Liz OhanesianSee more photos in Shannon Cottrell's gallery, “Anime Expo 2011: Day One, Friday.”
Updated with photos of Miku-Kitty on Page 2. First published 7/02/11 at 7:36 a.m.
Hatsune Miku fans were not left disappointed after spending Friday afternoon in line for the Miku Keynote presentation that marked the opening day of Anime Expo 2011. Crypton Future Media CEO Hiroyuki Itoh– “Hatsune Miku's father,” according to Danny Choo's introduction– and Toshihiro Fukuoka, the Japanese magazine editor who has played a role in introducing Miku to the world, arrived ready to announce a few new adventures for the virtual pop star and breakout hit of Crypton's Vocaloid software, who will be playing the anime convention Saturday night.
If you thought there were few things cuter than an animated pop star with really long blue pigtails, try merging her with a cat beloved by the world. That's just what Crypton and Sanrio are doing with Miku-Kitty. Sanrio is certainly no stranger to Hello Kitty-pop star hybrids, as owners of Yoshikitty know well. The collaboration also seems to be in line with Crypton's remix-friendly approach to their Vocaloid characters. Plus, Miku-Kitty is adorable.
Miku Keynote at Anime Expo; Credit: Shannon Cottrell
Itoh went on to announce Mikubook.com, which launched Friday. The site, which is in beta right now, allows fans of Vocaloid software to connect with each other by sharing and recommending videos. You can join the site using either your Twitter or Facebook account.
The announcement that drew the biggest reaction from fans was that Crypton is currently developing an English language version of Hatsune Miku. Itoh said that there is a chance, though this is not certain, that the new voices will be played at Saturday's Miku conference, which will take place in Petree Hall inside the L.A. Convention Center at 1:30 p.m.
See photos of Miku-Kitty on the next page.
Credit: Shannon Cottrell
Credit: Shannon Cottrell
Credit: Shannon Cottrell
Follow @lizohanesian and @ShannonCottrell on Twitter.
Advertising disclosure: We may receive compensation for some of the links in our stories. Thank you for supporting LA Weekly and our advertisers.