Minori Chihara announced as guest of honor for New York Anime Festival
Japanese Seiyuu And Singer To Appear At New York Anime FestivalNorwalk, CT, July 8, 2010: The New York Anime Festival (NYAF) and Bandai Entertainment, Inc. (BEI) today announced that prolific Japanese voice actress and singer Minori Chihara will be appearing at the 2010 New York Anime Festival as a Guest of Honor. The New York Anime Festival, an anime, manga, and Japanese pop culture convention, will take place October 8-10, 2010 at the Jacob K. Javits Center in Manhattan. It is created by and co-located with the New York Comic Con. NYAF has already announced Japanese bands VAMPS and Puffy AmiYumi will appear as guests, and comics legends Stan Lee, John Romita, Sr., and John Romita, Jr. will headline the New York Comic Con. Ms. Chihara is most well-known as the voice of Yuki Nagato in the Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya franchise. Her appearance at NYAF will include panel sessions, autograph signings, a concert, and an introduction to the new film The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya.
Birthday: November 18th
Astrological Sign: Scorpio
Blood Type: B
Hobby: Cleaning the house
Licenses: Calligraphy 4th degree, Penmanship 3rd degree, Chairman of the Committee to Promote Tyrol Chocolate with Kinako Mochi filling (self appointed)
Personality: Shy, indecisive, stubborn
Personal treasure: Family
Happiest moment: Bath time
Place you most want to visit: Okinawa
Animal you're most like: Cat
Favorite perfume: Ultramarine
Favorite fruit: Pears
Favorite food: Chocolate, boiled shrimp, salmon
Favorite book: "Initiation Love" by Kurumi Inui
Favorite artists: Yutaka Ozaki, B'z
Ms. Chihara is most well-known as Yuki Nagato in the popular Melancholy of Haruhi Suzyumiya anime series, and in addition to voicing Yuki Nagato in the new Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya film, Ms. Chihara also performs its theme song, "Yasashii Boukyaku". Ms. Chihara's additional starring roles include Chiaki Minami in Minami-ke, Kagura Tsuchimiya in Ga-Rei -Zero-, Toka Ryumonbuchi in Saki, Aya Natsume in Tenjho Tenge, Minami Iwasaki in Lucky Star, Toa in Dragonaut, and Raquel Mayol in My-Otome 0~S.ifr~.
"The New York Anime Festival is honored to welcome Ms. Minori Chihara to New York City," NYAF and NYCC Show Manager Lance Fensterman said. "Haruhi Suzumiya is one of the most popular anime series around the world, and it's our sincere pleasure to have the voice of Haruhi's Yuki Nagato with us!"
"The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya proves again and again to win new fans, and we're excited now, four years after the original premiere of the series, to have Ms. Chihara with us as we present the newest chapter of the saga -- The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya," Bandai Entertainment President Ken Iyadomi said. "Ms. Chihara has a brilliant voice and amazing talent, and while I know fans across America have become familiar with her on television screens, I want fans to discover her again, this time face-to-face, at the New York Anime Festival."
Ms. Chihara's full schedule will be announced later this summer, and it will include both panel sessions and autograph signings. BEI will present a special screening of The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya at NYAF, with Ms. Chihara welcoming fans to the premiere. On Saturday, October 9, Ms. Chihara will perform a concert at NYAF. General admission to Ms. Chihara's concert is free and first-come, first-served. For fans wishing to guarantee a seat, paid, reserved seating will be available via the Tickets page at www.newyorkanimefestival.com starting at 12 Noon EST on July 15th.
Tickets to attend NYAF and NYCC may be purchased at www.newyorkanimefestival.com or www.newyorkcomiccon.com now. (One ticket gets an attendee into both shows.) Other information about the conventions, as well as news about the Reed Pop Culture Group, which also organizes Star Wars Celebration, is available at Lance Fensterman's blog, www.mediumatlarge.net.
ABOUT THE DISAPPEARANCE OF HARUHI SUZUMIYA:
The film The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya, which is based on the novel of the same name by Nagaru Tanigawa and Noizi Ito, was made by Kyoto Animation and supervised by Chief Director Tatsuya Ishihara and Director Yasuhiro Takemoto. The story follows the two seasons of the anime series phenomenon The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya and tells the story of Haruhi's sudden disappearance and her friend Kyon's attempt to untangle the mystery of why she's vanished. The film opened on February 6th, 2010 in Japan. The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzuymia will screen at NYAF with a special introduction from Minori Chihara. It will be later released on DVD by Bandai Entertainment. (www.asosbrigade.com)
ABOUT BANDAI ENTERTAINMENT, INC:
Bandai Entertainment, Inc. is a subsidiary of Namco Bandai Holdings (USA) Inc. and the premier distributor of Japanese animation on DVD and broadcast in North America as well as a publisher of Manga graphic novels. Titles include the anime Mobile Suit Gundam 00, The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, Code Geass: Lelouch of Rebellion, Lucky Star, Gurren Lagann, Cowboy Bebop, Outlaw Star, Escaflowne, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex as well as the bestselling manga Lucky Star, Code Geass, Gurren Lagann, Gundam 00 and many others. (www.bandai-ent.com)
ABOUT THE NEW YORK ANIME FESTIVAL:
The New York Anime Festival takes place at the Jacob K. Javits Center in Midtown Manhattan and is organized by Reed Exhibitions, the creators of New York Comic Con. The New York Anime Festival showcases the best of anime pop culture, including the latest anime, manga, Japanese cinema, music, and games, and anime-influenced comics, animation, and films from around the world. The festival features exclusive and extensive screenings, a gala cosplay masquerade, sessions with the some of the biggest names in anime from Japan, Asia, and America, and explores the Japanese cultural experience with displays of both traditional and cutting-edge Japanese life. (www.newyorkanimefestival.com)
ABOUT NEW YORK COMIC CON:
New York Comic Con is the East Coast's biggest and most exciting popular culture convention. Our show floor plays host to the latest and greatest in comics, graphic novels, anime, manga, video games, toys, movies, and television. Our panels and autograph sessions give fans a chance to interact with their favorite creators. Our screening rooms feature sneak peeks at films and television shows months before they hit either big or small screens. And with dedicated professional hours, New York Comic Con is a market place, bringing together the major players in the entertainment industry. New York Comic Con is the second largest pop culture convention in America and the only one that takes place in the comic book, publishing, media, and licensing capital of the world -- Gotham City. (www.newyorkcomiccon.com)
ABOUT REEDPOP: ReedPOP is a boutique group within Reed Exhibitions which is exclusively devoted to organizing events, launching and acquiring new shows, and partnering with premium brands in the pop culture arena. ReedPOP is dedicated to producing celebrations of popular culture throughout the world that transcend ordinary events by providing unique access and dynamic personal experiences for consumers and fans. The ReedPOP portfolio includes: New York Comic Con (NYCC), Chicago Comic and Entertainment Expo (C2E2), Penny Arcade Expo (PAX) East & West, Star Wars Celebration V, New York Anime Festival (NYAF), and UFC Fan Expo. The staff at ReedPOP is a fan based group of professionals producing shows for other fans, thus making them uniquely qualified to service those with whom they share a common passion. ReedPOP is focused on bringing its expertise and knowledge to world communities in North America, South America, Asia and Europe.
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