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One of the challenges of maintaining a comprehensive historical database is finding copies of promotional materials which were created prior to the digital era. This is even more problematic with anime and manga because Japan has strict copyright laws which do not recognize fair use and discourage unauthorized digitization of copyrighted material. (There have been instances where Japanese creators expressed their dislike of MyAnimeList using some images without authorization.)

Despite the stance of Japanese creators, we recognize that images are an important part of the discovery and identification process when dealing with artistic media. This is why I continuously scour the Internet for the perfect key visual, theatrical poster, or book cover.

This week, that search yielded two important additions to the anime database: classic theatrical release posters of the 1988 Akira film and the 1995 Ghost in the Shell film with original Japanese flavor text and cast and staff credits.


Iconic posters such as the two above, however, are relatively easy to find compared to even older materials or even media which were never released to a wide audience. For example, the current visual for the 1945 wartime propaganda film Momotarou: Umi no Shinpei was digitally created from a promotional pamphlet, and the visual for the 1943 short Kumo to Tulip came from a newspaper clipping.

Fortunately, as interest in the history of anime grows around the world, Japanese media are beginning to bring old works into the attention of the modern viewer. On the occasion of the 35th anniversary of the Doraemon movie series, all of its classic theatrical posters were released digitally. With this trove, we were able to acquire posters dating back to 1980, replacing VHS and DVD covers which the database had used for years.

The history of anime is not only in animation, but also in the still artwork which were created to promote it.