Anime convention schedule (long)
khl
Anime Expo, the largest anime convention in North America, will be a
four-day Thursday-Sunday event, from July 5-8 in Long Beach, Calif.
Anime Expo's guests of honor include Makoto Uno, character designer
for Love Hina; Yoshiaki Iwasaki, director of Love Hina; Tsukasa
Kotobuki, character designer for Cyber Team Akihabara, Battle Arena
Toshinden and the Saber Marionette series; Toshihiro Kawamoto,
character designer for Cowboy Bebop and Golden Boy, Nobuyuki Ohnishi,
the painter who created the illustrations for Wings of Honneamise; Yu
Watase, creator of the Fushigi Yugi and Ayashi No Ceres manga series;
Kikuko Inoue, the voice of Belldandy from Oh My Goddess; Hisashi Abe
of Madhouse Studios, character designer and animation director for the
Pet Shop of Horrors series and animation director for the Vampire
Hunter D film; Masayuki Kojima, chief director of Master Keaton; Morio
Asaka, director of the Card Captor Sakura TV series and movies; Kia
Asamiya, character designer of Martian Successor Nadesico and creator
of the Silent Moebius and Steam Detectives manga; Hidenori Matsubara,
character designer for the Oh My Goddess and Sakura Taisen films;
Noboru Ishiguro, head of Artland and director of Space Cruiser Yamato,
Legend of Galactic Heroes, Megazone 23, Superdimensional Fortress
Macross, and Macross: Do You Remember Love; Haruhiko Mikimoto,
character designer for Macross, Macross: Do You Remember Love,
Gunbuster and Megazone 23; and animator Scott Frazier.
Also expected to attend Anime Expo are Gen Fukunaga, president of
Funimation; Henry Goto of Pioneer Entertainment; Kunihiko Ikuhara,
creator of Revolutionary Girl Utena; Hiroaki Inoue, producer of
Perfect Blue; Yoshitsune Izuna, character designer; actor Akira
Kamiya; Tomoko Kawakami, original voice of Utena Tenjou from
Revolutionary Girl Utena and Noelle in I'm Gonna Be An Angel; Yukio
Kikukawa, executive producer of the Legend of Galactic Heroes series;
Showji Murahama, president of Gonzo Animation Company; Yuji Nunokawa,
president of Studio Pierrot; Hyoe Narita, editorial director of Viz
manga; Mitsuru Sato, voice of Tatari Gami in Mononoke Hime; artist
Masahiro Saito; Hiraku Sasahara, president of Digital Manga; Hiroe
Tsukamoto, producer for Pioneer Entertainment; and Takumi Yamazaki,
the voice of Mappy in Dragon Half.
Anime Expo will use the combination of the Long Beach Convention
Center, Long Beach Hyatt Hotel and the Long Beach Westin Hotel. The
convention will remain in southern California, but will move 18 miles
west from its previous location in Anaheim. The new location is a few
blocks north of the Pacific harbor and a short distance from the Queen
Mary, the permanently-berthed ocean liner that is now used as a
floating hotel.
Those not in the area of an anime convention can check out the Gundam
Invasion Tour sponsored by Bandai. A truck loaded with Gundam exhibits
will head to Wal-Mart and Toys 'R Us stores around the U.S. The tour
is scheduled to stop in Henderson, Nev. on June 29-30, Las Vegas, Nev.
on July 1, Lakewood, Calif. on July 6-7, Corona, Calif. on July 8,
Westminster, Calif. on July 13-14, and Orange, Calif. on July 15.
Guests of honor for Shoujocon in New Jersey include Azzurri, a
Japanese doujinshi circle consisting of artists Hitaka Ryo and Kurata
Katsumi, that creates works in the worlds of Gundam Wing and Final
Fantasy; Mandy Bonhomme, the English-language voice of Juri in
Revolutionary Girl Utena; and Colleen Doran, creator of A Distant
Soil.
