VIZ Media Celebrates BERSERK at Comic-Con, and Welcomes Studio 4C Guest!

VIZ MEDIA CELEBRATES BERSERK:
THE GOLDEN AGE ARC ANIME FILM TRILOGY
AT 2012 COMIC-CON INTERNATIONAL

VIZ Media Welcomes Studio 4ºC
Founder, President & Producer Eiko Tanaka,
And Plans An All-Day BERSERK Celebration
With Panel Discussion, Exclusive Film Screening, And Autograph Session

San Francisco, CA, June 25, 2012 – VIZ Media, LLC (VIZ Media), the largest distributor and licensor of anime and manga in North America, invites fans attending 2012 Comic-Con International to join an exciting all-day celebration of all things BERSERK on Friday, July 13th as the company announces a special slate of activities to preview the forthcoming release of the BERSERK: THE GOLDEN AGE ARC trilogy of anime feature films this fall.

An appearance by the Founder/CEO of Studio 4ºC, which produced the new films, is scheduled in addition to an informative panel discussion. In addition there will be a very special, advance, on-site screening of BERSERK: THE GOLDEN AGE ARC I – THE EGG OF THE KING. The film will formally debut later this year.

The VIZ Media Comic-Con booth will be a hub of activity throughout Friday, July 13th as the company welcomes Studio 4ºC Founder, President and CEO Eiko Tanaka to the show. The recent BERSERK: THE GOLDEN AGE ARC film trilogy, based on the bestselling medieval dark fantasy manga (graphic novel) series created by Kentaro Miura, was produced in Japan by Studio 4ºC. Tanaka is a prolific anime producer whose notable credits include work on Studio Ghibli’s My Neighbor Totoro and Kiki’s Delivery Service as well as producing director Katsuhiro Otomo’s Memories and Michael Arias’s Tekkonkinkreet, which was awarded the Nipon Academy Award for Best Animated Film and nominated for an Oscar. She also took part in the production of Warner Brothers’ Batman: Gotham Knight, the animated television program, Thundercats, and Microsoft’s Halo Legends. Eiko Tanaka will appear at the VIZ Media booth (# 2813) for a very special signing session at 3PM. Ms. Tanaka will also have a signing at the Dark Horse Comics Booth # 2615 at 2PM.

Comic-Con attendees are further invited to an informative BERSERK panel discussion scheduled for Friday, July 13th from 5:30pm to 6:30pm in Room 32AB. Tanaka will be joined by VIZ Media staff for a rare interview session to find out what it really takes to transform this stark manga into a gripping animated feature. Fans will not want to miss the very special sneak preview of BERSERK: THE GOLDEN AGE ARC II - THE DOLDREY WAR. Come early and receive fun BERSERK promo items; additional prizes also will be given away during the panel.

BERSERK Day will be capped off with a special Comic-Con exclusive – a live on- site screening of BERSERK: THE GOLDEN AGE ARC I – THE EGG OF THE KING, scheduled for 8:30pm to 10:30pm in Room 32AB. The film will be preceded by a special personal introduction by Eiko Tanaka.

Combining a foreboding medieval European-insired setting with fantasy and exquisitely detailed swordsmanship, BERSERK: THE GOLDEN AGE ARC I – THE EGG OF THE KING follows lone mercenary Guts as he travels the land where a hundred-year-old war is taking place. His ferocity and ability to take down enemies attracts the attention of Griffith, leader of the mercenary group “The Band of the Hawk,” and Guts is recruited to the unit. Thanks to their continued victories on the battlefield, the bond between Guts and Griffith deepens, but despite all their success, Guts begins to question his reasons for fighting for Griffith’s dream. Unknown to Guts, this unyielding dream is about to bestow a horrible fate on them both.

The BERSERK manga series, by Kentaro Miura, debuted in Japan in 1989 and quickly drew a devoted following, going on to sell more than 30 million copies worldwide. The series, still ongoing in Japan, has been published in North America and the UK, as well as in France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Russia, and Latin America. The BERSERK manga has also inspired a popular anime television series and has spawned a variety of related video games, collectable figures and toys, and music soundtracks, as well as the current BERSERK: THE GOLDEN AGE ARC film trilogy.

For more information on the BERSERK: THE GOLDEN AGE ARC film trilogy, please visit the official Facebook page at: www.facebook.com/BerserkFilm.

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Viz Media, LLC Press Release