The magazine says that the book emphasizes the subtle aspects of swimsuits and uniforms: The skirt of a sailor suit gently rises to expose high up a thigh; a sock is visible just before a change into a swimsuit; and an exercise session gently reveals a bare midriff.

The book “Natsufuku Joshi (Summer Clothing Girls, 夏服女子),” by Million Publishing, is recording tremendous sales, having ascended to the top of the photo book section of Amazon.jp at the end if July (and still holding that position now).

“Over the last year or two, it’s become something of a trend for this type of book to appear on shelves,” says Shunichi Kamada, manager of the Aratama book shop, located in Tokyo’s Akihabara district. “By not showing the faces of the models, the reader’s imagination and fantasies can be expanded. This particular title has become its own genre.”

As Kamada indicates, there are various titles of this type available, so the success of “Natsufuku Joshi” has even surprised the creators.

Yuki Sugawara, who edited the book, says that promotion was limited. “The Akibablog, which features current events in Akihabara, kick-started interest. What attracted the most attention was a quote that read, ‘We can probably smell that obi‘” — referring to a belt that wraps around a summer kimono.

The photographer behind the pictures is Masaki Okado. “I didn’t use posed pics,” he explains. “I just focused on moments where a girl momentarily drops her guard while wearing summer clothes.”

It was a matter of focusing on eroticism hidden within everyday activities — that’s what is driving sales, says the photographer. “While looking at other books, I felt that there was something that wasn’t right,” he says. “Perhaps this has something to do with the particular photographer’s personal feelings. We decided to incorporate the perspective of various staff members after thorough discussions to come up with a consensus.”

“The camera angles and lighting are also carefully crafted,” bookstore manager Kamada adds. “Focusing on high, dark blue socks is also an example of the book’s attention to details.”

“Natsufuku Joshi” (2,100 yen) also comes with a 60-minute DVD. “It’s a good buy,” Kamada concludes. (K.N.)

Source: “Kaonashi hadakanashi demo uriage ichii, ‘Natsufuku Joshi’ no chirarizumu ga ero sugiru,” Shukan Asahi Geino (Sept. 8, page 58)

Note: Brief extracts from Japanese vernacular media in the public domain that appear here were translated and summarized under the principle of “fair use.” Every effort has been made to ensure accuracy of the translations. However, we are not responsible for the veracity of their contents. The activities of individuals described herein should not be construed as “typical” behavior of Japanese people nor reflect the intention to portray the country in a negative manner. Our sole aim is to provide examples of various types of reading matter enjoyed by Japanese.

Nipponbashi is said to be Osaka’s rough equivalent of Akihabara, the famed quarter frequented by aficionados (or otaku, in this case) in search of electronics, erotic anime DVDs, and a chance to be attended to by a gal attired in a frilly costume in a cafe setting. Yet in Nipponbashi the trend for the latter has reached saturation.

“Struggling arcades and video game shops are converting into maid cafes because it is a simple job from an interior point of view,” explains an Osaka-based reporter, “and this is the right time in the business cycle to make money.”

Maid establishments vary in services rendered: simple coffee and snacks, erotic massages, ear cleaning, or casino games.

Passersby can spot maids along Nipponbashi’s main drag, known as “Ota-dori” (otaku street) distributing fliers for their shops. On weekends, the avenue will be especially crowded with these girls, the article reports.

“When you reach a point where the market for maid establishments is as saturated as it is now, how adorable your girls are will not win customers,” says a maid cafe owner. “Some massage places are offering intimacy, such as letting customers lay down next to the maids for 1,000 yen for 10 minutes. Some also will let customers touch the girls.”

It is not only shop managers, however, who are getting aggressive. Girls, too, are offering value-added services — in other words, fuzoku-related frolic.

“Many maids are secretly starting to provide discrete services in order to establish regulars,” says the same Osaka-based reporter. “They’ll charge extra on their own for these extra services. This kind of thing has led to rumors about which girls will allow for a customer to cop a feel or even get full service. I’d guess that some shops will soon take advantage of this and start offering illegal out-call services.”

