Disnification

Disneyfication

With the context of ever-changing society, it is no wonder that the term ‘’Disneyfication’’ is coined to describe the impact of Disneyland’s culture penetration. Japan, a country rich in culture, is also not spared.

If the topic is explored deeper, we find that there is almost a ‘’Disney Universe’’ in every developed societies. The evidence are found in bits and puzzles but the truth remains. If we make sense of what ‘’Disneyfication’’ is all about, we have a greater understanding of the presence of its signs around us. ‘’Disney Universe’’ is meant to denote the near-universality and global reach of the Walt Disney company and its products and that fact that it has created a self-contained universe which presents consistently recognizable values through recurring characters and familiar repetitive themes.

Theme Parks

In Japan there are a total of 233 amusement parks, large and small. The most popular is Tokyo

Disney Resort. The “theme” of Tokyo Disney Resort is Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, and other Walt Disney world characters. Theme parks like Tokyo Disney Resort are leisure facilities with entertainment attractions and spaces organized around a particular theme.

Among Japan’s amusement parks are 52 theme parks. Theme park attendance in 2004 totalled approximately 58.92 million with sales of 438.2 billion yen, figures far larger than those for other amusement parks, zoos, aquariums, and other leisure facilities. Theme parks are a favourite destination for family trips. According to the JTB travel agency’s Ryokosha doko [Tourist Trends], “theme parks” rank first as the domestic site families with children wanted most to visit in 2004.

The Museum Meiji-mura in Aichi prefecture (opened in 1965) and Kyoto Studio Park (1975) are said to be the theme park pioneers of Japan. The English term “theme park” did not become widely known, however, until Tokyo Disneyland was opened in Urayasu, Chiba prefecture in 1983. The success of Tokyo Disneyland led immediately to the building of a succession of theme parks of various kinds throughout the country.

The main factors sustaining this phenomenon include: some reduction in working hours, allowing people more leisure time; enactment of the “Resort Law” (Law for Development of Comprehensive Resort Areas), encouraging the construction of resort facilities providing overnight lodgings; and increase in disposable income at the time of the bubble economic boom. Also, as theme parks were expected to provide job opportunities and stimulate the economy of local areas, many prefectural governments opened them as a means of promoting local development. Since the collapse of the bubble economy at the beginning of the 1990s, however, a large number of theme parks have been forced to close due to poor business. Despite the ups and downs of the economy, Tokyo Disney Resort has made huge additional investments and its business has been supported by many repeat visitors. It now counts more than 25 million visitors annually.

Other theme parks have made various innovations, such as adding a museum to their facilities and providing participatory entertainments so that visitors can enjoy themselves in various ways. Some attract more visitors by making entrance charges free or very low. Others encourage visitors to spend more time in the park with various rides and attractions and seek to increase the sales ratio of food and drink, character goods, and the like.

To clearly illustrate this phenomenon, we have to look at the 4 dimensions of ‘’Disneyfication’’.

Sources :

http://www.tjf.or.jp/takarabako/PDF/TB08_JCN.pdf

http://ezproxy.tp.edu.sg:2069/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=2&hid=108&sid=759950a0-38a5-497e-8e78-1d2258775009%40sessionmgr115

http://blog.toto-bobo.com/wp-content/uploads/disneyland-anaheim.jpg