AniZona

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AniZona
Status Active
Venue Phoenix Marriott Mesa and Convention Center
Location Mesa, Arizona
Country Flag of the United States United States
First held 2005
Attendance 1,200 in 2006
Official website

AniZona is an annual anime convention based in Arizona that takes place annually on Easter weekend (from Thursday to Sunday), hosted by AniZona Inc., a non-profit volunteer organization. The inaugural convention, also the first full-scale anime convention to be held in the state, occurred between March 25 and 27, 2005 at the Embassy Suites in Phoenix[1].

Popular events include a Cosplay Contest, Karaoke Contest, and an Anime Music Video Contest. AniZona features numerous programming items involving voice actors in the anime industry, generally from North America, as well as webcomic artists, though the main Guest of Honor for the first convention was Yoshitaka Amano,[2][3] and at least one Japanese guest, manga artist Haruka Miyabi has been confirmed by the convention for the third AniZona.[4] Sponsors have included distributors in the North American anime industry as well as local businesses in the Phoenix metropolitan area.[5]

After two years at the Embassy Suites Phoenix North, the third AniZona was held at the Phoenix Marriott Mesa and Convention Center in Mesa, Arizona, April 5-8, 2007. Unlike most anime conventions, there is no at-door registration at the door; all registration is to be handled prior to the convention, through the Internet or by mail. In addition, there is an attendance cap.[6] Pre-registration for AniZona 1 was capped at 800-850 attendees, although actual attendance was estimated at higher due to a limited number of at-the-door registrations sold.[7][8]

Contents

[edit] History

The convention was founded by Anthony Grutta (who served as convention chair for the first year), David Hungerford, and Jason Bustard.[3] AniZona was the first convention dedicated to anime in the state. Although numerous small-scale anime and anime-related festivals had been held, there had not been any anime-specific conventions in Arizona.

[edit] Event history

Dates Location Atten. Guests
March 25–27, 2005 Embassy Suites Phoenix North
Phoenix, Arizona		 850 Yoshitaka Amano, Katie Bair, Colleen Clinkenbeard, Aaron Dismuke, Nicole B. Gibson, Ya Ya Han, hide-san, Charles Dee Rice, and Travis Willingham.[2]
April 14–16, 2006 Embassy Suites Phoenix North
Phoenix, Arizona		 1,200 Katie Bair, David Beaty, Jodon Bellofatto, Colleen Clinkenbeard, Michael McConnohie, Melodee M. Spevack, Sonny Strait, and Greg Weisman.[9]
April 5–8, 2007 Mesa Convention Center
Mesa, Arizona		 Raymond Abril III, Greg Ayres, Katie Bair, David Beaty, Jodon Bellofatto, Michael McConnohie, Haruka Miyabi, Kenyth Mogan, Yoko Molotov, Melodee M. Spevack, and Amanda Tomasch.[10]
April 9–12, 2009 Paradise Valley Embassy Suites
Paradise Valley, Arizona		 Dave Beaty, Richard Epcar, Trish Ledoux, Sam Regal, Ellyn Stern, Toybox, Dave Vincent, and Toshi Yoshida.[11]

[edit] References

  1. ^ "Anime Fans to Gather" Arizona Republic, March 31, 2005. Jacoby, Lars. Retrieved on 2007-02-21.
  2. ^ a b AniZona 2005 Information. AnimeCons.com. Retrieved on 2008-01-02.
  3. ^ a b March 25-27: AniZona 2005. Senft, Michael (The Arizona Republic). Retrieved on 2007-02-07.
  4. ^ AniZona 3 Guest List. AniZona. Retrieved on 2007-02-06.
  5. ^ AniZona 3 Sponsors. AniZona. Retrieved on 2007-02-06.
  6. ^ Registration. AniZona. Retrieved on 2007-02-06.
  7. ^ AniZona (ACML Yahoo Archive - Second Instance). Hokanson, John. Retrieved on 2007-02-07.
  8. ^ AniZona (ACML Yahoo Archive). Hokanson, John. Retrieved on 2007-02-07.
  9. ^ AniZona 2006 Information. AnimeCons.com. Retrieved on 2008-01-02.
  10. ^ AniZona 2007 Information. AnimeCons.com. Retrieved on 2008-01-02.
  11. ^ AniZona 2008. AniZona. Retrieved on 2008-05-08.

[edit] External links