FanCons.com Press Releases


May 12, 2009

News for Anime Expo 2009:

Anime Expo 2009 welcomes Robot Chicken

Nation's Largest Anime and Manga Convention Welcomes Seth Green, Breckin Meyer

Anaheim, California (June 12, 2009) — The Annie and Emmy Award winning popular stop-motion animation sketch comedy show, Robot Chicken, which airs on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim, is slated to appear at this year's Anime Expo® 2009 held July 2-5, 2009 at the Los Angeles Convention Center. More information can be found on the website www.anime-expo.org.

Attending Anime Expo® 2008 via an official Robot Chicken panel including co-creator, executive producer, writer, director and actor Seth Green (Family Guy, Without a Paddle, Austin Powers, Party Monster), actor and writer Breckin Meyer (Ghosts of Girlfriends Past, Garfield: A Tail of Two Kitties, Herbie Fully Loaded), Robot Chicken director Chris McKay, Robot Chicken co-producers/co-head writers Douglas Goldstein and Tom Root, and writers Mike Fasolo, Kevin Shinick and Erik Weiner.

Seth Green
Seth Green is co-creator/executive producer/co-writer/co-director/main voice talent for the Emmy-winning Robot Chicken series, currently airing season 4 on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim. Green won the Annie Award for directing the Robot Chicken: Star Wars special, which became the #1 TV DVD upon release. He also directed the follow-up "Episode II" special. Green has starred in films including all three "Austin Powers" films, "The Italian Job," "Party Monster," "Without a Paddle," "Can't Hardly Wait" and dozens more. Next up, Disney's "Old Dogs" stars Robin Williams, John Travolta and Green, in theatres this November and Green is the star of Disney's upcoming feature, "Mars Needs Moms." He's been voicing Chris Griffin on Fox's hit "Family Guy" since the animated show's debut 10 years ago and is an executive producer/actor on Titan Maximum.

Breckin Meyer
Breckin Meyer is a writer and performer on the Emmy-winning animated show Robot Chicken and will perform on Titan Maximum. He has written on the feature films "Legally Blonde 2: Red, White and Blonde", "The Giggles", for Reveille Productions and the upcoming graphic novel "Superguys". Breckin is best known as an actor, starring in the films "Road Trip", "Rat Race", "Garfield", "Kate and Leopold" and "Clueless. Breckin is the sole writer of the "Emperor's Phone Call" sketch for Robot Chicken.

Chris McKay
Picking up a Super-8 camera at age 10, Chris McKay has been making movies with toys for most of his life. In addition to his co-producing, directing and editing duties on Adult Swim's Emmy Award-winning Robot Chicken, he is also a writer, director and co- executive producer on Adult Swim's Moral Orel and will direct Titan Maximum. Robot Chicken is currently in production on its fifth season. McKay studied Film at the "Harvard of the Midwest": Columbia College. He was once beaten up for wearing Luke Skywalker's Tatooine outfit to school.

Mike Fasolo
Mike Fasolo is a Writer, Voice Actor and Co-Creative Director on Adult Swim's Robot Chicken where he's been since its inception in 2004. He began his illustrious writing career as a staff writer at Wizard Magazine back in 1994. He enjoys dog sledding, curling and Revolutionary War re-enactments where he always plays Benedict Arnold.

Douglas Goldstein
Douglas Goldstein is Co-Head Writer and Co-Producer for Adult Swim's Robot Chicken and the two Robot Chicken Star Wars specials. Doug has written the half-hour animated pilot "The Neighborhood" for Fox Studios and is currently developing the game show "Head Games" with Wildbrain Entertainment. He was a founding member of Wizard Entertainment, publisher of Wizard and ToyFare magazines. Doug was the writer of the "Emperor's Phone Call" sketch for Robot Chicken, no matter what Breckin Meyer tells you.

Tom Root
Tom Root is co-head writer and co-producer of Adult Swim's Emmy Award-winning Robot Chicken, as well as a recurring voice talent. Tom is also the co-creator/head writer/executive producer of the upcoming Titan Maximum, which debuts on Adult Swim in fall 2009. He also wrote the "Animail" column in Anime Insider magazine for what felt like 58 years.

Kevin Shinick
Kevin Shinick serves as Writer, Actor and Co-Creative Director for the Emmy winning animated sketch show, Robot Chicken, where he recently won an Annie award for his work on Robot Chicken: Star Wars Episode II. He is responsible for such diverse creations as the Off Broadway hit, McBeth – Over 2 Million Slain, the award winning feature film, It's About Time and Marvel Comics' multi-million dollar production of Spider-Man Live! at Radio City Music Hall. Kevin has performed in over a half a dozen Broadway shows, numerous TV and film projects and spent two seasons as the host of the Emmy winning series, Where In Time Is Carmen Sandiego? – a popular PBS show that landed him in the pages of Teen magazines, onto trading cards and into his own Action Figure.

Erik Weiner
Erik Weiner was born and raised in San Francisco. He co-created and starred in The Bomb-itty of Errors, a slammin' add-rap-tation of Shakespeare's Comedy of Errors, blending hip-hop and Shakespeare. The show has been performed in New York (Off-Broadway), London (West End), Chicago, Los Angeles, Amsterdam, Edinburgh, Dublin, Florida, Philadelphia, St. Louis, and continues to play around the world. Bomb-itty won the Grand Jury Prize for Best Show at the HBO U.S. Comedy Arts Festival and the Jeff Award in Chicago. Erik made his feature film debut in the 20th Century Fox romantic comedy, Brown Sugar. Erik was a series regular on HBO's Unscripted, directed and executive produced by George Clooney. His new musical comedy, NERDS, written with Jordan Allen-Dutton and music composed by Hal Goldberg, won Outstanding New Play and Outstanding Original Music at the 2007 Barrymore Awards. Erik was nominated for a 2007 and 2008 Emmy for writing on Robot Chicken.

Attendees, Press and Industry Members are also encouraged to view the video coverage site of the 2008 convention at www.AXBackstage.org and to register for the 2009 convention at www.anime-expo.org.

About Anime Expo®
Located in Los Angeles, California - Anime Expo®, the nation's largest anime/manga convention, serves to foster trade, commerce and the interests of the general public and animation/ comics industry. This event serves as a key meeting place for the general public to express their interest and explore various aspects of anime/manga, as well as for members of the industry to conduct business. AX 2009 will be held July 2 – July 5, 2009 at the Los Angeles Convention Center in Southern California. More information can be found at its website (www.anime-expo.org).

About Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation
The Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation (SPJA) is a non-profit organization with a mission to popularize and educate the American public about anime and manga, as well as provide a forum to facilitate communication between professionals and fans. This organization is more popularly known by its entertainment property – Anime Expo®. More information can be found at its website (www.spja.org).

The statements made in this press release that are not historical facts are "forward-looking statements." These forward-looking statements are based on current expectations and assumptions that are subject to risks and uncertainties. The Company cautions readers of this press release that a number of important factors could cause Anime Expo®/SPJA's actual future results to differ materially from those expressed in any such forward-looking statements. Such factors include, without limitation, product delays, industry competition, rapid changes in technology and industry standards, protection of proprietary rights, maintenance of relationships with key personnel, vendors and third-party developers, international economic and political conditions. The Company may change its intention, belief or expectation, at any time and without notice, based upon any changes in such factors, in the Company's assumptions or otherwise. The Company undertakes no obligation to release publicly any revisions to any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.

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