Hasta La Gadget!

Back in the day, I loved to watch some anime. A local TV station had Robotech and Star Blazers on after school and you could bet I was watching. If you are still a big fan of anime content and happen to own a PS Vita, you will love this.

Sony has announced three new apps for the PS Vita are available now. One of them is Crunchyroll and it has all sorts of anime and manga content straight from Japan. It offers content like Naruto Shippuden, Attack on Titan, Kill la Kill, Hunter × Hunter as well as other content.

The coolest part is that some of those shows will have new episodes available to watch only hours after they first air in Japan. Along with that app, NHL GameCenter Live is available now for hockey fans and Qello Concerts has launched for music fans. Coming later this spring, the PS Vita will finally get Hulu Plus and Redbox Instant along with Gaiam TV.

Medicom has released a 400% (11″ tall) Bearbrick of the 60 meter-tall Colossal Titan, one of the giants terrorizing the poor citizens in the world of Shingeki no Kyojin, aka Attack on Titan. I’m not sure if there’s a 1% bearbrick inside.

This horrifying bear is limited to 500 units and is available only to Japanese residents, going for￥7,140 (~$70 USD) each. Bite your browser and breach Bearbrick’s walls to order.

[via Hypebeast]

Since Crypton Future Media first released their vocal synthesiser application and its associated anime character way back in 2006, Hatsune Miku has become an iconic figure in both otaku and mainstream pop culture. If collaborations with Family Mart, Google Chrome, Dominos, and Louis Vuitton, numerous live concerts and even an “opera” performance are anything to go by, it seems as if interest in Hatsune Miku is still going strong.

Tokyo City View in Roppongi is featuring a pop up Hatsune Miku Cafe that celebrates both the character and the fan-created songs and videos that made her famous.

Operating under the theme ‘Hatsune Miku with LOVE’, the space features a mini exhibition of famous illustrations, screenings of Vocaloid Cinema Party, as well as a life-sized model of the Vocaloid star herself. One corner of the cafe also has an video and audio archive of Hatsune Miku-related media for both customers and passer-bys to access.

The cafe also features a huge wall full of teal and white heart-shaped sticky notes that previous customers have written messages and drawn pictures on.

Next door, there is a special gift shop stocked with Hatsune Miku merchandise.

Of course the cafe also offers a thoroughly themed menu, complete with Hatsune Miku-shaped rice and curry, leek soba, and an assortment of vividly coloured drinks named after songs that were composed with Vocaloid software by fans.

While Vocaloid started out as a production tool that pieced together sounds to create a realistic “singing” voice, having Hatsune Miku associated with the software created a character that viewers could associate with and use to create a variety of complementary media, from 3D animated music videos to illustrations.

Cross-promotion and marketing of products and animated characters across a different range of services and media platforms in Japan is nothing new, but the cultural impact that Hatsune Miku has had because of the involvement of fan-created content is an interesting development. Without the creative input of fans and their creation of songs, videos and illustrations, Hatsune Miku would arguably not have been as big an icon as she is now, nor would the character have generated the same amount of economic value for the Vocaloid franchise.

How corporations and marketing expertise is adapting to a changing media environment where audiences have the ability to both create their own content as well as share it with others almost as easily as major content producers is something that will be interesting to consider in the future. One thing is for sure, there will probably be many more collaborations to come – we definitely aren’t the only ones who can’t get enough of Hatsune Miku!

Ever wondered how those crazily clad cosplayers promote themselves to each other? Well according to Nikkei’s Trendy just like most professionals in Japan they use business cards, though perhaps not the most traditional kind.

Image via cosplay.exblog 

Business card exchange in Japan (meishi koukan ) is the most important method of professional self-introduction in Japan. Forgetting or running out of cards in more formal settings can lead to embarrassment, as others are unable to judge your status in the group. This is why we always tell clients visiting Japan for business or networking to “bring plenty of cards!”, which in their mind usually translates into 20 when it should be 50+.

Image via uniearth.jp

However, when these cosplayers exchange business cards they are promoting their fantasy persona, a character from an alternative reality who they try to embody through fashion, make up and lifestyle. The cards feature their character name, photo, and contact address rather than company and job title.

Image via A-one

Of course cosplayers wont just have one costume that they don, or character role that they play, which could certainly lead to a lot of printing and perhaps confusion.

Offering to solve this dilemma is a cosplay business card service called Proof, owned by printing company Choei, which allows customers the chance to order multiple sets of business cards for each character at a low cost (100 cards at 2,625 Yen- US$26).

A major feature of these customised cosplay business cards is of course the unique character or costume photo, which when printed resembles the design of a trading card rather than a proper business card.

C-Studio was set up to offer cosplayers a special location in which to take these cosplay glamour shots; featuring several photo studios each with their own themed decor such as Gothic, Luxury Bar, ‘Cute-room’, Sci Fi etc.

Customers can also rent props for free to enhance their fantasy experience and add further mystery to their characters.

As it is often difficult to find the right location to take fantasy themed cosplay photos without attracting attention and being bothered by the public many cosplayers are willing to pay the steep 8,000 yen (US$80) per hour rental fee to use the studio.

The extent to which fans of manga, anime and cosplay indulge in these alternative reality and fantasy lifestyles seems to be continuing to go one step further. With these cosplay business cards, the false persona of these fantasy characters now has a real world presence and allows them to take on bigger personalities and responsibilities.

Backdrops are called backdrops for a reason—they’re designed to fade against the focus of a particular scene. But as a new single-serving Tumblr called Anime Backgrounds proves, sometimes the best art is to be found behind the characters. More »