Japanese culture and media have been very influential to mainstream American media in varied ways, some as obvious as Godzilla, others as subtle as an American remake of a Japanese horror flick. If you are a fan of Japanese culture, movies, anime or manga, SAN JAPAN is the place for you this weekend.
San Japan is San Antonio’s annual Japanese Culture and Anime Convention. This is the second year of the con and it is shaping up to be a big one. The 2008 show was a huge success with over 3,500 people attending! This year con organizer Dave Henken anticipates crowds in the 4,000+ range.
The list of events is lengthy. You can see and partake in Cosplay (costumed roleplay), Otaku-lympics (mock-olympic showdown), Ani-Idol (sing your favorite anime or video game song), concerts, a charity auction, panels, workshops, dance, art, interactive anime screenings and so much more.
There will be plenty of guest stars at the convention including voice actor Travis Willingham (Fullmetal Alchemist, Dragonball Z), Laura Bailey (Fruits Basket, Fullmetal Alchemist), Chris Patton (Bubblegum Crisis 2040, Nerima Daikon Brothers), Christopher Ayres, Jonathan Joss (King of the Hill, Jonah Hex) and hoards more. Antarctic Press, San Antonio-based purveyors of excellent comic titles like Gold Digger and Ninja High School will be in full effect with lots of creators on hand.
Expect concerts with musical guests the LeetStreet Boys, Tadahisa Yoshida, Random (a.k.a Mega Ran), ZeaLouS1, Katsuhiko Jinnai and Loliholix. Through in a healthy mix of dancing until 4AM and 24-hour video gaming and you have a powerful concoction of fun.
This event is definitely worth a visit.
San Japan 2.x is going on all weekend, August 14-16, at the San Antonio Municipal Auditorium (100 Auditorium Circle) and the Holiday Inn El Tropicano Riverwalk hotel (110 Lexington Ave). 3-Day Weekend Passes and Single-Day Passes are available at the convention. Get a taste of San Japan on their YouTube channel and follow the happenings on Twitter.
