2015: The Year in Cons

Even though we’re already halfway into 2016, I’ve been so busy sweatshopping Looking for Miku that the last post from 2015 was only a few weeks ago so now’s as good a time as any to recap last year’s cons!

Ninja-Con 2015

Hard to believe, but the number of cons I went to was even lower than in 2014, when I went to five cons (seven if you count the two double-cons of Robo Toy Fest × Brick Boutique [May 2014] and FanimeCon/Clockwork Alchemy 2014 as four separate cons). I was still working on my short film, Looking for Miku, so the first con of the year for me was about a year ago, in June: Ninja-Con 2015! Since it’s run by my good friend D-boy and I was staffing as usual, there’s no way I could miss it!

Anime Expo 2015

After skipping AX14 to work on my film (a lot of help that was, lol), I made my return to Anime Expo. Since I wasn’t on Facebook, no one besides the friends I was staying with even knew I was there! It was a fun way to enjoy the con, just randomly running into friends who were surprised and happy to see me, without the stress of trying to meet up with people or sticking to a schedule. I got to enjoy the con on my own terms, was able to take in some cool panels, and spent more time that I usually get to with my closest friends; maybe I should drop off of Facebook more often!

D23 Expo 2015

I wasn’t the only one to skip a year, as D23 Expo, the biennial Disney convention, also returned! I managed to make it down for Day 3 but spent most of it in line waiting for the privilege of giving Mickey my money. ^^; I did manage to see some cool stuff from upcoming film, television, theme park, and other projects as well as some awesome cosplays!

Pacific Media Expo 2015

As with 2014, I closed out 2015’s cons with a visit to PMX (although it was way earlier than usual since it took place over Labor Day weekend in September instead of Veteran’s Day weekend in November). It was the first time I was able to take advantage of being press and I managed to get some great (well, great for me, lol) photos during the Femme Fatale concert!

Here’s looking forward to the cons of 2016!

Check out the posts linked above for expanded con coverage from 2015, see full albums on my Fan Page on Facebook, and be sure to Like The Vault on Facebook, where I’m finally caught up through 2010! 😀

Ninja-Con 2015: Photoshoots

As usual, there were some great cosplays at Ninja-Con this year but since I was running around trying to cover as much of the con as possible I didn’t get to photograph very many of them. I even wound up missing most of the cosplay contest (though I was able to catch the judging portion)! D:

Luckily, I managed to steal some shots of my good friend Aoi Mizuno in my first shoot since my shoot with GNB Cosplay at PMX 2014.

Hadn’t shot in a while and Aoi was trying to, uh, encourage me. ^^;

Celeste Orchid (as Mulan) was the emcee for the cosplay contest.

Before the awarding of prizes, the judges (Cas Anvar, Yuks General, Angie Rikku Cosplay, and Garp Stavo Sauce) each said a few words as Ninja-Con Founder and CEO Danny Gonzales and cosplay contest emcee Celeste Orchid looked on. See the winners in the full album on Facebook (link below)!

Here’s Bomb Shell Cosplay as Katsuragi Misato from Evangelion.

Ariel and (Hipster?) Eric!

There are so many super sentai series that I have no idea where he’s from, but he was pretty awesome!

My friends and I were heading to dinner after the con ended and ran into these great Naruto cosplayers!

Hopefully I’ll be able to get more of the awesome cosplayers next year, especially since the Garden makes such a great backdrop!

See the full album on my Fan Page on Facebook and be sure to Like The Vault on Facebook, where I’m finally caught up through 2010! 😀

2015 06 06 Sat: Ninja-Con 2015: Photoshoots

Full Coverage of Ninja-Con 2015:

Ninja-Con 2015: Overview & Panels
Ninja-Con 2015: Opening Ceremonies & SouLandscape
Ninja-Con 2015: BURAI -Standing All Alone-
Ninja-Con 2015: Lolita Dark
Ninja-Con 2015: Photoshoots

Ninja-Con 2015: Lolita Dark

I didn’t go to very many events during the first half of the year, but every time I did it seemed to involve my friends from Lolita Dark! After Anison USA in March and Tokyo Status in April, I had the pleasure of attending another rocking performance by them at Ninja-Con.

