Norwalk, CT, July 2, 2008: The New York Anime Festival (NYAF) today announced it will again partner with the World Cosplay Summit at the second annual New York Anime Festival this September in New York City. The World Cosplay Summit is an international costume competition that is the equivalent of the Olympics of Cosplay. It features cosplayers from nearly every continent competing before famed anime and manga creators, with previous judges including Leiji Matsumoto (Galaxy Express 999) and Go Nagai (Cutie Honey). New York Anime Festival’s partnership with the World Cosplay Summit will make the convention, September 26-28, 2008 at the Jacob Javits Center, the site of the World Cosplay Summit’s Official USA Preliminary Round — with the winners of the convention’s Cosplay Masquerade receiving trip a Japan to represent the USA in the World Cosplay Summit Finals.“This is the Olympics, the Super Bowl, or the World Series of cosplay,” Lance Fensterman, NYAF’s Show Manager stated. “We’re honored to offer American cosplayers the chance to have their costumes and talent recognized on the international stage and look forward to seeing the best cosplay in America!”

The World Cosplay Summit partnered with the New York Anime Festival last December at its inaugural event and crowned the winners of its Masquerade — Sonnya Paz and Renee Glogger — Cosplay Team USA. Sonnya and Renee, dressed as characters from the anime series Magic Knight Rayearth , topped over 40 other contestants from across America dressed as both classic and contemporary anime characters in an exhibition of stage performance and costuming precision. The two will travel to Japan at the end of July to compete against cosplayers from countries including Brazil, China, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, South Korea, Mexico, Singapore, Spain, and Thailand until one is crowned the best in the world. The winners of the 2008 New York Anime Festival Masquerade will travel to Japan in 2009.
Sonnya (L) and Renee (R) in their award-winning costumes. Photos by Anna Fischer. Click for high-res versions.

Interested cosplayers can find the full rules and apply for the World Cosplay Summit Masquerade online at newyorkanimefestival.com. Applications must be received by September 1. The New York Anime Festival is the only American anime convention approved to be part of the World Cosplay Summit.

ABOUT COSPLAY:
Cosplay is short for “costume play” and is one of the most vivid and creative aspects of anime fandom. At its center is the creation and wearing of costumes based on a fan’s favorite anime or manga character. A Masquerade — part talent show and part fashion show — is an event where cosplayers perform often-elaborate skits in front of an audience.

ABOUT THE WORLD COSPLAY SUMMIT:
The World Cosplay Summit began in the fall of 2003. Born from the concept that cosplayers play a leading role in introducing Japanese manga and animation to people around the world, the event wanted to bring international cosplayers “home” to Japan to showcase their costumes and skill. The event is held annually, with preliminary competitions taking place around the world — and the Championships taking place each summer in Japan. Each year, judges include creators of some of Japan’s most iconic anime and manga, and past judges have included Leiji Matsumoto, Go Nagai, and Monkey Punch. In 2007, Brazil, China, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, South Korea, Mexico, Singapore, Spain, Thailand and Japan all participated in the World Cosplay Summit. The winners of the World Cosplay Summit Masquerade crowned at the New York Anime Festival will fly to Japan to serve as Team USA in the 2009 Championships. For more, please visit http://www.tv-aichi.co.jp/wcs/e/.

ABOUT THE NEW YORK ANIME FESTIVAL:
The New York Anime Festival takes place September 26-28, 2008 at the Jacob K. Javits Center in Midtown Manhattan and is organized by Reed Exhibitions, the creators of New York Comic Con. The New York Anime Festival showcases the best of anime pop culture, including the latest anime, manga, Japanese cinema, music, and games, and anime-influenced comics, animation, and films from around the world. The festival features exclusive and extensive screenings, a gala cosplay masquerade, sessions with the some of the biggest names in anime from Japan, Asia, and America, and explores the Japanese cultural experience with displays of both traditional and cutting-edge Japanese life. NYAF’s sponsors include Bandai Entertainment, BookExpo America, Dark Horse Comics, Del Rey Manga, Kinokuniya Bookstore, New York Comic Con, Samurai Beat Radio, Subway Cinema, TheOtaku.com, and TOKYOPOP. Further information can be found at newyorkanimefestival.com.

ABOUT REED EXHIBITIONS:
The New York Anime Festival is operated by Reed Exhibitions, the world’s leading events organizer. In 2007, Reed brought together over six million industry professionals from around the world generating billions of dollars in business. Today, Reed events are held in 38 countries throughout the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia and organized by 39 fully staffed offices. Reed Exhibitions is part of Reed Elsevier Group plc, a FTSE-100 company and world-leading publisher and information provider. In 2006, Reed Elsevier made adjusted profit before taxation of £1,052 million on turnover of £5,398 million.