TAKENAMI HIROO NEBUTA STUDIO: NEBUTA AID LIGHT

Credits & Description:

SUB CATEGORY : LOTUS ROOTS
COMPANY ENTERING : YOMIKO ADVERTISING INC., TOKYO
ENTRY TITLE : NEBUTA AID LIGHT
BRAND : NEBUTA STYLE "KAKERA"
ADVERTISER : TAKENAMI HIROO NEBUTA STUDIO
ADVERTISING AGENCY : YOMIKO ADVERTISING INC., TOKYO
CHIEF CREATIVE OFFICER : HIROO TAKENAMI
EXECUTIVE CREATIVE DIRECTOR : MISAO TANAKA
CREATIVE DIRECTOR : ISAMU IGARASHI/HIROYUKI KAKINUMA
AGENCY DESIGNER : TATSUYA SHIBUTANI/TAKAAKI GOTO
ADVISOR : YOSHINORI OTANI/RINAKO OTA
PRODUCTION COMPANY : TAIYO KIKAKU CO.,LTD., TOKYO
DIRECTOR : KAZUMA KITADA
EXECUTIVE PRODUCTION PRODUCER : SHINOBU HATA
PRODUCTION MANAGER : YURIYA EBINA
CULTURAL EXPLANATION : [BACKGROUND] AOMORI IS THE REGION IN THE NORTHERN TŌHOKU OF JAPAN. RECOGNIZED AS ONE OF JAPAN’S LARGEST FESTIVALS,
THE NEBUTA FESTIVAL ATTRACTS MORE THAN THREE MILLION TOURISTS EVERY YEAR. ORIGIN OF THE NEBUTA FESTIVAL IS THOUGHT TO HAVE LIKELY STARTED BETWEEN EDO PERIOD AND MEIJI PERIOD. THE NEBUTA FESTIVAL IS RENOWNED INTERNATIONALLY AND IS DESIGNATED A SIGNIFICANT INTANGIBLE FOLK CULTURAL ASSET OF JAPAN. DURING THE FESTIVAL, MORE THAN TWENTY GIANT NEBUTAS – GIANT LANTERN FLOATS DEPICTING HUMAN FIGURES – ARE WHEELED ALONG THE PARADE ROUTE IN THE CITY OF AOMORI. A NEBUTA LANTERN IS MADE OF JAPANESE HOUSHO PAPER GLUED ONTO WIRE FRAMES. ABOUT 2,500 SHEETS OF JAPANESE PAPER ARE NEEDED FOR ONE FLOAT. THE FLOAT AND ITS WHEELED PLATFORM SHOULD NOT BE LARGER THAN 9 M WIDE BY 7 M LONG BY 5 M HIGH. ONE NEBUTA CAN TAKE MORE THAN SIX MONTHS TO CONSTRUCT. HOWEVER MANY YOUNGER NEBUTA CRAFTSMEN HAVE BEEN QUITTING CONSTRUCTING NEBUTA, BECAUSE OF THEIR LOW INCOME. SHOULD THIS SITUATION REMAIN UNCHANGED, THIS TRADITIONAL FESTIVAL WOULD COME TO AN END BECAUSE OF THE LACK OF CRAFTSMEN.
[CHALLENGE] SHOULD THIS SITUATION REMAIN UNCHANGED,
THIS TRADITIONAL FESTIVAL WOULD COME TO AN END BECAUSE OF THE LACK OF CRAFTSMEN. THE CHALLENGE WAS TO MAKE BETTER FINANCIAL SUPPORT AND WORKING ENVIRONMENTS FOR YOUNGER NEBUTA CRAFTSMEN TO KEEP CREATING NEBUTA FLOATS.
[IDEA] THE IDEA WAS TO CREATE PRODUCTS FROM JAPANESE PAPER USED TO CREATE NEBUTA. A BRAND NEW PRODUCT IS PRODUCED BEFORE
A NEBUTA IS DISPOSED. FROM ONE LARGE NEBUTA, APPROXIMATELY 200 LAMPS CAN BE MADE. THE NEW PRODUCTS HAVE BECOME VALUABLE FINANCIAL RESOURCES FOR YOUNG NEBUTA CRAFTSMEN. THE DESIGNS OF THE PRODUCTS ARE ALL ORIGINAL. THESE LAMPS ARE SOLD AT HOTELS AND RESTAURANTS AS SPECIAL SOUVENIRS FOR TOURISTS. ALSO, THE LAMPS HAVE ATTRACTED AMPLE ATTENTION ON MEDIA. WE HOPE THAT THE LIGHT OF THESE LAMPS WILL BECOME THE LIGHT OF HOPE FOR YOUNG NEBUTA CRAFTSMEN. THIS NEW BUSINESS MODEL WILL KEEP SUPPORTING THE YOUNGER NEBUTA CRAFTSMEN’S LIVES AND THE TRADITION OF THE NEBUTA FESTIVAL.