Shukan Jitsuwa reports that the Osaka prefectural police are looking into any violations of child welfare and adult entertainment statutes. In any case, the tabloid concludes, Osaka’s otaku oasis is indeed turning into an adult playground. (A.T.)

Source: “Kansai no Akiba: Osaka Nipponbashi de gekika suru meido osawari saabisu,” Shukan Jitsuwa (Feb. 17, page 209)

Note: Brief extracts from Japanese vernacular media in the public domain that appear here were translated and summarized under the principle of “fair use.” Every effort has been made to ensure accuracy of the translations. However, we are not responsible for the veracity of their contents. The activities of individuals described herein should not be construed as “typical” behavior of Japanese people nor reflect the intention to portray the country in a negative manner. Our sole aim is to provide examples of various types of reading matter enjoyed by Japanese.

A visit one evening in March starts with a stroll down a street called Derby-dori, situated behind the Marui department store and outside the South Exit of the station building. After just a few meters, street touts in black suits quickly approach.

“How about for 4,000 yen? For three, it will be 10,000 yen.”

The club is named Eden of the World’s Beauties.

“It’s a Filipino pub. Lots of young girls are there. Russians, Romanians, Slovaks and Ukrainians, too. Hey shacho, are you interested? Wanna hang out with some young girls from South America?”

That’s a long list of countries. Is Kinshicho really that international?

Somewhat reassuring is a metro-sexual-looking guy, who says, “My shop has Japanese girls, should you be interested.”

Unlike Kabukichicho and Ikebukuro, where new laws and enforcement activities have limited promotion of this sort, Kinshicho appears to be indifferent to these regulations.

This anarchy-like environment is a bit irritating at times. It is also a reminder of the bubble era and raises the question: Why is Kinshicho so hot now?

“While Tokyo’s laws do limit certain PR activities,” says a fuzoku writer, “Kinshicho may be getting some slack due to its location, across the [Sumida] River and facing Chiba Prefecture. The reason for the numerous gaikokujin pubs is that the girls have lost jobs in the Kabukicho and Roppongi areas and have shifted to here. There are more than 20 Filipino pubs, making this place a real Mecca. Most of the gals are married to Japanese, so having a visa makes it easier to work.”

Conveniently, the Olympic Village, as the locals refer to it, is a market offering food and daily goods suited just for these international hostesses.

Long ago, Kinshicho was a factory town. In 1937, the area emerged as an entertainment district with the establishment of the Tokyo Rakutenchi theater. A black market formed during the postwar era in front of the train station. But by 1950 it had been relocated and numerous drinking areas, such as Derby-dori, sprang to life. The Kadan-gai area — today a collection of snacks and bars — was one of the new locations for the black market stalls.

It is perhaps due to that time, when there was a mingling of U.S. occupational forces and Japanese who benefited from the war, that numerous international elements exist today.

A Kinshicho regular says that the area attracts people not only from its base of Koto and Sumida wards but also Taito, Katsushika and Edogawa wards. “It is for locals to have fun, rather than a place for tourists,” explains the regular. “There are also many single men who live with their parents and thus have some disposable income. Those working on the Tokyo Sky Tree project seem to also be fascinated by this area. You can see some of them hanging out in their work wear.”

He says the biggest trend of the moment is with pubs staffed by female Chinese students. Fees range between 4,000 and 5,000 yen per hour. “The quality of girls is very high,” the regular goes on. “Their arrogance also makes M-type men interested in them. For those who are fed up with Filipino pubs, they should give these a go. However, you cannot take the girls home with you.”

Kinshicho is also cheaper than options closer to the city center. The early-bird rate at Pink salons is 3,000 yen for 30 minutes. Indeed, prices suitable for an economy in deflation, but what about the level of the talent?

“Kinshicho gets many young girls at its pink salon,” says the same fuzoku writer. “They are from Chiba and Ibaraki prefectures. Similar to what Nishi Kawaguchi area [in Saitama Prefecture] used to be, they are girls aged 19 or 20 who are working. The lax regulation makes it easier for them to work.”

Low prices, quality service — why not give it a spin?

“Hey, for 60 minutes we’ll set you up for 1,500 yen.”

