Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation Announces SPJA Industry Award Finalists at Tokyo International Anime Fair
Bandai Entertainment Leads with Most Nominations Followed by Viz Media,
Geneon Entertainment, Bandai Visual and FUNimation Entertainment
Anaheim, California (March 27, 2008) — The Society for the Promotion of
Japanese Animation (SPJA), the overseeing body of the nation's largest
anime/manga convention (Anime Expo®), announced the SPJA Industry Award
finalists for 2008 at the SPJA Symposium held at Tokyo International Anime
Fair held within Tokyo Big Sight's Special Theatre 2(Thursday; March 27,
2008; 16:30-18:00-Tokyo time). More information can be found on the website
<www.spja.org> .
Leading the pack, of top five (5) companies receiving nominations, is Bandai
Entertainment with thirteen (13) nominations including two (2) for Best
Voice Actor (English) followed by Viz Media with twelve (12) nominations
including two (2) for Best Voice Actor (English) as well. Geneon
Entertainment follows with 11 nominations including two (2) for Best Voice
Actor (Japanese), Bandai Visual with 9 nominations including two (2) for
Best Background Design and FUNimation with seven (7) nominations. Other
companies receiving nominations include:
· Anime News Network
· Aniplex
· ADV Films
· BONES
· Broccoli Books
· Columbia Music
· Dark Horse Comics
· DefSTAR RECORDS
· Del Rey Manga
· Digital Manga Publishing
· Gonzo
· Infinity Studios
· Kodansha
· Ki/oon Records
· Kudokawa Shoten
· Lantis
· Media Works
· Otaku USA
· Oxybot
· Right Stuf
· Shaft
· Shogakukan
· Sony
· Sony Music
· Toei Animation
· TokyoPop
The public is invited to vote for their choices for the 21 categories via
the SPJA (<www.spja.org> ) and Anime Expo®
(<www.anime-expo.org> ) websites.
SPJA Industry Awards official criteria for eligibility, rules, procedures
and forms can be downloaded from the official SPJA website www.spja.org
<http://www.spja.org> . Inquiries can be made to [email protected]
SPJA Industry Awards Nominees
Category 01: BEST VOICE ACTOR (JAPANESE)
1. Jun Fukuyama – xxxholic – Kimihiro Watanuki
2. Mamoru Miyano – Mobile Suit Gundam 00 (Double O) – Setsuna F. Seiei
3. Jōji Nakata – Hellsing Ultimate – Arucard
4. Daisuke Namikawa – Black Lagoon – Rock
5. Tomokazu Sugita – The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya – Kyon
Category 02: BEST VOICE ACTOR (ENGLISH)
1. Johnny Yong Bosch – The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya – Itsuki Koizumi
2. Crispin Freeman – The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya – Kyon
3. Alessandro Juliani – DEATHNOTE – L
4. Christopher R. Sabat – One Piece – Zoro
5. Jason Spisak – Zatch Bell – Kiyo Takamine
Category 03: BEST VOICE ACTRESS (JAPANESE)
1. Aya Hirano – The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya – Haruhi Suzumiya
2. Ayako Kawasumi – Nodame Cantabile – Megumi “Nodame” Noda
3. Rie Kugimiya – Hayate no Gotoku! – Nagi Sanzenin
4. Nana Mizuki – Darker than Black – Misaki Kirihara
5. Mamiko Noto – sola – Matsuri Shihou
Category 04: BEST VOICE ACTRESS (ENGLISH)
1. Laura Bailey – Shin-chan – Shin-chan
2. Maryke Hendrikse – Black Lagoon – Revy
3. Shannon Chan-Kent – DEATHNOTE – Misa
4. Anna Morrow – The Third: The Girl with the Blue Eye – Honoka
5. Stephanie Sheh – The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya – Mikuru Asahina
Category 05: BEST CASTING DIRECTOR
1. Randi Riediger – Black Lagoon
2. Kaeko Sakamoto – The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya
3. Hiroyuki Sakurada – GeGeGe no Kitarō
4. Jamie Simone – Naruto
5. Kazuhiro Wakabayashi – Darker than Black
Category 06: BEST CHARACTER DESIGN
1. Shoko Ikeda – The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya
2. Makoto Koga – sola
3. Shino Masanori – Black Lagoon
4. Ken Ueno – GeGeGe no Kitarō
5. Makoto Uno – Witchblade
Category 07: BEST MECHANICAL DESIGN
1. Black Lagoon – (Staff includes Masahiro Kimura)
2. Eureka 7 – (Staff includes Shōji Kawamori)
3. Full Metal Panic! TSR – (Staff includes Kanetake Ebikawa)
4. Mobile Suit Gundam 00 – (Staff includes Kanetake Ebikawa, Naohiro Washio,
Takayuki Yanase)
5. The Third: The Girl with the Blue Eye – (Staff includes Naohiro Washio)
Category 08: BEST MALE CHARACTER
1. Arucard – Hellsing Ultimate
2. Hei – Darker than Black
3. Ichigo Kurosaki – Bleach
4. Lelouch Lamperouge – Code Geass
5. Luffy – One Piece
Category 09: BEST FEMALE CHARACTER
1. Haruhi Suzumiya – The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya
2. Matsuri Shihou - sola
3. Megumi “Nodame” Noda – Nodame Cantabile
4. Nami – One Piece
5. Revy – Black Lagoon
Category 10: BEST MASCOT CHARACTER
1. Kanaka – Shigofumi - Letters from the Departed
2. Mokona – Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicles
3. Mokkun – Shonen Onmyouji
4. Na-san – Kirarin Revolution
5. Shamisen – The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya
Category 11: BEST BACKGROUND DESIGN
1. Mobile Suit Gundam 00 – Sunrise
2. Sayonara Zetsubō Sensei – Shaft
3. Shigofumi - Letters from the Departed – J.C. Staff/Bandai Visual
4. sola – Nomad/Bandai Visual
5. The Third: The Girl with the Blue Eye – XEBEC/Right Stuf
Category 12: BEST ORIGINAL VIDEO
1. Detective Conan: Detective Conan vs. Kid the Phantom Thief – Shogakukan
2. Hellsing Ultimate – Geneon Entertainment
3. I Luv Halloween – TokyoPop
4. Naruto: The Lost Story: Protect the Waterfall Village – Viz Media
5. Super Robot Wars Original Generation - The Animation OAV – Bandai Visual
USA
Category 13: BEST FEATURE FILM
1. Paprika – Sony
2. SOS! Tokyo Metro Explorers: The Next – Bandai Visual USA
3. Stranger – Mukoh Haden – BONES
4. The Girl Who Leapt Through Time – Bandai Entertainment
5. Vexille – Oxybot
Category 14: BEST TELEVISION SERIES
1. Black Lagoon – Geneon Entertainment
2. Darker than Black – BONES
3. DEATHNOTE – Viz Media
4. One Piece – FUNimation Entertainment
5. sola – Bandai Visual
Category 15: BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
1. BECK: Mongolian Chop Squad – Beat Crusaders – DefSTAR RECORDS
2. Darker than Black – Yoko Kanno – Sony Music
3. Naruto – Toshio Masuda & Musashi Project – Aniplex
4. sola – Hitoshi Fujima – Lantis
5. The Third: The Girl with the Blue Eye – Megumi Ōhashi – Columbia Music
Entertainment
Category 16: BEST ORIGINAL SONG
1. “Hare Hare Yukai” (The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya) – Aya Hirano,
Minori Chihara, and Yuko Goto – Lantis
2. “Hit in the USA” (BECK: Mongolian Chop Squad) – Hidaka Toru – The Beat
Crusaders / DefSTAR RECORDS
3. “Nagareboshi ~ Shooting Star ~” (Naruto Shippūden) – Home Made Kazoku -
Ki/oon Records
4. “Red Fraction” (Black Lagoon) – MELL – Geneon Entertainment
5. “Tsukiakari” (Darker than Black) – Rie Fu – Sony Music
Category 17: BEST DIRECTOR
1. Sunao Katabuchi – Black Lagoon
2. Tomoki Kobayashi – sola
3. Mary Elizabeth McGlynn – Naruto
4. Hiroshi Nagahama – Mushi-Shi
5. Tensai Okamura – Darker than Black
Category 18: BEST MANGA - ACTION
1. Black Lagoon – Rei Hiroe – Shogakukan
2. Gunsmith Cats Burst – Kenichi Sonoda – Dark Horse Comics
3. Murder Princess – Sekihiko Inui – Broccoli Books
4. Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicles – CLAMP – Del Rey Manga
5. Vampire Hunter D – Hideyuki Kukuchi / Saiko Takaki – Digital Manga
Publishing
Category 19: BEST MANGA - COMEDY
1. Disgaea 2 – Hekaton – Broccoli Books
2. Dramacon – Svetlana Chmakova – TokyoPop
3. Hayate no Gotoku! – Kenjirō Hata – Shogakukan
4. Gintama – Hideaki Sorachi – Viz Media