Unlike the two previous shows, this one was outside in the daylight, making the black-and-white trick unnecessary. Of course, the outdoors presented its own challenges since some of the band members were awash in sunlight while others were bathed in the shadow of the JACCC.

Having a mic right in front of people’s faces doesn’t generally make for a great shot. ^^;

I really love this shot of Rain (maybe because it’s actually in focus, lol).

Other audience members make for quick and easy vignetting. 😀

Super widescreen shot of the band!

Actually had to comp this one together from two different shots since everyone was so energetic. ^^;

Being able to shoot from the steps on the side of the stage let me get some interesting shots.

Was able to run up to the deck for a few minutes before security chased me away. :p

The James Irvine Japanese Garden really is a lovely space for all kinds of events!

It’s always hard to get shots of drumsticks in the air but not in the drummer’s face!

At any rate, it’s always awesome to watch and photograph Lolita Dark in action, and can’t wait to see them again!

See the full album on my Fan Page on Facebook and be sure to Like The Vault on Facebook, where I’m finally caught up through 2010! 😀

2015 06 06 Sat: Ninja-Con 2015: Lolita Dark

Full Coverage of Ninja-Con 2015:

Ninja-Con 2015: Overview & Panels
Ninja-Con 2015: Opening Ceremonies & SouLandscape
Ninja-Con 2015: BURAI -Standing All Alone-
Ninja-Con 2015: Lolita Dark
Ninja-Con 2015: Photoshoots

Ninja-Con 2015: BURAI -Standing All Alone-

This year, Ninja-Con had a special preview of BURAI -Standing All Alone-, an original samurai stage play written and directed by Naoki Fujiyama and performed in English.

The main character, Sadatora (Masa Kanome, left) with his wife Yuki (Kyoko Okazaki).

The preview was an up-close-and-personal affair with unexpected audience participation. Here, Yuki converses with strangers dressed in odd clothing (Lolita Dark‘s Rain and Rayko).

There was also some impressive sword fighting — some of which required my playing with aspect ratios.

Kyoko Okazaki, who plays Yuki, asks the audience for a volunteer for the next part of the preview.

My friend Risu Kim got picked!

You’ll have to click over to the full album (linked below) to see how Risu did!

Many folks in the audience wanted a photo with the cast!

The teaser left such an impression that my friends and I ultimately went to check out the full performance at the JACCC’s Aratani Theatre later in August. If you missed them this past season, don’t despair; BURAI makes occasional appearances at local events and will be returning next year, so be sure to keep an eye out!

See the full album on my Fan Page on Facebook and be sure to Like The Vault on Facebook, where I’m finally caught up through 2010! 😀

2015 06 06 Sat: Ninja-Con 2015: BURAI -Standing All Alone-

Full Coverage of Ninja-Con 2015:

Ninja-Con 2015: Overview & Panels
Ninja-Con 2015: Opening Ceremonies & SouLandscape
Ninja-Con 2015: BURAI -Standing All Alone-
Ninja-Con 2015: Lolita Dark
Ninja-Con 2015: Photoshoots

Ninja-Con 2015: Opening Ceremonies & SouLandscape

I generally don’t attend them for most cons so I can’t really compare, but Ninja-Con‘s Opening Ceremonies are always fun!

Bookending the introductions of this year’s Guests of Honor was a musical set by Stephanie Yanez. I last saw her at Anison USA and, as at that appearance, she was joined by the cutesome guitarist from Nakitora! A performance by the Tokari Maids followed, and it included the debut of the Tokari Butlers.

Founder and CEO Danny Gonzales says a few words during Ninja-Con 2015’s Opening Ceremonies at Little Tokyo’s Japanese American Cultural & Community Center.

