ODA Topics 3
Cheering on Parents and Children around the World through Japanese Culture
In 2020, as COVID-19 spread across the globe, children and their parents were forced to spend long periods of time at home without being able to go out and play. To help support their health and ease their growing anxiety, Hello Kitty, together with Shimajiro, started the “Daisuki na Minna to Issho Project” (“You’ll always have your friends” Project)*1, through which they published “Exercise with Friends” videos and distributed “Thank You Medal” coloring materials. For his part, PIKOTARO has been raising awareness of the importance of proper handwashing technique in an enjoyable way not only in Japan, but also all over the world, through his video “PPAP-2020-,”*2 in which he uses his hands and soap instead of a pen and pineapple, as well as through the free circulation of his how-to-handwash poster. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs spoke to Ms. MAEDA Minami from Sanrio Company, Ltd., Hello Kitty’s corporate home, and members of the PIKOTARO production team at Avex Management Inc., to hear their story.
“Exercise with Friends” was also featured on the United Nations’ COVID-19 Response website (https://www.un.org/en/coronavirus/children-keeping-active-hello-kitty-and-friends)
A total of 20 characters teamed up to distribute “Thank You Medals” to be given to people who are doing their best under challenging circumstances
(1) “You’ll always have your friends, even if we’re apart”
• How did this project come about?
At Sanrio Company, Ltd. (Sanrio), we believed that in order to understand the anxiety of children and their parents around the world and raise their spirits, we needed to go beyond individual company boundaries and have Hello Kitty join forces with various different characters to face this difficult situation together. Around the same time, we had an opportunity to talk with the people in charge of Benesse Corporation’s “Kodomo Challenge,” who were using their characters for activities that could be done even under stay-at-home orders. Together we reached out to other companies in Japan to join us.
• What were the thoughts behind the planning and creation of this project?
Right now, people across the world are spending their days in a state of anxiety. To ease those feelings of anxiety as much as possible, we at Sanrio thought of this project as a way to gather characters from different companies, genres, and backgrounds to encourage children and their parents facing this difficult situation and send the following message: “Even if we can’t be together right now, we’ll always be with you. We’re cheering for you.”
• What exactly does this project look like?
“Exercise with Friends”*3 was developed in response to parents’ and guardians’ concerns that they and their children were feeling stressed from spending more time at home and that their children were not moving around or getting enough exercise. Under the supervision of experts, we designed and published exercise videos that encourage physical fitness, even inside the home. We also created English and Chinese language versions for overseas viewers. In addition, with the participation of a total of 20 popular Japanese characters, we released “Thank You Medals”*4 for free circulation to be given to people who are doing their best under challenging circumstances.
• What aspects of the project called for extra creativity?
Despite the challenges caused by the continuous spread of infection, we progressed from the planning stage to the release of both the “Exercise with Friends” video and “Thank You Medal” materials at a speed not possible under normal circumstances. This was thanks to the cooperation of each participating company. Since we could not gather for the shooting, we created and shared sample images of “Exercise with Friends,” and each company shot their part of the video individually where feasibly possible. Furthermore, for the “Thank You Medal” materials, which many companies participated in, we tried to devise content that would make it easy for the companies to take part, while also maintaining each of their characters’ worldviews as much as possible. As a result, as many as 20 characters took part in the initiative.
• What kind of response have you received?
As of the end of October 2020, “Exercise with Friends” has been played more than 10 million times, and the “Thank You Medal” coloring materials have been downloaded over 26,000 times. Many people around the world have enjoyed them. We have received many delightful comments, such as, “I really felt the message of ‘cheering on parents and children’ through the collaboration,” “I could sense that Kitty and her friends were there for us, children and their parents, and it made me happy,” and “since we can’t go outside freely, and both parents and children tend to feel physically and emotionally unbalanced, it makes me happy to think that our favorite characters are cheering for us.”
• Is there anything you would like to work on in the future?