It is a low-priced, high-end (appearing) Filipino pub staffed by 30 hostesses replete with nice sofas, all-you-can-drink mizuwari and unlimited karaoke.

“Many customers are Chinese, and they are arrogant,” says a hostess in her 20s, fluent in Japanese and showing a pair of very sexy legs under her miniskirt. “I like Japanese guys, even though they don’t have that much money to spend.”

In the end, any shattered pride due to the harsh economy is quickly restored — a pleasant night of karaoke for the advertised price of 1,500 yen plus tax.

Drink, hit and run: the apparent motto of one of the last male heavens left in Tokyo. (A.T.)

Source: “Gaikokujin ga neon-gai no shuyaku ‘shitamachi no kabukicho’ ga atsui!” Takarajima (May, pages 134-136)

Note: Brief extracts from Japanese vernacular media in the public domain that appear here were translated and summarized under the principle of “fair use.” Every effort has been made to ensure accuracy of the translations. However, we are not responsible for the veracity of their contents. The activities of individuals described herein should not be construed as “typical” behavior of Japanese people nor reflect the intention to portray the country in a negative manner. Our sole aim is to provide examples of various types of reading matter enjoyed by Japanese.

And now, reports Shukan Jitsuwa (Dec. 31), the maid café can be added to the list of such disreputable establishments in, of all places, Nipponbashi — Osaka’s equivalent of Tokyo’s famous Akihabara Electric Town.

Nipponbashi is no longer the friendly, innocent place it once was — if it ever was.

“Like Tokyo’s Akihabara, this place is a Mecca for otaku (geeks) from Kansai and beyond,” the operator of a maid café tells the weekly from within the electronics wholesale district.

Along a street nicknamed “Ota-dori” (geek street) interspersed with computer shops, girls in maid costumes stand out on the sidewalks soliciting customers. These places had best be avoided.

“They will tack on 15 percent for tax and service charges plus a flat 500 yen table charge,” a thirtyish salaryman who got ripped off relates. “Compared to just 500 yen for the customer’s own drink, treating the girl will set you back 2,000 yen for a small size and 3,000 yen for a large.”

On top of this, the shop might add an additional 4,000 yen to the tab for the privilege of chatting with the waitress for half an hour, or 1,500 for a five-minute shoulder rub.

“The charges pile up in a way that can put a cabaret club to shame,” the abovementioned salaryman sighs.

Ironically, the article reports, the sluts at the shop are surly and don’t even provide cheerful and attentive service.

And since most of the customers are wimps, they quickly give in when the girls request a drink; and before they know it they wind up getting hit with a whopping bill. For the hour and a half he spent on the premises, the salaryman was charged 25,000 yen — five to eight times what a customer would ordinarily be charged at a conventional maid café.

“I’ve heard of places where customers were charged 100,000 yen,” the above-mentioned café operator warns. “If you go to Nipponbashi you should check things out beforehand and stick with well known or established shops.

“I hear about the sneaky places from customers or the girls who work there. If you’re cocky and think you can find a good place off the beaten track, you’re almost certain to get taken,” he says. “These bottakuri shops take advantage of the hubbub to pull the wool over customers’ eyes.” (K.S.)

Source: “Osaka Nipponbashi no oko bottakuri meido kafe no akutoku teguchi,” Shukan Jitsuwa (Dec. 31, page 46)

Note: Brief extracts from Japanese vernacular media in the public domain that appear here were translated and summarized under the principle of “fair use.” Every effort has been made to ensure accuracy of the translations. However, we are not responsible for the veracity of their contents. The activities of individuals described herein should not be construed as “typical” behavior of Japanese people nor reflect the intention to portray the country in a negative manner. Our sole aim is to provide examples of various types of reading matter enjoyed by Japanese.

For this reason, much has been made of masturbation as a healthy substitute. Assuming your own hands are clean, there’s very little likelihood of coming down with the clap. And you can’t beat the price.

Wanking has caught on in a big way, observes Nikkan Gendai (Aug. 7). Across the street from JR Akihabara station the 10-story Otona no Omocha (adult toy) Building brims with autoerotic gadgets, attracting throngs of customers of numerous nationalities and both sexes.

