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Words from the Chairman – SILENT MANGA AUDITION FIVE 2016

Taiyo Nakashima Taiyo Nakashima 08/07/2016 7 min read
I would like to extend our sincerest gratitude to those who entered SILENT MANGA AUDITION “Round FIVE”. We had 603 entries from 62 countries and regions during the course of 6 months.
  We we concerned at first, there may be less entries due to the fact there was another round taking place in parallel, with “Extra-Round” in support of Fukushima Sakuramori project. However we had more entries than ever since SMA became a bi-annual competition. Your passion for our humble event yet outpaced our expectation once again. The only reason why this event continues to grow is because of the hard work and effort each and every one of you contestants contribute to creating manga. As the organiser of the event I am ever so thankful. For the first time, we had a “Double-Theme” for this round. The aim was to allow you to experience an important aspect of manga production. The art of combining “Message to the reader” and “Idea to make readers go ‘Wow!’”, is a trick that has long been used with great effect, in the world of professional manga creation. Utilizing this long established technique is central to Manga’s success and many professional creators still use it today. The “Double Theme” is our way of making the contest more practical and simulate the challenges pros face everyday. Application of this technique was a big consideration for the award selection of this round. The Judges on SMA5Regarding the selection of the award winners, on behalf of all the judges I’d like to state that the standard has been raised, on each of the following criteria we evaluate every entry with : “Style” / “Character” / “Panelling” / “Idea” / “Story Construction” / “Uniqueness” / “Emotion”. This is especially true for the 25 final award winners. The judges, professional manga creators Tsukasa Hojo, Tetsuo Hara, Ryuji Tsugihara and Coamix CEO, Nobuhiko Horie and COO Tadashi Negishi ( Former Chief Editor, Weekly Shonen Jump / Monthly Shonen Jump (Shueisha) ) unanimously agreed that the winners’ manga are of exceptional standard. All 25 winners are on the same competitive standard as those young manga creators in Japan. With the right coaching and improvements, making a debut in the Japanese manga market is a very real possibility. I’d like to especially mention the Grand Prix winner, “DS Studio” from Indonesia. The duo has been competing in SILENT MANGA AUDITION since the very first round. They won their first honourable mention in SMA3. This is their 12th entry that finally won the top award. Not only the high standard shown in the winning piece, but the very fact they showed so much improvements is an inspiration for us all. They have already joined SMA Master Class, and we sincerely hope, they continue to work with us to make that debut on Monthly Comic ZENON and SMAC! the Web Magazine. Of 578 entries that did not win an award this time, there were so many entries that showed much promise. They are just one step away from winning an award. For those who may not yet feel confident, we have very high hopes for you. Your manga already left an impression on us. Please continue drawing as that is the only way to sharpen your skills, and show us your creations. To conclude, I’d like to sincerely congratulate the 25 award winners. Also to every one of you who take part, we will continue to utilise all resources available to us, to provide the best support for all of you. We hope you can do your best, to take part in the next round. Yoroshiku Onegai Itashimasu. Shuichi “Mocchi” Mochida, Editor in Chief, SMAC! the Web Magazine. Chairman, the SILENT MANGA AUDITION Committee.
Taiyo Nakashima

Taiyo Nakashima

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