Anime Festival Asia 2008

I came back from the press conference for the Anime Festival Asia 2008(AFA 08), at The Japanese Association Singapore. And thought to myself, 2008 is indeed a very good year for Singapore Anime Fans, with Singapore Toys and Comics Convention which is in July and the upcoming AFA08, exposing us to the industry and more.

Yes! AFA 2008 is going to be in Singapore at the Suntec Convention and Exhibition centre, Hall 403 and 404, on 22nd and 23rd Novemeber.

On the panel today, at the press conference the four speakers are, from the left to right.

Mr. Gregory Ho, vice president & general manager of Animax

Mr. Wong Kah Fai, deputy general manager, Bandai South Asia Pte Ltd

Mr Anthony Kang, President of Dentsu Singapore and Chairman of AFA 08

Mr. Richard Tan Executive Director, I-Promo Events and Marketing and Festival Director of AFA 08

Organised by I-Promo with partnership with Dentsu Singapore, with support from The Embassy of Japan to Singapore and Japan Foundation partly to promote the upcoming Japan Creative Centre(JCC) opening next year.

Bandai will also be taking part as the official sponsor and bringing us the one of the section, with many exciting items being brought into Singapore.

Anime Festival Asia is hoping to become an annual festival for the Fanbase, the Industry and the “common” people… Allowing everyone to enjoy and celebrate Anime, while showing that the anime industry is not as small as many would think, and there is a future in an anime related career, with the growth of the industry.

AFA 08, is to be divided into 6 experience zones:

Akiba Town,

A section that is a copy of Akihabara, selling of merchandises and etc… … This is where you will find Chuangyi, and other companies. The list of exhibitors are not released yet but goodies can be expected as exclusive items are constantly mentioned.

Anime Live,

The stage area where featured Anime is going to be screened, currently 2 titles are going to be screened during the event, “Genius Party Beyond”, Anime shorts from Studio 4C and Tamagotchi Connection. This will also be the location for the Cosplay competition, Seiyu interview…, Performances!!!, Industry Panels and character appearences from Power Ranger and Tamagotchi Family and more!

Update: Forgotten to mention somethings… 2 guest have been confirmed to be appearing and giving a speech at AFA 08, they are,

Director Koji Morimoto, Studio 4°C and Marimi Sakurai, Project Manager for Studio 4°C. Their profile can be found here

More will be announced as time comes… look out for it… very exciting, especially the performances.

Anime Blockbusters,

Showcasing the exclusive footage, artifacts and creative scene materials, such as storyboards, character and prop/backdrop designs

The titles that will be showcased have not been announced yet… look forward to it…

Industry,

This zone is for all inspiring mangaka and anime makers, with all the industry leaders here to share their expertise and knowledge on content development. Seminars will also be held regarding content development, piracy, copyright and more.

Visitors wanting to join the anime industry should visit this area, as schools, and production companies will be featured here.

Mangaka,

Well… This a zone that would be featuring all thing related to Manga Art. Showcasing sketches from manga artist and etc. Artworks from the various art competition will also be featured here, like Graphite ‘08 and Mangaka 08.

Famous Mangakas have been invited, but who are they? We don’t know… but their names will be announced as the date gets nearer.

Last but not least the Zone brought to us by Bandai

Bandai’s Planet Mech,

Featuring model kits and toys, including exclusive collectibles for collectors. This zone is also the area for Bandai to showcase their most priced Gundam kits, namely the Gundam OO and BB Senshi Sangukuden. Other then gundam, Bandai will also be featuring Chogokin, Saint Seiya, and SIC collectors’ Toys…

Another interesting showcase is that, Bandai Action Kit Universal Cup(BAKUC) entries will also be seen during the two day show, along with past winners showing off their dioramas of Gundam Seed Destiny.

During the press conference, Bandai also featured a few video of their latest toys and games.

Animax will also be the regional broadcaster for the event…

After the press conference,

I did a little talk with Mr Wong Kah Fai, Deputy General Manager of Bandai South Asia Pte Ltd. And found out that Bandai have just setup an office in Singapore, and truly hopes bring more exciting events here to Singapore. For example, BAKUC finals can be held in Singapore in the future instead of Hong Kong and etc.

He also told be that with any luck, the head office in Japan might send a Gundamprototype over for the show. However when asked if Bandai will be showcasing other model kit like their Macross Frontier YF-25, he told me that due to licensing problem, those might not make it here.

After that when talking with the officials, I found out that they are doing their best to invite mangaka, seiyus and even singers to attend the event. Some of the names mentioned are very promising but those are not confirmed…

Will a Japanese Seiyu/Singer be performing for us this year? Looks like we will have to wait and see who is/are going to answer the call to meet us in Singapore…

Btw, I missed out something… The event entrance is not free… but it’s not expensive, don’t worry. It’s at an affordable price of $5 for a day or $8 for both. It’s really just a token fee, and I don’t think they will be earning a cent from this…

Other blogers(That i know of) that also attended the Press conference are, Dark Mirage and Fool’s Progress, you might want to read their entries for more information.

Very excited Nyan!

Update: Looks like alot of blogs are looking out for this event… Really!! Just look at the Press release page of AFA08