New York Anime Festival 2009 Preview
Brett | September 1, 2009 | 11:49 pm
I ordered my ticket and my cousin’s ticket for the New York Anime Festival (N.Y.A.F.) over this past weekend. It just so happens the con falls on the weekend of my birthday (my birthday being September 24th and the con running from September 25th – 27th). My cousin and I will be attending on Saturday, September 26th because 1. this is the longest day and 2. it just a convenient day with no school on the day of or the next. As for some small info about the N.Y.A.F. it takes place at the Javit’s Center in Manhattan in New York City. This will be the third year for the con, and last year (2008) the attendance was 18,399. Which will be the largest con I have been to. The last con I attended was AnimeNEXT 2008 last June, with an attendance of 7,900, and a few other small local college cons.
After the jump are the special events going on and the things I am most looking forward to. :D
Things to be excited for:
• The guests of honor Yoshiyuki Tomino who worked on the original Mobile Suit Gundam, and Yui Makino who voiced various characters including Misaki from Welcome to the N.H.K. It would be pretty awesome to get some autographs or even a hand shake. My only problem is I don’t know how I would act around such honorable people. While fans expect autographs and various other things, I feel like I shouldn’t let myself make these people seem like untouchable gods because in reality they are just normal people like you and me. Fandom/idolization of an actual person for me is a very strange concept and idea. Who knows, maybe I’m just crazy.
• I would have to say I am most excited that AKB48 is attending and performing at N.Y.A.F. the day I am attending. I can only hope I get to see them perform. As I posted in the AKB48 @ N.Y.A.F. post, they are basically a large group of idols who sing poppy songs. I think concerts are very exciting to begin with, and I can only imagine what the energy will be like.
• Seeing various quality cosplay. While I don’t cosplay, it is still great to see a character you really enjoy represented faithfully. Expect a large amount of cosplay photos following the day of the con, it should be pretty interesting!
• Spending time with my cousin and various other people with a similar interest in all things Japanese, from anime to manga to music to dramas.
• The MERCH. I am pumped to get some exclusive things you can’t normally buy without importing or paying a ridiculous amount of money for. For the size of the con there should be tons of booths and retailers.
While I am slightly worried that the size of the con may be over whelming at first, I think it will be a very enjoyable time. Be ready for some videos and pictures when it is all said and done. From the train ride, to the walking to the Javit’s Center, to actually attending the con, it will be a long day, but in a way a great birthday gift. ;)
If you’re attending and want to meet up with me, I’d be more than welcome to. Please feel free to email me at: brettchalupa@gmail.com
More information about the New York Anime Festival can be found at:
New York Anime Festival Official Website
Medium At Large (The Official Blog for the New York Anime Festival)
New York Anime Festival Information @ AnimeCon.com
WHAT! YUI MAKINO!!!!! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGHHHH
I usually am not really bent on stars/idols but Yui-chan sang the ARIA openings…
Wish I could attend a con at least once in my young life… T_T
Anime Expo in LA this year was the first anime con that I attended. Thinking back on it now, I regret wasting so much time there standing in long lines for hours while waiting for autographs (did this multiple times).
The merchant booths are great and I hope you pick up some cool things there. Have fun and I look forward to seeing your coverage on it!
I attended a Con in Hong Kong just to take a peek at what it was. It was cheap, with the entry fee at US$3.2/€2.3/£2. The animecon in Hong Kong was more crowded than the “mainstream” book fair held a few days prior…oh the irony – is the “non-mainstream” taking over the world? xD
Most important lesson for me for any future viewing is to check the schedules, which you’ve obviously done! Yui Makino should be interesting, although her live singing kinda sucks.
I find that Makino Yui’s voice becomes jarring/ear-screeching at certain pitch ranges, and Yokogao in particular (I love the tune) has those killing pitches in quite a few occasions.
She sounds great after post-processing though! xD
Yeah when I read she was part of Aria, I though “neko must know who she is!” xD
Cons are a lot of fun if you go with people, hopefully you get around to one eventually!
That would be a shame if she sang live and it stunk. :(
Hey hey hey Yui-chan’s singing doesn’t
doesn’t sound
…
Reminds me, I once listened to a live version of Yokogao, and I cringed a litle… but it wasn’t that bad… /self-delusion
I always found that concept of autographs pretty much ridiculous, but that’s perhaps because I know that there are thousands getting one as well. I think it only makes sense if it’s rare. ^^