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Arts and Cultural Exchange
Japan's Kawaii Ambassador in Brazil
Taking place in a number of cities across Brazil, the Japan Foundation hosts an introduction to Japanese pop culture with model Misako Aoki and contents & media producer Takamasa Sakurai.
With the widely attended preliminary to the “World Cosplay Summit” in São Paulo and the establishment of the Brazil J-Pop Association in Rio de Janeiro in May 2009, Brazilians are contributing to a rapidly growing interest in Japanese pop culture.
In response, the Japan Foundation sends to Brazil one of its “Kawaii Ambassadors,” Misako Aoki, to introduce Japan’s Lolita fashion and youth lifestyle trends through lectures and demonstrations. Takamasa Sakurai will give a lecture explaining the popularity of Japan’s anime and manga culture and present the feature anime Summer Wars (in Japanese with English subtitles).
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Additionally, young Brazilians from São Paulo and Recife will model originally made “Lolita fashion” designs in a fashion show with the opportunity to exchange ideas, impressions, and opinions with the Kawaii Ambassador Misako Aoki.
Event Schedule
| São Paulo | Date: Tuesday, November 24, 2009 JBC Publisher, etc. Venue: The Main Hall of the Japan Foundation, São Paulo Program: 14:00 Lecture: The Secret of Anime’s Popularity in the World 16:00 Film screening: Summer Wars (In Japanese with English subtitles) 19:00 Lolita Fashion Show in São Paulo With Misako Aoki and Takamasa Sakurai |
| Rio de Janeiro | Date: Saturday, November 28, 2009 Brazilian Academy of Letters, Brazil J-Pop Association, etc. Venue: The Memorial Hall, Brazilian Academy of Letters Program: (Part of “Cool Japan Month”) 13:30 Lecture: The Secret of Anime’s Popularity in the World 15:00 Lecture and Demonstration on Lolita fashion By Misako Aoki |
| Recife | Date: Sunday, November 29, 2009 Venue: Special outdoor stage in the city streets Program: 10:00 Grand opening of Japan Festival 11:30 Photo session 19:15 Lolita Fashion Show in Recife With Misako Aoki and Takamasa Sakurai 19:30 Yukata Fashion Show 20:00 Bon-odori (Bon dance) Date: Monday, November 30, 2009 Venue: Federal University of Pernambuco Program: 15:00 Lecture: The Secret of Anime’s Popularity in the World 17:00 Film screening: Summer Wars (In Japanese with English subtitles) Co-organizers: Consulate-General of Japan in Recife, Northeastern Association of Brazilian Former Scholarship and Trainees in Japan, Japanese Cultural Association at Recife, Cultural Association for Brazil-Japan (at Recife), etc. |
| Brasilia | Date: Wednesday, December 2, 2009 Venue: The Hall of University of Brasília Program: 19:00 Lecture: The Secret of Anime’s Popularity in the World 20:30 Film screening: Summer Wars (In Japanese with English subtitles) Date: Thursday, December 3, 2009 Venue: Park Shopping Center Program: 15:00 Introduction on Lolita fashion With Misako Aoki and Takamasa Sakurai Tea party with Lolita fashion fans Co-organizers:Embassy of Japan in Brazil, University of Brasilia, etc. |
Profiles
A writer, entrepreneur, government advisor, event producer, film producer, and educator, Takamasa Sakurai does research on anime, manga, and other forms of Japanese pop culture. He has visited 27 cities in 14 countries as the planner and organizer of Japan’s “Pop Culture Diplomacy” projects and serves as a general advisor to Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs on issues of pop culture. Mr. Sakurai is the author of Anime Bunka Gaiko (Anime Cultural Diplomacy) and Sekai Kawaii Kakumei (Global Cute Revolution).
A popular model appearing in numerous fashion magazines, Misako Aoki was commissioned by Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs in February 2009 as one of Japan’s “Trend Communicator of Japanese Pop Culture” or “Kawaii Ambassadors.” She is a popular catalogue model for the renowned brand “Baby, the Stars Shine Bright,” which has been featured in the international hit film, Shimozuma Monogatari (Kamikaze Girls). With a large fan base across many countries, she appeared to big applause at the JAPAN EXPO hosted in Paris, France in 2008 and 2009. Throughout the summer of 2009 she was dispatched as a Kawaii Ambassador to Italy, Korea, Spain and Russia.
Contact
Pop Culture Section, Arts and Culture Department, the Japan Foundation
Staff in charge: Yoshioka 
Tel: 03-5369-6078 Fax: 03-5369-6038