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NEWS: Studio Ghibli Name Change Considered

"However when Suzuki told Miyazaki this, Miyazaki became angry and told Suzuki, 'I'll do it.'" And BAM! That's how he got him out of retirement.

Seriously, though, I would object to Ghibli being renamed "Scirocco." Not because it sounds "weak", I just don't like it.

This is a slap in the face. Studio Ghibli is a recognizable name when it comes to [japanese cartoons]. To change the name of the studio would be an insult. Studio Ghibli is an established and very well known name where [cartoon fans] are concerned and many fans have come to associate Miyazaki-san with this studio. This would be like changing the name of the Walt Disney company to American Animation Studios, there's just no brand name recognition.

Anime (アニメ, Anime?) is an abbreviation of the Japanese word アニメーション (animēshon), which is based on the English word "animation." Outside Japan, the term most popularly refers to the medium of animation originating in Japan, with distinctive character and background aesthetics that visually set it apart from other forms of animation (e.g. Walt Disney films, Warner Bros. short cartoons). Within Japan, the term anime is used to refer to all forms of animation from around the world. While some anime is entirely hand-drawn, computer assisted animation techniques are, in recent years, quite common. Storylines are typically fictional; examples of anime representing most major genres of fiction exist. Anime is broadcast on television, distributed on media such as DVD and VHS, or included in computer and video games. Anime is often influenced by Japanese comics known as manga. Some anime storylines have been adapted into live action films and television series.

Because of the stylistic similarities between comic strips and early animated movies, "cartoon" came to refer to animation, and this is the sense in which "cartoon" is most commonly used today. These are usually shown on television or in cinemas and are created by showing illustrated images in rapid succession to give the impression of movement. (In this meaning, the word cartoon is sometimes shortened to " toon " and was popularized by the movie Who Framed Roger Rabbit). Although the term can be applied to any animated presentation, it is most often used in reference to programs for children, featuring anthropomorphized animals, superheroes, the adventures of child protagonists, and other related genres. Animated material which does not fit the traditional conventions of mainstream Western animation, such as Japanese anime are often confused with the definition of cartoons. Anime comprises an entirely different genre in and of itself, giving it a distinguishable quality setting it apart from other cartoons.

On this note, everyone here would agree with me that the Japanese do not, nor have they ever made, cartoons. Cartoons is a generic description used to explain animation made outside of Japan.

This is a slap in the face.

Malintex Terek, what is your problem. Japanese anime released in the United States is still anime. To insult the anime genre as basic Japanese cartoons is an insult to anime fans everywhere. Oh, and don't insult my intelligence by trying to 'fix' my posted message.

Colonel Wolfe wrote:

Malintex Terek, what is your problem. Japanese anime released in the United States is still anime. To insult the anime genre as basic Japanese cartoons is an insult to anime fans everywhere. Oh, and don't insult my intelligence by trying to 'fix' my posted message.

OH DEAR HIGHER POWER, I INSULTED SOME ANIME FANS. IF I'M NOT CAREFUL, THEY COULD "BLOG" ME TO DEATH!

...

Stop deluding yourself; anime isn't mainstream and doesn't have a mainstream label. Most people who watch Ghibli do not associate it with the "devil's cartoons" that radical protestant fundamentalist evangelical Christians like to denounce; they see Ghibli works as merely animated cartoons done by a Japanese director and animated by a Japanese studio. There's nothing extra super-duper "special" connotations or brand labels, aside from the "Studio Ghibli" name, that ring bells in the back of the average consumer's mind when they see such.

When a Newsweek article mentions The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya and calls the show a "japanese cartoon", it's a fair implication that a clear distinction between "western cartoons" and "anime" has not been firmly established. Granted, the label no longer has the negative elitist otaku connotations that it once had, but it's still a looooooong way from entering popular culture diction.