The Guests of Honor traditionally say a few words during Opening Ceremonies. Here is Voice Actor Kira Buckland (Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic).

Cosplay Guest of Honor Yuks General introduces herself.

My friend Garp Stavo Sauce looks like he should be working Access Control!

I had the chance to speak briefly with Voice Actor Cas Anvar (Assassin’s Creed: Revelations); he’s a really cool guy!

The Tokari Maids and Butlers enjoyed Stephanie Yanez’ performance before doing their own.

Maids Kiki and Estela of Tokari Maids did a number by themselves.

Afterwards, a bunch of the Tokari Maids and Butlers did a dance as well!

Later in the morning after their panel with Lolita Dark, SouLandscape also performed. Since they went on late and I was running around covering some of the other events, I only managed to get a few photos of them. They sounded pretty interesting though so hopefully I’ll be able to catch another show with them soon!

See the full album on my Fan Page on Facebook and be sure to Like The Vault on Facebook, where I’m finally caught up through 2010! 😀

2015 06 06 Sat: Ninja-Con 2015: Opening Ceremonies & SouLandscape

Full Coverage of Ninja-Con 2015:

Ninja-Con 2015: Overview & Panels
Ninja-Con 2015: Opening Ceremonies & SouLandscape
Ninja-Con 2015: BURAI -Standing All Alone-
Ninja-Con 2015: Lolita Dark
Ninja-Con 2015: Photoshoots

Ninja-Con 2015: Overview & Panels

Ninja-Con returned to Little Tokyo for a three-peat!

Instead of being spread out all over Little Tokyo like last year, Ninja-Con staked its claim and took over the Japanese American Cultural and Community Center (JACCC), its James Irvine Japanese Garden, and its courtyard! In fact, there was so much going on that I had to break my coverage up into five(!) different posts! This first post covers the con in general and panels in particular.

The indie anime convention once again packed the area with artists, performers, and voice actors, and expanded its offerings to include food trucks, butlers, and Hollywood celebrities.

Had never checked out the Japanese American National War Memorial Court at the Japanese American Cultural & Community Center before.

Artist Amanda Arias at her booth, one of many in Ninja-Con 2015’s Artists Alley. She was much nicer than the girl who apparently didn’t want free publicity. :p

Good Smile‘s Nendoroid Expression Challenge, where you can make faces for Nendos!

My friends from Lolita Dark shared a panel with SouLandscape before their respective performances.

Cosplay Guests of Honor Yuks General and Garp Stavo Sauce held a Q&A Panel.

Frank Beddor, writer of The Looking Glass Wars and producer of There’s Something About Mary also held a Q&A Panel.

The Divas of Voice Over Q&A Panel was run by Danielle McRae (Skullgirls), Kira Buckland (Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic), and Sarah Williams (Kill La Kill).

Jon Allen held two panels during Ninja-Con, one of which was Independent Wrestling w/ “The” Jon Allen.

Dustbunny, Tokari Maid & Butler Manager Chise, and others held the Support Anti-Bullying Panel.

Mynx Midnight (Midnight Shinigami) and Dino Andrade (Hellsing Ultimate) hold the Industry Parents Q&A Panel.

Of course, the Tokari Maids were present and this year the Tokari Butlers made their debut!

Lots of attendees took part in the J-Pop Dance Panel!

This laid-back con keeps enhancing its offerings and topping itself; can’t wait to see what next year will hold!

See the full album on my Fan Page on Facebook and be sure to Like The Vault on Facebook, where I’m finally caught up through 2010! 😀

2015 06 06 Sat: Ninja-Con 2015: Overview & Panels

Full Coverage of Ninja-Con 2015:

Ninja-Con 2015: Overview & Panels
Ninja-Con 2015: Opening Ceremonies & SouLandscape
Ninja-Con 2015: BURAI -Standing All Alone-
Ninja-Con 2015: Lolita Dark
Ninja-Con 2015: Photoshoots