AnimeNYC 2025: The Journey Back
2025 has been a hallmark year for me for a number of reasons. One of the most notable has to be my return to AnimeNYC after a year’s absence. In 2024, AnimeNYC moved from being a winter convention in November to a summer one in August, and due to my existing convention plans, I was unable to attend. However, in 2025, I was graciously extended a press pass by the organizers of AnimeNYC, and thusly, made my return to the hallmark anime convention.
So, how was it? Let’s get into it, one day at a time. It’s worth mentioning that AnimeNYC expanded this year from a 3-day convention to a 4-day one, however, due to conflicting time schedules, it prevented me from attending the first Thursday in AniNYC history. As a result, my story for this year’s AnimeNYC begins on its second day.
FRIDAY
Friday, things kicked into high gear with a very engaging panel on New Panty & Stocking with Garterbelt, as well as a personal meet-and-greet/signing with Hiroyuki Imaishi and Hiromi Wakabayashi, which you can read here.
Next, I was invited to a special press-only meet and greet event: a private discussion with the heads of an up-and-coming manga platform, NIUHI. I spoke with Yukie Adachi, NIUHI’s head of PR, who told me all about this intriguing new site. NIUHI is a champion of independent artists in the Japanese-manga space. As Yukie told me, NIUHI is the proud host of a whopping eighty percent of independent Japanese manga. These are series that have gone unnoticed by larger publishers like Kodansha or Shuiesha. NIUHI runs on the platform that every story matters, and that all deserve to be told.
In that spirit, NIUHI does something I’ve never seen done before: community translation. Anyone who uses the NIUHI app can submit translations for any manga on the site, provided they’ve paid for the original language version first. Additionally, NIUHI also offers a unique “Bubble Tap” feature when reading, which turns each speech bubble on screen from its original language to a foreign one (i.e. Japanese to English, English to Japanese), which could be a great asset to someone trying to learn to read a new language!
NIUHI has a host of manga available for free, such as their original manga Moon Ciders, and any paid manga is no more than five dollars per work. This low cost keeps the barrier of entry for readers low, while still allowing the original creators to make money off of their art.
I commend NIUHI for their great efforts in lifting up new manga creators’ voices, and I’ll be watching their site closely for the next indie manga hit. Check them out for yourself here at their site.
SATURDAY
Saturday was a whirlwind of excitement, starting with something I’d, personally, never been a part of, a Swag Swap.
A Swag Swap was supposed to be a simple swap meet opportunity, a place for people to trade their anime goods for other items or souvenirs for things they might want. Participating, I went in with several physical copies of anime I was no longer attached to, believing I could trade for copies of others that I wanted. However, the first ever Swag Swap at AnimeNYC didn’t go as planned, both for the organizers, and for the people waiting to swap goods.
The Swag Swap took place in a small room, tucked away in a corner underneath the dealer’s hall. Everyone who wanted to participate was lined up out the door and forced to wait for 30 minutes before we were let in, and once the doors opened, that’s when things got nuts.
People swarmed the room and by the time I got in, all the tables were taken up by people who had been in line ahead of me. Not to mention, despite the fact that the event description said, “No cash would exchange hands”, literally everyone was charging for their items!
No bartering or trading was taking place, as far as I could see. The Swag Swap had essentially just become a cramped, smaller extension of the Exhibitor’s Hall. Some people I spoke to during the event lamented the lack of trading, and the overall more formal, business-like approach the whole affair had. Not to mention the lights went out at one point!
Still, I went with the flow of the room, and actually managed to sell what I’d brought with me. So, while the event wasn’t organized the best, I still came out of it ahead.
Following the Swag Swap, I attended the panel for this year’s most popular anime, Dandadan. For those who may not know, Dandadan is a shonen anime that follows two high schoolers, Momo and Okarun, who discover the existence of both ghosts and aliens one fateful night. Momo is abducted, and Okarun is cursed, and now the two have to navigate the trials and tribulations of high school while also fighting off alien invaders and nefarious ghosts. The anime first drew me in with its appealing character designs, but the unique exploration of the occult world was what kept me watching.
The panel had the English voice actors for the series, Abby Trott (Momo), AJ Beckles (Okarun) and Lisa Reimold (Aira), as well as series producer Hiroshi Kaimei. They began with a Q and A about the currently airing second season, which I’ve taken the liberty of transcribing for your benefit.
