Yasuhito Kikuchi and Ryoma Ebata to Attend Anime NYC

Bandai Namco Arts Announces “That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime” Official Guests

New York, N​Y (July 31, 2018) - Anime NYC powered by Crunchyroll and Bandai Namco Arts today announced “That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime” Director Yasuhito Kikuchi and Character Designer Ryōma Ebata will participate in Anime NYC 2018 as Official Guests, and that the highly anticipated anime series will play a major role in New York's largest anime, manga, and Japanese pop culture convention.

Mr. Kikuchi and Mr. Ebata will join over 30,000 fans and additional guests including prominent Japanese singers Luna Haruna and Shōko Nakagawa, legendary Japanese voice actor Tōru Furuya, and leading American voice actors Max Mittelman, Ray Chase, and Robbie Daymond at Anime NYC, November 16-18 inside the Javits Center in Midtown Manhattan.

“That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime” is a Japanese novel and manga series by original author Fuse. With eight volumes of the manga series and 13 volumes of the novel already published, the series has over 5.5 million editions in print, and it's one of the most popular fantasy series in Japan. The saga tells the story of a man from modern Japan who's reborn into a realm of magic as the weakest creature in the world. The original books have been adapted into two different manga series, and the story will come to television screens for the first time this October when its anime adaptation debuts.

Director Yasuhito Kikuchi and Character Designer Ryōma Ebata are both anime industry veterans whose previous work includes “Puella Magi Madoka Magica”, “Macross Frontier”, and “Gunbuster”. Both will participate in panels, screenings, and autograph signings at Anime NYC to celebrate “That Time I Got Reincarnated As A Slime”. More details about their schedule will be revealed later this summer.

“We're very excited to welcome Mr. Kikuchi and Mr. Ebata to Anime NYC,” said Anime NYC Show Director Peter Tatara. “We look to showcase the newest and most popular stories and personalities from Japan, and we couldn't be more happy to feature “That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime” together with Bandai Namco Arts.”

Anime NYC powered by Crunchyroll will continue to announce more guests from both America and Japan throughout the summer and fall, and attendees can look forward to the latest from sponsors, partners, and publishers including Crunchyroll, Aniplex, Bandai Namco Arts, Funimation, GKIDS, Kodansha Comics, Sentai Filmworks, Tokyo Otaku Mode, Vertical, Viz Media, and Yen Press. Fans wanting to learn the latest can follow Anime NYC on Facebook and Twitter. Tickets to this year's Anime NYC are available now.

ABOUT “THAT TIME I GOT REINCARNATED AS A SLIME”:
Corporate worker Mikami Satoru is stabbed by a random killer and is reborn to an alternate world. But he turns out to be reborn a slime! Thrown into this new world with the name Rimuru, he begins his quest to create a world that's welcoming to all races. The explosively popular novel series sold over 5.5 million copies after first being published on the Shousetsuka ni Narou novel publishing website by Fuse, and then was given a manga adaptation by manga artist Kawakami Taiki. The tankobon novel series is also ongoing, published by MICRO MAGAZINE and illustrated by Mitz Vah. Protagonist Rimuru encounters dragons, goblins, dwarfs, and ogres, among many other races, as he learns the ways of the land. At the end of the sometimes-humorous, sometimes-serious storytelling is the evil lord himself. A lone slime uses his newly acquired skills, his wit, and his guts to make more friends. The long-awaited rebirth entertainment finally gets an anime adaptation!

ABOUT YASUHITO KIKUCHI:
Yasuhito Kikuchi, Director of the upcoming TV anime series “That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime”, was born in 1964 in Aomori, Japan. He primarily works as a key animator and director, and also has experience as a producer. He made his debut as key animator with “Gunbuster”. His directorial debut was “Magical Girl Pretty Sammy 3: Super Kiss”. Since then, he has directed many other titles including “Macross Frontier”, “Infinite Stratos”, and “Comet Lucifer”.

ABOUT RYOMA EBATA:
Ryōma Ebata, born in 1982, is the Character Designer and Director of Key Animation for the upcoming TV anime series “That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime”. For most of his career, he's worked as an animator, designer, as well as a unit director. The first time he was in charge of Character Designs was for “Busou Shinki”. He has been in charge of key animation for openings, endings, and the main areas for numerous titles such as “Absolute Duo”, “Dimension W”, “Macross Frontier”, and “Puella Magi Madoka Magica”.

ABOUT ANIME NYC POWERED BY CRUNCHYROLL:
Anime NYC powered by Crunchyroll is New York City's anime convention! A showcase of the best of Japanese pop culture in the biggest city in America, Anime NYC brings anime fans and publishers together for three days of unique exhibits, exclusive screenings, extensive panels, and appearances by some of the biggest creators in Japan. This year's event takes place November 16-18 in New York's Javits Center, and we invite you to join over 30,000 fans for a celebration of Japanese animation, manga, cosplay, movies, food, fashion, travel, technology, toys, and games in the heart of NYC! For more, visit animenyc.com.