Ask John: What Makes Japanese Animation Unique?

Question:
The other day I happened to met with Yasuo Ohtsuka, best known as the veteran animator who used to work with Hayao Miyazaki, and talked about the difference between anime and American animated cartoon referring to an interesting story that really occurred in a U.S. screening of Wings of Honneamise. During the scene where the protagonist sits still in the cockpit waiting for his rocket to launch, many Americans looked back over their shoulders. They seemed to suspect that the projector was down. In Japanese animation it is usual for characters to keep silent because human beings often do so in their daily life. However, he claims that Americans are at a loss for that kind of depiction in animated cartoon.

I’m Japanese and found a hot discussion about the issue in 2 channel forum in Japan. One of the attendees pointed out that John sometimes said the same thing in Ask John.

“This theoretical American animated production may be even cinematically and technically superior to Japanese animation in every way, but it’s still not Japanese animation, not anime. Anime is Japanese animation, and only Japanese people can create Japanese animation.” (quoted from “What Exactly Constitutes Anime?” October 28th, 2004)

They’d like eagerly to know what you really think makes the difference in sensitivity of animated cartoon across the Pacific. So I decided to ask you on behalf of them.

Answer:
In my career as an anime fan, this is probably the most difficult question I’ve ever had to answer. It’s easy to explain why I like anime. And I’ve managed to explicate what I think the differences are between American and Japanese animation. But I’ve never been forced to specifically itemize exactly what characteristics, in detail, make Japanese animation unique. Whatever characteristics these are, they have to be universal to all Japanese animation, but exclusive to only Japanese animation. I can’t say that my perceptions are correct or complete, but after some consideration I believe that beside the use of silence which you’ve already pointed out, and which I’ve mentioned briefly before, anime can be distinguished by its use of dialogue, its literary characterizations, its mis-en-scene (the content of camera framing) and the effect of its practical limitations, and its literary intelligence and integrity.

The efficaciousness of silence in anime is paralleled by its effective use of dialogue. To be specific, unlike Western animation that uses dialogue primarily to convey story, Japanese animation commonly uses dialogue and conversations to convey a sense of reality. Unlike Western animated characters, whose dialogue is virtually always constructed to express some point, anime characters frequently have casual conversations that serve only to make the characters seem real and believable. Furthermore, unlike Western animation that’s frequently designed for the short attention spans of children, anime doesn’t hesitate to slowly and methodically develop characterization and plot and tone through the use of extended conversations and long scenes in which characters just talk to each other. In the same way that silences reflect real human interactions, conversations about nothing in particular, and periods of lengthy discussion between people also enhance the verisimilitude of anime and viewers’ ability to effortlessly believe in the reality of totally fictional characters and settings and events.

The employment of silence and speech to represent believable reality is only one aspect of a second characteristic of anime. A universal trait found in generally all anime is that characters are more than merely functionaries of the plot. Unlike typical characters in Western animation and comics that exist only within the context of their roles, anime characters are personified and illustrated to allow us to believe that they exist and have lives beyond merely what we see on screen. Anime characters think for themselves and have personal tastes and ideas. Unlike American cartoon characters that seem to be fictional constructs specifically constructed to serve specific purposes within a story, anime characters in everything from hentai to children’s anime exude a feeling that they continue to exist and function within their respective worlds when they’re not on screen. In other words, anime characters are specifically constructed to be fictional people rather than fictional roles. The two dimensional characters in anime naturally feel like three dimensional personalities more so than even Western cartoon characters that have purposefully constructed asides depicting less frequently seen facets of their lives.

What is and is not illustrated in anime is one of the things that distinguishes anime. In fact, I think that the technical limitations of anime are one of its strongest identifying characteristics. In order to compensate for its limited frame rates and limited cel counts, anime makes judicious use of close up camera shots of character faces, frequent abstract shots, and frequent “establishing shots” that visually clarify time or location setting. Profile and head shot close-ups aren’t used often in Western animation except for reaction shots because such camera shots aren’t dynamic or kinetic. On the other hand, anime uses them frequently to illustrate subtle character moods or reactions, or to establish tone. Western animation also seems to avoid noticeably long frames with little motion or no characters in frame. On the other hand, Japanese animation often uses such camera shots for the practical purpose of disguising lower cel counts. But at the same time this compensation establishes an artistic, methodical and deliberate pace for anime. In a sense, anime isn’t afraid to slow down and smell the flowers. Anime assumes and sometimes forces the viewer’s attention span. By doing so, anime subtly encourages viewers to ponder, to consider, anime. If even only in momentary bursts, the pacing of anime and its use of stillness and shots that contain no movement or characters make viewers unconsciously think about what they’re seeing.

Japanese animation also assumes the intelligence of its viewers. Obviously philosophical or intellectual titles like Evangelion and Innocence are intentionally academic. Japanese animation, from children’s programs to adults only anime is based on the literary foundation of suspension of disbelief. Not all anime is smart, but anime consistently refrains from being condescending. Japanese animation doesn’t feel a need to shield viewers from rational choices, circumstances and consequences. Anime is written and composed with a fundamental attitude of faithfulness to the integrity of its story. Anime characters encounter believable conflicts in their believable lives. Even in a romantic comedy or a children’s program, there’s always the real world chance that tragedy could strike. Unlike Western animation, which occurs in an isolated, encapsulated universe, Japanese animation makes an conscious effort to relate to its viewers. The mere fact that Pokemon’s Kasumi slaps Satoshi after Satoshi does something wrong seems unconscious and natural when, in fact, it’s highly unusual, and even impossible to depict such a simple and natural thing in equivalent American animation. The very fact that such an event occurs in anime and seems natural and believable is proof of Japanese animation’s effective suspension of disbelief. With so much of Western animation, regardless of its technical quality, we never forget that we’re watching an animated film because the animation itself never cracks the fourth wall to fully involve the audience. On the other hand, Japanese animation has an ability to immerse its viewers, an ability that’s intentionally cultivated.

Elements such as the visual design of anime, its Japanese language and music, and the genres it covers don’t adequately represent the unique characteristics of anime because they cannot be universally applied to all anime. Although apparent in differing degrees in each anime production, the visual and aural pacing of anime, its distinctly Japanese cinematography and editing, and its ultimate emphasis on believability and suspension of disbelief are characteristics that appear in every instance of Japanese animation, and do not appear in the same way or intensity in animation produced anywhere else in the world.