The Italy Pavilion at Expo 2025 Osaka is hosting the launch of the new Winx Club series 'The Magic is back' which is set to premiere in October on Netflix and will also be available in Japan.
"It is something that fills us with satisfaction, because Japan is the most complex and difficult market of all as it has a great tradition, great quality and a huge manga and anime production", explained Iginio Straffi, founder and president of Rainbow Spa and the creator of the Winx animated series.
Japanese animation, in fact, is a cultural phenomenon of global relevance, with a long and fascinating history that has influenced global culture.
And a common thread connects Japan and Marche, Straffi's native region where the Rainbow group is based, which is a protagonist of events at the Italy Pavilion this week.
Among leading Italian examples of excellence, Computer Animation is a booming sector which is well represented by the Rainbow group whose most well-known product is the Winx Club animated saga, a series presented in over 150 countries since its debut in 2004.
"Cartoons in the West were dominated by productions for boys", said Straffi, while "I wanted to talk about fairies and witches as rivals, but in a more modern way, as young students".
He said this "gave birth to the idea of creating a nonconformist script compared to what we were seeing on television" and in the end a product that was "unique" among TV productions at the time.
"I think it is still (unique) today, because after 21 years were are still present and loved all over the world", added the president of the Rainbow group.
"It truly is an immense world", stressed Marche's Economic Development Councillor Andrea Maria Antonini, "because it isn't only an animation studio but there are many other contents".
The councillor also stressed the innovative quality of the leading company in the sector.
Rainbow's campus in the Marche, in fact, "is not only a workplace, but also a location where employees can live in full" and "I believe it can be a role model" for company welfare, because "people who work for the company have a series of possibilities beyond their job that make what they do less burdensome".
"Art as well as music are occasions of debate and there is something very serious in this game", stated Ambassador Mario Vattani, the Commissioner General for Italy at Expo 2025 Osaka, "because there is an entire professional world connected to all this".
The event included the presentation of the winners - an Italian and a Japanese - of an art contest for university students in Italy and Japan who are specialized in cartoons and design and who created a Winx Club illustration combining the distinctive trait of the series with artistic elements from Japan (like Kawaii or other trademark local styles of art).
The initiative also included the world of Cosplay, a sector in which Japan, once again, excels.
The delegation of cosplayers was led by artist and model Daniela Aiko, known for her portrayal of the Winx character Flora.
However, six Japanese cosplayers who have portrayed Winx Club characters were also presented at the event, which included a clip previewing the new season premiering on Netflix.
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