These days one can even find magazines with erotic articles about horny homo sapiens who seduce their silicone sweethearts.

Caution, however, is definitely warranted when satiating oneself with such devices. For one thing, cases have been documented of STDs spread via sex toys. In 1996, Harold Moi and Ellen Kleist of Greenland were summoned to Harvard University to receive an Ignoble Prize for a paper Moi had published in Genitourinary Medicine three years earlier titled “Transmission of Gonorrhea Through an Inflatable Doll.”

Dr. Yasuhiko Ogami of the Miyamotocho Chuo Shinryosho, a clinic in Kawasaki City specializing in STDs, tells Nikkan Gendai these days he’s been treating more patients for damage wreaked by dildos.

“Vibrators may be inserted into women’s vaginas before they are suitably receptive, which causes small wounds to the inner membrane,” says Ogami. “In many cases the injuries will heal by themselves, but if they engage in regular sex before it’s healed there’s a stronger chance they can contract gonorrhea or chlamydia.”

It seems that while condoms will usually protect the male wearer, touching the condom’s exterior just after handling sex toys like butt plugs, anal beads and similar devices can transfer germs that can cause grief for gals.

“What’s more, the colon is a maze of fine blood vessels that can easily be broken,” Ogami notes.

The most common problem Ogami-sensei treats related to sex toys are patients with gizmos still lodged in their orifices. This happens when using them either in tandem or while engaging in solitary solice.

“One woman arrived at the clinic stuffed with a vibrator as big around as a soft drink can,” he says. “The usual procedure for extraction is to relax the tendons around the sex organ, but in the worst cases surgery may be needed.”

And talk about having no fun on a shoestring — men who stimulate themselves by inserting such objects into their urethra are also asking for serious trouble, Ogami advises.

“As people attempt to extend their sex lives into their later years, some seek stronger types of stimulation,” he tells Nikkan Gendai readers. “But overdoing it with sex toys, depending on what materials they’re made of and how they are used, can lead to all kinds of troubles.”

So if you demand to do your diddling with doo-dads, the doc wisely warns, desist from doing anything so dopey it might damage the family jewels — or jewelry box. (K.S.)

Source: “Otona no omocha de naru byoki,” Nikkan Gendai (Aug. 7, page 12)

Note: Brief extracts from Japanese vernacular media in the public domain that appear here were translated and summarized under the principle of “fair use.” Every effort has been made to ensure accuracy of the translations. However, we are not responsible for the veracity of their contents. The activities of individuals described herein should not be construed as “typical” behavior of Japanese people nor reflect the intention to portray the country in a negative manner. Our sole aim is to provide examples of various types of reading matter enjoyed by Japanese.

Seventy-eight-year-old Yoshie Suzuki was killed and her 21-year-old granddaughter, Miho Ejiri, a worker at Yamamoto Mimi Kaki Ten in Tokyo’s Akihabara district, was rendered unconscious following an attack by 41-year-old company employee Koji Hayashi at the family’s private residence in the Nishi Shimbashi area of Tokyo’s Minato Ward.

The suspect was a regular customer at Ejiri’s shop, where ladies attend to the ears of customers as they lie in their lap. He spent roughly 300,000 yen each month. From April, however, he was banned from the premises after pressing for friendship with Ejiri. Police quoted him as saying that she had refused to see him again last month.

Zakzak notes that these types of shops have increased in number recently and can also function similar to kyabakura (hostess club) establishments in which sexual services are dispensed.

The entertainment site adds that guys in Akihabara are known for their shyness and such an intimate service is attractive to them. A writer who covers the fuzoku trade tells Zakzak: “There owners of these shops all offer the same services. Because there is light touching and the ability to select a particular girl for the service, contact information is exchanged. Guys who don’t have a lot of money see it as a low-end kyabakura.”

The shop includes a thirty-minute course (2,700 yen) and the option of extending to a full hour (4,800 yen). An additional 500 yen is required to nominate a particular lady. Yamamoto has 15 other shops in the Tokyo area.

