Richard Ian Cox has been acting in film and television since the late 1700’s. Understandably, work was hard to come by in the early days before the invention of either medium. It wasn’t until the release of the first talkies in 1927 that Richard’s career started to show signs of life. He first became known to the viewing public with the airing of "The Adventures of the Black Stallion" in 1990. Richard’s modern career has included regular stints on "Cold Squad", "Beggars and Choosers", "Breaker High", as well as guest starring roles on "Stargate: SG1", "Stargate: Atlantis", "Eureka" and films including "Alive", "R.V.", "Battle in Seattle", "Ghost Rider".

Richard has also enjoyed a varied career in animation... Well, not the animation part, the talking part. Roles in "Ranma ½", "Inuyasha", "Botsmaster", "Trouble Chocolate", "First Gundam", "Mega Man", "Gundam Seed", "Hamtaro", "Gundam 00", "Being Ian", "X-Men Evolution", "Will and Dewitt", "Care Bears" and a bunch of other stuff has earned Richard a reputation as a guy who knows which end of a mic to speak into. These days Richard is hard at work trying to solve the current economic crisis. He’s pretty sure it involves jelly beans. Check Richard out on Facebook, Twitter, and on his website.

Official Richard Ian Cox Website

Keiko Han is not only a voice actress but also and author and an instructor at Tokyo Media Academy. She has published five books about the western horoscope. Her numerous roles include: Sasha in "Yamato yo Eien ni" (Be Forever Yamato), Lala Sun in "Mobile Suit Gundam", Prof. Uchikido in "Pocket Monster", Atsuko Kawada in "City Hunter", and Luna in "Sailor Moon".

Noriko Hidaka was born in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. She began her career as an idol singer, but switched to voice acting. She debuted in 1984's The Super Dimension Cavalry Southern Cross as Musica Nova and her two twin sisters, and has since played several dozen roles in various animated series and video games. Ms. Hidaka has voiced many popular roles from Rumiko Takahashi's works, including the main character Akane from "Ranma 1/2" and Kikyo from "Inuyasha". Other famous roles include Near from "Death Note", Satsuki Kusakabe in "My Neighbor Totoro", Sojiro Seta from "Rurouni Kenshin", Jean from "Nadia: Secret of Blue Water", Erica Fontaine from "Sakura Taisen (OAV)", Bellemere from "One Piece", Mrs. Yamada in "Chi's Sweet Home", Minami Asakura in "Touch", Ryss in "Zoids", Shiine from "Akazukin Cha Cha", Noriko Hakushika from "Yukan Club", and Riko Hidaka/Shinesman Salmon Pink from "Shinesman". She also sang theme songs for "Gunbuster", "Ranma ½", and "Spirit of Wonder", and has performed with a singing group of other seiyuus called DoCo.

Yusuke Igarashi was born in 1974. Mr. Igarashi learned the art of hariko from his father, Mr. Kenji Igarashi. After he graduated from college, he became a professional hariko craftsman, inheriting the traditional style of "Kasukabe Hariko Ganko-an". He enjoys creating traditional works of art, as well as his own original designs, incorporating more modern styles. What is hariko? Hariko is a traditional Japanese paper craft, similar to papier-mâché, dating back to the early 17th century (early Edo period). Hariko is used to make dolls and toys, as well as various traditional good luck charms. These items are thought to carry prayers or one's wishes. Some examples of traditional hariko items include Inuhariko figures given to women to ensure safe childbirth, Daruma figures for wishes for success, and Maneki-Neko, the beckoning cat who invites good luck. Mr. Igarashi is also a musician and recording artist under the name "Fishing With John". He uses acoustic guitars, samples from daily life, and other instruments to create his own unique sound.

Official Yusuke Igarashi Website

Kazuhiko Inoue is one of Japan's most well established voice actors, beginning his career in the early 1970's. One of the first characters he voiced was Anthony in "Candy Cane". Recently, he is best known for voicing the roles of Hatori Sohma in "Fruits Basket", Nyanko-sensei in "Natsume Yūjin Chō", Eiri Yuki in "Gravitation", You Miyagi In "Junjou Romantica", and Kakashi Hatake in "Naruto", to name a few. He has also put out many albums and has sung in various anime character albums. He has even performed live on stage at the annual NeoRomance seiyū events in Japan.

