We walked through the eight halls of the Villepinte Exhibition Center where Japan Expo 2025 Paris shattered all its records: nearly 230,000 visitors despite the heatwave, 835 exhibitors, 671 guests, and 2,861 accredited professionals, including 740 who came straight from Japan. Over four days, from July 3 to 6, 674 events took place on 35 stages: deafening J-pop concerts, packed conferences, XXL cosplay finals. Everywhere, a human tide in kimonos, armor, or school uniforms mingled with amazed families and seasoned collectors. We moved to the rhythm of taiko drums, carried by the aromas of takoyaki and dazzled by the flashing lights around Junji Itō. Here is our travel diary at the heart of the largest manga convention in Europe.
Welcome to the largest manga convention in Europe: at the crossroads of comics and pop culture
Why do the French love Japanese culture so much?
Since the 1980s and the Club Dorothée, Japanese cartoons have introduced Japanese culture to France. Today, social media amplifies this interest. France is now the world’s largest manga market, just after Japan. Every high school now has its own cosplay club. The cultural offering is enriched by Japanese gastronomy – ramen, matcha, mochi. The French love this culture because it combines creativity, respect for craftsmanship, and aesthetic escape. Japan Expo is the annual celebration that crystallizes this collective passion.
Why does Japan have such a rich animation culture?
Since the post-war period, Osamu Tezuka has imposed a visual language inspired by cinema: fast, efficient, economical. Color television then propelled Astro Boy and Goldorak into homes. The advertising industry funds agile studios capable of producing at high speed. The video cassette further expands distribution. Today, global platforms order series in bulk. Why is Japanese animation so rich? Because it relies on a living ecosystem: authors, publishers, broadcasters, and above all, a passionate, loyal, and demanding audience.
What is the Edo period and why does it still haunt the stands?
From the 17th to the 19th century, the Tokugawa shogunate closed Japan, which turned inward and developed a unique aesthetic: ukiyo-e prints, tea ceremonies, kabuki theater. The Edo period thus becomes a cultural foundation, between refinement, strict rules, and folklore. On the stands, swords, lanterns, and plush yokai evoke this idealized past. The popular imagination constantly feeds on it. Manga and video games draw from it relentlessly. Even novice visitors recognize these codes and naturally adopt them.
Every morning, Japan Expo also resurrects the martial spirit of Edo through three emblematic disciplines: sumo, jō, and kendo.
Sumo fascinates with its ritual dimension. Two wrestlers face each other in a sacred circle, under the watchful eye of a silk-clad referee. The fight is brief, intense, ceremonial. Far from being a simple demonstration of strength, it is a ritual where every gesture has its meaning.
The short stick fight, jōjutsu, offers a completely different approach. With elegance, practitioners chain parries and strikes. The wooden weapon extends their body. This discipline, which combines fluidity and concentration, is both a visual spectacle and active meditation.
Finally, kendo impresses with its dramatic intensity. Two fighters armed with bamboo swords face each other, protected by traditional armor. Each attack, accompanied by a powerful shout (kiai), expresses a constant search for perfection and self-surpassing.
These three martial arts, living symbols of a bygone era, allow Japan Expo visitors to touch the warrior and spiritual heritage of ancient Japan.
Cosplay: creativity, passion, and encounters
An unmissable phenomenon, cosplay animates every aisle of Japan Expo. Visitors embody their favorite characters with overflowing creativity, combining sewing, makeup, and theatrical performance. Some prepare their outfits for an entire year, eagerly awaiting this moment to reveal their work. Competitions, impromptu photo sessions, and spontaneous encounters punctuate the days.
Cosplay goes far beyond simple dressing up. It becomes a mode of personal and collective expression, where Japanese codes meet French sensibilities. The most passionate sometimes even embrace Japanese concepts like wabi-sabi, the subtle art of valuing imperfection. Cosplay is about living one’s passion to the fullest. Creating connections. Celebrating the infinite richness of the manga universe.
Exclusive report and interviews
Junji Itō, master of illustrated horror
From the opening of the masterclass, Junji Itō, creator of Tomié, discusses his influences: Kazuo Umezu, Katsuhiro Otomo, H.R. Giger, and especially Lovecraft, the matrix of his tentacular atmospheres.
The mangaka describes a spartan daily life. Wake up at 9 a.m. Solitary work, without assistants. Dinner with family. Inking until 2 a.m., in his former apartment turned studio. He remains faithful to paper, to preserve "the object." But the digital transition worries him: he now fears data loss.
Moreover, he reveals that the aesthetic of white eyes, a leitmotif of Junji Ito: Collection, comes from the shock he felt watching Sam Raimi’s Evil Dead.
During a live drawing of Tomié in front of the Eiffel Tower, the author praises French cosplayers, lauding their meticulous creativity that extends his nightmarish visions. He recalls his attachment to France, the first country to have translated his horrific tales.
Finally, a major surprise: Itō announces that he is preparing a new horror manga loosely inspired by Moby Dick, promising an abyssal reinterpretation after No Longer Human.
This intense moment confirms the vitality of a master. Always ready to haunt our nights, in French scans as well as in collector’s editions.
