Konomi Magazine

Konomi

雑誌 私はスペースを 埋めると見栄え するために使用し ています日本 語でのランダム な単語

Main Story: Hayao Miyazaki, Returning to Ghibli

The Force Awakens 12/18/15

WelcomeIMAGE Home 放射性降

放射性降下物

Fallout 4

ACROSS

Content 1. A Breif History, The Edo Period

story about one of the historically famous time periods in japanese culture

2. A Dissapearing Culture

Insider story, is japan really loosing its young people and traditional culture to western influence?

3. Playstation Awards 2015

Inside knowlage on popular playstation games and who won the awards this year

4.Tales of a Witcher, Manga

Bastion, a witcher finds a place to take refuge in the current contions. until it goes drastically wrong.

5. MAIN STORY

Hayao Miyazaki and his retirement from studio ghibli

from the creator of beloved my neighbor totoro, spirted away and new the wind rises coomes a new interview.vv

Editors note

Joe Cimino is a graphic designer/photogropher. his work is best represented through everday life scenes with outrages setups.

His photos emphasis daily life, real people with a limited color pallette.

Joe’wwwwwws Magazine career started later after designing graphics for cd projekt reds upcoming game and working for ubisoft for 5 years. “working with Emperor has been a great pleasure of mine. the quality and quantity of the material is both aesthetically pleasing and beautiful.

A Breif History: the Edo period

Many objects in the V&A’s collections come from the Edo period (1615 - 1868), a period of great significance in Japan’s history. At the beginning of the seventeenth century, the country was unified under the Tokugawa family after years of civil unrest.

The following years were ones of unprecedented peace and prosperity, prompting an increase in artistic, cultural and social development. Although Japan remained a basically agrarian society, towns and cities grew and craft production flourished. Improved transport and communication networks meant that for the first time even the most remote areas had access to goods produced in other parts of the country.

Social structure in the Edo period Edo period Japan was ruled by the Tokugawa family, with each successive head assuming the rank of Shogun. This was bestowed by the Emperor who, during the Edo period, was merely a figurehead and exercised

no political authority. The Tokugawa shogonate created a strict ‘four class’ social order in order to stabilise the country . Below the shogun were the military lords of each province. Both shogun and lords were served by retainers called samurai who acted as soldiers and officials. The samurai followed a code of conduct called Bushido (The Way of the Warrior), which stressed the mastery of martial arts, frugality, loyalty, courage and honour unto death. Tempered by Confucianism and Zen Buddhism, the samurai was expected to be educated, refined, honest and wise.

Model of The Yomei-mon gate the The Tomb of Shogun Ieyasu Tokugawa at Nikko. Japan, 1875 - 1900.

Museum no. W.5-1918 Below the military were three other main social groups. Next in social standing were peasants, the main producers of the rice crop that was taxed to support the needs of the ruling class. Below the farmers in status were the artisans and craftworkers who produced non-agricultural goods. In the lowest social group were merchants who were not directly involved with production.

Though this social division was based on the Confucian concept of the natural order of society, it became increasingly inconsistent with social realities. Many merchants benefited from Japan’s peace and prosperity and became extremely rich, yet the strict social hierarchy prevented them from using their wealth to improve their status or acquire political power in an overt fashion. Instead they often channelled their money into social ritual, the pursuit of pleasure and the acquisition of beautiful and often expensive objects. The edo period overall is one of the more fascsinating parts of japanese fuddalistic history.

FRUUT We are the Future

フルーツ

A Dissapering Culture, Japan and its culture change

I was not sure what to expect when I entered the office of anime, models, dolls, tanks, and starships that belonged to Professor Darren Ashmore of Akita International University. But as I was to find out: never a judge a book by its cover. With his nearly two decades of Japan studies throughout all of Japan, with his specialties in anthropology, pop culture, and folk art revival, I knew could finally get to some questions on everyone’s minds.

We all have our own reasons for coming or staying in Japan. Whether that be anime or manga as seems to be the stereotype, or a more traditional perspective on temple, shrine, or history appreciation, there is no one “correct” way to experience Japan. In fact, through Professor Ashmore’s infamous “Manga Mania” class, students end up learning not just about popular manga or its history, but how that manga is a reflection of history, politics, religion, and culture.

What is culture?

How about an example?

Professor Ashmore has a knack for getting his students and others think beyond the obvious. I wasn’t falling for his tricks of saying that culture is everything, what we make it to be, or what society believes. This was an interview and I wanted answers.

Culture is a mix of traditions and customs, he explained. After a quick glance up the skirt of one of his anime maid figurines, I asked him to elaborate. Customs have a practical use and a fairly evident purpose. Traditions on the other hand once had a practical use and purpose, but today that no longer applies — yet the ritual continues.

Often these customs and rituals blend, allowing for multiple interpretations of meaning. I could recall a mix of custom and tradition in many of my own daily life rituals in Japan. Perhaps the most well-known cultural characteristic of Japan is removing your shoes before entering a house (shrine, temple, tea room, tatami room, etc).

Traditional thought dictates that the outside is unclean and inside is pure; this is an almost spiritual way of thinking. The more practical way of thinking and practice, however, is to keep mud and dirt outside where is belongs.

Giving credit to his current stomping grounds of Akita in northern Tohoku, Professor Ashmore said there is no better example than culture, both as a tradition and as a custom, than is illustrated by the Namahage. Every Dec 31, the gods dressed as demons of Oga Peninsula and other less advertised locales of Japan descend from the mountains to terrorize families and their children. Banging on the doors and windows, they burst through the front door yelling for the children to be judged. The Namahage, with their large knives and buckets, have been rumored to skin children that are lazy or don’t listen to their parents. Thankfully, some kind words and offerings of food and sake to the Namahage from parents is enough to convince them to leave. Of course, this is on the assumption the children promise to behave themselves.

For anyone who has been to Tohoku, you will know

With hints of what was to come, I asked my final question: Is Japan’s culture disappearing? “Yes, to put it bluntly,” was my response. And the reasons can be the introduction of technology, the reducing population, the lack of interest or perceived importance, or the lack of practicality tradition has today.

Continuing with his Namahage example, Professor Ashmore expanded on the idea of the Yamahage, a small town’s variant on the Namahage tradition. With the youth leaving for the bigger cities, there was a lack of people willing to become the demons of the night since several years ago.

A witty grandmother came up with the idea of using local international university students to fill the role because demons have conventionally been viewed as outsiders. The village elders agreed to set up the culture exchange and today, year after year, we see non-Japanese maintaining Japanese culture through scaring Japanese children. For the record, we don’t masks to do that.

We can easily see pop culture clashing with traditional culture, but the modern man or woman needs to really understand both views to see Japan as it is today. Japan is connected with the past in many ways, even if those ways are becoming fewer.

Sometimes a tradition becomes a custom,

http://www.japantoday.com/category/opinions/view/where-is-japans-culture-and-is-it-

or vice versa. Other times the only way to preserve culture is to modify it with the changing situation and times. The alternative is to let a tradition disappear. When we try to hold onto a tradition that has no relevance today without lenience to change, there can only be failure.

And we lose part of culture with every lost tradition. But you can’t force tradition—it must be accepted by society to live on. To wrap up the interview, the ever genki Professor Ashmore left me with one thing to ponder, a customized “Star Wars” quote no less: “The more you tighten your grip, the more traditions will slip through your fingers.”

ONYO Here For You

今 日 Climb Fuji マ ウ ン ト 富 士 に 登り ます 登

www.ClimbFuji.org

PLAYSTATION AWARDS

2015

Sony Computer Entertainment Japan Asia has announced the winners of PlayStation Awards 2015.

The awards cover games released between November 1, 2014 and October 31, 2015. The “Platinum Prize” is awarded to games that shipped over one million units, while the “Gold Prize” is awarded to games that shipped over 500,000 units. The “PlayStation Network Award” is awarded to the three highest-selling download titles, and the “Asia PLAYTATION AWARDS

Special Award” is given to three titles that contributed to the Asian business. There’s also a “User Choice” category voted by fans.