When Inoue isn't busy providing voices for anime characters, he also lends his talent to OVAs, drama cds, and video games, including Kingdom Hearts II and Silver Chaos. He may also be found behind the scenes trying his hand at sound directing or found at his own seiyū agency and actors school called B-Box.

His blood type is O, and he enjoys windsurfing and bowling in his free time. His hobbies include snow boarding, being outdoors and photography.

Just like everything else in the recession, the anime industry’s had its ups and downs…and Animerica founding editor Trish Ledoux has been there for it all. The editor first of Berkeley-based Animag in 1988 and then, starting around ’92, of San Francisco’s Animerica, Trish is the author/editor of The Complete Anime Guide as well as "Anime Interviews: The First Five Years of Animerica". Twenty-plus years is a long time in any business and, there is that recession so, partly, that’s why, these days, former voice actor-translator-writer-DVD producer Trish has been concentrating on the more academic side of Japan and, in addition to last year’s stint at a local college, is currently teaching high-school Japanese, as well. Call her a curmudgeon—with a decades-long love of anime legends like Rumiko Takahashi and Leiji Matsumoto, Trish figures she’ll be kicking it old school long after now-six-year-old Hajime finishes his own education. After all, anime fans never grow old, they just...sell their old stuff on eBay? Maybe.

Chiho Saito was born in Tokyo. Her debut work, "Lady and Sword", was published by Coronet in 1982. Her most well-known work, the groundbreaking "Revolutionary Girl Utena", was made into a TV anime series and a feature film in 1997. Ms. Saito was heavily involved with the creation of both. Other works of note include "One More Marionette", "Flower Crown Madonna", "Waltz in a White Dress", and "Bronze Angel". She is part of the Be-Papas manga artist collective. In 1997, she received the Shogakukan Manga Award in shōjo for "Kanon". Her works have been serialized in various publications, including Weekly Shojo Comics, Puchi Comics, Takarazuka GRAPH, and Kadokawa Shoten.

She is currently working on a manga about ice skating called "Ice Forest", serialized in Flowers magazine, and a period piece, entitled "Viscount Valmont: Dangerous Liaisons", serialized in Rinka magazine. Ms. Saito's hobbies include dance, music, opera, and sumo.

Chika Sakamoto, a voice actor for anime, games, and dramas is famous for voicing Nuriko in "Fushigi Yuugi", Mei in "My Neighbor Totoro", Yaten Kou/Sailor Star Healer in "Sailor Moon Stars", "Kentaro Ichinose in "Maison Ikkoku", Tendon Man in "Anpanman", Kisaragi Shun in "Koko wa Greenwood", and many others. Her most recent role is Kaoruko Shikine in the brand-new "Heartcatch Precure". She likes singing with her band and watching pro-wrestling. She has released several CDs in addition to her voice work.

Spike Spencer has been a voice actor since the early nineties. He has voiced hundreds of episodes of Anime including such notable titles as "Evangelion", "Battle Angel", "Suikoden", "Orphen", "Spriggan", "Nadesico", "Mar", "Pretear", "Buso Renkin", "Code Geass 2" and "Bleach". Spike has lent his voice to many radio and TV commercials. His video game credits include "WOW-The Burning Crusades", "Tales of Vesperia", "Steambot Chronicles", "Star Ocean 2", "Lunar: Silver Star Harmony", "BlazBlue: Calamity Trigger",and many others. An accomplished actor, he has worked with such notable stars as Tommy Lee Jones, Sandra Bullock, Frank Langella, Tia Carrere, and Scott Glenn and has been on set with many other stars. Spike is also an author, including "How to Be A Frickin Genius Voice Actor, Step One", "What Happens At The Con, Stays At The Con?", and "Don't Kill Your Date (And Other Cooking Tips)". Spike is also a screenwriter with several projects in various stages. Spike is soon to begin production on his first feature film that he scripted, "Dwindle Down". Visit Spike's official websites at:

www.worldospike.com
www.spikespencer.com
www.almostevilminions.com

As an animation director he has directed "Sangokushi", "Mikuroido", "Majinga Z", "Majinga Z vs Devil man", "Majinga Z vs Ankoku Daishogun", "Saibogu 009", "Star Blazer", etc. He did the original design on "Oyayubi Hime", "Dai Yamato", and served as the assistant director for "Galaxy Express 999" and "Yamato Forever". He was the art designer for "1000 nen Jyoo oo", etc. A professor at Seian University of Art Design and Toei Animation School.