There are plans for a second Anime Festival Orlando in late July in
Altamonte Springs, Florida. Steve Bennett and Doug Smith of Studio
Ironcat, animation programmer Marshall Hash, actor Wendee Lee, costume
maker Sherrie Szufel and artists Chynna Clugston-Major and Yoshiki
Tokushu (a.k.a. Tony Chaplin) are scheduled to appear at Anime
Festival Orlando.
Otakon has announced that Masao Maruyama, founder of Madhouse, the
anime studio that produced Card Captor Sakura and Trigun; Kazuya
Tsurumaki, director of FLCL and assistant director of Neon Genesis
Evangelion; Toshihiro Kawamoto, character designer for Cowboy Bebop
and Golden Boy, and Hikaru Midorikawa, the original Japanese-language
voice of Heero Yuy from Gundam Wing, Tamahome from Fushigi Yuugi and
Zelgadis from Slayers, will be guests of honor. Actors Tiffany Grant
and Pamela Weidner, animator Scott Frazier, artists Colleen Doran, Jo
Chen, Fred Gallagher, Rodney Caston, Fred Perry, Ian Kim, Steve
Bennett and Adam Warren, producers Shin Kurokawa and Scott Houle, and
writer Gilles Poitras also have been announced as guests of honor for
Otakon. The Maryland convention will be held August 10-12 at the
Baltimore Convention Center.
Fans who have discovered that the hotels listed on the Otakon web site
have no rooms available may be able to find lodging by searching these
online hotel guides for Baltimore:
http://metropolitan-networks.net/baltimore/hotelguide/
http://www.portaltomaryland.com/reservations.htm
http://www.searchhotels.com/us/md/baltimore/
http://www.travelhero.com/search.cfm/country/US/state/MD/city/baltimore/index.html
On the weekend before the U.S. Labor Day holiday, AnimeIowa will be
staged in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Artists Steve Bennett and Robert DeJesus
will return to the Midwestern event.
After taking one year off, the organizers of AnimeFEST will try to
hold another convention over the Labor Day weekend in Dallas. The
convention's guests of honor include the British rock bank Bôa, actors
Kirby Morrow and Scott McNeil, artists Austell Callwood, Scott R.
Kurtz and Dan Minut, writer Rodney "Largo" Caston and animator Scott
Frazier.
A Yaoi-Con for fans of that manga genre will be held Sept. 1-2 in San
Francisco. Artists Higuri You, Azusa Kurokawa, Shinjuku Nishiguchi
Side, Kano Fujimaru, Hera, Komaki, Magnum 55 and Yuri Noel, and author
Gilles Poitras are scheduled to appear at the California event.
Nan Desu Kan, which will be held on September 21-23 near the Denver
International Airport, plans to continue a tradition of odd events
with a Pretty Kitty Mini Con and a Bride of the Rubber Monster Slumber
Party. Guests of honor at the Colorado convention include Nov.
Takahashi, head of Studio Hard, animation sound director Kazuya
Tanaka, animator Scott Frazier (who is a Colorado native), Keith
Burgess of Manga Entertainment, Toshifumi Yoshida of Viz Video, artist
Newton Ewell, delegations from Studio IronCat and Panther Comics, and
actors Bob Bergen (who has dubbed voices ranging from Porky Pig to
Lupin), Taliesin Jaffe, Debbie "Angora Deb" Rabbai, Tristan MacAvery,
Scott McNeil, Michael Granberry and Crispin Freeman (tentative).
An important note for those planning to attend Anime Weekend Atlanta:
the Sheraton Gateway Hotel and Georgia International Convention Center
have told AWA staff that they will not allow toy, prop or cosplay
weapons - and real weapons, of course - to be carried unless the items
are attached to the costume. AWA staff has gotten permission for
costumers to use prop weapons during the convention's costume contest.
The convention also is warning against any playing with prop weapons
during the convention.
Anime Weekend Atlanta will be held near Hartsfield International
Airport on the south side of Atlanta. Singer and composer Mari Iijima,
actors Kelly Manison, Jason Douglas, Hillary Haag, Corrine Orr, Kira
Solar, Brett Weaver, Tiffany Grant, Juliet Cesario, Scott Simpson, Amy
Howard Wilson and Jessica Calvello, artists Steve Bennett, Ed Hill and
Bruce Lewis, translator Neil Nadelman, model builder Bill Mayo, and
British writers Jonathan Clemens and Helen McCarthy are among the
guests of honor for the Georgia convention. Anime Weekend Atlanta will
be on the same weekend as Nan Desu Kan.
