The A-I-U-E-O song from Japanese wartime propaganda and first anime feature ever made, "Momotaro: Sacred Sailors" (1945). It's a uniquely disturbing and fascinating film that inspired a generation of animators (most obviously Osamu Tezuka, who referenced it in Jungle Emperor).
It's fascinating to see what Japanese animation looked like when animators were trying to make their style distinctly and identifiably Japanese.

It's disturbing to see these children and their cute singing animal companions go from learning hiragana to polishing guns.
Also fascinating is the behind-the-scenes, as this wartime propaganda was destroyed, discovered, then reconstructed and beautified by German, British, and American anime companies.

Also disturbing is that the enemy characters were most likely voiced by British prisoners of war.
This was one of the many worthy titles that the editors cut purely for space, and certainly the deepest cut on the anime side of things. I got almost everything I wanted into the list (or out of it) though, so really can't complain! Anime is well-represented on this list.
Anyway, here's one of the sequences that moved Tezuka to tears and convinced him to make anime for children.

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More from @ActuallyAmelia

8 Oct
My first thought on "Should translations be done by translators of the same gender as the author?" was of the many threads by LGBTQ+ people on how the experience of being closeted informed their creation and interpretation of media. They see significance I don't always catch. 🧵
One example is the "Utena turns into a car" scene from Adolescence of Utena. I recall mainstream discussion of that scene being dominated by "Wow, Japanese animators can do whatever quirky thing they want!" for ages. The queer reading seems obvious now, thanks to queer viewers.
Language patterns between AFAB and AMAB people are different thanks to socialisation into gender roles. But translators need to be able to write both. As @CDCubed said, empathy is the job. So more than gender, I think connection to the emotional core of the subject matter is key.
Read 12 tweets
6 Oct
For this list I wrote on:

1. Panda and the Magic Serpent
2. Astro Boy
3. Space Battleship Yamato
4. Heidi, Girl of the Alps
5. Super Dimension Fortress Macross
6. Pokemon
7. Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within
8. Devilman Crybaby

I think I was the only one to nominate 6 of these.
The editors made a concerted effort to bring in a diverse group of nominators, both generalists and specialists who could fill in gaps as I did here. That's why the first shortlist was so comprehensive, and why this final list is getting such positive feedback from most.
(Also diverse in a demographic sense - there were a number of Black contributors and other contributors of colour, and I believe only just over half were men. I'm guessing that's why titles like Asparagus, Fat Albert, and The Boondocks were on the list, which is richer for it.)
Read 4 tweets
18 Sep
Funny story: when AniFem launched and GG swarmed, a prominent Gater DM'd me and offered to audit my online security so I wouldn't get doxxed more than I already had (messages to RL workplaces asking that I be fired). I was terrified and cautious, but they were true to their word.
Their reasoning was something like "It looks like you're going to get hurt if this carries on. That would make The Movement look bad, so it's in my interests to make sure you stay physically safe."

Yeah. When I went to US cons the next year, I truly thought I might get killed.
I didn't think it was a BIG risk, and I didn't change any of my plans for it (my rebellious streak comes in handy sometimes)... but I did get really good travel insurance with comprehensive medical coverage and brush up on first aid info before I went. Standard con prep, right?
Read 4 tweets
18 Sep
Best self care I ever found was booking into CBT and learning the skill of self-compassion. That cost me money, but you can find many of the same exercises that transformed my thinking in Google for free, no therapist required. My inner bootcamp bully has never been quieter.
I use the word "skill" deliberately. We're programmed to believe we're not enough, and not doing enough to compensate for that. It takes support and effort to reprogram yourself.

But it can be done, even from a place where you truly believe you deserve no compassion at all.
I think some of you noticed that thinking when I was with AniFem. One even emailed me specifically to say I was being unhealthily hard on myself. I was touched, but insisted I was just holding myself accountable to objectively reasonable standards I consistently failed to meet!🤦🏽‍♀️
Read 5 tweets
5 Aug
Recently I questioned if I'M white passing. Apparently not being othered for months did a number on me!

Seriously though. I struggled with this for WEEKS.

It took seeing old pictures of myself to shake that off. Not felt racial cognitive dissonance like that since I was a kid.
For reference, here is me from April last year. I'm about this colour now (but haven't taken presentable selfies in forever because why would I)

But somehow I don't think white people who spray on this exact level of tan get called "exotic" or asked where they're "really from". Forward facing selfie of me in neutral makeup. I'm mixed rac
Despite knowing that, it took THIS photo for me to shake off the racial impostor syndrome.

From two Augusts ago, this is how I would look now if I hadn't stayed inside and covered in sunscreen in Scotland for 4 months.

(Photo taken because I knew SF people would hate it) Me looking more tanned and wearing less makeup in a British
Read 8 tweets
28 Jul
I've been on ADHD medication for about a week now, gradually increasing my dose, and it's been an... unsatisfying experience.
I've read what people (both ADHD and non-ADHD) have written about their experiences (both medical and recreational) of my medication.

I've also watched videos of doctors talking about what to realistically expect from these drugs.

I don't feel like I'm experiencing any of it.
I'm monitoring myself closely, and writing down everything that seems unusual. But sometimes I repeat things when not medicated and get comparable results. It's been frustrating, and disappointing.

Ultimately, I just don't think it's working. If it is, it's not worth the money.
Read 10 tweets

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