Rana Saito: when fashion becomes a living performance
Born in Tokyo in 1995, Rana Saito left CyberAgent in 2022 to devote herself to live art. She co-founded DIBE, a project combining fashion and installation. Since April 2025, she has been co-owner of a gallery-bar in Shibuya, while hosting the YouTube channel artfranasaito.com. At Japan Expo 2025, the performer presents recycled kimonos and shows combining textiles, dance, and augmented reality. She kindly answers questions from our publication director:
Pierre‑Antoine Tsady: Is this your first time in Paris?
Rana Saito: Yes, first time, I feel like I’m wandering in a giant book, an amusement park dotted with castles.
P‑A. T.: What iconic places have you already explored?
R. S.: The Eiffel Tower and the Louvre were must-sees to feel European history.
P‑A. T.: You are preparing your first film, what can you tell us about it?
R. S.: It will be an experimental short film, my very first project shot.
P‑A. T.: How would you define your artistic practice?
R. S.: I come from live performance: more performer than actress, I combine body, textile, and sound to create free experiences.
P‑A. T.: Does the Parisian style inspire you?
R. S.: Absolutely, I love the way people dress here, this elegance nourishes my vision and creations.
P‑A. T.: What musical or stage influences do you claim?
R. S.: I draw a lot from the culture of Japanese idols and their hybrid shows.
P‑A. T.: A wish for Franco-Japanese friendship?
R. S.: That events like Japan Expo attract even more audiences and build new creative bridges between our cultures.
Kôji Fukada: intimate cinema in the midst of the crowd
Kôji Fukada meets the public on July 5, 2025, on the Nezumi stage. He presents the conference Love on Trial: Idols Under Pressure. For forty minutes, he explains the genesis of his new film, selected at Cannes this year. The plot: a J-Pop singer judged for breaking the "no love clause." The film will be released in France in 2026, thanks to Saisons Hanabi. It promises a direct dive into the underside of Japanese entertainment.
Revealed in Hospitalité, Fukada followed up with Suis-moi je te fuis, L’Infirmière, and La Comédie humaine. For fifteen years, he has dissected the flaws of Japanese society: obsessive love, rumors, guilt. His style, close to French naturalism, explores family and professional relationships with gentle irony.
Love on Trial goes further. Through a highly publicized trial, Kôji Fukada questions the boundary between public image and the freedom to love. He answers questions from our founder:
Pierre-Antoine Tsady: Which French filmmakers do you particularly appreciate?
Kôji Fukada: Éric Rohmer above all. But there are many others, really many, whose works regularly inspire me.
P-A. T.: What do you think of In the Realm of the Senses, this great Japanese film co-produced by the French?
K. F.: It’s a very interesting film, both artistically and humanly, but for a mature audience.
P-A. T.: If the Maison du Japon in Paris (MCJP) organized a film festival, would you agree to participate?
K. F.: Yes, of course. It would be an excellent opportunity to strengthen cultural exchanges and allow the French to discover more of my work.
P-A. T.: What political or social message do you wish to convey in your films today?
K. F.: I prefer to avoid explicit messages, as it could turn my films into propaganda. My goal is rather to invite viewers to think and interpret freely what they see.
P-A. T.: Which French actors would you like to direct in a future film?
K. F.: Amanda Langlet, even though she acts little currently, and Marie Rivière. And of course, Isabelle Huppert: I met her in Japan, she’s an extraordinary actress with whom I would love to work.
Takahiro Sakurai: the voice that crosses the boundaries of anime
Takahiro Sakurai, born on June 13, 1974, is one of the most iconic voices in Japanese animation. From high school, he became passionate about dubbing. Today, he lends his voice to Giyu Tomioka in Demon Slayer, Griffith in Berserk, the Medicine Seller in Mononoke, and Cloud in Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children. Three decades of cult series and feature films.
Guest star of the Nezumi stage at Japan Expo on July 5, 2025, Sakurai presents The Invisible Fortress, the first film of the new arc of Demon Slayer, scheduled for release in France on September 17. He promises a "magnificent" work, with "even more beauty than you imagine." The audience, captivated, applauds the very promising trailer images and the famous eyes of Kimetsu. And the actor declares: "I love France, I love you!"
For Sakurai, Demon Slayer marks a turning point: "This exceptional work motivates me to continue working." He leaves with only one wish: to return quickly to France, driven by the energy of his fans at Japan Expo.
On the edge of the convention: surprise visit from Gabriel Attal in pre-campaign for 2027
Japan Expo has become the major beacon of Japanese cultures in France. Every summer, Paris attracts crowds of enthusiasts. Manga, cosplay, video games: everything appeals to a connected youth eager for discoveries. This edition also saw the notable visit of Gabriel Attal. The former Prime Minister, a strategist, is already targeting the youth for 2027. His visit, anything but trivial, reveals how the expo has now become a cultural and political issue. Behind the smiles, political competition sharpens.
At its core, the magic of Japan Expo remains intact. We leave the stands with the impression that the future here is nourished by imagination, passion, and renewal. Massive attendance, shared energy. All generations united by the same spirit. See you next year, for more worlds to explore.