First up, we spoke with Noriyuki Matsuda of Kitakyushu City, the host of “Kitakyushu Pop Culture Festival 2015,” about the aim and outline of the event.

Q: What is the aim of “Kitakyushu Pop Culture Festival 2015”?

Noriyuki Matsuda (hereafter referred to as Matsuda)：As part of Kitakyushu City’s new growth strategy, “an action plan to attract people to the city center,” it’s an event that we started last year around the JR Kokura Station shinkansen (bullet train) area, and now in its second year, it’s the biggest pop culture event in Kyushu. This year the event was held on the 28th and 29th of November.

Q: What were some of the highlights of “Kitakyushu Pop Culture Festival 2015”?

Matsuda: One of the hit movies this summer was “Love Live!” and we had the “Love Live! Nebuta” float, which was a big attraction at the Aomori Nebuta festival, come to Kyushu for the first time. Droves of fans, even from outside the city, turned up to see all nine main characters at the Nebuta Lanterns Light-up Ceremony on November 28th.

Also, we wanted to facilitate interaction with cosplayers from Japan and around the world, so we had one of the Qualifying Rounds for the world’s largest cosplay event, the “World Cosplay Summit,” held in Nagoya each year, come to Kyushu for the first time. Four groups performed at the qualifiers and it was clear just how much passion they all had for the respective works that were the source of their inspiration. The winning group will go on to represent Kyushu and perform at the national qualifiers in Tokyo next year, so it’s all very exciting. We also had one of the big hits at last year’s event, “Ingram” the giant 10m real-life robot that appeared in the live action version of “Mobile Police Patlabor,” come back for a second time and had it perform a “deck-up” against the backdrop of the city’s many factories.

Q: Why is Kitakyushu City making such an effort with “Kitakyushu Pop Culture Festival 2015”?

Matsuda: Well, it’s part of a regional revitalization initiative to increase activity and the nonresident population around the Kokura Station shinkansen-side area, and “Aruaru City” plays a big part in that. This is a pop culture hub for all things anime, manga, games and idols, and attracts a great many people from near and far throughout the year. The city-run “Kitakyushu Manga Museum” has also been set up on the fifth floor, and with the largely young demographic of fans, this establishment has become a key facility in generating prosperity for the city.

Also in the highly convenient Kokura Station shinkansen-side locale, just 5 minutes walk from the station is the congestion of large facilities, such as the West Japan General Exhibition Center, capable of hosting urban-type events, and the potential for this region is enormous. One of the successful events held in October this year was the “TGC Kitakyushu 2015,” a collaboration event with Tokyo Girls Collection.
In March 2017, “Kitakyushu Stadium” will also open its doors. We’re confident that the Kokura Station shinkansen area will continue to develop into a fun and exciting area for women and youth alike, perpetuating the city’s prosperity and becoming a driving force for the local economy.

Q: How do you feel the event went?

Matsuda: The fact that so many people played a part in the event this year made a big difference. Kadokawa cooperated with us on the planning, a lot of Tokyo-based corporations put out displays, local companies and affiliated organizations fulfilled their roles, collaborative efforts were also made with the southern end of Kokura Station, we held a special screening of “Love Live!” as part of a joint effort with Riverwalk T-Joy cinemas as well as a cosplay party with the local anime association – all initiatives which I believe will lend to the advancement of the events’ future endeavors.

Q: How do you foresee the future of “Kitakyushu Pop Culture Festival”?

Matsuda: We want to bring the “Kitakyushu Pop Culture Festival” back again next year, but we hope to make the event more perpetual, leading to the revitalization of more towns. This could include attracting more manga and anime production companies to help increase start-ups of related businesses. And seeing as we’re aiming to become a “movie town,” the city could even provide the setting for an anime. It could support more local children aspiring to become manga artists and idols and help contribute to the cultivation of young talent. It could lead to positive growth for manga and anime related shops around the city and further promote activities of affiliate bodies as well. I want to look beyond the barrier between the government and the people and create something that we can all enjoy together.