Soul Eater English Cast to Appear at NY Anime Festival

SOUL EATER ENGLISH CAST TO APPEAR AT NY ANIME FESTIVAL

Supernatural Anime Series Receives English-Language Debut In NYC

Norwalk, CT, September 3, 2009: The New York Anime Festival (NYAF) today announced the main cast of FUNimation Entertainment’s upcoming supernatural anime series Soul Eater — Laura Bailey, Micah Solusod, Brittney Karbowski, Monica Rial, Todd Haberkorn, Jamie Marchi, and Cherami Leigh — will appear together for the first time at this September’s NYAF, and this cast appearance will serve as the pinnacle of a weekend of Soul Eater activities, including the English language premiere of the series. The cast along with Soul Eater Director Zach Bolton and Producer Masazumi Kato will join Yoshiyuki Tomino — the Director of Mobile Suit Gundam — and Yui Makino — the voice of Sakura in Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle — as guests at NYAF. Other than Soul Eater, NYAF premieres include Gurren Lagann: The Movie – Childhood’s End, Cencoroll, and 20th Century Boys.

Soul Eater, based on a manga by Atsushi Ohkubo, follows Maka, Black Star, and Death The Kid, three students determined to turn their partners — living weapons — into powerful death scythes, weapons fit for Death himself. Charged with the task of collecting and devouring the tainted souls of ninety-nine humans and one witch, Maka and her fellow meisters strive to master their weapons as they face off against the bizarre and dangerous minions of the underworld. Laura Bailey stars as the voice of Maka, Micah Solusod portrays Soul, Brittney Karbowski plays Black Star, Monica Rial is Tsubaki, Todd Haberkorn voices Death The Kid, Jamie Marchi is Liz, and Cherami Leigh voices Patty.

Producer Masazumi Kato will be coming all the way from Japan, where he’s been in charge of the overall promotion for Soul Eater, including advertisements, publicity, and DVDs.

“We’re honored to partner with our friends at FUNimation to bring the main cast of Soul Eater to NYAF,” New York Anime Festival Show Manager Lance Fensterman said. “Soul Eater will be one of the biggest titles of 2010, and we’re excited to give it the launch it deserves in NYC!”

“The premiere of Soul Eater on a stage as big as New York City? Now, that’s cool,” Soul Eater ADR Director Zach Bolton said.

NYAF’s Soul Eater activity schedule follows…

Yen Plus Giveaway

Be one of the first 200 fans to come by the FUNimation booth any day of the show to take home a free copy of the latest issue of Yen Press’s Yen Plus magazine. Yen Press is the US publisher of the Soul Eater manga, and Soul Eater is serialized each month inside Yen Plus.

Friday – 1:00 PM – FUNimation Booth (303)

Saturday and Sunday – 10:00 AM – FUNimation Booth (303)

Cast Signing

Meet Laura Bailey (Maka), Micah Solusod (Soul), Brittney Karbowski (Black Star), Monica Rial (Tsubaki), Todd Haberkorn (Death The Kid), Jamie Marchi (Liz), Cherami Leigh (Patty), and Director Zach Bolton at a special signing at the FUNimation Booth!

Friday – 4:00 to 5:30 PM – FUNimation Booth (303)

Saturday – 3:30 to 5:00 PM – FUNimation Booth (303)

Chalk Mural

Eric Maruscak is an artist who specializes in massive murals drawn in chalk. He’s appeared at New York Comic Con and other conventions around the country, and he’s at NYAF this year creating a giant illustration of Maka, Black Star, and Death The Kid. Check out Eric’s work throughout the show to see Soul Eater larger than life!

Friday, Saturday, and Sunday – All Day – Front of Exhibit Hall

Soul Eater Panel and Screening

Laura Bailey (Maka), Micah Solusod (Soul), Brittney Karbowski (Black Star), Monica Rial (Tsubaki), Todd Haberkorn (Death The Kid), Jamie Marchi (Liz), Cherami Leigh (Patty), and Director Zach Bolton along with Producer Masazumi Kato and representatives from both FUNimation and Yen Press present the first three episodes of FUNimation’s Soul Eater! Be one of the first fans to see what’ll be one of 2010’s biggest shows, and get the inside scoop about what’s ahead from the women and men at Soul Eater’s center!

Saturday – 1:00 to 3:00 PM – ANA Theater (1A08 )

Soul Eater Cosplay Meet Up

Come by chalk artist Eric Maruscak’s Soul Eater mural on Sunday at 1 PM for a Soul Eater group photo! FUNimation’s asking all Soul Eater cosplayers to show up to get their pictures taken with Eric’s completed work of art and the American cast of Soul Eater, and, then, stay tuned to funimation.com and newyorkanimefestival.com for the photo once the show’s over!

Sunday – 1:00 PM – Front of Exhibit Hall

For Soul Eater cast bios or to purchase NYAF tickets, please visit the show’s official site (www.nyanimefestival.com). For the latest announcements, please visit NYAF’s official blog (www.mediumatlarge.net) or follow NYAF on Twitter (www.twitter.com/NY_Anime_Fest). For more on Soul Eater, visit the show’s official site (www.funimation.com/souleater).

ABOUT FUNIMATION ENTERTAINMENT:

FUNimation® Entertainment, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Navarre Corporation, is the leading company for home video sales of Japanese animation in the United States. FUNimation has a proven formula for launching and advancing brands, and manages a full spectrum of rights for most of its brands including broadcasting, licensing, production, internet, and home video sales and distribution. For more information about FUNimation Entertainment and its brands, visit www.funimation.com.

ABOUT THE NEW YORK ANIME FESTIVAL:

The New York Anime Festival takes place September 25-27, 2009 at the Jacob K. Javits Center in Midtown Manhattan and is organized by Reed Exhibitions, the creators of New York Comic Con. The New York Anime Festival showcases the best of anime pop culture, including the latest anime, manga, Japanese cinema, music, and games, and anime-influenced comics, animation, and films from around the world. The festival features exclusive and extensive screenings, a gala cosplay masquerade, sessions with the some of the biggest names in anime from Japan, Asia, and America, and explores the Japanese cultural experience with displays of both traditional and cutting-edge Japanese life. Further information can be found at newyorkanimefestival.com.

ABOUT REED EXHIBITIONS POP CULTURE GROUP:

The Pop Culture Group at Reed Exhibitions owns and operates the New York Comic Con (NYCC), the Chicago Comic and Entertainment Expo (C2E2), and the New York Anime Festival (NYAF). New York Comic Con was launched in 2006 and quickly became a dominant presence in the pop culture world of public events. In 2009, 452 companies exhibited at NYCC for a total of 84,000 square feet of paid exhibit space, and it has been ranked by Crain’s New York Business as the second-largest annual event in NYC. C2E2, which will debut April 16 – 18 at Chicago’s McCormick Place Convention Center, is modeled after NYCC and will provide fans the opportunity to meet and greet their favorite writers, creators, and artists, as well as to see, hear and learn about the latest and greatest in comics, graphic novels, anime, manga, video games, toys, movies, and television. The Pop Culture Group also operates the recently-launched UFC Fan Expo in partnership with the UFC – the world’s leading professional mixed martial arts organization – and it formed a strategic partnership with Penny Arcade Expo (PAX) in 2008 and will work closely with PAX on the launch of PAX East in Boston in 2010.