What was your favorite moment from Season 2 for you so far?
Abby Trott
ABBY TROTT: My favorite moment so far has to be the exorcism scene! The raw energy of it was so cool! Plus, we got the lead singer from Dragonforce for the English version!
AJ BECKLES: Episode 3 of Season 2 was my favorite thing to do. It was a really emotional challenge for me to perform.
LISA REIMOLD: My favorite part of the season so far is any time Chiquitita shows up on screen. [Laughs]
How have your characters grown since season one, and how have you changed in voicing them?
ABBY TROTT: Momo is learning how to approach things as a team player, with more and more people becoming part of their group.
AJ BECKLES: Okarun is in a darker place in the first season, but as that season progressed, he made friends. He now has things to lose, and at the same time he’s grown more confident and courageous.
LISA REIMOLD: Aira is a weirdo. [Laughs] She’s still weird in season two, just in a different way.
After the interviews with the voice actors, attention was given to Hiroshi Kaimei, producer of Dandadan, for some behind-the-scenes facts and trivia. For instance, Kaimei told the audience that a chorus of ten thousand people sang Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 for episode 20 of Dandadan!
Lisa Reimold
This was part of a yearly recorded symphony by parent company MBS, and the anime staff used the recordings of that event for the series. Additionally, the character of Chiquitita was decided to be introduced in the anime by singing, a change from the original manga. One of the anime staff, a man Hiroshi Kaimei called “Mr. Sagata,” was credited with writing the song for the anime. Sagata specifically organized the song to be like a Japanese baseball rally song, something that he and the team believed fit thematically. Finally, Mr. Kaimei teased the audience with what’s to come, saying to expect “a really great Kaiju fight that’s fun and exciting!”
Bryce Papenbrook
After the Behind-the-Scenes, the panelists participated in two activities for the audience’s enjoyment. The first was a game called “What’s in the Box?” where the English VAs for Dandadan had to stick their hands in a box (the contents of which the audience could see) and guess what was inside. The next was a live, on-stage dubbing of a scene from Dandadan season two. These activities were really fun to see, and made attending the panel feel worth it – so much of these panels can be relayed in news articles like these after the fact, making attending them seem pointless, but these two things could really only be enjoyed at the panel itself, and that made the experience feel worth it.
After the live dubbing, there was a special announcement – Bryce Papenbrook (Eren Jaeger in Attack on Titan, Inosuke in Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba) would soon be joining the English cast of Dandadan in season two as the character Kinta Sakata! This announcement was accompanied by a trailer teasing the Kaiju battle that Hiroshi Kaimei alluded to earlier.
All in all, a fantastic panel I’m glad I got to experience!
The last thing I experienced for Saturday was a special screening of a brand-new anime film, Uma Musume Pretty Derby: Beginning of a New Era (BNE). Besides being a mouthful of a title, BNE is an anime film based on the Uma Musume franchise, which has recently exploded in popularity here in the United States, thanks to the localization of the original mobile phone game. Uma Musume Pretty Derby as a series takes real life horses from actual horse racing history and portrays them as horse-girls, young women with ears, tails, and all the athletic ability of their actual counterparts. This series has garnered acclaim thanks to its portrayal of the horse-girls, and how accurate it translates and adapts the actual personalities of the animals to humanoid characters. For instance, the race horse Agnes Tachyon was named after a particle faster than light – and so, the horse-girl Agnes Tachyon is portrayed in Uma Musume Pretty Derby: Beginning of a New Era as a scientist who is fascinated by the pursuit of greater speed, chasing after an illusion that’s always just out of reach for her. The anime takes great care in its presentation of these characters, which is but one aspect of its impressive charm.
Jungle Pocket
Uma Musume Pretty Derby: Beginning of a New Era follows Jungle Pocket, a young horse girl who wants to be the top racer in the country. The film details her journey through her career, from a stunning debut to her dogged rivalry with the aforementioned Agnes Tachyon, and beyond. What truly makes this anime film stand out, and the reason I made it my business to see it for myself, was all the buzz it was getting online. Even people who had never heard of the Uma Musume franchise were praising this film for its stunning animation, and after watching it on the big screen, I can see why.
