Can You Request the Removal of Unauthorized Anime/Manga Videos Modeled After Yourself?

Honor-related emotions, in other words, the consciousness and feelings one has about their own value, may not be protected as defamation under Japanese law. However, if these emotions are violated beyond a certain limit, it can be considered a tort.

The typical case of honor-related emotional harm is when someone is insulted on the internet, such as being called “stupid” or “ugly” using their real name.

However, there are also cases where it becomes illegal due to the relationship with the person who is modeled, such as when a fictional personality modeled after a specific person in the real world appears in “animation” or “manga”, and defamatory expressions are made against that personality.

Issues of rights infringement through such creative works are not limited to TV, theaters, and book releases, but have also spread to the world of internet media such as YouTube in recent years. For example, there are cases where anime videos based on actual incidents are published on YouTube. If you are a famous talent, YouTuber, or company executive, there is a risk of being victimized by having such videos created without permission and published on YouTube. Can you claim that “unauthorized publication is illegal” and request the removal of the video and damages?

In this article, we will explain the infringement of honor rights (defamation) and honor-related emotional harm (insult crime) by anime and manga, based on actual precedents.

https://monolith.law/reputation/malicious-slander-defamation-of-personality-precedent[ja]

Court Cases of Defamation by Anime

A case occurred where a plaintiff, who is a member of the House of Councillors and an executive of a political party, claimed that his reputation was damaged and his feelings of honor were infringed upon by an anime DVD and its advertisements, which he believed were modeled after him, and demanded compensation for damages.

Progress of the Lawsuit

The plot of the anime in question is an adult work depicting a female protagonist engaging in sexual acts with three men. The protagonist visits an unknown man, tells him “I’ve come to sort out your heart” and “I’m going to sort out your soul now”, then engages in sexual acts. After the act, she tells the man, “Be clear. I’m going to make you donate,” and when asked, “Can’t you be number two?” she responds, “I can’t be number two,” while kicking the man and causing him to bleed.

The protagonist, with her short hair, face, and clothing resembling the plaintiff, and her surname “○○” being a phonetic reading of the plaintiff’s name, and her first name “△” being the exact pronunciation of the plaintiff’s name, the plaintiff claimed defamation. The protagonist was given many attributes of the plaintiff, and the plaintiff argued that viewers and advertisement viewers could easily identify the protagonist and the plaintiff.

In fact, even with just “sorting out” and “Can’t you be number two?”, it would be possible to identify the protagonist.

In response, the defendant, the production and sales company, argued, “This is an adult DVD by an absurd anime, and considering the nature of the genre of the work and the absence of any depiction of facts about real people, there is no doubt that all the content is fiction, and it does not indicate facts, nor does it lower the social evaluation of the plaintiff.”

Judgment of the Court

The court first acknowledged that:

• The appearance of the protagonist is similar to that of the plaintiff
• The protagonist’s surname and first name could be derived from the plaintiff’s name
• The content of the dialogue of the personalitys and the title, etc., is similar to the content of the plaintiff’s political activities, etc.

It was judged that general viewers and advertisement viewers could easily identify the protagonist and the plaintiff.

Then, regarding the content of the DVD, it was concluded that “it is absurd and it is clear that the content is fiction, and it is unlikely that general viewers would perceive it as a real event. Also, it cannot be recognized that the DVD sales and advertisement postings defame the plaintiff’s reputation by indicating the facts in question and lowering the plaintiff’s social evaluation.”

Defamation is a crime that is committed by:

• Pointing out true or false facts in a situation where an unspecified number of people will know (publicly)
• Defaming a person’s reputation

So, this does not apply.

On the other hand, regarding the infringement of feelings of honor, the court acknowledged the tort, stating:

“Since the protagonist, who can be easily identified with the plaintiff, is treated insultingly, it is clear that the plaintiff is hurt in his self-esteem and suffers mental anguish by the sale and viewing of this, and therefore the sale of the DVD infringes on the plaintiff’s feelings of honor and constitutes a tort.” – Tokyo District Court, September 6, 2012 (Gregorian calendar year) judgment

Defamation of honor (insult) is a crime that is committed by insulting a person (expressing contempt for the person’s personal value) without pointing out facts.

In this case, considering the circumstances such as the lack of sufficient evidence to acknowledge the fact that the DVD was widely distributed, only a total of 220,000 yen, including 200,000 yen for consolation money and 20,000 yen for attorney’s fees, was recognized, but it became a case where a firm response was taken against a minor anime work that hardly sold.

In manga and anime, it is common to depict real people as models under the name of satire and humor, but if it infringes on feelings of honor, it is natural to be held responsible.

