The final day of Animazement is usually the calmest. Not many panels attended the final day but a lot of heartfelt goodbyes.
As I write this I'm actually sitting at a table munching down on breakfast, a Danish and orange juice from the gas station. It's the last day of the convention so the hotel is looking pretty sparse. The mood is calm this morning as everybody gathers to take the last few photos of cosplayers. Watching people give heartfelt goodbyes to friends both new and old. People rushing to check out of their hotel room and filling their car with all the swag they got. A cool calm mood runs through the hotel this Sunday morning.
So here I am back at the tent for TAF 2008, with Prof. Yasuo Yamaguchi. I don't really know what it's going to be about the book is vague about its description. The moment I walk in I'm handed a flyer by a member of the staff and Yamaguchi himself. Yamaguchi has a smile on his face as he hands me the flyer. The panel mostly consists of him talking about last year TAF. TAF stands for Tokyo International Anime Fair, and is a convention where anime companies invite companies from around the world to see firsthand what there is to license in the New Year. This has become important to the anime industry in Japan as it's becoming more and more important to get their work licensed overseas for them to make a significant profit. Other major points made in the panel were attendance of the fair last year which was up to 107,713 attendees. Also discussed was how they intend to improve TAF by allowing more competition and making it easier on overseas travelers to get to TAF. Of note was the Q&A session at the end of Yamaguchi's speech. Not many questions were asked as the tent was pretty sparse. As always one person asked the question "How can I get my manga published", and surprisingly Yamaguchi was very responsive to the question which in my experience most people guests, panelists and attendees would have easily rolled their eyes at. I have to say Yasuo Yamaguchi seems like a very warm kind man. He was wearing a yellow suit and jacket no tie with sneakers. While that is not weird he also had a very inviting smile and also liked to joke also with the translator. One thing I remember from the panel is that he told a story of visiting a small animation museum in the country. When I say small I'm talking about a mom and pop run business. Apparently that is a hobby of his, going to animation museums.
Some links of interest:
- TAF's English website
- The Association of Japanese Animations or AJA English website of which Yasuo Yamaguchi is the Executive Director.
Of quick note since that was the only panel I had actually attended that day I went ahead to one of the video rooms for the first time the whole weekend. In there I saw Yawara! The Fashionable Judo Girl which after watching these first few episodes I need to preorder the set from AnimEigo. The second thing I saw of note in the video room was Tampopo, an eccentric comedy about a milk truck driver who helps a widow to make her Ramen shop better. Trust me it's a must see movie.
So finally at the end: closing ceremonies. As the seats start to fill up the ballroom gets louder with the chatter of people. Music plays over the speakers as more and more seats start to fill. For some this will be the last time to sit and see the guests until next year. For Animazement this will be their final year at the Sheraton. Next year will be their first year at the new Raleigh Convention Center. A larger venue for an increasing audience. For most it will be a tough goodbye. Many an attendee will leave with fond memories of this weekend. As the guests start to come in cameras will flash and people will cheer as they fill the stage. As for me it's a short and lonely ride back home. During the drive back home I will settle back into my normal life and leave the craziness of the convention life behind. While I sit at home I will start to count the days until the next Animazement. Now if there were to be one word to describe my three day weekend it would have to be awesome.
The guests of honor, dancing and doing the wave, also awesome.
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