“Let’s Create Mascot Characters for the Future Sapporo” Exchange Project

As part of its exchange programs with other cities, the City of Sapporo has launched a new program, the “Let’s Create Mascot Characters for the Future Sapporo” Exchange Project, in partnership with its fellow UNESCO Creative City of Media Arts, Cali (Colombia).

This is an exchange program in which children learn about partner cities and design (draw a picture) a mascot character based on the city’s characteristics. The submitted design will then be 3D-animated by Sapporo’s professionals! The final product will be a short computer graphics (CG) video of the characters interacting with each other in the future Sapporo.

This program strives to encourage children to reaffirm and discover things about their city as well as provide an opportunity to learn about exchange cities, fostering a sense of internationalism by understanding the differences between cities. In addition, it also aims to arouse interest among youth in media arts by recreating participants’ drawings through 3D CG.

Sapporo students from the Momijidai Junior High School Art Club and Cali children from the Centro Colombo Japones and the Las Americas School participated in this rendition.

Click here for more details about the project.

What Kind of Character Did the Children Create?

Cali’s Mascot Character

The students of the Momijidai Junior High School Arts Club created the following character for Cali.

Name: Calidori

Personality: Bright and full of spirit, loves nature

Special skill: Salsa

Hobbies: Appreciating music and art, having a paseo de olla at the Pance River

Favorite food: Cholado

Concept: With the colibri, the bird of Cali, serving as the base, various elements of the city were incorporated into the design. A pan de bono is attached to the character’s cholado hat, and beneath it is a piece of cloth reminiscent of salsa clothing. On its stomach is a pattern of three crosses derived from Loma de las Tres Cruces.

Sapporo’s Mascot Character

Children from the Centro Colombo Japones and the Las Americas School designed the following character for Sapporo.

Name: Suzu Akane

Personality: Suzu is clever, charismatic, and resourceful. She is quite extroverted, curious, and enthusiastic about everything.

Hobbies: Music and dance, attending events such as the YOSAKOI Soran Festival and the Sapporo Snow Festival, playing with children in the snow

Favorite food: Soup curry

Concept: Suzu Akane is a female fox that lives in the highlands of Hokkaido. Her white hair with red highlights is inspired by snow and the YOSAKOI Soran Festival. Her clothes are imaged after the statue of Dr. Clark and SNOW MIKU. She is holding an umbrella made of lilies of the valley.

Complete Video

Click here to view the final CG video on YouTube.

This video will also be shown at the Sapporo Ekimae-dori Underground Walkway (Chi-Ka-Ho) venue of Sapporo Parallel Museum 2025, held from February 1 to 9, 2025.