Otaku no Podcast » jtaf

Project 760 Productions and Pop Japan Travel Present The Tokyo International Anime Fair Tour!

Donald Burr — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 07:50:07 +0000

Psst! Hey… wanna go to Japan? I know you do! So listen up!

Project 760 Productions, the group behind many otaku-centric events in the San Francisco Bay area including JTAF, is teaming up with Pop Japan Travel to offer you a chance to travel to Japan to attend the 2010 Tokyo International Anime Fair, one of the largest anime trade fairs in the world! You’ll get to take a sneak peek at the latest anime projects and series scheduled for the Spring and Summer TV seasons in Japan.

In addition, the tour will include visits to famous otaku landmarks, including Akihabara, the so-called “Electric Town,” a major shopping area for electronics and consumer goods, and now a hotbed of otaku activity, with many anime and manga shops, maid and cosplay cafés, and the like; Nakano Broadway, a ginormous building chock full of otaku-worthy shops — arcades, manga, anime, idol, music, toy, etc.; the Ghibli Museum, shrine of all things Studio Ghibli; a dinner at a cosplay café, a picnic by the sakura (cherry blossoms), a visit to an animation studio, and more!

This 9 day tour will take place between March 24 – April 1, and will run you $1,985, which includes all costs including round-trip airfare from Los Angeles, transportation, interpreters/tour guides, entrance fees, etc. You’ll also get a customized guidebook created exclusively for the tour. If you like, you can arrange your own travel plans to Japan, which drops the price to $1,360.

If there’s enough interest, they will also make several tour extensions available, including a tour of the port city of Yokohama and the history-filled city of Kamakura; and a tour of Studio Pierrot. (Tour extension is contingent on whether or not there is enough interest in it, and will incur an extra charge.)

Also, to commemorate the Studio Pierrot Tour, Pop Japan Travel is hosting a special contest through their YouTube channel.
The fan that submits the best video with a question for Studio Pierrot will receive their choice of three books courtesy of Digital Manga, Inc. and will get to visit Studio Pierrot free if they take the tour. Winners will receive a PJT credit towards a future tour if they cannot attend the TAF tour. The contest concludes on February 14, 2010.

For more information, visit the Pop Japan Travel website or email popjapantravel@gmail.com for more information. Mention Project 760 and get a $50 discount.

Better hurry – all applications are due by February 23, 2010

Episode #0004 – JTAF 5 Review

The Ghost in the Machine — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 20:53:39 +0000

If you are a new listener, and heard about us through either the Feeble Force network of podcasts, or Allison Sheridan’s excellent NosillaCast… welcome! Thank you for taking the time to download this episode, and we hope you stick around for many more to come!

In this episode, I discuss my review and impressions of the JTAF 5 (formerly JapanTown Anime Faire) anime convention, held November 10-11, 2007 at the Fort Mason center in San Francisco, CA. On the whole it was an enjoyable convention, but had some notable problems in terms of location and crowd control. Sadly, JTAF is going on hiatus, and have put all plans for next year’s JTAF on hold until further notice. I certainly hope this does not spell the end of what I consider a very friendly and fun convention.

Pictures from the event can be found on my Flickr page, and a highlights video will be posted here soon.

We also discuss some of the latest news in the anime and manga community, including the following stories:

Episode #0003 – Geneon and Anime Cons

The Ghost in the Machine — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 20:53:06 +0000

Finally, after a long hiatus, we are back in action! This time around, I decided to mix things up a bit and put together a panel discussion. We talk about this week’s big news, Geneon pulling out of the US anime business. We also talked about MikomiCon, a relatively new (only in its 2nd year) anime convention that we really like, as well as the awesome World Science Fiction Convention (Worldcon), recently held in Yokohama, Japan. We also make some recommendations on anime you should watch. Finally, I also talk a bit about my latest podcasting project, Podcasting on the Cheap.

Our Panelists:

Upcoming Anime Conventions

(check AnimeCons.com for a list of even more conventions)

Another Anime Convention

Courtyard Marriott Nashua Hotel, Nashua, NH

October 12-14

Zenkaikon

Valley Forge Scanticon Hotel and Conference Center, King of Prussia, PA

October 13

Chibi-Pa

Crown Plaza West Palm Beach Hotel, West Palm Beach, FL

October 19-21

JapanTown Anime Faire (JTAF)

Fort Mason Center, San Francisco, CA

November 10-11

Anime Los Angeles

Burbank Airport Marriott Hotel and Convention Center, Burbank, CA

January 4-6, 2008

Our Anime Recommendations:

Donald: Ergo Proxy, Martian Successor Nadesico, Kanon.

Michelle – Tekkon Kinkreet, Popeye, All Purpose Cultural Cat Girl Nuku Nuku (OAV) (TV series)

Chad – The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya.

Danny – Cat’s Eye, Orguss, Super Dimension Centure, Hellsing Ultimate.

Episode #0002 – Convention-al Wisdom

The Ghost in the Machine — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 20:51:39 +0000

Like many things in life, anime and manga are best enjoyed among groups of like-minded individuals. There’s nowhere better to accomplish this than at an Anime Convention. This week, we’ll discuss what anime conventions are, and what you should expect to encounter at one. We’ll also bring you reviews and commentary on two of the biggest anime and comic conventions in the world: Anime Expo, and San Diego Comic-Con International (SDCCI), which both occurred this past July. If you missed them, don’t worry! There are plenty of conventions coming up in the next few months, and we’ll give you the skinny on those as well. This is a two-part series, so there will be even more convention talk next week, so stay tuned!

As a reminder, please check our web site:

http://otakunopodcast.com/

for show notes, news about the podcast, and other items of interest.

Also be sure and check out our forums, and leave a comment by email or voice mail.

Upcoming Anime Conventions:

(for even more, be sure and visit http://www.animecons.com/)

Animation on Display

http://www.aodsf.org/

August 25

Cathedral Hill Hotel, San Francisco, CA

Little Tokyo Anime Festival

http://www.myspace.com/littletokyoanimefestival