Source: Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation press releases Official Site: anime-expo.org Special Thanks to Kimberly Groomes Anime Expo, the nation’s largest anime/manga convention, begins tomorrow and runs through July 4 at the Los Angeles Convention Center in Southern California. Check out the previous coverage here on SciFi Japan for full details on AX 2010, and enjoy these final updates regarding expo guests and events...

GUESTS OF HONOR

Musical group RSP comes to Anime Expo to celebrate their involvement with the popular anime, BLEACH, and is scheduled to perform live in Nokia Plaza L.A. Live on July 1 at 1:00 p.m. RSP, or Real Street Performance, is a Japanese pop group made of members Ai and Saki. The group has released several fan-favorite singles, including "A Street Story" and the female version of "Lifetime Respect". RSP also recorded two ending songs for BLEACH – Kansha and Tabidatsu Kimi e. Famous voice actor Masakazu Morita is most known for his role as Ichigo Kurosaki in BLEACH. He has also lent his talents to the anime titles FINAL FANTASY X as Tidus, GUNDAM SEED DESTINY as Auel Neider and SENGOKU BASARA as Maeda Keiji. In addition, Mr. Morita was featured as the voice of Troy Bolton in the wildly popular Japanese version of HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL 1 and 2.

AX IDOL 2010 HOSTS AND JUDGES

Los Angeles, CA – June 23, 2010 – Anime Expo® is pleased to announce today the AX Idol 2010 participating hosts and judges for the event’s 8th season. One of the most coveted and attended events at Anime Expo, AX Idol gives attendees the unique opportunity to display their voice acting and singing talents in front of both fans and respected industry professionals. Each year, attendees audition with the chance to win amazing prizes, including the opportunity to record a professional demo with the most prestigious anime recording studios in North America, Bang Zoom! Entertainment. Thousands of fans gather around to cheer on for their favorites as AX Idol competitors battle it out on stage. AX Idol is brought to you by Bang Zoom! Entertainment and VIZ Media. The 2010 AX Idol competition will be co-hosted by voice actor Johnny Yong Bosch and voice actress Christina Vee. Mr. Bosch and his band, Eyeshine, will also open the competition with a mini-set of 3 songs. The audition portion of the event will be hosted by Jonathan Meza of AnimeTV. The judge line-up will feature BangZoom! President Eric Sherman; producer and BangZoom! Vice-President Kaeko Sakamoto; musician/voice actor Jason C. Miller; and voice actor Vic Mignogna.

North American Premiere of KISARAGI Theatrical Play

The North American premiere of the theatrical play, KISARAGI, will be hosted on July 2 at 4:00 p.m. in the J.W. Marriott Hotel. KISARAGI was originally released as a film in 2007. The critically acclaimed film received various awards including the 31st Japan Academy Award Picture of the Year, the 51st Blue Ribbon Award and the Katteni Eiga Award. In 2009, it was adapted into a theatrical play in Japan and China and opened to rave reviews. One year after the suicide of C-list model Kisaragi Miki, five of her fans come together for a commemorative meeting. They slowly come to the realization that her death didn`t occur the way they thought it did. The more they talk, the more the case takes shape in their minds, and the closer they come to the truth. Five actors join together to bring you an exciting murder mystery of epic proportions. The starring cast includes SOPHIA lead singer, Mitsuru Matsuoka; Nezumi Imamura; Yousuke Asari; Masahiro Usui; and Yuichirou Nakayama.

About the Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation

The Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation (SPJA) is a non-profit organization with a mission to popularize and educate the American public about anime and manga, as well as provide a forum to facilitate communication between professionals and fans. This organization is more popularly known by its entertainment property ­Anime Expo. More information can be found at its website spja.org.