U.S. Premiere. Blank Canvas: My So-Called Artist’s Journey (Kakukaku Shikajika) is an autobiographical manga by Eisner-winner Akiko Higashimura, the creator of Princess Jellyfish and Tokyo Tarareba Girls, about her high school dream to become a comic book creator. Published in Japan from 2011 to 2015, it inspired a live-action adaptation in 2025, and Japan Society is honored now to present this film with original manga creator Akiko Higashimura joining us in-person for a Q&A and signing.

High schooler Akiko (Mei Nagano) has big plans to become a popular manga creator before she even graduates, but she needs to get much better at drawing if she ever wants to reach her goal. Looking for an easy fix, she signs up for an art class, thinking all her problems will soon be solved. She’s in for a surprise: her new instructor is a sword-wielding taskmaster who doesn’t care about manga one bit. But maybe this unconventional art teacher is just what she needs to realize her dreams!

The Blank Canvas: My So-Called Artist’s Journey manga is published in the US by Seven Seas Entertainment.

Dir. Kazuaki Seki, 2025, 126 min., DCP, color, in Japanese with English subtitles. With Mei Nagano, Yo Oizumi.

About Akiko Higashimura
Akiko Higashimura (also known as ACCO Sensei) is a legendary manga artist, known for best-seller works such as Princess Jellyfish (nominated for the Manga Taisho Award and winning the Kodansha Manga Award), Tokyo Tarareba Girls (nominated for the Manga Taisho Award and winning the Eisner Award for Best US Edition of International Material), and Blank Canvas: My So-Called Artist’s Journey (winning the Manga Taisho Award and receiving the Grand Prize at the Japan Media Arts Festival). Higashimura was born in 1975 in Miyazaki Prefecture. Influenced by shojo manga of the 1980s, she aspired to become a manga artist from a young age. She debuted as a professional manga artist in manga magazine Bouquet Deluxe in 1999 with the short story Fruits Komori. Her first serialized work was Kisekae Yuka-chan in 2001, published in the magazine Cookie. One of her first hits was Mama wa Tenparist in 2007, selling over one million copies.

Signing Details
Akiko Higashimura will join us in the lobby following the screening to sign autographs and pose for pictures. Please bring copies of her manga from home or shikishi for signature. Books will not be sold at this event.