The Agency for Cultural Affairs has been organizing the Japan Media Arts Festival annually since 1997, with the aim of promoting the creation and development of media arts (comics, animation, game and media art.) The Japan Media Arts Festival now accepts entries worldwide and awards prizes for outstanding creative works in four divisions, Art, Animation, Entertainment and Manga as well as providing opportunities to introduce these works, specifically through the prizes announcements, the Awards Ceremony, and the Exhibition of Award-Winning Works.
[Hosted by: The Japan Media Arts Festival Executive Committee]
[ Works Submitted ]
- Art Division: 1,101 works
- Entertainment Division: 669 works
- Animation Division: 425 works
- Manga Division: 450 works
Total: 2,645 works
[ Overseas Entries ]
694 works from 48nations and regions,
(In alphabetical order) Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Colombia, Croatia, Czech Republic, Dominican Republic, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, Hungary, Indonesia, Israel, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Mongolia, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Ireland, Russia, Serbia, Singapore, Slovenia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom, and United States.
[ Changes in the Number of Submissions (the 1st to 14th year) ]
| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | 6th | |
| Digital Art (Interactive Art Division) |
276 | 194 | 204 | 288 | 298 | 539 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Digital Art (Non Interactive Art Division) |
330 | 243 | 332 | 350 | 455 | 527 |
| Animation Division | 60 | 98 | 100 | 148 | 196 | 210 |
| Manga Division | 64 | 89 | 160 | 72 | 104 | 99 |
| Submission Total (works) |
730 | 624 | 796 | 858 | 1,053 | 1,375 |
| Year-to-Year Comparison | 85% | 128% | 108% | 123% | 131% |
| 7th | 8th | 9th | 10th | 11th | 12th | 13th | 14th | |
| Art Division | 908 | 829 | 888 | 760 | 877 | 1,020 | 1,169 | 1,101 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Entertainment Division | 219 | 202 | 367 | 361 | 514 | 390 | 622 | 669 |
| Animation Division | 330 | 294 | 311 | 377 | 417 | 346 | 473 | 425 |
| Manga Division | 127 | 173 | 261 | 310 | 283 | 390 | 328 | 450 |
| Submission Total (works) |
1,584 | 1,498 | 1,797 | 1,808 | 2,091 | 2,146 | 2,592 | 2,625 |
| Year-to-Year Comparison | 115% | 95% | 120% | 101% | 116% | 103% | 121% | 102% |
[ Changes in the Number of Submissions and Exhibition Visitors (the 1st to 14th year) ]
| Year | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | 6th | 7th | 8th | 9th | 10th | 11th | 12th | 13th | 14th |
| The Number of Visitors | 2,173 | 3,264 | 12,597 | 5,718 | 12,958 | 16,060 | 16,766 | 24,658 | 27,246 | 26,706 | 44,524 | 55,234 | 63,348 | 70,126 |
|---|
Activities Associated with the Japan Media Arts Festival
[Japan Media Arts Festival Regional Exhibitions]
Since 2002, the Agency for Cultural Affairs has been staging the Japan Media Arts Festival Regional Exhibitions to provide an opportunity for more people in Japan to appreciate media arts outside of Tokyo. Focusing on award-winning works that received awards at past Japan Media Arts Festivals, these regional exhibitions provide a comprehensive exhibition and screening of manga, animation, games, interactive art, and web works, together with symposiums and events, aiming to promote understanding for media arts in regional areas.
[Japan Media Arts Festival Overseas Exhibitions]
Overseas exhibitions have been conducted to actively promote Japanese media arts outside of Japan. Focusing on award-winning works from the Japan Media Arts Festival, leading-edge Japanese works of media arts including manga, animation, games, interactive art and web are introduced through exhibitions and demonstrations.
[Japan Media Arts Festival Domestic Tour]
To provide an opportunity for people to appreciate outstanding media art all across Japan, the Agency for Cultural Affairs has been hosting the Japan Media Arts Festival Domestic Tour in conjunction with organizations and festivals related to media arts.
[Participation in Overseas Media Arts Festivals]
Focused on award-winning works of the Japan Media Arts Festival, the Agency for Cultural Affairs has been exhibiting and screening works of media arts at overseas festivals related to media art. These opportunities are provided for people to appreciate outstanding Japanese media arts with the aim to promote media art and showcasing Japanese culture to the world.
[International Convention on Manga, Animation, Game, and Media Art]
The Agency for Cultural Affairs has been holding the inaugural International Convention on Manga, Animation, Game, and Media Art since 2010 with the aim of promoting international exchange and collaboration in Media Arts fields. It aims to achieve this by inviting persons connected with world Media Arts-related institutions and festivals to participate in the convention, providing an opportunity to exchange information and views concerning the activities of institutions in a multitude of countries. In addition to grasping the “here and now” of global Media Arts by inviting major players on the international scene, this convention seeks to gain a cross-discipline understanding of worldwide trends and Japan’s position in the worldwide Media Arts stage.
>>Please download the report on February 2011.[PDF:2.6MB, Language:Japanese,English]
[Media Arts Divisional Conferences]
From 2010, a media arts division conference will be held to promote collaboration and cooperation between top creators in all media arts fields, and to contribute to the increased development of all media arts fields in Japan. The aim is to bring together creators, who have had little contact despite working in the same field, and promote lively exchange of views as well as the vitalization of each and every division.
>>Please download the report on February 2011.[PDF:1.9MB Language:Japanese Only]
[Support Project for Fostering Creators in Media Arts]
From 2011, the Agency for Cultural Affairs is providing support for young creators in their creative activities. The intended young creators are award winners (including the artists of Jury Recommended Works) of the Japan Media Arts Festival between the age of 20 and 35. The aim is to help increase the level of creators who are expected to play a large role in the next generation of media arts including interactive art, video work, animation, manga and games, and to improve the environment that fosters creators.
[Media Arts Plaza]
The Media Arts Plaza (http://plaza.bunka.go.jp/) is a portal managed to broadly disseminate information worldwide on media art relating to the Japan Media Arts Festival and media art in general.