5. Negima! – Ken Akamatsu – Del Rey Manga
Category 20: BEST MANGA - DRAMA
1. Blood Alone – Masayuki Takano – MediaWorks / Infinity Studios
2. Eden – Hiroki Endo – Dark Horse Comics
3. Eureka Seven – Jinsei Kataoka / Kazuma Kondou – Bandai Entertainment
4. Kitchen Princess – Miyuki Kobayashi / Natsumi Ando – Del Rey Manga
5. Lovely Complex – Aya Nakahara – Viz Media
Category 21: BEST PUBLICATION
1. Anime Insider – Wizard Entertainment
2. Newtype – Kudokawa Shoten
3. Otaku USA – Otaku USA
4. Protoculture Addicts – Anime News Network
5. Shojo Beat – Viz Media
About Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation
The Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation (SPJA) is a non-profit
organization with a mission to popularize and educate the American public
about anime and manga, as well as provide a forum to facilitate
communication between professionals and fans. This organization is more
popularly known by its entertainment property – Anime Expo®. More
information can be found at its website (<www.spja.org>
).
The statements made in this press release that are not historical facts are
"forward-looking statements." These forward-looking statements are based on
current expectations and assumptions that are subject to risks and
uncertainties. The Company cautions readers of this press release that a
number of important factors could cause Anime Expo®/SPJA's actual future
results to differ materially from those expressed in any such
forward-looking statements. Such factors include, without limitation,
product delays, industry competition, rapid changes in technology and
industry standards, protection of proprietary rights, maintenance of
relationships with key personnel, vendors and third-party developers,
international economic and political conditions. The Company may change its
intention, belief or expectation, at any time and without notice, based upon
any changes in such factors, in the Company's assumptions or otherwise. The
Company undertakes no obligation to release publicly any revisions to any
forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date
hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.
Geneon Entertainment, Bandai Visual and FUNimation Entertainment
Anaheim, California (March 27, 2008) — The Society for the Promotion of
Japanese Animation (SPJA), the overseeing body of the nation's largest
anime/manga convention (Anime Expo®), announced the SPJA Industry Award
finalists for 2008 at the SPJA Symposium held at Tokyo International Anime
Fair held within Tokyo Big Sight's Special Theatre 2(Thursday; March 27,
2008; 16:30-18:00-Tokyo time). More information can be found on the website
<www.spja.org> .
Leading the pack, of top five (5) companies receiving nominations, is Bandai
Entertainment with thirteen (13) nominations including two (2) for Best
Voice Actor (English) followed by Viz Media with twelve (12) nominations
including two (2) for Best Voice Actor (English) as well. Geneon
Entertainment follows with 11 nominations including two (2) for Best Voice
Actor (Japanese), Bandai Visual with 9 nominations including two (2) for
Best Background Design and FUNimation with seven (7) nominations. Other
companies receiving nominations include:
· Anime News Network
· Aniplex
· ADV Films
· BONES
· Broccoli Books
· Columbia Music
· Dark Horse Comics
· DefSTAR RECORDS
· Del Rey Manga
· Digital Manga Publishing
· Gonzo
· Infinity Studios
· Kodansha
· Ki/oon Records
· Kudokawa Shoten
· Lantis
· Media Works
· Otaku USA
· Oxybot
· Right Stuf
· Shaft
· Shogakukan
· Sony
· Sony Music
· Toei Animation
· TokyoPop
The public is invited to vote for their choices for the 21 categories via
the SPJA (<www.spja.org> ) and Anime Expo®
(<www.anime-expo.org> ) websites.