Find the full list of winners below.

Platinum Prize Dragon Quest Heroes: The World Tree’s Woe and the Blight Below (Square Enix) Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain (Konami) Minecraft (Mojang) Gold Prize Bloodborne (SCE) God Eater 2: Rage Burst (Bandai Namco) Grand Theft Auto V (Rockstar Games) One Piece: Pirate Warriors 3 (Bandai Namco) Yakuza 0 (Sega) User Choice Prize Bloodborne (SCE) Dragon Quest Heroes: The World Tree’s Woe and the Blight Below (Square Enix) Grand Theft Auto V (Rockstar Games) Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain (Konami) The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (CD Projekt RED) User Choice Prize Asia Bloodborne (SCE) Grand Theft Auto V (Rockstar Games) Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain (Konami) The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (CD Projekt RED) Yakuza 0 (Sega) PlayStation Network Award Final Fantasy XIV Online (Square Enix) Minecraft (Mojang) Phantasy Star Online 2 (Sega) Asia Special Award Final Fantasy X | X-2 HD Remaster (Square Enix) Grand Theft Auto V (Rockstar Games) The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (CD Projekt RED)

Our scene starts with light. a witcher, contract hunter who kills monsters. leaving off from part 1 light is stuck in the unknown. a dark forest where souls go to die.

tales of a witcher a manga comic 123--Silver is for monsters part 2 (read scenes right to left)

a cottage in the distance.. could take refuge from

Hello?

(raspy voice) “a witcherr..weve been expecting you.

(muffeled) “ooh he will ceartinely taste good”.

hrmph. I presume you are the crones of the forest then?

You Presume right Witcher..Come to die?

to be continued..

野生の狩り

石の心

A Netflix Orignial Film

Amongst Wolves Directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu

TRIBUTE TO HAYAO MIYAZAKI Celebrating over 30 years of Studio ghibli

Main Story Today Hayao Miyazaki What is to become of studio ghibli after his retirement?

Legendary animator Hayao Miyazaki announced his retirement in 2013, following his final film, The Wind Rises. It was his sixth “retirement” and, like his previous five, hasn’t stuck -- the auteur director has not only announced a new project, but his first to be animated entirely in CG.

Miyazaki describes the short as “a story of a tiny, hairy caterpillar, so tiny that it may be easily squished between your fingers.” It’s a tale he’s been planning for almost two decades -- the director first mentioned plans for the story prior to 1997’s similarly nature-focused Princess Mononoke.

Kemushi no Boro (“Boro the Caterpillar”) isn’t set to follow Miyazaki’s earlier works to cinemas though.

It will only be around ten minutes long, and will be screened exclusively at the Studio Ghibli Museum in Mitaka, Tokyo.

DON’T MISS

Studio Ghibli’s Isao Takahata on animating his final filmStudio Ghibli’s Isao Takahata on animating his final film It’s not the first time Miyazaki has used CG

as a tool -- the technology is most notably used in his Oscar-winning Spirited Away -- but the short will be the first time he has produced an entire film in the form. Despite the brevity of the piece, Miyazaki’s long-time collaborater and Studio Ghibli producer Toshio Suzuki says it will take around three years to create.

Boro will join a handful of animated shorts that Ghibli produces exclusively for visitors to its museum.

Nine shorts have been created to date, including Mei and the Kittenbus, a semi-sequel to My Neighbour Totoro, and Monmon the Water Spider, which follows the daily trials of the eponymous arachnid, and may be closest in tone to Boro.

Sadly, none of the museum shorts have been released on Blu-ray or DVD, even in Japan. To actually see what may be Miyazaki’s last work, you’ll need to actually take a trip to Mitaka in 2018.

Studio Ghibli’s next feature film is Hiromasa Yonebayashi’s When Marnie Was There, expected for UK release later in 2015.

non a credited