Ani-Magic, to be held on the first weekend of October in Lancaster,
California, is talking about these guests of honor: singer and
songwriter Mari Iijima, the Koshin Taiko drum group, artists Tomoko
Taniguchi, Steve Bennett, Ed Luena, Mike Hayes and Yaya Han, costumers
Tristen Citrine, Phoenix Seed and Sailor JAMboree, writer Joyce
Wakabayashi and actors Tiffany Grant, Amanda Winn Lee and Wendee Lee.
Anime USA is scheduled for the second weekend of October in Arlington,
Virginia, with the San Knights artists group and Steve Bennett and
Doug Smith of Studio Ironcat as guests.
Neko-Con returns to Virginia Beach, Virginia for its fourth year.
Guests of honor include singer and songwriter Mari Iijima, artists
Colleen Doran and Robert DeJesus, Steven Bennett, Stephanie Brown and
Doug Smith of Studio Ironcat, costumer Nickey Froberg, and actors
Michael Brady and Tristan McAvery.
Guests have been announced for a Big Apple Anime Festival in New York
City on Oct. 26-28, including Kunihiko Ikuhara, director of
Revolutionary Girl Utena; president Mitsuhisa Ishikawa of Production
I.G.; Tetsuya Ikeda, president of Atman Co.; artists Toshio Maeda and
Tim Eldred, actor Matt K. Miller and DVD fans Chris Beveridge and
Kenneth Lee.
The people who tried to stage a Middle Tennessee Anime Convention in
Nashville last year are going to try to have another convention on
Nov. 2-4.
Animator Scott Frazier, actors Matt K. Miller and Doug Smith,
translator Neil Nadelman, the Corn Pone Flicks parody group and
artists Steve Bennett and Robert DeJesus will appear at the second
Sugoi-Con, to be held Nov. 9-11 at the same location as the inaugural
convention in Erlanger, Kentucky.
The second Aka Kon in Canada is scheduled for Nov. 16-18 in Richmond,
B.C., near the Vancouver International Airport. Announced guests
include producer David Williams from ADV Films, actors Jason Lee,
Amanda Winn Lee, Sean Schemmel, Lisa Ortiz, Amy Howard Wilson, Jessica
Calvello, Pamela Lauer and Tiffany Grant, costume esigners David
Ramsay and Kimberly Johnson of the Costume Closet, animators Scott
Frazier and Scott Baltjes, Keith Burgess of Manga Entertainment, Jerry
Chu of Bandai Entertainment, and a delegation from Studio Ironcat that
includes Steve Bennett, Doug Smith and Stephanie Brown.
Hobby Star Marketing of Toronto is assembling plans for two combined
anime-sci-fi-comics conventions, one in late August in Toronto and one
in mid-October in Boston. The Toronto event is scheduled to feature
artist Mika Akitaka and English-language Dragon Ball voice actors
Chris Sabat (Vegeta, Piccolo), Eric Johnson (Trunks) and Scott McNeil
(also Piccolo).
Two other conventions of possible interest to anime fans will be held
on the same July 13-15 weekend: G-Fest, for fans of Japanese monster
and sci-fi movies, in Arlington Heights, Illinois, and BotCon, for
fans of the Hasbro Transformers toys and TV cartoons, in Durham, North
Carolina.
