New Anime Center Opens in Ikebukuro

On October 30, the press was given a preview of Anime Tokyo Station in Tokyo's Ikebukuro before its official opening the following day. Around 50,000 items were on display, including materials and production cels used in the creation of Japanese anime.

*Exhibits at the Anime Tokyo Station (©Sankei by Takumi Kamoshida)*

Special exhibitions are also planned, with the first one featuring figures of characters from the anime Naruto. The Naruto exhibition will run until January 28, 2024.

*The Naruto exhibition is currently open. (©Sankei by Takumi Kamoshida)*

*Naruto Uzumaki, Sakura Haruno, Kakashi Hatake, and Sasuke Uchiha figures at the press preview on October 30 in Ikebukuro, Tokyo (©Sankei by Takumi Kamoshida)*

Tatsuya Akuzawa, head of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government's Regional Promotion Division, expressed, "We hope that many people from both Japan and abroad will visit [Anime Tokyo Station]. It would be great if we could promote Tokyo's charm through anime."

From left: Kazuko Ishikawa, President of the Association of Japanese Animations, Hiroki Masuko, Vice President of the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly, Yuriko Koike, Governor of Tokyo, Miyuki Takagiwa, Toshima Ward Mayor, and Takayuki Matsutani, President of Tezuka Productions Co, Ltd. (©Sankei by Takumi Kamoshida)

The opening hours are from 11 am to 7 pm, and admission is free. The center is closed on Mondays unless it falls on a public holiday, in which case it will be closed the following day instead.