This Weekend: Manga Events at FanimeCon 2014 in San Jose
Memorial Day weekend is traditionally the unofficial kickoff to summer fun! For anime, manga and cosplay fans in the San Francisco Bay Area, it also means that it’s time for FanimeCon, an annual anime convention held at the McEnery Convention Center in San Jose. The fun has already begun, with the swap meet and early registration check-in on Thursday night, and keeps going throughout the weekend, from Friday to Monday.
Fanime is mostly focused on anime fun, but it also has several events that will be of interest to manga readers. Here’s my picks for panels and events that are worth a look!
VIZ Media
FRIDAY, MAY 23
4:00 – 5:00 pm – VIZ Media Panel | Panels 2 – Fairmont Hotel, Regency Ballroom, 2nd floor
They’ve wowed us with their Sailor Moon anime announcements at Anime Central — what will the VIZ Media crew have to share with fans at Fanime? Come to see what’s new and coming soon in anime, manga and more from VIZ!
5:00 – 6:00 pm – Anime and Manga for Parents | Panels 3, Fairmont Hotel, Gold Ballroom, 2nd floor
FanimeCon special guest Giles Poitras, librarian and author of The Anime Companion gives parents an introduction to anime and manga.
SATURDAY, MAY 24
9:00 – 10:00 am – The Magical Girl’s Journey | Panels 1 – Fairmont Hotel, Imperial Ballroom 2nd floor
From the Fanime Program: “Every hero has a journey filled with trials and tribulations on their path to success, and magical girls are no exception. Come and take a peek at the steps in this mythical journey, from start to finish.”
11:00 am – 12 noon – Pokemon Adventures Manga Panel | Panels 2 – Fairmont Hotel, Regency Ballroom, 2nd floor
From the Fanime Program: “Hey Pokemon fans! Want to know the dark side of pokemon? DID YOU KNOW POKEMON DIE? And just who is RED exactly? Or are you just a humble pokemon fan wanting to learn more? If you answered yes to any of these questions then this panel is for you! Come learn about the Pokemon manga.”
Digital Manga Publishing
12 noon – 1:00 pm – DMI: Working with Manga | Panels 3 – Fairmont Hotel, Gold Ballroom, 2nd floor
Digital Manga, Inc. (DMI) talks about their upcoming manga and novel releases, both in print and digital, plus they’ll share some ways that fans can help them publish even more titles in English (and other languages!).
2:00 – 3:00 pm – Q&A with Takami Akai | Panels 2 – Fairmont Hotel, Regency Ballroom, 2nd floor
Animator and illustrator Takami Akai answers fan questions and will perhaps do a drawing demo!
2:00 – 3:00 pm – Living and Working in Japan | Panels 3, Fairmont Hotel, Gold Ballroom, 2nd floor
FanimeCon special guest Raj Ramayya discusses the basics of living and working in Japan, drawing from his own experiences of nearly 20 years in the land of the rising sun.
3:00 – 4:00 pm – Crunchyroll Industry Panel | Panels 1 – Fairmont Hotel, Imperial Ballroom 2nd floor
Join the Crunchyroll crew as they talk about their new anime, manga and drama offerings, and possibly make a few announcements for coming attractions too!
8:00 – 9:00 pm – Get Your Yaoi on with Yaoicon! | Panels 4 – Fairmont Hotel, California Ballroom, 2nd floor
Yaoi-Con, North America’s longest-running boys love-centric gathering is returning to the San Francisco Bay Area in October. Find out what’s in store and maybe score some BL goodies too!
Project H
10:00 – 11:00 pm – Project-H: Hentai Manga | Panels 2 – Fairmont Hotel, Regency Ballroom, 2nd floor
Hentai manga publisher Project-H is baaaack, and they’re at Fanime to share the latest, greatest and naughtiest manga for adults. NOTE: This panel is for fans age 18 and older, you must show an ID at the door.
11:00 pm – midnight – Weird Manga | Panels 3 – Fairmont Hotel, Gold Ballroom, 2nd floor
From the Fanime Program: “Odd, bizarre, insane, mind-bending and other synonyms of weird are just a few words we’d use to describe the manga in this panel. Discussion, suggestions, and Q&A with panelists who, since it takes one to know one, truly know what’s weird. WARNING: Ghost fetus ikebana (and other scary things).” NOTE: This panel is for fans age 18 and older, you must show an ID at the door.
SUNDAY, MAY 25
2:00 – 3:00 pm – Tokyo on the Cheap | Panels 3, Fairmont Hotel, Gold Ballroom, 2nd floor
FanimeCon special guest Giles Poitras, librarian and author of The Anime Companion and frequent traveler to Japan shares his budget travel tips to the motherland of manga and anime.
7:00 – 8:00 pm – History of Sports Manga/Anime | Panels 4 – Fairmont Hotel, California Ballroom, 2nd floor
From the Fanime Program: “An exploration of the history of sports manga and anime from its early days to the varied offerings of today with looks at related Japanese sport history and the state of the genre in the West. Presented by Tom Langston (@calaggie) of the Nigorimasen! Blog.”
9:00 – 10:00 pm – MangaGamer’s VN/Releases Panel | Panels 3 – Fairmont Hotel, Gold Ballroom, 2nd floor
“VN” stands for “Visual Novels,” a multi-media storytelling medium that you play like a game, and see the story unfold depending on what choices you make. See what MangaGamer has on their upcoming release schedule and learn more about this interactive storytelling medium.
I’ll be at Fanime on Friday afternoon and Saturday, snapping cosplay photos and reporting on some of the industry panels! Follow me on Twitter for the latest pics and news: @debaoki