Relationship between Defamation and Infringement of Honor

This trial can be said to have conducted an interesting analysis on “fictional anime, etc. modeled after oneself” as follows:

• Defamation of honor (defamation) can be a problem when depicting real events (or those that can be read as such), such as “this person actually did ~”. Therefore, if it is clearly fiction at first glance, it will not be a problem of defamation of honor (defamation).
• However, infringement of feelings of honor (insult) can be established even if one is made to appear in a form that causes mental pain without permission, even if it is “clearly fiction at first glance”.

https://monolith.law/reputation/defamation-and-infringement-of-self-esteem[ja]

https://monolith.law/reputation/defamation[ja]

Court Cases of Defamation and Violation of Portrait Rights through Manga

A company executive claimed that his honor, feelings of honor, and portrait rights were violated by a personality in a manga serialized in “Weekly Shonen Magazine” that closely resembled his appearance, and sought damages from the publisher.

Progress of the Lawsuit

The trouble arose when the author of the manga drew a delinquent leader based on the appearance of a real person featured in the magazine, without obtaining the person’s consent.

The plaintiff was managing a Shibuya-style fashion company and was featured in the magazine as a leader in the same fashion genre. The appearance of the personality in the manga, including the hairstyle, hair color, beard shape, contour, and sunglasses pattern, was strikingly similar to the plaintiff’s photo. The author himself admitted to using the plaintiff as a motif, and those who knew the plaintiff could easily identify the personality with the plaintiff.

The plaintiff argued, “In the manga, this personality is depicted as habitually using drugs such as marijuana and committing rape and group violence, giving the impression that the plaintiff is a dangerous person who regularly commits crimes such as drug use and violence, thereby lowering his social evaluation.”

Furthermore, in response to the depiction of him being beaten and lying on the ground, the plaintiff, who had been recognized as a leader in a genre that promotes “masculinity” and “strength” as fashion concepts, argued, “This destroyed my image, causing me extreme discomfort and humiliation, and violated my feelings of honor.”

In response, the defendant argued, “Whether a model in a manga or novel can be identified and whether the person’s social evaluation is lowered should be judged separately. In this case, the plaintiff merely felt uncomfortable about something unrelated to him, and there is no room to interpret this as a violation of his feelings of honor.”

Judgment of the Court

The court first acknowledged that:

• The content of the manga lacks reality and is clearly a fictional story
• Even general readers recognize it as a fictional world created by the author

Regarding the depiction of a personality who can be identified with the plaintiff as a delinquent leader committing crimes such as drug offenses and violent acts, the court stated, “Although it can be said to indicate a fact, it does not indicate the fact that the plaintiff is committing a crime, and it cannot be recognized as lowering the social evaluation.” Therefore, the court did not acknowledge defamation.

On the other hand, the depiction of the personality being beaten and lying in a miserable state was recognized as insulting the plaintiff’s appearance and persona, exceeding the limits acceptable in societal norms, and violating the plaintiff’s feelings of honor.

The court stated,

“Since the depiction in this case is recognized as insulting the plaintiff’s appearance and persona, the violation of the plaintiff’s feelings of honor cannot be denied just because the personality with the plaintiff’s appearance is fictional.”

Tokyo District Court, July 28, 2010 (Gregorian calendar year) Judgment

The court ruled that the depiction in the manga violated the plaintiff’s personal rights (portrait rights), i.e., the right not to have his appearance etc. arbitrarily made public, and exceeded the limits tolerable in societal norms, and was therefore an illegal act. The court also acknowledged the violation of portrait rights and ordered the publisher to pay 500,000 yen in compensation and 50,000 yen in attorney’s fees, for a total of 550,000 yen.

Conclusion

The two anime and manga court cases mentioned in this article both involved works of absurd content, which did not present facts and were not considered defamation.

However, even if the content is absurd, if it hurts one’s self-esteem and causes mental distress, it is possible to sue for infringement of honor.

The same judgment could potentially apply to anime videos on internet media platforms like YouTube.

For example, in the manga case mentioned in this article, even though the author admitted to using a real person as a motif, the court recognized the infringement of the person’s honor due to the defamatory expression towards the personality that resembled the “hairstyle, hair color, beard shape, contour, and sunglasses pattern”. This means that if you suffer from defamation using a fictional personality that seems to mock your real name on platforms like YouTube, the court may make a similar judgment.

The decision to sue for any kind of rights infringement varies depending on individual circumstances and can be difficult.

Consult with a specialist lawyer for such decisions and aim for early resolution of the issue.

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