A ROBOT by the name of Astro Boy found its way into living rooms around the world via the television in the early 1960s, paving the way for global acceptance of a Japanese sub-culture.
Adapted into an animated television series, the adventures of the rocket-propelled android with the likeness and mannerisms of a boy warmed the hearts of TV audiences. Its success opened the doors for Japanese creativity to showcase itself on the global scene.
This first anime to be broadcast overseas was followed by a string of popular TV series and comic characters like Ultraman, Godzilla, Doraemon, Son Goku, Pikachu, and the emblem of Japanese pop culture, Hello Kitty.
With home entertainment culture expanding to involve audiencesâ participation through game consoles and hand-held devices, this sub-culture has evolved into a major industry with the Japanese at the forefront of the multi-billion-dollar global trade.
Contemporary Japanese culture grew into worldwide fascination, especially among the younger generation. These cultural trends helped Japan to take the lead in the invention, production and sale of video game devices.
Nintendo pushed Japan to the forefront of the global video game industry.
On Aug 26, Nintendo Co Ltd was reported to have 890.4 billion yen (RM35.2 billion) in cash, making it the richest company in Japan.
The global gaming industry generates US$196 billion (RM816 billion) in revenue annually, drawing tech giants such as Google, Facebook and Apple to the fray. They will go up against Tencent of China, which is the worldâs largest video game company.
It is also interesting to note how South Korea exploded into the global entertainment scene with TV dramas, movies and songs that use a language that is not understood beyond the two Koreas.
The Korean Wave or Hallyu first appeared in the 1990s after South Korea set up diplomatic relations with China in 1992.
What is Love? – the first hit Korean TV drama abroad – drew 150 million Chinese viewers when it was aired by CCTV in 1997.
K-Pop first found its international audience through a radio programme called Seoul Music Room that was broadcast from Beijing. The streaming of K-Pop on Spotify has increased by 1,800% between January 2014 and January 2020.
Similarly, Korean moviemakers also found great success internationally with Bong Joon-hoâs Parasite winning the Academy Award for Best Picture.
After the Asian financial crisis of 1997-98 brought the Korean economy to its knees, its government realised it was overly dependent on heavy industries with complicated supply chains.
It launched global charm offensives to rebrand and export Korean cultural products.
Japan and South Koreaâs success stories with their entertainment exports share two common themes â total devotion to the task at hand and having a pride in being meticulous.
There was an allocation of RM225 million for short-term economic recovery to re-energise our creative industry. Perhaps this could be the catalyst to help us harness an industry that is a behemoth with an insatiable appetite for growth.
We already have Upin and Ipin and Boboiboy on the international stage. Some of our animators are responsible for some top Disney movies.
We just need that little push so that we can stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the Japanese and Koreans.
Read this story in theSunâs iPaper:
How we can bank on entertainment in pursuit of serious economic recovery
