ASociological Study about "Comic Market," the world's largest comic convention.
| Project/Area Number |
16330100
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| Research Category |
Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (B)
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| Allocation Type | Single-year Grants |
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| Section | 一般 |
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| Research Field |
Sociology
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| Research Institution | Kyushu University |
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Principal Investigator |
SUGIYAMA Akashi Kyushu University, Graduate School of Social and Cultural Studies, Associate Professor (60222056)
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| Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha) |
KAMBARA Naoyuki Juntendo University, Department of Social Science in Sports, Associate Professor (70255652)
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| Project Period (FY) |
2004 – 2007
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| Project Status |
Completed (Fiscal Year 2007)
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| Budget Amount *help |
¥6,010,000 (Direct Cost: ¥5,800,000、Indirect Cost: ¥210,000)
Fiscal Year 2007: ¥910,000 (Direct Cost: ¥700,000、Indirect Cost: ¥210,000)
Fiscal Year 2006: ¥800,000 (Direct Cost: ¥800,000)
Fiscal Year 2005: ¥600,000 (Direct Cost: ¥600,000)
Fiscal Year 2004: ¥3,700,000 (Direct Cost: ¥3,700,000)
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| Keywords | cultural sociology / cultural studies / comic market / independent publishing / manga / anime / otaku / mass culture |
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| Research Abstract |
The aim of this study is to assess the situation and social meanings of "comic market" as a mass cultural phenomenon and as a mass cultural movement. "Comic market" is the world's largest comic convention. It is held twice a year in Tokyo, usually for three days. More than 150,000 attendees come to a convention center a day. Approximately 35,000 circles sell their self-made comic works and related goods in three days. This convention is managed by voluntary association, Comic Market Committee whose aim is to promote and create new "manga" and "anime" cultures. "Manga" and "anime", or Japanese styled comics and animations get worldwide. popularity these days. Behind this popularity exists such a cultural movement. `If you want to appreciate an extraordinary high level work, the top of the pyramid of cultural works, you should make the pyramid bigger, and then the top would be higher. So we provide a market place, the bottom of the pyramid, for armature creators and for professional creators who struggle to publish their works outside of commercial publishing," said an interviewee who is a staff of the committee. In this study five surveys are included; 1) a questionnaire for circles, or independent publishers, 2) a questionnaire for committee staffs, 3) interview researches with committee staffs, 4) an interview research with Yoshihiro Yonezawa who is the representative of Comic Market Committee, 5) a counting research about people's traffic in the convention center In spite of the widely accepted image that "otaku", or extreme fans like comic market attendees are predominantly male, 70% of circles' head are female and a half of people traffic is female. Many facts that oppose to widespread understandings about the fan culture are found, including the data about the sociability of fans.
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Report
(5 results)
Research Products
(1 results)
