Credit for the picture goes to Hikari.
As much as we understand some things about manga and the manga industry, there are some things we don’t know that we may learn or we may never know. On the other hand, as someone that lives in the U.S, and lives in NY, I’m lucky I don’t have to worry about manga getting region locked or there being a dearth of manga on bookshelves.
Others? Not so much, especially in other countries.
When I interviewed Noura Omran last year, while she happens to be in a fortunate part of the country where she’s able to buy a lot of manga, there are still limits to what she can buy due to culture. It makes me wonder, “How is the manga life outside of the U.S?”
So let’s take part in a project: I will interview people outside of the U.S who would love to support the industry, but aren’t able to do so. It will be once a month thing at the moment. Would love to hear stories from other places as well.
Here would be the first one: Vania Prodanova, an anime and manga fan in Bulgaria, who does not have a lot of manga to buy. She talks about why this is the case.
(NOTE: Some things have been edited for grammar and clarity.)
Can you explain a bit about your background and how’s life in Bulgaria?
Vania Prodanova: My name is Vania Prodanova. Officially, I am a social worker by trade and I work in the sphere of social services in Bulgaria. Unofficially, I am obsessed with Japan, books and painting. And this is how I spend my free time – reading books and manga; watching anime and videos, connected with life in Japan; also trying to paint chibis and all manner of cute things.
Life in Bulgaria is difficult to describe in a few words. What is important from an economical point of view is that the monthly wage in the country is too low to cover the expenses of a single person. There is no way for a young person to be doing well on his own. Often, the only choice is the expenses for the living quarters and bills to be shared between two or even more people. When it comes to families with children the situation is actually worse, since the financial income for the family is hardly enough. Often parents deprive themselves and their children from essentials – rich variety of food, good clothing, entertainment and holidays.
There are many other hardships in Bulgaria, but in one way or another, they are all connected with the low payment. Of course, an important part is the problems present in the educational, health and social systems, all needing legislative changes and the need for the laws to apply for everyone equally. At the moment, those problems are at hand and they are leading to the deterioration of education for the entire nation, serious health issues, and in many cases the lack of social tolerance towards the different.
Still, there are many young and ambitious people, who want things to change and are doing everything they are capable of for this to happen and to motivate others to join in this long and difficult road.
How did you become interested in manga and anime?
I remember very clearly the anime which made me fall in love with Japanese animation – Sailor Moon. I think I was around 10 years old or more (after 1994), when for the first time I saw a random episode of Sailor Moon on an Italian television. Since then, I started following all Italian programs, so I could watch any anime that was broadcasted – Sailor Moon, Marmalade Boy and many others, which unfortunately I don’t remember by name. At the time, I had no clue that this was anime, but I was so obsessed from the atypical moves and the huge eyes of the heroes, that I started to inquire and with time I learned what is anime and where it comes from.
I got involved with manga later on in my life. It was back when we had our first computer and Internet connection. I was 19 years old and from this moment I haven’t stopped being interested in anime, manga, and Japan as a country, culture, and language.
How would you say the market is over there? There’s no companies selling manga over there I assume?
Unfortunately there is still no market in Bulgaria for manga, anime and other merchandise associated with popular titles (and not to mention specific genres and non-commercial titles). I suppose it is connected to many social and economic factors in Bulgaria, which slow the development of a market for manga and anime.
In terms of manga in the past two years, a publisher had licensed three manga titles and started publishing them in Bulgarian – Naruto, Death Note and One Piece. Unfortunately things happen slowly, and it is quite possible they stopped publishing in Bulgarian, because for more than half a year no new volume of the titles was released.
Several popular bookstores try to import manga in English, but they focus on older titles like Sailor Moon and Buddha. Often you can find manga in Russian, because its cheaper to import. In the capital city of Bulgaria, Sofia, there is a bookstore, which specializes in the import of manga and comics, but again emphasizing on already gained popular titles. Most people as well as myself rely on online sites such as Amazon, Book Depository, and others to meet their needs.
In Bulgaria there was always an anime and manga community, although originally it was smaller and more private, and mostly concentrated in big cities. In the past 10 years, fans of Japanese culture, anime and manga, grew exponentially. Today there are five events organized in total related to Japan, without including Bunkasai which is organised by the majors ‘Japanese Studies’ from two of the largest universities in Bulgaria and two of the secondary schools specializing in Japanese language.
The largest annual two-day event is ANIVENTURE. The event is organized by the National anime and manga club “Nakama.” Aniventure is the oldest event and each year it grows in size. Part of its programming is: cosplay show; Manga competition; art competition; Fanfic competition; AMV contest; game tournaments; lectures related to Japanese culture, anime, manga and games. During the event there is a talent show from various Bulgarian and foreign artists; different workshops are organized; And a bountiful merchandise of manga and anime.
Besides Aniventure, the National Club “Nakama” have organised in the last two years ANIPLAY, which is an event entirely dedicated to cosplay. The are also three conventions in the summer. The first is AnimeS Expo which is organized by the creators of the biggest portal about anime and manga in Bulgaria. The other two – AniFest and Anime Bouken are smaller and were held for the past 4 or 5 years in the two largest cities of the Bulgarian Black Sea coastal cities of Varna and Burgas.
I am a volunteer at the ANIVENTURE event since 2009 and the experience to be among so many people who share the same passion as you, is an extremely exciting and unforgettable emotion. What I think I missed and encountered recently is the appearance of free online magazine for anime and gaming “Anime Inn”, which in August got his first printed edition.
What are your main interests when it comes to manga and anime?
I adore manga and I love watching anime! But if we have to speak about specific genre, my biggest weakness is shounen ai and yaoi. Alas, I don’t run away from the cliche for fan girls, crazy about yaoi. Of course, this does not stop me from reading other interesting manga, and to watch different anime, when I have time. My other preferred genres are romance, shoujo, comedy, horror, mecha and slice of life. My hard-drives and watch-lists are full, with a huge quantity of anime and manga, waiting to be watched or read.
Some of my favorite anime are: Loveless, No. 6, Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-kun, Toradora, B Gata H Kei, Hyouka, Kotonoha no Niwa, Servant x Service and many others.
My favorite manga books are: Loveless, La vie en rose (Yun Kouga), Castle Manga, Porno Superstar, Udagawachou de Mattete yo, Himegoto Asobi, Yume Musubi Koi Musubi, Hirunaka no Ryuusei and many others.
In regards to manga I have a few favorite authors which I try to keep up with, and often read and order for my personal library. Such authors are Kou Yoneda, Rihito Takarai, Kaoru Mori, and some more.
How much do you keep up with any industry news in like the U.S or Japan?
I am definitely not the most well informed or curious person in regards to the latest news from the world of anime and manga. I love keeping track of what’s new and upcoming or is about to be aired in Japan. In the same way I follow my favorite manga and authors for things that just have come out or are about to come out, but nothing more.
Actually, I am doing something a bit more specific – I follow up on the UK and the American online book shops to find out when certain manga will be released, so I could buy them. I am the type of fan that is more interested in having an anime to watch and manga to read. Nothing else is important. Of course, thanks to social media and several of my favorite web sites, I sometimes learn, with a bit of delay, about a hot new anime or manga news.
