In May, the Moripass Club's third term, now in its third year, began its activities! This is the first time, but it was packed with content. We will report on the members' activities, who were able to absorb a lot of new information.

Please click here to see the situation in Kansai, where the event is being held at the same time.
The Kansai side is here

A first! Simultaneous proceedings via video conference with Kansai

This year, both the Kanto and Kansai teams of the Moripass Club started their activities at the same time. On this day, they connected with the Kansai team via video conference and carried out all production work simultaneously.

First, they looked back on the purpose of the activity and past activities, and then the advisor shared their final goal for this year, which is to produce "FONT SWITCH MAGAZINE Vol.3."

Next up was an input seminar by Advisor Hashizume. This was a font seminar that taught participants how to distinguish typefaces and how to compose letters that communicate effectively.

In addition to the lectures, participants also had the opportunity to search for Morisawa's signature typeface, "Shin Go," in their own printed materials, and to understand the details of typeface design while spotting mistakes. There was also a workshop where various Mincho typefaces were arranged on an axis of old style and new style.
By thinking together as a group and working with their hands, students gradually become more sensitive to fonts, saying things like, "The spacing here is tight," and "Fonts that have been around since the days of letterpress printing have a solid feel."

Discussion to decide the magazine's feature theme

Then it was finally time for the members to introduce themselves. In addition to sharing their hobbies and special skills, they each presented their ideas for special features in the magazine. This year, members from mainstream universities and those from overseas also participated. We are looking forward to seeing how each of their personalities will be displayed.

Next, they announced the theme for "FONT SWITCH MAGAZINE Vol.3," which they had thought up in advance.
From this point on, the Kanto and Kansai teams began discussions separately. The Kanto team narrowed down their theme proposals to the top four in the popularity vote, and then went through another presentation and discussion process to decide on one.

The final candidates were:
Typefaces are not just flat objects, but have the power to change the atmosphere around them, and with the desire for readers to experience that atmosphere through the magazine, the four proposals were very diverse, including Igarashi's "Fonts create the atmosphere," and Imamura's "Monjiya," which was inspired by the game of writing letters with dough on a hot plate and was called "monjiyaki," which was later corrupted to "monja." Members will exchange opinions on the proposals they voted for, including their favorite points and their own interpretations.

"It would be interesting if the Tokyo team chose monjayaki and the Kansai team chose takoyaki!" "I think it's new to view letters as space rather than just their surface," "It would show how much difference the choice of letters can make," and other members gave their opinions in support of their favorite theme proposals. Some members were seen racking their brains, saying, "All of the theme proposals seem good..."

After a final vote, the theme proposal was decided to be Takeda's "Love at first sight with letters." Takeda's own experience of "falling in love at first sight" when he became interested in letters resonated with the public, and it was supported as a straightforward and easy-to-communicate theme that could be conveyed through a magazine. This "Love at first sight with letters" will become an important theme that everyone can return to when they are worried or unsure about how to create a magazine in the future!

Meanwhile, the Kansai team came up with "Wearing Letters," which likens letters to fashion. The advisor also gave feedback, expressing his anticipation for the finished product, saying, "It's interesting that Tokyo is interpersonal, while Kansai is materialistic." What kind of magazine will be created based on this theme?

Each team was given a task and group work began.

At the end of the meeting, each team was given an assignment to submit by next week. The content of this assignment will be a key factor in each team's next meeting.

In preparation for submitting their assignments, each team held their first group discussion, thinking together to explore what they could do that only they could do.

Despite it being the first meeting, today's meeting was lively, with everyone actively sharing their opinions. The Tokyo and Kansai teams had already established a good relationship, stimulating each other to create something great. It was a great day for everyone to deepen their friendships and get off to a great start towards completing the magazine!

The next meeting is in two weeks. We will be working on the production at a fast pace despite the tight schedule. How will we grow in the short time it takes to complete the magazine? Look forward to it!