Kawaii art by Yumiko Kayukawa
Anyone who desires to 'understand' Japan will eventually have to deal with the concept of 'kawaii' - a concept so profound that it has a wikipedia entry that is annotated with references from Wired, Business Week, TimeAsia and The New Yorker.
What deep Japanese value has the elite press so abuzz?
The concept of 'cute'.
You may have already known, without being told, that cute is big in Japan.
If that doesn't quite jib with the stomach-slicing vision of corporate samurai that you're used to, well, maybe you don't watch enough anime (where cuteness and violence walked hand-in-hand way before Angelina Jolie climbed into Lara Crofts shorts)...
Hello Kitty, Pokemon, Aya Ueto, and Kimu-taku are merely the tip of the (probably pink and fuzzy) cuteness iceberg that is Japanese pop culture...
What deep Japanese value has the elite press so abuzz?
The concept of 'cute'.
You may have already known, without being told, that cute is big in Japan.
If that doesn't quite jib with the stomach-slicing vision of corporate samurai that you're used to, well, maybe you don't watch enough anime (where cuteness and violence walked hand-in-hand way before Angelina Jolie climbed into Lara Crofts shorts)...
Hello Kitty, Pokemon, Aya Ueto, and Kimu-taku are merely the tip of the (probably pink and fuzzy) cuteness iceberg that is Japanese pop culture...
I have a phrase I'm fond of repeating regarding J-pop culture -
"If it ain't cute, give it the boot!"
I could try to explain what it is, why it's important (to the Japanese anyway), what conclusions we should draw, etc.... but I'm neither inclined nor equipped to.
I just say - recognize it, enjoy it, and use it.
So, in that vein, I will point you in the direction of 2 sunny sources (I almost wrote 'nuclear power plants' but that wouldn't be cute, would it?) of 'kawaii'.
"If it ain't cute, give it the boot!"
I could try to explain what it is, why it's important (to the Japanese anyway), what conclusions we should draw, etc.... but I'm neither inclined nor equipped to.
I just say - recognize it, enjoy it, and use it.
So, in that vein, I will point you in the direction of 2 sunny sources (I almost wrote 'nuclear power plants' but that wouldn't be cute, would it?) of 'kawaii'.
- "Kamikaze Girls" - this film, easily available on dvd in the US, is laugh-out-loud funny, with brilliant direction and excellent characters. Kyoko Fukada is perfect as the 'kawaii' half of this odd-couple duo, with Anna Tsuchiya capably handling the 'tough' girl (she won a bunch of 'best newcomer' awards for her performance and, by-the-way, her cd outrocks Avril Lavigne by quite a bit).
This film is your 'kawaii' litmus test. If you find this film unbearably cute... oh, well...
It says a lot that this film has a 7.5/10 rating on the Internet Movie Database. If you have a taste for quirky films, don't miss it... - Yumiko Kayukawa is the creator of the 'kawaii' image at the top of this entry. Reminding me of the late, great Patrick Nagel, I'm a sucker for this kind of stuff (just like I'm a sucker for coca-cola, coconut ice-cream - well, coconut anything, jelly-filled donuts, and other sweet-stuff). Plenty more of these images on her website...
If you think 'kawaii' is too girly for you or your product, try this list of names on:
- the iPod - kawaii electronics
- the Mini and the PT Cruiser - kawaii cars
- Gwen Stefani - kawaii tough girl
- Johnny Depp - kawaii indepedent actor
- Bugs Bunny and Stitch - animated kawaii wise guys
- most pocket digital cameras - kawaii and practical
- Daniel Pink and Patrick Lencioni's - kawaii manga business books
Cute didn't hurt any of those products...
In fact, MangaGlenn gives them a big thumbs up!
I created this 'mangatar' or 'manga avatar' at FaceYourManga.com.
Take a look around you. Measure the 'cuteness' of products you see and evaluate yours.
And once again, I'll ask: Is your offering kawaii enough?
