Friday, May 4, 2012

Anime and Manga at Kids Comic Con 2012


Hey Readers!

Kids Comic Con ("KCC") is this weekend! This is our annual convention that specifically focuses on bringing young people, parents, artists, and educators together for a fun and enlightening view of our industry and its potentials. We invite families, schools, librarians, and more to show them how our exciting medium works and how it can support their academic and life goals. To that end, all materials presented at KCC are audiences/family friendly.

For the 2012 KCC, I was asked by Alex Simmons, the founder of the convention and my mentor, to bring the anime and manga culture to the convention for the first time in its 5-year history. Just to give you an idea on what we have in store for our attendees, there will be giveaways, panels and cosplayers.

My wonderful friends Pop Mhan and Kensuke Okabayashi will each do a panel via Skype. Pop Mhan is the artist and author of Blank, an OEL (Original English Language) manga published by TOKYOPOP. Kensuke is the author and artist for Manga for Dummies, which has been translated into German and French. Pop's panel will be at 1 p.m. and the focus is on improvements to become a better artist. Following that at 2 p.m. Kensuke's panel will be about pursuing a career in the industry.

In regards to giveaways, we have Gon items such as a hat, which has been provided by Kodansha Comics USA and Random House. Come and check out the cutest little dinosaur while supplies last!

Give props to Alex for hooking up with Viz Media! (thumbs up!) This year, Viz Media will be making an appearance and debuting a new graphic novel based on an animated series on Cartoon Network called Redakai. An artist from the company will be present and there are goodies from the publisher also while supplies last!

Lastly, you will see cosplayers roaming around the event and posing for pictures. If you want to take pictures with or of them, just ask. :-)

Please keep in mind that guests and activities are subject to change.

All right, see you there!

To learn more about the convention check out the Kids Comic Con website and the following links:
Kids Comic Con page on Facebook
Kids Comic Con Twitter Profile
KIDS COMIC CON LEAPS OVER OBSTACLES IN A SINGLE BOUND … by Alex Simmons, First Comics News, April 21, 2012
Kids Comic Con 2012: The Show Moves to New Bronx Location by Calvin Reid, Publisher's Weekly, April 27, 2012

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