Partitions break the dimly lit Akihabara salon into three areas. “The shop has about 20 girls on staff who range in age their late teens or early 20s,” says a person familiar with the matter. “They are all basically part-timers.”

The Asahi reports that on July 19 Hayashi appeared at the Nishi Shimbashi home late one night to ask Ejiri to continue to see him. She refused and took refuge to a nearby convenience store, where she was able to dial for help. Police believe this was the beginning of suspect’s murder plan.

Further, two nights before the incident a suspicious man was seen nearby the family’s home. Ejiri’s mother called her daughter’s place of work and she returned that night with the shop’s private car.

A colleague of the victim says that there was a misunderstanding and the situation never died down. She then adds: “There is no escape from the continual service to customers. At any time, they can request you to attend to them, and this could include sex. In Akihabara, sometimes they’ll even give perverted comics as parting gifts.”

Another co-worker says that such overly persistent clientele are common: “Being stalked by a customer is not unusual. So it is necessary for us to always be on alert.”

Authorities at the Atago police station booked Hayashi on attempted murder and murder charges. (A.T.)

Known as the “Idol Holy Land” for showcasing gravure stars in bikinis and costumes on a weekly basis, the third-floor venue within Ishimaru Denki Soft 1 has featured appearances by Aki Hoshino, Yuko Ogura, Aya Ueto, Masami Nagasawa, Shoko Nakagawa and Mikie Hara.

The Apr. 8 article says the appeal of the 300-person-capacity space had been the intimate setting it offered to everyone, from otaku to salarymen, for viewing the idols of their affection and purchase their latest photo DVD titles.

Ishimaru Denki has multiple outlets in Akihabara offering consumer electronics, CDs, and DVDs. The retailer will shut all three floors of Soft 1 that it occupies within the Daido Bldg.

A DVD production company employee says that the impact will be substantial since decent sales for a disc might number 1,000. With a typical idol event at Soft 1 resulting in sales of a few hundred copies, a sizable chunk of the expected total will now be lost.

An executive at Geino Productions said: “We were doing business based on selling DVDs at that space. I am very disappointed.”

Online news site Akihabara Keizai Shimbun (Apr. 10) believes the closure is primarily due to restructuring. In February, Ishimaru Denki, whose presence in Akihabara goes back to the Showa Period (1926-89), was acquired by Nagoya-based electronics retailer Eiden, which is a subsidiary of the Edion Group.

“Ishimaru Denki’s Soft 1 and Soft 2 are similar in terms of merchandise,” explains a public relations representative of Eiden to the Akihabara Keizai Shimbun. “So we will close Soft 1 and bring everything to Soft 2 to improve efficiency of operations.”

The plan calls for the Ishimaru Denki brand name, however, to remain intact. The news site goes on to add that the exact closing date has yet to be determined, but Zakzak says that Ishimaru Denki’s event schedule does not include listings beyond the end of this month. Events are scheduled at Soft 2, which has an event space on its 8th floor.

Zazak offers a differing view for the change, saying that the real reason is rooted in the murder spree that took place last June. Since that incident, in which seven died and 11 were wounded, the main thoroughfare of Akihabara has not been closed off to vehicle traffic on weekends — a condition dubbed “pedestrian heaven.”

Idol commentator Masahiro Kitagawa told Zakzak: “With the closing of the pedestrian heaven as a result of the stabbing spree, a sapping of energy from Akihabara may be a factor. There are other event spaces. Yet for a while there will remain an emotional scar on the area. Should the ban on the pedestrian heaven continue, the power of Akihabara to attract people will go down.”

Saddened by the news are past idol performers. A separate article from Zakzak (Apr. 9) notes that later this month Chiri Arikawa, a gravure idol and maid cafe commentator, will appear at an event to promote her DVD “Angel Kiss.” Arikawa, 18, has fond memories of past live performances while inside a costume-character outfit, being surrounded by lovely young girls in bikinis in the dressing room, and seeing (and being stepped on by) a leggy lady with high heels.

Himeko Sakuragawa, 23, said: “I am simply astonished. I received a lot of support there. I thought Soft 1 played a central role in Akihabara.” (A.T.)

