Anime and Popular Culture
"What can anime teach us about our relationship with visual media?" This course has two objectives. First, we will learn how to articulate anime as an object of academic inquiry by using critical concepts and terms in Cinema and Media Studies. Second, we will situate anime within a larger media environment in our everyday life. In addition to analyzing anime contents, we aim at understanding the roles anime plays in popular culture such as franchising, fan fiction, and cosplay. Course materials include anime masterpieces by Miyazaki Hayao and Hosoda Mamoru, popular series like Sailor Moon and Gundam, and recent smash hits such as Attack on Titan and Madoka Magica. Assignments will include film viewing and readings, and there will be exams on the contents of these assignments. No Japanese language ability is required (all lectures and readings are in English and the films are in Japanese with English subtitles).