Following the Kanuma City mayoral election held on June 9, 2024, a campaign flyer distributed by the losing candidate's team came under scrutiny for potentially violating copyright laws.

The leaflet featured an illustration that resembled the poster of BuriedThe latest anime film. This similarity has raised potential copyright infringement issues, according to legal experts.

It featured prominent political figures wearing basketball uniforms, including Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) Secretary-General Toshimitsu Motegi and Tochigi Governor Tomikazu Fukuda. At the center of the illustration was mayoral candidate Mikio Kobayashi.

Under the title Total Effort, the pamphlet also carried the message “If we give up, Kanuma ends here“.

Copyright lawyer Hiroyuki Nakajima highlighted the similarities between the brochure and the film poster.

“The number of people, their poses, clothing, bibs and the overall composition strongly evoke the essential characteristics of the 'THE FIRST SLAM DUNK' poster. There is a risk of violating adaptation rights under copyright law”, Nakajima said.

In response to this, a senior Kobayashi campaign official explained in an interview that the flyer was created by young officials who were inspired by similar posters used by shopping districts in other prefectures.

The official admitted that the leaflets, which were distributed in newspapers before the official campaign period, were not examined for potential copyright issues.

Despite creative campaign efforts, Mikio Kobayashi, 70, who was backed by both the LDP and Komeito, was defeated in the mayoral race by Shoichi Matsui, 58.

Source: Live News