascinating world of anime. The 2000s saw an increased acceptance of anime in overseas markets, and sales for popular anime series soared in international markets.