Since before this project, Hello Kitty has been sending messages out to the world about “getting along” with others by showing compassion*5. We have also been promoting and raising awareness of the SDGs in cooperation with the United Nations and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan. This time, by launching a single project that transcends corporate boundaries, I believe we were able to convey those ideas more clearly. We will continue to deliver our message and thoughts to everyone through our characters with projects that make them happy.
(2) “Wash your hands along with PIKOTARO’s handwashing video ‘PPAP-2020-’! Wash! Wash! Wash!”
In the video, PIKOTARO shows proper handwashing technique while repeating “wash!” along to the familiar PPAP song and choreography. UNICEF also tweeted, “the handwashing methods are spot on.” (https://twitter.com/unicefinjapan/status/1246993245973827584)
How-to-handwash posters, which were distributed free of charge, were created in both Japanese and English
• How did this project come about?
It felt like the world was in a state of fear that had never been experienced before because of COVID-19. So, we wondered whether there was anything we could do to overcome the situation using the power of entertainment.
KOSAKA Daimaou, the producer of PIKOTARO, came up with the idea that handwashing was a measure against COVID-19 that anyone could put in place right away. We came to the conclusion that if we conveyed proper handwashing technique in a fun manner, it would help to prevent infection. When “PPAP-2020-” was posted on April 5, 2020, it got more than 10 million views on YouTube within a month of its release and reached over 150 countries around the world. We believe our ideas were well received.
Immediately after getting such a positive response, we received a proposal for the “PIKOWash!” project*6. We started the “PIKOWash!” project because it was about raising awareness of handwashing in a fun and proper manner, and thus, we had a common concept in that regard.
• What were the thoughts behind the planning and creation of this project?
We believe that people’s anxiety reached a peak because they could not go outside due to the unknown fear of COVID-19. To alleviate this anxiety, we created the video through a trial-and-error process, wishing to deliver a method of preventing infection to people across the world with a smile.
• What exactly does this project look like?
After discussions with KOSAKA Daimaou, PIKOTARO’s producer, we decided to make the project a fun way to spread awareness about preventing infection through proper handwashing. Furthermore, we targeted children around the world because we thought that a video that children would imitate would result in the whole family joining in, and in that way, the video would reach people around the world.
We released the video on YouTube to be shown worldwide, making sure that the music and choreography were easy to understand to overcome language barriers. By covering “PPAP,” PIKOTARO’s best-known work, we hoped that people would become familiar with the song as soon as possible. We focused on the details, such as the last part of the song, sending the message “Pray for People And Peace,” which was the most important message we wanted to deliver to people.
• What kind of response have you received?
The project was covered by many overseas media outlets, as well as by the media in Japan. We were very thankful for the many videos shared on social media in which children in Japan and abroad cheerfully sang, “Wash! Wash!” and danced along. The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Tokyo Office also introduced the video on their official Twitter account, commenting that “the handwashing method is spot on, so please try copying it.” We have also received great feedback from people around us, such as, “my child is dancing all the time,” and “thanks to the video, handwashing has become a habit for my children.”
We have also received many requests from schools, boards of education, government bodies, and other organizations to use the materials, and we have even heard that at some educational institutions, including nursery schools, kindergartens, and elementary schools, children are washing their hands along to “PPAP-2020-.”
• Is there anything you would like to work on in the future?
World peace is the philosophy behind PIKOTARO’s activities. Having served as a Goodwill Ambassador for Promoting the SDGs since 2017, he will continue to work for the sake of a peaceful world where people around the globe can laugh just as much as everyone else. Pray for People And Peace, or PPAP!
*1 https://www.anytimewithcharacters.com/
*2 The video can be viewed here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WKfolJv6Kx8
*3 The video can be viewed here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B3ezvlFIUjk
*4 The coloring materials can be downloaded from the “Daisuki na Minna to Issho Project” website.
*5 Hello Kitty is also participating in the “Pause, take care before you share” campaign conducted by the United Nations as part of its COVID-19 countermeasures (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ylYkc943Do4)