Halloween in Shibuya in 2017 was an experience on an entirely different scale. I’d gone to the “prequel” on the 30th, but the main event was simply “Wow.” While not an official record, it felt like one of the world’s biggest street parties. This monster-sized event completely took over the district.
“Took over” is the key phrase here, because the Shibuya Halloween phenomenon was never an official, city-planned festival. It was a spontaneous gathering that grew year after year, eventually reaching a scale that brought massive challenges. Even back in 2017, the signs were there: a heavy police presence with a plan was needed for crowd control. Local businesses voiced concerns, and the sheer amount of garbage left behind became a significant problem.
The sheer number of people packed into one place was incredible. I’d expected Hachiko’s statue and the famous Shibuya Crossing to be the epicenters, but the reality was that people were everywhere. The entire area, from Shibuya 109 to Bunkamura, was a slow-moving sea of humanity. Down in the narrow Senta-Gai, the crowd was packed to the rafters. Garden snails probably moved faster. Being a photographer stuck in the middle, unable to move, was a unique kind of frustration.
Some people looked rather sexy and cute. There were the weird and bizarre, through to those who were genuinely scary. Then there was everyone in between. Many people had put a lot of time and effort into their costumes. The undead Mario was one of the best. Can you imagine him with half of his face ripped off?
Halloween in Shibuya is the one event of the year that pulls people out of their comfort zones. You don’t often see Japanese people talk to strangers in the street. But here it happens all the time. People asked to take photos together if they saw someone with a crowd-stopping outfit. Then it was a quick chat about it; move on.
Yes, many go there to photograph the event, but not all. I’m sure some go there to get photographed. They look for attention. I’ve heard a few models and YouTubers got their breaks this way. Many people were taking photos or doing video. How many of them were placed on video and went viral?
Despite how packed Shibuya was, the crowd never felt out of control. It was noisy, certainly, but not wild. Whatever you could have said about Halloween in Shibuya 2017, we know one thing. It was fun and one of the world’s biggest street parties.
But those freewheeling parties of the late 2010s are now a thing of the past. Shibuya’s mayor officially requested people not to come, and a public alcohol ban has been implemented during the Halloween period.
The 2017 event was not just a fun party, but as a historical snapshot of a phenomenon that became too big to handle. Still, it is another example of “how fun things used to be”.
Rohan has photographed Tokyo since 2011. He shoots it with his Canon EOS R5. There are no plans to stop.
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