Co-sponsored by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, the Japan Intl. Contents Festival (CoFesta) has brought together a series of events from such industries as manga comics, animation, broadcast programming and videogames to promote the latest in Japanese coolness to the world. It also includes Tiffcom, the Oct. 22-24 Japanese film market.

“An integration of such a variety of content is unprecedented,” says Tomoharu Ishikawa, a director of CoFesta, which expects to end up attracting 1 million visitors to its 18 events.

CoFesta, whose reach extends throughout the Tokyo area over 40 days, kicked off Sept. 20 with the Tokyo Game Show, where 217 companies displayed 720 software titles and pieces of videogame hardware to nearly 200,000 visitors.

Other CoFesta expos have included CEATEC Japan (presenting developments in digital communication and content distribution) and the Japan Animation Contents Meeting, in which Tokyo’s geek paradise of Akihabara, a huge shopping area for electronic, computer and anime goods, provided the setting for animation industryites to discuss new ideas.

At September’s opening ceremony, where a host of celebrities in media-related fields gave their thoughts on the imaginative spirit in Japan today, helmer Yoji Yamada (“Twilight Samurai”) emphasized that the monetary element in artistic endeavors should not be overlooked.

“While it is important for a film to move a person’s heart 30 or 40 years after it has been made,” the director said, “from the beginning, the film itself is a business.”

Exemplifying this point is CoFesta’s Tiffcom. In its fourth year, the international marketplace for Japanese film-related products coincides with the Tokyo Intl. Film Festival. Organizers are expecting 4,000 visitors (33% more than last year) to flock to the event’s 150 booths, which will showcase films, TV programs, publications and character goods.

The target region is Asia, but North America and Europe are key as well, Tiffcom director Keiji Hamano says.

“We would like to be the No. 1 market in Asia,” Hamano says of Tiffcom, which trails the Hong Kong Filmart in annual attendance in Asia. “Japan is the second-largest film market next to the U.S. But China and India are both growing faster and faster. Japan cannot be lax, or it will be left behind.”

Tiffcom’s Casting Forum, which will discuss how to increase the exposure of Japanese actors and actresses globally, will be partnered with a lunch that will introduce Japanese talent agencies to agents from around the world.

Returning to Tiffcom for its third year is the Tokyo Project Gathering (TPG), a co-production market that allows one-on-one meetings between financers and filmmakers from around the globe. This year, five animated works will be among the 38 projects, up 10 from a year ago.

Prominent contributions include “Ugetsu,” helmed by Japan’s Shinji Aoyama (“Sad Vacation” and “Eureka”), and “Virgin Camelia” by Hong Kong’s Vincent Kok (“Dragon Loaded” and “Super Model”).

“I hope that we can be a beginning,” says Hamano. “After TPG, a project might start production. Then one or two years later, it will be shown at TIFF. That kind of circulation is very important. Young directors and producers can have an opportunity to grow.”

CoFesta’s organizers realize that its diverse components pose a challenge. “We are orienting and uniting different businesses in a single direction,” says CoFesta’s Ishikawa. “But it will be a great achievement to give birth to something new.”

Note: This story originally appeared in the October 22nd issue of Variety.

“You can place the recorder within a 300-meter range,” he boasts of the gadget’s versatility.

Pretty sneaky, right?

Welcome to a world that would be truly Maxwell Smart’s dream. From pinhole cameras to microphones capable of picking up sound through concrete, Y.K. Musen supplies the latest and greatest in snoop technology.

Started a half-century ago by Ozaki’s family, the shop of this jovial, goateed gentleman originally made by hand much of what it sold. But today most products are produced by domestic companies and sold to customers based on what their particular need might be. Understanding the customer is vital, he says.

Perhaps, supposes Ozaki, a large company needs a receptionist and wants to cut costs. “At an information desk, no people are needed. We’ll just mount a camera in the eye of a mannequin. They’ll be able to see who is coming through that.”

The potential furtive uses are as varied as the equipment. A casino might be interested in the camera lens mounted behind a standard metal screw – perfect for recording activity on and nearby its grounds. A lens set behind a shirt button (with separate microphone attachment) could tickle the fancy of a private investigator doing some undercover work. Of course, such a gumshoe as well wouldn’t shy away from cameras inserted inside ink pens and cigarette packs – all of which are on display inside the glass cases of Ozaki’s tightly packed shop. Prices range from around 10,000 to 50,000 yen.