I assure you I am not kidding when I say that Uma Musume Pretty Derby: Beginning of a New Era is one of the most visually stunning anime I have seen in years. The sheer production value behind this is incredible. Every race feels like an event – the film blends 3D animation into its 2D style so well, that when the horse-girls are racing, it feels real. The thunderous noise as they stampede down the track, the incredible effects they put into every detail of the characters as they push themselves forward – it’s nothing short of hypnotizing. Seeing this film on a huge screen surrounded by fans of the series who would cheer at every win, cry out at every defeat, it was like being at a real horse race! A truly fantastic experience to end my day on.
SUNDAY
Finally, we come to the last day of the convention, which, while subdued, was not without its merits. Chief among them was the panel titled “Voice Acting: Where Do I Start?” helmed by voice actress Madeline Blood (AKA MadDogVA), who has been working professionally in the voice acting industry since 2020. In that time, Madeline has booked over 200 roles and has 10 IMdB credits to her name.
In the 45 minutes her timeslot allowed, Madeline took the audience through the entire process of doing voice work – what to do, what to avoid, and even what materials to buy. As Madeline tells it, anyone wanting to begin a career in voice acting, a home studio is a must. It can be a closet, a tent, or you can build a booth from scratch using PVC framing! Then you have to soundproof it, using anything from moving blankets to acoustic foam or rockwool panels (that’s in order from least expensive to most expensive, by the way). Then, make that space comfortable with personal touches, a soft chair, and a recording sign you can hang outside.
Madeline Blood
Madeline Blood’s entire panel was a treasure trove of tips and tricks on how to start as a voice actor. Her first piece of advice was not to worry about having the best equipment when you’re first starting out – no one expects a beginner to have top of the line equipment. Her second piece of advice I found particularly insightful was that any funds you make voice acting should be reinvested back into your own equipment. Use the money from your first job to get a better mic for the second, the money from the second job can go towards better soundproofing for the third, etc. It’s all about taking things one step at a time and progressing with your work. Ask audio engineers for assistance on what equipment to buy if you’re unsure. When it comes to recording software, Audacity is free, and a great tool to use.
Beyond the nuts and bolts of setup, Madeline had words of wisdom for the auditioning and practice process. For instance, one role does not grow into many different roles – always be auditioning, never rest on your laurels. Take voice acting workshops from VAs who have worked in the industry for ten years or more and are still working today, rather than an industry veteran who’s retired from the business. Fan dub projects are great for practice, but you should NEVER use them on a resume.
Speaking of resumes, Madeline had some specific tips for that as well. Your voice acting resume should list your personal equipment, and your personal website should have your demo reel front and center. Commission a writer to write the script for your demo reel rather than trying to fumble through it yourself. Review your demo reel each year to examine how you’ve grown.
When it comes to networking and professional conduct, Madeline had this to say, “ reputation is everything.” Casting directors will look at your online content – be mindful of what you post and share on social media. Be sure to maintain professionalism with your project’s team members and support your fellow VAs online. “The Voice Acting Club” Discord channel is a great resource to use, and NEVER pay to audition. Always examine any contract given to you thoroughly, and never sign any non-compete contracts, as that prevents you from working during the time you’ll have the job you signed on for.
Madeline also had some things to say about Voice Acting Agencies, “Send your demo reels to agencies, they take a small portion of your pay, but do not charge a fee – if they do, they’re scamming you. After submitting a demo reel – DO NOT follow up. This could get you blacklisted for bothering them. However, if you have new stuff and haven’t heard anything from them in six months, you can resubmit your reel to them then.”
Madeline Blood is a font of knowledge when it comes to the voice acting game, and I felt privileged to have been able to attend and absorb all this information. For anyone who wants to get a closer look at Madeline Blood’s body of work, or if anyone would like to contact her for a copy of the presentation she made at AnimeNYC, you can do so at her personal website here.
I tip my cap to Ms. Blood for her words of wisdom. It truly made the extra trip out on Sunday a worthwhile one.
Final Thoughts
So, all in all, was AnimeNYC worth the trip, after skipping last year?
I’d say it was. While some events weren’t managed as well as they could have been, most of what I got to experience was well worth it!
From exclusive anime screenings to valuable potential career information, there was a wide variety of things to be enjoyed at AnimeNYC. Here’s hoping I and the rest of the team here at RGN99 are invited to attend again next year.