SPJA Industry Awards official criteria for eligibility, rules, procedures
and forms can be downloaded from the official SPJA website www.spja.org
<http://www.spja.org> . Inquiries can be made to [email protected]
SPJA Industry Awards Nominees
Category 01: BEST VOICE ACTOR (JAPANESE)
1. Jun Fukuyama – xxxholic – Kimihiro Watanuki
2. Mamoru Miyano – Mobile Suit Gundam 00 (Double O) – Setsuna F. Seiei
3. Jōji Nakata – Hellsing Ultimate – Arucard
4. Daisuke Namikawa – Black Lagoon – Rock
5. Tomokazu Sugita – The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya – Kyon
Category 02: BEST VOICE ACTOR (ENGLISH)
1. Johnny Yong Bosch – The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya – Itsuki Koizumi
2. Crispin Freeman – The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya – Kyon
3. Alessandro Juliani – DEATHNOTE – L
4. Christopher R. Sabat – One Piece – Zoro
5. Jason Spisak – Zatch Bell – Kiyo Takamine
Category 03: BEST VOICE ACTRESS (JAPANESE)
1. Aya Hirano – The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya – Haruhi Suzumiya
2. Ayako Kawasumi – Nodame Cantabile – Megumi “Nodame” Noda
3. Rie Kugimiya – Hayate no Gotoku! – Nagi Sanzenin
4. Nana Mizuki – Darker than Black – Misaki Kirihara
5. Mamiko Noto – sola – Matsuri Shihou
Category 04: BEST VOICE ACTRESS (ENGLISH)
1. Laura Bailey – Shin-chan – Shin-chan
2. Maryke Hendrikse – Black Lagoon – Revy
3. Shannon Chan-Kent – DEATHNOTE – Misa
4. Anna Morrow – The Third: The Girl with the Blue Eye – Honoka
5. Stephanie Sheh – The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya – Mikuru Asahina
Category 05: BEST CASTING DIRECTOR
1. Randi Riediger – Black Lagoon
2. Kaeko Sakamoto – The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya
3. Hiroyuki Sakurada – GeGeGe no Kitarō
4. Jamie Simone – Naruto
5. Kazuhiro Wakabayashi – Darker than Black
Category 06: BEST CHARACTER DESIGN
1. Shoko Ikeda – The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya
2. Makoto Koga – sola
3. Shino Masanori – Black Lagoon
4. Ken Ueno – GeGeGe no Kitarō
5. Makoto Uno – Witchblade
Category 07: BEST MECHANICAL DESIGN
1. Black Lagoon – (Staff includes Masahiro Kimura)
2. Eureka 7 – (Staff includes Shōji Kawamori)
3. Full Metal Panic! TSR – (Staff includes Kanetake Ebikawa)
4. Mobile Suit Gundam 00 – (Staff includes Kanetake Ebikawa, Naohiro Washio,
Takayuki Yanase)
5. The Third: The Girl with the Blue Eye – (Staff includes Naohiro Washio)
Category 08: BEST MALE CHARACTER
1. Arucard – Hellsing Ultimate
2. Hei – Darker than Black
3. Ichigo Kurosaki – Bleach
4. Lelouch Lamperouge – Code Geass
5. Luffy – One Piece
Category 09: BEST FEMALE CHARACTER
1. Haruhi Suzumiya – The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya
2. Matsuri Shihou - sola
3. Megumi “Nodame” Noda – Nodame Cantabile
4. Nami – One Piece
5. Revy – Black Lagoon
Category 10: BEST MASCOT CHARACTER
1. Kanaka – Shigofumi - Letters from the Departed
2. Mokona – Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicles
3. Mokkun – Shonen Onmyouji
4. Na-san – Kirarin Revolution
5. Shamisen – The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya
Category 11: BEST BACKGROUND DESIGN
1. Mobile Suit Gundam 00 – Sunrise
2. Sayonara Zetsubō Sensei – Shaft
3. Shigofumi - Letters from the Departed – J.C. Staff/Bandai Visual
4. sola – Nomad/Bandai Visual
5. The Third: The Girl with the Blue Eye – XEBEC/Right Stuf
Category 12: BEST ORIGINAL VIDEO
1. Detective Conan: Detective Conan vs. Kid the Phantom Thief – Shogakukan
2. Hellsing Ultimate – Geneon Entertainment
3. I Luv Halloween – TokyoPop
4. Naruto: The Lost Story: Protect the Waterfall Village – Viz Media
5. Super Robot Wars Original Generation - The Animation OAV – Bandai Visual
USA
Category 13: BEST FEATURE FILM
1. Paprika – Sony
2. SOS! Tokyo Metro Explorers: The Next – Bandai Visual USA
3. Stranger – Mukoh Haden – BONES
4. The Girl Who Leapt Through Time – Bandai Entertainment
5. Vexille – Oxybot
Category 14: BEST TELEVISION SERIES
