Sexuality in Japan - Pornography

Pornography

Historically, pornography in Japan may have begun as early as the Edo period as erotic artwork referred to as shunga that was typically done on woodblock prints. Between the 1920s and '30s in Japan there was a literary and artistic movement known as ero guro which focused on eroticism, sexual corruption and decadence. Softcore pornographic theatrical films known as pink films dominated the domestic cinema in Japan from the mid-1960s through the mid-1980s.

In contemporary times Japanese pornography has a gained a worldwide following and is frequently translated and exported to other cultures because of its large spectrum of themes and media. Pornography has in recent times expanded into new mediums in Japan such as manga (hentai) and video games (eroge) on top the more common film and historic mediums.