Cristina "Vee" Valenzuela is an anime and video game voice actress residing near Los Angeles, California. Her story from a anime fan and cosplayer to a professional voice actress and singer is a unique one. She dreamed of becoming a voice actress years before she was discovered by Bang Zoom Entertainment at Anime Expo at the ripe young age of 16. Now, at 22, she has starred in anime such as Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha as the title character, Rozen Maiden as Kanaria, The Familiar of Zero as Louise, and Aika in Aika R-16. Other anime roles include Machi in Blade of the Immortal, Misaki in Kannazuki no Miko, Rachel in Hare + Guu, among others. She also has voiced for popular video games such as Avalon Code, Luminous Arc 2 (Sylphy), Rune Factory Frontier (Cinnamon), and, most recently, in BlazBlue: Calamity Trigger as Noel Vermillion and v-13 (Nu).

Cristina has also gained popularity through her YouTube channel as MilkyCabbage and ValliereVee with her English dubs and Japanese covers of anime songs. She is currently co-starring with Johnny Yong Bosch on the popular AnimeTV review show. She is also Haruhi Suzumiya in Bandai's The Adventures of the ASOS Brigade.

Official Cristina Vee Website

Kappei Yamaguchi was born in Fukuoka, Japan. He is best known for voicing the title character roles of Ranma Saotome in "Ranma ½" and InuYasha in "InuYasha", L in "Death Note", Ryuichi Sakuma in "Gravitation", Jackson Neil in "Miracle Girls", Tombo in "Kiki's Delivery Service", Usopp in "One Piece", Hideyoshi in "Law of Ueki", and Kaito Kid and Shinichi Kudo in "Case Closed", among many others. His voice has appeared in various televised dramas, such as Artemis in "Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon" (live action), and in commercials, such as his role playing the Red M&M. He is also prolific in the world of Japanese dubbing, lending his voice to a variety of roles, including the voice of South Park's Kyle Broflovski and Looney Tunes's Bugs Bunny.

Mr. Yamaguchi's birthday is May 23, and his blood type is B. His hobbies include drawing, playing guitar, and sword fighting. His nickname is "Saru" (monkey), stemming from his love for the monkey character in the classical Chinese story "Journey to the West."

In 1963 he started as an assistant director at Toei/Tokyo Satsueejo, later transferring to the Production Department. He produced "Wolf Boy Ken", "Ge Ge Ge no Kitaro", "Getter Robo" , "King Kong", etc., and became an anime picture producer, producing titles including "Candy, Candy", "Story of Maple Town", "Tatsu no ko Taro", etc. As chief of the production section, he produced "Sailor Moon". He is a founder of the Toei Animation Research Center. In 1996 he started researching the digital anime making process for the Japanese government. He is also an adjunct professor at Tokai University.

Toshi has spent half his life reading comic books and watching cartoons for a living. During those two decades, he has worked on an anime magazine called ANIMAG, spent 12 years producing anime at Viz Media and, most recently, has worked as a producer at Bandai Entertainment. Of course, he’s also been translating manga along the while.

Toshi’s past credits include producing the English-language versions of “Ranma ½” and “Inuyasha,” as well as numerous amounts of manga translations such as “Negima!” for Del Rey, “Eureka Seven” for Bandai Entertainment, and “Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service” for Dark Horse. His recent projects include the English-language versions of “Gurren Lagann,” “Freedom,” “Ghost Slayers Ayashi,” and “Kurokami, The Animation”

Toshi has been coming to Animazement off and on for the last 10+ years and, each time he’s able to come, has a great time. He looks forward to hanging out again with everyone this year. As usual, if you're looking for Toshi, try looking for him in the "office" (a.k.a. hotel bar) first.