About AniMatsuri

AniMatsuri is a festival mainly targeted towards the youth interested in the Japanese culture. The emphasis is on the Japanese pop culture, including, anime, manga (comics produced in Japan), music, computer games, fashion, etc.

In two days, the visitors have the opportunity to participate in various workshops, listen to presentations, play computer or board games, compete in a number of contests, communicate with people sharing the same interests, and much more.

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You can learn more about our past activities here.

What is anime and what is manga?

Anime (animation) and manga (comics) are a few of the most well-known terms one could use to describe the contemporary Japanese youth culture. What differentiates these two definitions from the animations or comics produced in the west is a broader selection of genres (from kids’ shows to science fiction, from comedy to martial arts), a beautiful and detailed visual side, and the versatility of the characters (the world is not always a black and white battle between good and evil). Such versatility has also inspired Hollywood. The creators of the famous Matrix movie trilogy, The Wachowski Brothers have said that a huge inspiration for the movie series has been Mamoru Oshii’s cult anime Ghost in the Shellreleased in 1995.
As a result of the cooperation between Hollywood and the Japanese animators, a number of works based on the heroes of DC and Marvel comics have been brought to the audiences, for example Batman, Wolverine, and Iron Man, to name a few. Japan is also one of the largest and most successful animation producers in the world. The commercial value of the anime in USA alone is estimated to be 334 million euros. The mangas are on a similar position, although less popular. In Japan, however, the manga market is considerably broader, in 2007 being 3,2 billion euros.

In addition to anime and manga, the Japanese game developers also have a remarkable influence. Many are familiar with game consoles like Sony PlayStation or Nintendo Wii, and games such as Super Mario, Final Fantasy (one of the most successful standard setters in the fantasy genre), Pokémon, Resident Evil, MegaMan, and many others.

The organizer of AniMatsuri is NPO Japanese culture club Asashio founded in 2005 in Tartu.