Such practicality though is not always the primary intent; there are the illegal – and certainly much more notorious – uses as well. Japan’s media outlets in recent years have been filled with the misdeeds of male teachers and police officers, amongst others, who have been caught making illicit attempts to shoot up women’s skirts (termed in the local lexicon as “upskirt”) or film peepshow-style video of young girls undressing in shower rooms and toilets. In addition to personal use, videotapes featuring such material are highly sought after on the Internet.

An often-repeated modus operandi for the peeping pervert involves mounting a thimble-sized lens in his shoe with a cord running up a pant leg and into a camera hidden in his pocket or duffel bag. He then will roam crowded areas, perhaps a train station, patrolling for potential panty prey descending stairs or cornered in a crowded train car.

Though Ozaki’s shop can possibly supply the needed gear in the above scenario (and even less clumsy wireless versions), he doesn’t specifically ask his customers, who are mostly males in their 20s and 30s, what they do with the equipment they buy. “I want to know how my customers use them,” he says emphatically, “but my business is in selling.” In fact, he is adamant that none of his products are used, to his knowledge, for devious means. (Ozaki will admit that he has heard of some customers bringing his cameras into live music shows or fashion shoots, where photography is not allowed.)

The key to making these cameras in miniature is the recent development of charge-coupled device (CCD) sensors, the basis of digital photography. These sensors, which supplant the shutter and film in standard analogue photography, are made of light-collecting elements that operate like an electronic version of the retina. As with the human eye, the more captured light there is the greater the resolution.

Recent years have seen picture resolutions increase by more than factor of 10 by steady progression made in CCD sensors. This increase has allowed manufacturers to shrink camera component sizes at the expense of resolution, a fair tradeoff for most – it would seem – given the still relatively high quality and the voyeuristic (and not necessarily artistic) nature of their usual use.

Turning the tables on troublemakers is an option as well. Ozaki says that he has had women come to him in search of advice on how to provide security against stalkers.

For this, he presents them with a pinhole camera no bigger than a 10-yen coin. “This is operable by ambient star light,” he says of the black camera resting on his palm and costing 58,000 yen. “You can put it in a room or wherever.”

Other uses for some of Ozaki’s wares are likely just plain bizarre. A “concrete mic” allows the user to listen to sounds emanating from the opposite side of a concrete wall by sweeping its stethoscope-like microphone probe over the target while listening through earphones. Other variations have needle extensions to the microphone for crack penetrations.

Akihabara has always been the place to go for the latest in the consumer electronics that Japan has come to be known for around the world. Foreign tourists often browse its stalls of cables and gadgets to pick up the latest items before they reach store shelves in their home country. Today, though, protection is now becoming another attraction.

A white paper issued by the National Police Agency showed that crimes in Japan had reached a post-war high in 2002. Ozaki has noticed more customers – at least those few who tell him what they are going to do with their purchases – coming in search a little piece of mind.

Entire wall displays of Ozaki’s shop are for security purposes, and the variety is impressive. Cameras inside clear plastic domes (to be mounted on a ceiling) fill a shelf like fruit in a supermarket. Box-like security cameras on pivots poke out from a wall in a manner suitable for a sci-fi movie set. Ozaki also has cameras inserted near the rim of a flowerpot and behind the black mesh of a stereo speaker.

It is just a sign of the times, Ozaki says, adding that he senses a decline in the sense of openness amongst people that seemed to exist before. “Nowadays you have to save yourself, by yourself. You cannot ask your neighbors to help.”

Note: This article originally appeared in April 2004 on the Sake-Drenched Postcards Web page.

But the Akihabara Enta Matsuri (Entertainment Festival), running concurrently with the Tokyo Intl. Film Festival from Oct. 20 to 28, might give these otaku a reprieve.

In addition to displays and seminars on the latest in fantasy-related publishing, videogames and software, the Enta Matsuri will focus on an anime biz seeking more mainstream appeal.

