4th Annual Japantown Anime Faire
GUESTS OF HONOR
GEN TAIKO |
Founded in 1995, the mission of Gen Taiko (GT) is to promote, preserve and present the Matsuri (festival) spirit in Japanese culture through taiko (traditional Japanese drumming), traditional folk dance and folk song forms. The meaning of Matsuri is deeply significant to Japanese American heritage in its focus on maintaining one's connection with ancestors, nature and community. The kanji (character) for "Gen" translates to "from the origin." GT serves the Asian American and multicultural community of the San Francisco Bay Area through: 1) Public Performances. 2) A Taiko school located at the JCCCNC. 3) School-site residencies and assembly performances. 4) Creating collaborations among traditional artists and with contemporary artists. In its 9th Year of programming, GT has served over 100,000 people from the Asian American and multicultural San Francisco Bay Area community. This will be Gen Taiko's third appearance at Japantown Anime Faire. |
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This could be the most influential anime fan in the U.S., because he reaches people who make a living out of literacy. Gilles Poitras, who was born in French-speaking Quebec, grew up on a California farm and makes his living as a librarian in San Francisco at Golden Gate University. For years, he's been advising other librarians on how to use anime and manga to attract young people to books in an era where youth are said to be watchers, not readers. "Librarians know the value of popular literature," Poitras said at Fanime Con on Thursday night. "Librarians are interested in what appeals to kids. Young adult librarians are very flexible in what they're buying...you have to find something that interests kids and shoot for that." [Source: Fansview.com] This is Mr. Poitras' 2nd appearance at Japantown Anime Faire. |
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RANDOM NINJAS |
The
word 'NINJAS' in the name evokes the image of dark stealth assassins in
the shadows of feudal Japan dressed to blend in with the environment.
However, a mere visual taste of the Random Ninjas themselves will make
it clear that the word in their name that describes them most is RANDOM. With more members than your average musical group, this Los Angeles based rock band seemed to have emerged practically out of nowhere. Somehow this ensemble from various walks of life and different tastes and hobbies was born out of the melting pot known as Southern California. Randomness saturates their presence and their performances. Their original compositions are prime examples of fusion music, which blends well with the multi-genre nature of the music they love. Within a single live performance, audience members can enjoy hard rock alongside epic symphonies, bebop jazz, and heavy beats of Japanese Taiko drums with wailing electric guitar solos. Random Ninjasí music is for anyone who is looking for something new and random. Random Ninjas also expands the experience by adding guest musicians/artists, martial artists, dancers and any other random additions they can think of. Random Ninjas is a full-blown production entity that brings a multi-faceted, energetic show to every venue they attack. This is Random Ninjas' second appearance at Japantown Anime Faire. |
AUGUST RAGONE |
August Ragone started "Kaiju
Productions" in 1974, as a company name in which to produce his
amateur Super 8mm films (starring his Bullmark Vinyl Monsters, some of
them gave their lives for his art)... Bob Johnson and August kept the
name on their first official event in December of 1979. They were
rallied by legendary TV Horror Movie Host Bob Wilkins (KTVU-Ch. 2's
"Creature Features"). This was their first of several
progressively larger "Japanese Fantasy Film Fares." Fans were
amazed to see Godzilla films, ULTRAMAN, STARBLAZERS, BRAVE RAIDEEN,
SPECTREMAN, MIRRORMAN, and more -- all on one program. Since we covered
both live action and anime; these events are considered as the first of
their kind in America, and the first anime event outside of Japan. This
was a precursor to what are now standard screening rooms at comic book
and science fiction conventions all across the country.
Kaiju Productions continues to host panels at conventions, as well as film screenings at events such as "The Thrillville Review." As for their writing endeavors, Kaiju Productions went back to basics in 1994 and started small with "Henshin! Newsletter." Offered free to fans, the newsletter packed "more information into eight pages than most full magazines." Only a handful of issues were produced when it suddenly evolved into the Internet Age with its own web page, "Henshin Online!," originally hosted by Aaron Smith's Godzilla news site, "Monster Zero." Now, Henshin! Online goes out on its own, expanding its coverage and undergoing an entirely new design! This is Mr. Ragone's FIRST visit to the Japantown Anime Faire |
MARI IIJIMA |
Mari
Iijima is an accomplished singer and songwriter who released numerous
top 10 albums in Japan. Renowned composer Ryuichi Sakamoto produced her
critically acclaimed debut album, RosÈ. Throughout her career
she has won several awards including the Japan Audio Society Golden
Jubilee Award for her songs "Vacation" and "D",
voted by both Japanese & American judges. Mari was also nominated
for the 2000 Los Angeles Music Awards 'Best Pop Artist for her first
English album No Limit. In 2005, Mari released her most recent
album Wonderful People, which she collaborated with today's
hottest musicians including members of the John Mayer Band. The album
quickly became a smash hit and stayed on the top of an Indie album chart
for over 5 consecutive weeks. Mari's hits include "Do You Remember
Love? ", "Cecil's Umbrella", "One Gram Of
Happiness", and "Love Is A Miracle". Mari has also
appeared in anime, film, television, and on radio in both Japan and the
U.S. She most recently starred in the short feature film "Green
Tea-r" and also wrote and performed the theme song
"Petal". The film won the top honor of Grandprix at the
Takazuka Film Festival in Japan and also had a showing at the Berlin
Film Festival.
This is Ms. Iijima's second appearance and FIRST performance at Japantown Anime Faire.
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COSPLAY GUEST
YAYA HAN |
COSPLAY GUEST
TRISTINE CITRINE |
 AKAI SKY |
akai
SKY is a Japanese rock and Anime cover band based in San Francisco,
California. They cover current, popular artists such as Líarc En Ciel,
Asian Kung Fu Generation, and the Pillows. The members met each other in
school and decided to form a band in 2002. Although they played casually
at first, the band decided to begin performing publicly in 2005. Since
their first performance together in September 2005, akai SKY has played
seven shows at anime conventions and other anime-related events
throughout California including Anime Expo and Fanime.
This is akai SKY's second appearance and FIRST performance at Japantown Anime Faire. |
 STEPHANIE YANEZ with SLY |
STEPHANIE
YANEZ Discovering music at the age of 5, Stephanie Yanez was born to sing. Her love for music has eventually led to recording four songs on Geneon's Anime Karaoke Collection, which included three songs recorded with I'VE, a Japan-based record label. Her unique voice has steadily gained fans of anime and music alike. This is only the beginning. This is Stephanie's second appearance at Japantown Anime Faire. SLY |
NEKO PUNCH |
Neko Punch was formed in December 2004 by core members Mikko and Buzzy to play a brand of pop music influenced by the jpop sounds of the 80s and 90s. Some highlights include a gig at the now defunct Club Lamia opening up for Space Vacuum from Outer Space as well as playing at the Brainwash cafe and a japanese pop culture event at the Berkeley Art Museum. 2006 brings a new more powerful and more musical line up with the additions of Joachim (drums) and Woei (guitar). The band has no boundaries now and can go from hard rock to ska to soul to prog rock. Come see the debut of the new line up at Red Devil Lounge on Sept 14th! This is Neko Punch's FIRST appearance at Japantown Anime Faire |
