Quote:
Originally Posted by C.A.
I was hanging around the karaoke for most of the day, it was really fun. I sang Seventh Moon, tomorrow I'll be singing alot more.
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At the Xing booth?
I arrived very late today, at 7pm (
*Sigh* SAF had to mobilise me on this day of all days). I was half expecting the fair to be closed for the
I <3 Anisong concert, and was pleasantly relieved to find it still opened. What's even more surprising was the size of the crowds at that hour — the event was still going strong, with several cosplayers still wandering around. The overall vibe was fantastic — helped greatly by the music and cheering from the Anisong concert in the neighbouring hall. The festival felt generally much better organised this year than last year's and, in fact, I think it will quite possibly outperform the Toy & Comic Con held earlier this year.
I was heartened by the return of the concept art wall, set up to let budding artists to put up their own designs and sketches — there's clearly no lack of talent in Singapore. And, as usual, the ones by home-grown Imaginary Friends Studio are simply gorgeous.
Take note that Stormlion is a spin-off company set up by Imaginary Friends Studio founder Edmund Shern. As I've mentioned in my earlier post, Stormlion will be collaborating with Japan's Production I.G (
Ghost in the Shell) to produce
Titan Rain.
The project is still very much in its conceptual stage, so there aren't many firm details about it yet, other than its key staff members. It will be directed by Atsushi Takeushi (
Ghost in the Shell: Innocence,
Appleseed: Ex Machina,
Clone Wars,
Avalon). The screenplay will be written by Tow Ubukata (
Le Chevalier de Eon,
Fafner). Concept art will be provided by Takashi Okazaki (
Afro Samurai) and the score will be done by Bear McCreary (
Battlestar Galactica,
Terminator: Sarah Connor Chronicles).
As you can see, it's an impressive line-up of staff with a broad range of international experience.
Titan Rain is being planned, right from the get-go, as a product not just for Japan, but also for the wider world market. Everyone in the project seemed especially excited to have Okazaki and McCreary on board, presumably because of their exposure to Hollywood-style productions.
Of course, it wouldn't be an anime fair if it didn't have toys, cosplay accessories and
doujinshi art for sale.
Yes, the "swords" stall was damn cool.
And so was the Moe Moe Kyun Maid Cafe. Well, not so much for me personally, since I find it a bit creepy to be served by teenage girls in maid costumes, but the idea is still lots of fun all the same. I hope the organisers will bring it back next year. (And, yes, that's one of the owners of local video-games store
Gamescore in the cafe.)
I'm a huge fan of Production I.G projects, so you can imagine how pleased I was to visit the studio's booth.
As you can see, Production I.G has started overseas promotion its first-ever 3-D project,
Oblivion Island: Haruka and the Magic Mirror. I've seen the
trailers, and let's just say I'm looking forward immensely to watching this film on cinema screens here. Oh, incidentally, I would have loved to buy the certified limited edition art pieces from
The Sky Crawlers, but they were going for S$300 (US$215) each...
But
Oblivion Island aside, the movie to
really watch out for is Mamoru Hosoda's
Summer Wars. Since it already has its own thread here in AnimeSuki, I don't need to say much more about it. Suffice to say, if you've enjoyed
The Girl Who Leapt Through Time, you're likely to enjoy this movie too.
"
This is a story about one big family that is abruptly challenged by a global crisis on the Internet of the future. Family bonds are the strongest of networks, no matter how advanced the high-tech networks of the Internet are..."
- Director Mamoru Hosoda
Finally, what's an anime fair without dolls and figurines to drool over? Feast your eyes on a few of them, courtesy of Danny Choo's booth.
I have to say, pride of place ought to go to these three figurines:
