Around 1937, the term “dōga” (動画 moving images) was introduced by Masaoka Kenzo, but the term did not spread widely. On the other hand, “senga” (線画 Line drawings) was often used to refer to works with diagrams and educational purposes. In the 1920s, the term “manga eiga” (漫画映画 manga film) became dominant, often used to refer to works with a strong narrative element. On some occasions, “cartoon comedy” written in katakana (カートン・コメディ) was also used (Yamaguchi and Watanabe 1977, p.10). Later, the term “senga eiga” (線画映画 line drawing film) or “senga kigeki” (線画喜劇 line drawing comic film) was used to refer to the locally produced animation. i This “dekobō shingachō” series became very popular and the term itself became synonymous with animation (Yamaguchi and Watanabe 1977, p.8). The phrase “dekobō shingachō” (凸坊新画帳 Dekobō’s new sketch book)was written before the titles of these foreign animations. In 1910, at the end of the Meiji period, foreign animations, including the French animation Fantasmagorie by Emile Cohl were imported by Fukuhōdō and screened in the Teikokukan (Imperial Theatre) in Asakusa, Tokyo. This paper explores this controversy about labeling through investigation of the varying usage and reception of the anime label among Japanese animators and major animation related associations in Japan. This issue within Japan is important, as it reveals the heterogeneous understandings and expectations of contemporary animation in Japan. How works are labeled, whether as anime or animation, does seem to matter. They assert that not all animations produced in Japan are anime, emphasizing the distinctive character and meaning of the works that do not conform to the existing popular anime image. There are a number of people, especially in Japan, who persist in differentiating the meaning of anime and animation, arguing that anime is just a part of the bigger genre of animation. However, despite the escalating popularity and attention in the worldwide media, the meaning and usage of the term is still ambiguous and is not employed with a uniform meaning. Inside Japan though, the word “anime,” an abbreviated pronunciation of animation in Japanese has been used widely as an abbreviation for all animation. Outside Japan, anime is mainly used as a term referring to animation made in Japan.
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