1. Black Lagoon – Geneon Entertainment
2. Darker than Black – BONES
3. DEATHNOTE – Viz Media
4. One Piece – FUNimation Entertainment
5. sola – Bandai Visual
Category 15: BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
1. BECK: Mongolian Chop Squad – Beat Crusaders – DefSTAR RECORDS
2. Darker than Black – Yoko Kanno – Sony Music
3. Naruto – Toshio Masuda & Musashi Project – Aniplex
4. sola – Hitoshi Fujima – Lantis
5. The Third: The Girl with the Blue Eye – Megumi Ōhashi – Columbia Music
Entertainment
Category 16: BEST ORIGINAL SONG
1. “Hare Hare Yukai” (The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya) – Aya Hirano,
Minori Chihara, and Yuko Goto – Lantis
2. “Hit in the USA” (BECK: Mongolian Chop Squad) – Hidaka Toru – The Beat
Crusaders / DefSTAR RECORDS
3. “Nagareboshi ~ Shooting Star ~” (Naruto Shippūden) – Home Made Kazoku -
Ki/oon Records
4. “Red Fraction” (Black Lagoon) – MELL – Geneon Entertainment
5. “Tsukiakari” (Darker than Black) – Rie Fu – Sony Music
Category 17: BEST DIRECTOR
1. Sunao Katabuchi – Black Lagoon
2. Tomoki Kobayashi – sola
3. Mary Elizabeth McGlynn – Naruto
4. Hiroshi Nagahama – Mushi-Shi
5. Tensai Okamura – Darker than Black
Category 18: BEST MANGA - ACTION
1. Black Lagoon – Rei Hiroe – Shogakukan
2. Gunsmith Cats Burst – Kenichi Sonoda – Dark Horse Comics
3. Murder Princess – Sekihiko Inui – Broccoli Books
4. Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicles – CLAMP – Del Rey Manga
5. Vampire Hunter D – Hideyuki Kukuchi / Saiko Takaki – Digital Manga
Publishing
Category 19: BEST MANGA - COMEDY
1. Disgaea 2 – Hekaton – Broccoli Books
2. Dramacon – Svetlana Chmakova – TokyoPop
3. Hayate no Gotoku! – Kenjirō Hata – Shogakukan
4. Gintama – Hideaki Sorachi – Viz Media
5. Negima! – Ken Akamatsu – Del Rey Manga
Category 20: BEST MANGA - DRAMA
1. Blood Alone – Masayuki Takano – MediaWorks / Infinity Studios
2. Eden – Hiroki Endo – Dark Horse Comics
3. Eureka Seven – Jinsei Kataoka / Kazuma Kondou – Bandai Entertainment
4. Kitchen Princess – Miyuki Kobayashi / Natsumi Ando – Del Rey Manga
5. Lovely Complex – Aya Nakahara – Viz Media
Category 21: BEST PUBLICATION
1. Anime Insider – Wizard Entertainment
2. Newtype – Kudokawa Shoten
3. Otaku USA – Otaku USA
4. Protoculture Addicts – Anime News Network
5. Shojo Beat – Viz Media
About Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation
The Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation (SPJA) is a non-profit
organization with a mission to popularize and educate the American public
about anime and manga, as well as provide a forum to facilitate
communication between professionals and fans. This organization is more
popularly known by its entertainment property – Anime Expo®. More
information can be found at its website (<www.spja.org>
).
The statements made in this press release that are not historical facts are
"forward-looking statements." These forward-looking statements are based on
current expectations and assumptions that are subject to risks and
uncertainties. The Company cautions readers of this press release that a
number of important factors could cause Anime Expo®/SPJA's actual future
results to differ materially from those expressed in any such
forward-looking statements. Such factors include, without limitation,
product delays, industry competition, rapid changes in technology and
industry standards, protection of proprietary rights, maintenance of
relationships with key personnel, vendors and third-party developers,
international economic and political conditions. The Company may change its
intention, belief or expectation, at any time and without notice, based upon
any changes in such factors, in the Company's assumptions or otherwise. The
Company undertakes no obligation to release publicly any revisions to any
forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date
hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.
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