Mimi Ito, a cultural anthropologist at UC Irvine, discusses how otaku has come to play a major role in Japan’s identity at home and abroad.
Mimi Ito, “Fandom Unbound: Otaku Culture in a Connected World”
Mimi Ito, cultural anthropologist, discusses how this once marginalized popular culture came to play a major role in Japan’s identity at home and abroad.
Fandom Unbound: Otaku Culture in a Connected World
By exploring the rich variety of otaku culture from multiple perspectives, Mimi Ito will provide fascinating insights into the present and future of cultural production and distribution in the digital age.
Video: Comparative Media Insights: “Western Otaku: Games Crossing Cultures”
This study examines one particular subset of videogame players, for whom the consumption of Japanese videogames in particular is of great value, in addition to their related activities consuming anime and manga from Japan.
Podcast: Mia Consalvo, “Western Otaku: Games Crossing Cultures”
Through in-depth interviews with such players, this study investigates how transnational fandom operates in the realm of videogame culture, and how a particular group of videogame players interprets their gameplay experience in terms of a global, if hybrid, industry.
