Baltimore, MD (June 26, 2013) – Otakorp, Inc is proud to welcome back director, screenwriter, and music producer Shinichiro Watanabe for Otakon 20. He last appeared at Otakon in 1999.

Shinichiro Watanabe

Born in 1965 in Kyoto, Japan, Shinichiro Watanabe is a Japanese film director, screenwriter, and music producer. As a former employee of SUNRISE, he has supervised the episode direction and storyboards of many SUNRISE titles. He made his directorial debut as co-director of Macross Plus. As a Director, he has worked on numerous high profile titles such as Cowboy Bebop (TV and Movie), The Animatrix – Kid’s Story, A Detective Story, Samurai Champloo, and more recently Kids on the Slope. As a Music Producer, he has worked on such titles as Michiko to Hatchin and Lupin the 3rd – A Woman Called Fujiko Mine.

Otakon 2013 will be held August 9-11 at the Baltimore Convention Center in Baltimore, MD.

ABOUT OTAKON AND OTAKORP, INC.: Now entering its twentieth year, Otakon is an annual celebration of Japanese and East Asian popular culture, and also one of the largest gatherings of fans in the United States. Otakon celebrates popular culture as a gateway to deeper understanding of Asian culture, and has grown along with the enthusiasm for anime, manga, video games, and music from the Far East. Since 1999, Otakon has been held in Baltimore, Maryland; currently, Otakon is one of Baltimore’s few large, city-wide events, drawing over 32,000 people for three days each year (for a paid attendance of over 89,000 turnstile attendees). Otakon is a membership based convention sponsored by Otakorp, Inc., a Pennsylvania-based, 501(c)3 educational non-profit whose mission is to promote the appreciation of Asian culture, primarily through its media and entertainment. Otakorp, Inc. is directed by an all-volunteer, unpaid staff – we are run by fans, for fans.

For more information about Otakorp, Inc., see http://www.otakon.com/otakorp/index.asp For more information and the latest news on Otakon 2013, see http://www.otakon.com/

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