====================
2001 Anime Conventions
June 29-July 1
Japan Expo
Paris, France
http://www.japan-expo.com/
July 5-8
Anime Expo
Long Beach, Calif.
http://www.anime-expo.org
July 14-15
ShoujoCon
East Brunswick, N.J.
http://www.shoujocon.com
July 14-15
Animethon
Edmonton, Alberta
http://www.anime-alberta.org/animethon
July 20-21
Ai-Kon
Winnipeg, Manitoba
http://www.ai-kon.home.dhs.org/
July 27-29
Anime Festival Orlando
Altamonte Springs, FL
http://www.anime.jyu.fi/~fleggett/afo2/
Aug. 10-12
Otakon
Baltimore, Md.
http://www.otakon.com/
Aug. 24-26
AnimeIowa
Cedar Rapids, Iowa
http://www.animeiowa.com/
Aug. 31-Sept. 3
AnimeFEST
Dallas, Texas
http://www.animefest.org/
Sept. 1-2
Yaoi-Con
San Francisco, Calif.
http://www.yaoicon.com/
Sept. 21-23
Anime Weekend Atlanta
Atlanta, Ga.
http://www.awa-con.com
Sept. 21-23
Nan Desu Kan
Denver, Colo.
http://www.ndk.cc/
Oct. 5-7
Ani-Magic
Lancaster, Calif.
http://www.ani-magic.org/
Oct. 5-7
AnimeCon UK
Liverpool, England
http://www.animecon.org.uk/
Oct. 12-14
Anime USA
Arlington, Va.
http://www.animeusa.org
Oct. 26-28
Neko-Con
Virginia Beach, Va.
http://www.nekocon.org/
Oct. 26-28
Big Apple
Anime Festival
New York, N.Y.
http://www.bigappleanimefest.com/
Nov. 2-4
Middle Tennessee
Anime Convention
Nashville, Tenn.
http://www.olac.org/mtac/
Nov. 9-11
Sugoi-Con
Erlanger, Ky.
http://www.sugoicon.org/
Nov. 16-18
Aka Kon
Richmond, B.C.
http://www.akakon.com/
===============
Previous 2001 events:
Jan. 26-28 - Ohayocon, Cleveland, Ohio - http://www.ohayocon.com/
Feb. 10 - Minercon, Golden, Colo. -
http://talus.mines.edu/Stu_life/organ/anime/
Feb. 16-18 - Katsucon, Arlington, Va. - http://www.katsucon.com/
Feb. 23-25 - Anime Odyssey, Velhoven, Netherlands -
http://users.bart.nl/~totoro/
March 16-18 - MinamiCon, Southampton, England -
http://www.minamicon7.anime.org.uk/mc7.nsf
March 23-25 - Anime Express, Daytona Beach, Fla. -
http://www.db.erau.edu/campus/student/clubs/anime/
March 30-April 1 - Fanime Con, Santa Clara, Calif. -
http://www.fanime.com
March 31-April 1 - New England Mini-Con, Farmington, Maine -
http://umfotaku.megami.net/
April 6-8 - Anime Marathon, Stuttgart, Germany -
http://tomodachi.chan.de/html/marathon/index-e.html
April 27-29 - Sakura Con, Everett, Wash. - http://www.sakuracon.org
May 11-13 - Anime Central, Arlington Heights, Ill. -
http://www.acen.org
May 11-13 - JACON, Orlando, Fla. -
http://pegasus.cc.ucf.edu/~jaco/jacon_web/jaconindex.htm
May 25-27 - Animazement, Durham, N.C. - http://www.animazement.org
May 25-27 - Anime North, Toronto, Ont. - http://www.animenorth.com/
June 1-3 - Project: A-Kon, Dallas, Texas - http://www.a-kon.com/
June 15-17 - Anime Mid-Atlantic, Richmond, Va. -
http://www.animemidatlantic.com/
June 15-17 - Mikkakan, Merrimack, N.H. - http://www.mikkakan.org/
Preliminary 2002 schedule:
Jan. 18-20 - Ohayocon, TBA
Feb. 1-3 - Ushicon, Austin, Texas (http://www.ushicon.com/)
Feb. 15-17 - Katsucon, Baltimore, Md.
April 12-14 - OmakeCon, Roanoke, Va.
(http://www.clubroanime.com/~omakecon/)
April 19-21 - Anime Central, Rosemont, Ill.
April 26-28 - Sakura Con, Seattle, Wash.
July 4-7 - Anime Expo, Long Beach, Calif.
Sept. 27-29 - Anime Weekend Atlanta, Atlanta, Ga.
===============
Convention reports at http://www.fansview.com