The Embassy of Japan is calling on all aspiring and talented Filipino manga artists to prepare their drawing materials, get their creative juices flowing, make their own original manga masterpiece and join the 5th International MANGA Awards.
Attractive prizes await the winners of the 5th International MANGA Awards. The Gold Award of the 5th MANGA Award will be given to the best manga and approximately three works of merit will receive the Silver Award. Winners will be invited to Japan for around ten days as supplementary prize for the award ceremony (without Bronze Award). The Awarding Ceremony will be held in Tokyo in March 2012.
The International MANGA Awards was established five years ago to share Japanese pop culture and to further promote understanding of Japan. It was created to recognize the contribution of manga artists outside Japan who have played a big role in the promotion of manga overseas.
Manga is the Japanese word for “comics” and consists of comics and print cartoons. Manga also refers specifically to comics created in Japan or by Japanese auteurs or conforming to the comic book illustration style developed in Japan in the late 19th century. Today, manga has gained phenomenal worldwide popularity and continues to influence many comic book artists from around the world.
Filipino manga artists have been recognized in the previous MANGA Awards. In the 1st International MANGA Awards in 2007, the talents of two Filipino artists were recognized along with 17 other talented manga artists of different nationalities. During the 2nd International MANGA Awards in 2008, Mr. Kriss Sison (artist of “Ninja Girl Ko”) received an Honorable Mention award.
Relatedly, the Embassy of Japan announced the winners of its “Torara Manga Making Mini Contest” during the Grand Finals of the 2011 J-Pop Anime Singing Contest. The “Torara Manga Making Mini Contest” was held to promote manga among young Filipino artists and to celebrate the Philippines-Japan Friendship Month Celebration this year. “Torara” is the official mascot of the J-Pop Anime Singing Contest.
Entries to the 5th MANGA Awards will be accepted from July 21, 2011 until August 31, 2011. Entries can be submitted to of the following addresses:
Japan Information and Culture Center
P.O. Box 117
Embassy of Japan in the Philippines
2627 Roxas Boulevard, Pasay City
1300 Philippines
Further information regarding the 1st to 4th International MANGA Awards can be read at http://www.manga-award.jp/en/index.html. Please click the links below to read the 5th International MANGA Awards application guidelines and download the registration form: