News

Hyper Japan Will Run in London From July 18 to 20

London's Hyper Japan Festival will run from Friday July 18 to Sunday July 20 at Olympia Events in West Kensington, near to Kensington Olympia Underground station. Tickets can be booked at the event website. It will include several anime-related events.

The veteran director and animator Mahiro Maeda will appear at the event on the Saturday at 2.25 p.m. He will appear in a talk and live drawing session with the author Helen McCarthy,

Maeda's appearance is linked to the thirtieth anniversary of Neon Genesis Evangelion. He was one of the directors of both Evangelion: 3.0 You Can (Not) Redo and Evangelion: 3.0+1.0: Thrice Upon A Time. He also has storyboard and other credits on both of the films.

According to the Hyper Japan announcement, "Visitors can explore Evangelion's legacy through a specially curated exhibition. The booth will feature original storyboards and timeline panels that highlight the evolution of the series... Limited-edition merchandise, including T-shirts, posters, and other exclusive items, will be available only at the booth."

Beyond Evangelion, Maeda's many other credits include directing Gankutsuou: The Count of Monte Cristo, the Second Renaissance segment of Animatrix, and the 1998 OAV series Blue Submarine No.6. Maeda also created Mecha design on Vision of Escaflowne and Kaiju design on Kaiju No. 8.

The singer Ai Higuchi, known for her work on Attack on Titan and Bocchi the Rock!, will appear at the event on the Friday at 3.30 p.m. Higuchi wrote, composed and sang the "“Akuma no Ko” ending song for Attack on Titan Final Season THE FINAL CHAPTERS. On Bocchi the Rock!, she wrote the lyrics for the opening song, as well as "Ano Band" in episode 8 and "seiza ni Naretara" in episode 12. From Hyper Japan's website:

"Ai Higuchi is a uniquely gifted singer-songwriter whose musical journey began at just two years old when she first started learning classical piano. Over the years, she expanded her skills to include violin, choral singing, drums, and guitar—building a solid musical foundation that shines through in her heartfelt and emotionally rich performances...

"From Attack on Titan to Bocchi the Rock! Ai Higuchi captured the attention of anime fans worldwide with “Akuma no Ko”, the memorable and emotionally charged ending theme for Attack on Titan: The Final Season Part 2. Her ability to channel raw emotion through music made the track an instant classic. Her work didn't stop there, she later wrote the lyrics of the opening theme for the hit anime Bocchi the Rock!, proving her talent as a versatile artist who bridges the world of pop music and anime with ease."

The rock band hitsujibungaku will perform at Hyper Japan on the Saturday at 6 p.m. The band is known for performing The Heike Story anime's opening theme song "Hikaru Toki,"; the Oshi no Ko's second season anime "Burning" ending theme song; the Jujutsu Kaisen second season anime's "more than words" ending theme song; and The House of the Lost on the Cape anime film's theme song "Mayoiga."

Finally, there will be a screening of the film Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX The Beginning on the Friday at 6 p.m.