Investment in the Artsﾂ… where is it?

[Free_Radical]

I've stuck this in the Economy forum because I'm interested in this from a financial perspective, as well as sociological one.
Given the pressure from neighbouring countries to Japan's old cash cow sectors, should there not be more money diverted to the Arts? Epic films, with epic budgets and profits to boot, are exploited in Western cinema, but with a few notable exceptions the same is not true in Japan. Someone's missing a trick!

There seems to be a neurotic emphasis placed on science and tech by government, and we all are aware of the imbalance this has caused in the wider society. Every child is primed to compete in the same damn skill set creating a nation of people that hate their work. And when these select industries are up shyt creek then what?

There is an existent pool of creative talent in the manga/anime industry. The J-music scene is vibrant, clearly a related resource, and the masses of disaffected students & salarypeople are a market in waiting. Thousands of years of history & mythology to draw upon for straight adaptation or inspiration. The resources are abundant excepting the funding.

Is the flow of capital viscous and manipulated with oldschool ideology? Personally I think minister for culture (or whatever his title may be) needs a slap. Be interested in your thoughts.

 

[Dogen Z]

I think you are a bit misinformed. I know at least one venture fund that is supporting up and coming artists by commissioning works of arts--it's trying a new business model. Established artists such as Takashi Murakami are being supported by corporations, in his case its Louis Vuitton. Traditional arts are well supported by the government. There are photographers, illustrators, writers galore all trying to compete with each other in a myriad of mediums to display their works. Movie production companies are listed on the stock exchange and since revenues have been trending upward nicely in the last 2 years, they aren't complaining much.

What is the basis of your complaint?

 

[Free_Radical]

Diplomatically speaking i'd like to call it an observation rather than a complaint; and you kinda answered it in your post. You know of '1' venture fund, and commented that artist & production companies exits. The same is true of Romania if you get my drift. (apologies to any Romanian hapas out there, beautiful country btw)
How you view this topic does depend on the importance you place on the arts both as an investment and for its cultural worth. What Im saying is there are no productions on the scale of Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, Star Wars etc. Even if you were exclusively money motivated then you should at least see that there is an untapped market here.

I feel there is a lack of recognition of literature and its role in enlightening & inspiring people. On the one hand pacific nations want to move towards knowledge based economies supported by an innovative workforce, and on the other ignore the power of literature to nurture that creativity in its citizens.

On a personal level, its was through reading fantasy & sci-fi that ignited my interest in history and science respectfully. We need more poets and writers not engineers and accountants IMO.

 

[Dogen Z]

The tone of your post made me think it was a complaint. Sorry for misreading you.

Anyway, the "arts" industry in Japan is still alive and thriving. While it's basically for domestic consumption, Hollywood always scours works done here to see if they can license or "borrow" ideas for a wider audience and Japanese films are usually entered in international film festivals. Of course, everyone always anticipates whatever Ghibli Studio produces.

If you're looking for science fiction/fantasy, you should take a look at Paprika that's out now. For next year, you can look forward to an updated remake Speed Racer by the producers of Matrix (who got their inspiration from Ghost in the Shell).

 

[Free_Radical]

Hmm... so the current state of affairs is thus:
a. there's a vibrant arts scene in Japan. Agreed.
b. The only glimmer of it in the outside is through Hollywood adaptations.
c. In monetary terms, the only revenue Japan sees is a few films on gen release and some royalty for licensing.

That's pretty poor showing.

2 additional points. Firstly, the wuxia genre has proven that foreign films can be money spinners on the global market. Secondly, Japan's wealth creation is unnaturally reliant on manufacturing. This skewed economy is reflected in education system.

Perhaps Im nuts in thinking this is just aint right. Perhaps Japan's entertainment has no potential to expand. Perhaps the financiers dont have the funds. Whatever the case, at least Ive got that Paprika to watch with some class vino ;-) Cheers, always appreciate a film recommendation.