Anime Expo 2011 Announces Crypton Future Media CEO Hiroyuki Itoh and Producer Wataru Sasaki as Guests of Honor
LOS ANGELES (June 2, 2011) — In conjunction with the U.S. live concert debut of Hatsune Miku, Anime Expo 2011 has announced as Guests of Honor the creative team behind Japan's Virtual Pop Idol — Crypton Future Media CEO Hiroyuki Itōh and Producer Wataru Sasaki. Itoh and Sasaki will give Miku fans a glimpse into the world of the digital diva during a special panel at Anime Expo, which takes place from July 1 – 4, 2011 at the Los Angeles Convention Center.
Crypton Future Media, Inc. (HQ: Sapporo-shi, Hokkaido; CEO: Hiroyuki Itōh) has been handling software sound source since 1995, and is the developer of Character Vocal Series 01: Hatsune Miku, which was released in 2007.
As CEO of Crypton Future Media, Mr. Hiroyuki has established himself as a visionary “meta-creator” — one who creates various products and services to assist the creations of other people. Soon after creating a new category of Vocaloid entertainers with the introduction of Hatsune Miku, he launched PIAPRO (www.piapro.jp), the Vocaloid info, music and artwork-sharing site. Most recently in 2010, he started the music aggregation service ROUTER.FM, which has started to transmit more than 1,000 independent labels to the world.
Wataru Sasaki is in charge of Crypton Future Media's marketing for music creation software. With the introduction of KAITO, the first male Vocaloid in 2006, and then with Hatsune Miku, Mr. Sasaki has used blogs, Twitter and other social media to spark an explosion in consumer-generated content using music creation software. He is currently recording various patterns of voices in Japanese and English as he continues to explore new possibilities in this realm.
In addition to the Crypton Future Media executives, Anime Expo 2011 has announced a line-up of Guests of Honor that includes chart-topping Japanese pop trio Kalafina, Japanese TV Host and blogger Danny Choo, voice actress and singer Miyuki Sawashiro, voice actor Vic Mignogna and video game developer Sohei Niikawa, as well as Anime Expo's first ever Virtual Guest of Honor, Hatsune Miku. Themed the “Year of the Fan,” Anime Expo 2011 will fully immerse guests into the world of Japanese animation, manga (comic books), music and fashion. Anime Expo is a non-stop marathon of Japanese pop culture that's been likened to Halloween in July.
To stay updated on all of the latest Anime Expo 2011 news, follow us on Twitter, become a fan on Facebook and check us out on YouTube.
About Anime Expo
Held annually in Los Angeles, Anime Expo is North America's largest anime and manga celebration. Anime Expo gives fans the rare opportunity to meet and hear from some of the most famous anime, manga and musical artists from Japan and get into the action through everything from costume play, karaoke and video competitions to exclusive screenings, non-stop video gaming competitions and the wildly popular Masquerade, in which fans transform themselves into their favorite characters through creative costuming, accessories and make-up and put on their own show before an audience of thousands. AX 2011 will be held July 1 – July 4, 2011 at the Los Angeles Convention Center. To register or for more information, please visit www.anime-expo.org.
About The Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation
The Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation (SPJA) is a non-profit organization whose mission is 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®. For more information, please visit www.spja.org.
Crypton Future Media, Inc. (HQ: Sapporo-shi, Hokkaido; CEO: Hiroyuki Itōh) has been handling software sound source since 1995, and is the developer of Character Vocal Series 01: Hatsune Miku, which was released in 2007.
As CEO of Crypton Future Media, Mr. Hiroyuki has established himself as a visionary “meta-creator” — one who creates various products and services to assist the creations of other people. Soon after creating a new category of Vocaloid entertainers with the introduction of Hatsune Miku, he launched PIAPRO (www.piapro.jp), the Vocaloid info, music and artwork-sharing site. Most recently in 2010, he started the music aggregation service ROUTER.FM, which has started to transmit more than 1,000 independent labels to the world.
Wataru Sasaki is in charge of Crypton Future Media's marketing for music creation software. With the introduction of KAITO, the first male Vocaloid in 2006, and then with Hatsune Miku, Mr. Sasaki has used blogs, Twitter and other social media to spark an explosion in consumer-generated content using music creation software. He is currently recording various patterns of voices in Japanese and English as he continues to explore new possibilities in this realm.
In addition to the Crypton Future Media executives, Anime Expo 2011 has announced a line-up of Guests of Honor that includes chart-topping Japanese pop trio Kalafina, Japanese TV Host and blogger Danny Choo, voice actress and singer Miyuki Sawashiro, voice actor Vic Mignogna and video game developer Sohei Niikawa, as well as Anime Expo's first ever Virtual Guest of Honor, Hatsune Miku. Themed the “Year of the Fan,” Anime Expo 2011 will fully immerse guests into the world of Japanese animation, manga (comic books), music and fashion. Anime Expo is a non-stop marathon of Japanese pop culture that's been likened to Halloween in July.
To stay updated on all of the latest Anime Expo 2011 news, follow us on Twitter, become a fan on Facebook and check us out on YouTube.
About Anime Expo
Held annually in Los Angeles, Anime Expo is North America's largest anime and manga celebration. Anime Expo gives fans the rare opportunity to meet and hear from some of the most famous anime, manga and musical artists from Japan and get into the action through everything from costume play, karaoke and video competitions to exclusive screenings, non-stop video gaming competitions and the wildly popular Masquerade, in which fans transform themselves into their favorite characters through creative costuming, accessories and make-up and put on their own show before an audience of thousands. AX 2011 will be held July 1 – July 4, 2011 at the Los Angeles Convention Center. To register or for more information, please visit www.anime-expo.org.
About The Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation
The Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation (SPJA) is a non-profit organization whose mission is 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®. For more information, please visit www.spja.org.
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