Both Enta Matsuri and TIFF fall under the auspices of the first Japan Intl. Contents Festival — or CoFesta — an umbrella org for 18 fests and confabs, lasting 40 days and covering movies, games, animation, manga, music and broadcasting.

Anime on television has long been dominated by the tried-and-true formula of adapting a storyline from a popular manga, a practice that is reflected in many of the episodes screening at Enta Matsuri’s Animecs showcase, such as satcaster Wowow’s “Moonlight Mile” and TV Asahi’s “Zombie-Loan.”

By comparison, anime films, which have typically topped the B.O. with themes intended for children (typically battling robots and big-eyed girls), are increasingly being shaped for wider audiences through new means of expression and different sources of inspiration.

“The trend in anime is to experiment with various ideas,” says Sachio Masugata, a representative of Enta Matsuri, which is forecast to have attendance topping 180,000, up more than 10% on last year.

Toons like this year’s sci-fi epic “Vexille,” directed by Fumihiko Sori (producer of “Appleseed,” the 2004 sci-fi based on a manga by Shirow Masamune), continue to gather press for their revolutionary 3-D CGI and dynamism. Meanwhile, “Appleseed” sequel “Appleseed: Ex Machina,” which came from studio Micott & Basara for an Oct. 20 release in Japan, does not disappoint with its slick action sequences, amazingly detailed imagery and high-energy pacing.

Helmer Shinji Aramaki credits the improved styling to his production staff.

“They have shown to me that a person’s ability to evolve is much more amazing than that of computer technology,” he says.

With all of the dazzling effects in “Appleseed: Ex Machina,” it is perhaps ironic that its most remarkable elements might be the strong personalities embodied in the female characters — a stunner considering male-centric Japanese hierarchy — and the love triangle subplot, something “Appleseed” lacked.

“Fans of conventional films love romantic stories,” Aramaki says. “So I do not see a reason why animation films cannot adopt this theme when they have the same possibilities for expression.”

Likewise, Production I.G’s “The Sky Crawlers,” which is set to unspool in Japan next year, will contain a romantic theme. For the pic, in which a society of children lives in eternal adolescence, helmer Mamoru Oshii (“Ghost in the Shell”) decided to work with young scriptwriter Chihiro Itou so that his message could reach his intended audience.

“Nowadays, there are many stories in live-action and animation that are targeting young people,” producer Tomohiko Ishii explains. “However, very few of them have earnestly depicted the reality that youngsters are actually living in.”

Meanwhile, even as fans wait for more visual wonder in Madhouse’s “Yona Yona Penguin” (the studio’s first fully 3-D CGI pic, skedded for release in December 2008 after reported below-the-line costs of $12 million), its director Rintaro (“Metropolis”) agrees that technical effects are but one small way of impacting an audience.

He suggests that a more effective means of making an impression is with the storyline.

“It is reasonable to say that children in today’s society are living shallow lives,” Rintaro says. “The aim of this movie is to send a message of encouragement to these children through a 6-year-old girl.”

Shooting for its usual audience but with a different source is Toei Animation’s “Clannad,” whose characters are based on a dating simulation game — a break from the usual manga-to-TV-to-film cycle. Directed by Osamu Demaki’s (“The Rose of Versailles”) and released last month, it tells the story of a boy who meets a mysterious girl in a dream.

The studio feels that young people’s interests have diversified, with videogames increasing in popularity.

“This is just something we are trying,” says Toei Animation’s Tetsuya Yokoyama, a manager in corporate strategy. “But our target is still the otaku consumer.”

There are some novelty contributions to Animecs (whose sister event at TIFF will screen two Production I.G toons, the direct-to-video “Tokyo Marble Chocolate” and episodes from Wowow’s “Ghost Hound”). Enta Matsuri’s Masugata cites Toei Animation’s “Mononoke,” a Fuji Television series in which a medicine salesman travels through feudal-era Japan, as a true stab in the dark.

“It is difficult to say whether such a subject can attract an international audience,” he says. “It is very conscious about being Japanese.”

Note: This story originally appeared in the October 22nd issue of Variety.