Global Anime Studies

3 credits · Undergraduate

Anime is often casually defined as "animation from Japan," but that definition obscures the ways in which anime has always been significantly transnational in both its production and consumption. Anime is watched, loved, interpreted, debated, problematized, created and creatively transformed by fans, artists, and media companies worldwide. Anime aesthetics permeate merchandising and place-branding well beyond Japan, as anime-inspired mascots have been unveiled in recent years for institutions ranging from the BART to the Vatican. Anime fandom's creative practices - such as gender- and race-bending cosplay, fanart, and fanfiction - have come to reflect its diversifying audiences, though not without controversy. As these examples illuminate, anime must be understood as a global phenomenon. This course investigates anime as a transnational media form, from manga's earliest history at the turn of the 20th century to the present day.