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AKB48 Anime's 9 Voice Audition Winners Announced

The official website for AKB0048, next spring's television anime inspired by the all-female idol group AKB48, announced the 9 audition winners for the anime's voice cast on Tuesday.

Among the winners are self-professed anime fan Mayu "Mayuyu" Watanabe, voice actresses Sayaka Nakaya and Amina Satō, and three other members of AKB48 itself. Two hail from the Nagoya-based sister group SKE48 and one came from Osaka's NMB48.
9. Mayu Watanabe (AKB48 Team B)

8. Mao Mita (NMB48 trainee)

7. Haruka Ishida (AKB48 Team B)

6. Sumire Satō (AKB48 Team B)

5. Sawako Hata (SKE48 Team KII)

4. Sayaka Nakaya (AKB48 Team A)

3. Kumi Yagami (SKE48 Team S)

2. Karen Iwata (AKB48 trainee)

1. Amina Satō (AKB48 Team B)

Four more finalists were honored with special prizes from the judging committee (Yasushi Akimoto, Shōji Kawamori, Toshimichi Ootsuki, sound director Jin Aketagawa):

Miyū Takeuchi (AKB48 Team 4)

Anna Murashige (HKT48 1st class)

Momoka Kinoshita (NMB48 trainee)

Airi Furukawa (SKE48 Team KII)

The 9 winners were selected from 30 finalists, who were previously chosen from the 200 members of AKB48 and its sister groups: SKE48, NMB48, and HKT48. The final public audition was held in Tokyo on Tuesday.

Shōji Kawamori, the co-creator of the Macross franchise and the co-director of Macross: Do You Remember Love?, is the project planner and the chief director, and Toshimichi Ootsuki (Evangelion: 1.0 You Are [Not] Alone) is the executive producer. AKB48 producer Yasushi Akimoto himself is planning and supervising the project.

Mari Okada (anohana, HanaIro, Toradora!) is supervising and writing the scripts, and Mikan Ehime (Macross Frontier, Gravion Zwei) is designing the characters. Yoshimasa Hiraike (Working!!/Wagnaria!!, Amagami SS, Sketchbook ~full color'S~) is the actual hands-on director of the anime at Satelight (Macross Frontier, Aquarion, Shugo Chara!).

[Via Jam Guru]

Update: Oricon posted images from the anime and its designs.