It is causing a revolution in animation, and the Stockholm International Film Festival, meeting that demand, scheduled three screenings by Japanese anime (animation) directors during the festival: Satoshi Kon's Tokyo Godfathers, featuring three disparate characters; Gin the alcoholic, Hana the transvestite and Miyuki the homeless girl in Tokyo - who find an abandoned baby; Mamoru Oshii's, Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence - Japan's entry for best foreign film at the 2005 Academy Awards, a universe inhabited by dolls - cyborgs - and humans, set in 2032 ; and Shinji Aramaki's Appleseed, set in 2131 featuring Deunan Knute, a hi-tech feminine fighting machine who is caught in the struggle of perserving a world taken over by cyborgs.

In conjunction with an exhibition on "manga" , the book version of anime - or printed cartoons, a festival event was held at the "Far East Museum" in Stockholm honoring Shinji Aramaki, director of Appleseed. The manga exhibition featured work by illustrators such as Osamu Tezuka who created the definitive manga Astroboy in the 1950's and examples of "shonen" (young boy) and "shojo" (young girl) manga, and manga for older readers. Some of the examples included young boys at boarding schools that embark on love relationships with fellow students, and the French revolution, told with a Japanese perspective. Dragonball is a popular shonen manga import in Sweden , but the more sophisticated versions may take a while to be translated.

In the spirit of Japanese-Swedish cultural exchange, the meeting with Shinji Aramaki and Swedes with long term experience living in Japan was also preceded by a Butoh performance. A representative from Ericsson who has lived in Japan while employed for the large Swedish telecommunications giant revealed that according to a survey he had conducted of 2000 Japanese people, forty percent of the people read manga. The interest in the burgeoning importation of anime and manga to Sweden is apparent. Simon Lundström who translated for Aramaki translates manga from Japanese to Swedish and probably every manga in Sweden bears his name, stocked at the local press shops.

Aramaki, who is schooled in design, said that you can tell a country by its visual architecture and layout, and was clearly impressed by being in Stockholm, as was Hiyao Miyasaki, whose anime includes scenes from the Swedish capital city (Castle in the Sky). Aramaki commented on the gender roles in anime which seem to favor strong women, the emphasis on science fiction and the booming anime industry in Japan. But anime is not only science fiction and action. Tokyo Godfathers is an example of an anime which brings the complexities of manga to the screen beyond this realm. There is also a spiritual dimension to the narratives, with messages that defy quick and easy interpretation. Something is clearly acquired from viewing some manga and anime, unlike traditional comics and animated films - a transmission of truth.

Aramaki emphasized that it is not a question of anime directors wanting to find new markets. Perhaps other markets will want to find anime, as noted by the enthusiasm for this special section at the festival. Some spectators, not sure of what to make of the form tend to laugh at what they think are the "funny parts" but in time its clear to them that anime is not cartoons, but adult messages in cartoon form. Another novelty for some spectators is the tin sound of the speakers which communicate with characters whose lips do not move. The characters are in 2D and for generations brought up on Disney, it takes some getting used to.

Osamu Tezuka who is credited with being the founder of manga saw Disney's Bambi and Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs eighty times. Clearly influenced by the style, he developed a manga which many believe was the prototype to The Lion King - some believe it was plagiarized. Furthermore, the work of Hiyao Miyasaki was regarded as a threat to the Disney animation hegemony, and there was resistance to the distribution of his work. When Disney lend a hand in the distribution of Spirited Away, the Japanese director became well known, and his anime was the first animation feature of Japan to win an Academy Award.

Regarding Appleseed , Aramaki said that several companies competed for the sound track. This is probably though the weakest part of the film, which is beset by stunning characters, including Athena, the leader of the bioroids, synthetic humans, and a council of male elders who are threatening the universe of Olympia. Perhaps the music was created with an eye on the video game audience in mind, for there are frequent battles. But the sincerity of the future is presented with an excellent eye for detail and imagination.

Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence by Mamoru Oshii, direct from the official selection at Cannes in May, is made by the director that influenced Matrix. The fictional green digits that introduce the Wachowski Bros' feature come straight from Ghost in the Shell (1995), which uses real numbers and letters. Oshii's anime has a female heroine from a world of naked female dolls, 'gynoids' that are programmed for destruction. An overseer includes a female cyborg named Haraway that chain smokes and puts her butts into a glass of water. How more human can one get? She has failed to acquire ovum at a fertility bank so does not want to be called Ms or Miss. One of the gynoids assists the macho hero cop, who lends her his police vest in a gesture that implies she has become 'humanized' and should probably cover her naked body. The cop receives sympathy for his affection for his dog and perhaps for this gesture. The use of dolls is taken to another level and with a profound message: do dolls cry in order to become or not to become human? The sound track of this film in comparison to Aramaki's film is far more developed in line with the narrative.


As more of the anime and manga market become better known, this Japanese art form will continue to blossom internationally, as evidenced by fully packed theatres at this special section of the Stockholm festival.

Moira Sullivan, Nordic Correspondent, FIPRESCI