Sun, March 9, 2008 (10:56pm EDT)
The 2nd Seiyu Awards were given out on Saturday in Akihabara, Tokyo. The winners were:
- Male Lead: Mamoru Miyano
- Female Lead: Aya Hirano
- Male Supporting Character: Daisuke Ono, Hiroshi Kamiya
- Female Supporting Character: Rie Kugimiya, Mitsuki Saiga
- Male New Performer: Wataru Hatano, Tsubasa Yonaga
- Female New Performer: Emiri Kato, Yu Kobayashi
- Song: Aya Hirano, Emiri Kato, Kaori Fukuhara, Aya Endo ("Motteke! Sailor Fuku")
- Personality: Kenichi Suzumura (Yugengaisha Cherry Bell, etc.)
- Special Achievement Award: Tatsuya Jo
- Achievement Awards: Nachi Nozawa, Michio Hazama, Ryoko Kinomiya
- Synergy Award: Kamen Rider Den-O
- Kei Tomiyama Award: Toru Furuya
Sun, March 9, 2008 (10:24pm EDT)
Rock trio KELUN has been tapped to provide the new opening song for the popular "Bleach" anime series. The group barely made their major label debut this past November.
The song, "CHU-BURA," will start with the April 23 episode. It will be available as chaku-uta on April 4, though the single won't hit store shelves until the summer.
The song, "CHU-BURA," will start with the April 23 episode. It will be available as chaku-uta on April 4, though the single won't hit store shelves until the summer.
Sun, March 9, 2008 (10:08pm EDT)
On Saturday, Osaka radio station FM802 held its 3rd annual amateur band competition in the city of Sakai, Osaka. ORESKABAND and The Inazuma Sentai, who both hail from Sakai, attended the event as guests.
During their performance, ORESKABAND reportedly announced that they will play at this year's SXSW festival in Austin, Texas, on March 15. This will be their second year in a row to appear at the festival.
The SXSW website does not currently list the band as a participant. However, several other Japanese artists are listed: Maki Rinka, Damage, The Emeralds, Toddle, the pillows, and aonami. In addition, the Japan Nite showcase features detroit7, Sodopp, Avengers in Sci-Fi, Quartz-head 02, Petty Booka, and Ketchup Mania.
As for the band competition in Sakai, the winner was the 4-piece group lego big morl.
During their performance, ORESKABAND reportedly announced that they will play at this year's SXSW festival in Austin, Texas, on March 15. This will be their second year in a row to appear at the festival.
The SXSW website does not currently list the band as a participant. However, several other Japanese artists are listed: Maki Rinka, Damage, The Emeralds, Toddle, the pillows, and aonami. In addition, the Japan Nite showcase features detroit7, Sodopp, Avengers in Sci-Fi, Quartz-head 02, Petty Booka, and Ketchup Mania.
As for the band competition in Sakai, the winner was the 4-piece group lego big morl.
Sun, March 9, 2008 (9:02pm EDT)
Actress Keiko Kitagawa has been chosen as the heroine in the comedy film "Handsome Suit," directed by Tsutomu Hanabusa. The movie is an adaptation of a book by writer Osamu Suzuki.
The story revolves around the unattractive Takuro (Muga Tsukaji), who is the chef and owner of a restaurant. He confesses his love to a beautiful part-time worker (Kitagawa), but she turns him down and leaves the store. However, Takuro later finds a magical suit that transforms him into a good-looking model (Shosuke Tanihara).
Kitagawa and Tanihara previously co-starred in TV Asahi's fall drama series "Mop Girl."
Filming started on the 3rd of this month and is scheduled to continue until early April. Theatrical release is slated for fall.
The story revolves around the unattractive Takuro (Muga Tsukaji), who is the chef and owner of a restaurant. He confesses his love to a beautiful part-time worker (Kitagawa), but she turns him down and leaves the store. However, Takuro later finds a magical suit that transforms him into a good-looking model (Shosuke Tanihara).
Kitagawa and Tanihara previously co-starred in TV Asahi's fall drama series "Mop Girl."
Filming started on the 3rd of this month and is scheduled to continue until early April. Theatrical release is slated for fall.
