ABSTRACT
In the second half of the eighteenth century, the magic lantern was brought from Europe to Japan where it developed into utsushi-e, a unique form of screen practice with projected moving images, narration, and sound. Extremely popular throughout the nineteenth century, it preceded the arrival of cinema. This medium for storytelling had narration, live music, and sound effects in the style of traditional forms of theater, but it replaced actors or puppets with colorful images. Its two-dimensional aesthetics and constant movement of characters remind us of today’s anime. The use of multiple lightweight, hand-held projectors operated by multiple lanternists was a key element of utsushi-e. This basic concept of moving a character freely across the screen was drastically different from mainstream magic lantern practice in the West, where big lanterns with powerful illuminants paved the way for cinema. The existing culture of material—the use of wood and paper—played a major role in utsushi-e’s development, which also reflected contemporary stage performances such as kabuki. Utsushi-e offers an alternative viewpoint in understanding Japanese animation and the audio-visual culture today.
