Nasu (manga)
Encyclopedia
is a manga
series by Iou Kuroda
. Serialized in Kodansha
's Afternoon
manga magazine, the series spanned a total of 24 chapters and three tankōbon
volumes, the first of which was released on July 2001, the second of which was released on May 2002, and the last of which was released on December 2002. In 2003, a story from the series, Summer in Andalusia, was adapted into an anime
film, Nasu: Summer in Andalusia
.
with her two younger siblings, and as the manga progresses to its second volume, leaves the city to reside in the countryside with her relatives, near Takama's farm. Apart from the chapters concerning Takama and Aya, other stories are also featured, such as one telling the chronicles of samurai
in the Edo period
hunting forbidden eggplant (nasu), another set atop a futuristic Mount Fuji
, another tale concerning a truck driver, and also "Summer in Andalusia", the story concerning the professional Spanish bicyclist Pepe Benengeli, from which the film was adapted.
by Kōsaka's long-time collaborator from Studio Ghibli
, Hayao Miyazaki
, a fan of cycling himself. He adapted the Summer in Andalusia story from the manga into the film, Nasu: Summer in Andalusia
, which soon went on to become the first Japanese anime film ever to be selected for the Cannes Film Festival
. A sequel, Nasu: A Migratory Bird with Suitcase
, was also later produced, which won the best Original Video Animation award at the seventh annual Tokyo Anime Award
s, held at the 2008 Tokyo International Anime Fair
.
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...
series by Iou Kuroda
Iou Kuroda
is the pen name of a Japanese manga artist.-Biography:Born in Sapporo as one of two twins, Kuroda moved many times in his youth. He graduated from Hitotsubashi University. The pen name "Kuroda Iou" is a combination of his family name and the name of a toy robot, Mars King...
. Serialized in Kodansha
Kodansha
, the largest Japanese publisher, produces the manga magazines Nakayoshi, Afternoon, Evening, and Weekly Shonen Magazine, as well as more literary magazines such as Gunzō, Shūkan Gendai, and the Japanese dictionary Nihongo Daijiten. The company has its headquarters in Bunkyō, Tokyo...
's Afternoon
Afternoon (magazine)
is a Japanese seinen manga magazine published by Kodansha. It is a monthly anthology, and each issue typically has around thirty ongoing stories by various authors and runs about 800 pages...
manga magazine, the series spanned a total of 24 chapters and three tankōbon
Tankobon
, with a literal meaning close to "independently appearing book", is the Japanese term for a book that is complete in itself and is not part of a series , though the manga industry uses it for volumes which may be in a series...
volumes, the first of which was released on July 2001, the second of which was released on May 2002, and the last of which was released on December 2002. In 2003, a story from the series, Summer in Andalusia, was adapted into an anime
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
film, Nasu: Summer in Andalusia
Nasu: Summer in Andalusia
is a 2003 Japanese anime film by Madhouse, directed by Kitarō Kōsaka, the famed animation supervisor of the Oscar-winning anime film Spirited Away and Princess Mononoke and long-time collaborator of Studio Ghibli, and adapted from a short 3-tankōbon manga by Iō Kuroda, entitled Nasu, which was...
.
Story
Nasu is a collection of stories, focusing on a returning series of characters, such as , a farmer, and a young girl named , who begins the series abandoned by her father and residing in TokyoTokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
with her two younger siblings, and as the manga progresses to its second volume, leaves the city to reside in the countryside with her relatives, near Takama's farm. Apart from the chapters concerning Takama and Aya, other stories are also featured, such as one telling the chronicles of samurai
Samurai
is the term for the military nobility of pre-industrial Japan. According to translator William Scott Wilson: "In Chinese, the character 侍 was originally a verb meaning to wait upon or accompany a person in the upper ranks of society, and this is also true of the original term in Japanese, saburau...
in the Edo period
Edo period
The , or , is a division of Japanese history which was ruled by the shoguns of the Tokugawa family, running from 1603 to 1868. The political entity of this period was the Tokugawa shogunate....
hunting forbidden eggplant (nasu), another set atop a futuristic Mount Fuji
Mount Fuji
is the highest mountain in Japan at . An active stratovolcano that last erupted in 1707–08, Mount Fuji lies about south-west of Tokyo, and can be seen from there on a clear day. Mount Fuji's exceptionally symmetrical cone is a well-known symbol of Japan and it is frequently depicted in art and...
, another tale concerning a truck driver, and also "Summer in Andalusia", the story concerning the professional Spanish bicyclist Pepe Benengeli, from which the film was adapted.
Adaptations
In 2003, Nasu was brought to the attention of animator and director Kitarō KōsakaKitaro Kosaka
is a Japanese animator and film director.-Profile:He began his career in 1979 with the studio Oh! Production. He left the studio in 1986 to become a freelance, and soon went on to work on numerous projects as a key and supervising animation director for the noted animation studio Studio Ghibli, and...
by Kōsaka's long-time collaborator from Studio Ghibli
Studio Ghibli
is a Japanese animation and film studio founded in June 1985. The company's logo features the character Totoro from Hayao Miyazaki's film My Neighbor Totoro...
, Hayao Miyazaki
Hayao Miyazaki
is a Japanese manga artist and prominent film director and animator of many popular anime feature films. Through a career that has spanned nearly fifty years, Miyazaki has attained international acclaim as a maker of animated feature films and, along with Isao Takahata, co-founded Studio Ghibli,...
, a fan of cycling himself. He adapted the Summer in Andalusia story from the manga into the film, Nasu: Summer in Andalusia
Nasu: Summer in Andalusia
is a 2003 Japanese anime film by Madhouse, directed by Kitarō Kōsaka, the famed animation supervisor of the Oscar-winning anime film Spirited Away and Princess Mononoke and long-time collaborator of Studio Ghibli, and adapted from a short 3-tankōbon manga by Iō Kuroda, entitled Nasu, which was...
, which soon went on to become the first Japanese anime film ever to be selected for the Cannes Film Festival
Cannes Film Festival
The Cannes International Film Festival , is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films of all genres including documentaries from around the world. Founded in 1946, it is among the world's most prestigious and publicized film festivals...
. A sequel, Nasu: A Migratory Bird with Suitcase
Nasu: A Migratory Bird with Suitcase
is a 2007 OVA by Madhouse, directed by Kitarō Kōsaka and featuring Ken'ichi Yoshida as animation director.-Development and production:It is a sequel to Nasu: Summer in Andalusia. Kōsaka and Yoshida were animation supervisors on Studio Ghibli on numerous titles, including Spirited Away and Princess...
, was also later produced, which won the best Original Video Animation award at the seventh annual Tokyo Anime Award
Tokyo Anime Award
The Tokyo Anime Award started from 2002, but was named in 2005. The first, second and third awards were only named simply 'Competition'. The award ceremony is held at the Tokyo International Anime Fair....
s, held at the 2008 Tokyo International Anime Fair
Tokyo International Anime Fair
The Tokyo International Anime Fair also known as Tokyo International Animation Fair is one of the largest anime trade fairs in the world, held annually in Japan. The first event was held in 2002 as "Tokyo International Anime Fair 21". The event is held at Tokyo Big Sight, a convention and...
.