Front of Stadthalle Kassel during Connichi 20050918

Connichi is an annual, 3-day

anime convention An anime convention is an event or gathering with a primary focus on anime, manga and Japanese culture. Commonly, anime conventions are multi-day events hosted at convention centers, hotels or college campuses. They feature a wide variety of activ ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

and one of the largest of its kind in the

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

-speaking world with over 24,000 visitors in 2013. It is held by the German anime association

Animexx e.V. Animexx is a German voluntary association (''Eingetragener Verein'') for promotion of Japanese popular culture, in particular anime and manga. It was founded on 30 January 2000 in Munich when two other groups, 1. Sailor-Moon-Online-Fanclub and An ...

History

Connichi was first held in 2002 in

Ludwigshafen Ludwigshafen, officially Ludwigshafen am Rhein (; meaning " Ludwig's Port upon Rhine"), is a city in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, on the river Rhine, opposite Mannheim. With Mannheim, Heidelberg, and the surrounding region, it form ...

, counting 1,500 visitors. Ever since, Connichi has been held every September in

Kassel Kassel (; in Germany, spelled Cassel until 1926) is a city on the Fulda River in northern Hesse, Germany. It is the administrative seat of the Regierungsbezirk Kassel and the district of the same name and had 201,048 inhabitants in December 2020 ...

with visitor numbers having grown quickly beyond 12,000 in 2006.

Location

The Kongress Palais Kassel and parts of the adjacent Hotel Ramada host the majority of events. The concert hall, "Festsaal", offers seating for about 1,500 people. Additional events such as Japanese rock concerts and

visual kei is a movement among Japanese musicians that is characterized by the use of varying levels of make-up, elaborate hair styles and flamboyant costumes, often, but not always, coupled with androgynous aesthetics, similar to Western glam rock. Som ...

cosplay events are held at the nearby venue Nachthallen. A park next to, and an area at the entrance of, the Kongress Palais, as well as the surrounding architecture offer cosplayers space and background for photo shooting. Food and drinks may be purchased at the Palais, as well as at shops and supermarkets in the vicinity a number of which have in recent years begun to open for extended hours even on Sunday during the Connichi weekend. During the event, the Connichi ticket allows to use public transport within a certain tariff zone for free.

Agenda

Connichi offers a variety of attractions typical to anime conventions, such as shows and concerts, contests, video rooms, console games rooms, karaoke, vendors and exhibitors, and Bring'n'Buy flea markets; as well as workshops in

Japanese language is spoken natively by about 128 million people, primarily by Japanese people and primarily in Japan, the only country where it is the national language. Japanese belongs to the Japonic or Japanese- Ryukyuan language family. There have been ma ...

and culture such as how to wear a Kimono or how to draw manga-style. The latter are regularly held by Guests of Honour working in that area (see below for a list of guests).

Contests

Participation in any contest is free for every visitor but may be subject to prior registration or even submission of artistic material. While the actual range of contests may vary from Connichi to Connichi, the following contests are staple. * Cosplay Cosplayers can participate in separate contests which allow either one or two persons at a time, or up to five persons at a time. Since 2004 Connichi also holds the preliminary contest for the

World Cosplay Summit is an annual international cosplay event, which promotes global interaction through Japanese pop culture. It developed from a cosplay exhibition held at the Aichi Expo in 2005. The WCS incorporated in 2012, by which time it had grown to includ ...

to determine the German finalists. Besides the chance to participate in the WCS, the winner receives a flight ticket for the trip to Nagoya, Japan. * Ramen Eating Contest A cup of instant

ramen is a Japanese dish, Japanese noodle dish. It consists of served in a broth; common flavors are soy sauce and miso, with typical toppings including , nori (dried seaweed), menma (bamboo shoots), and scallions. Ramen has its roots in Chinese ...

noodles, usually sponsored by

Nissin Foods Nissin Food Products Co., Ltd. is a Japanese food company that specializes in the production and sale of convenience food and instant noodles. History Founding and early years The company was established in Japan on September 1, 1948, by ...

, is freshly prepared, quickly cooled to prevent scalding, and to be eaten in the shortest time possible. Current record (2010) is 8.7 s. * AMV Contest In several categories, winners are determined whose videos will be shown. Further staple contests include a console games competition, tournaments in Go, TCG and CMG, a hard Anime quiz, as well as

Karaoke Karaoke (; ; , clipped compound of Japanese ''kara'' "empty" and ''ōkesutora'' "orchestra") is a type of interactive entertainment usually offered in clubs and bars, where people sing along to recorded music using a microphone. The music is ...

and

Dōjinshi , also romanized as ', is the Japanese term for self-published print works, such as magazines, manga, and novels. Part of a wider category of '' doujin'' (self-published) works, ''doujinshi'' are often derivative of existing works and created ...

contests. Usually, the winners are announced and rewarded at the closing ceremony.

Guests of Honour

Connichi Guests of Honour come from a wide range of characters notable for their contributions to Japanese pop culture both in Germany and internationally, such as manga and anime artists, voice actors, as well as singers, idols and bands. Notably,

Hiroyuki Yamaga is a Japanese anime director and producer, and a founding member of the animation studio Gainax. He is best known for directing the film '' Royal Space Force: The Wings of Honnêamise'' (1987) at age 24, directing ''Mahoromatic'' (2001), ''Magica ...

has been enjoying attending every Connichi since 2003. ; Connichi 2002 (May 3–5, 2002) : Anime:

Kazuya Tsurumaki Kazuya Tsurumaki (鶴巻和哉 ''Tsurumaki Kazuya'') is a Japanese anime director. He was born on February 2, 1966, in the city of Gosen, located in the Niigata Prefecture. He is the protégé of Hideaki Anno, and a longtime animator at Gainax. ...

(

Gainax Gainax Co., Ltd. (stylized as GAINAX; ja, 株式会社ガイナックス, Hepburn romanization, Hepburn: ) is a Japanese anime studio famous for productions such as ''Neon Genesis Evangelion'', ''Royal Space Force: The Wings of Honnêamise, Roya ...

) ; Connichi 2003 (September 5–7, 2003) : Anime:

Yasuhiro Takeda :''The Gainax employee Yasuhiro Takeda should not be confused with the professor of the same name at National Defense Academy of Japan.'' is a Japanese anime director and founding member of Gainax; for most of his career, he was General Manager ...

(Gainax), Hiroyuki Yamaga (Gainax) : Music: Toru Tanabe (Japanese Baritone singer) ; Connichi 2004 (September 10–12, 2004) : Anime: Yasuhiro Takeda (Gainax), Hiroyuki Yamaga (Gainax),

Takami Akai is an illustrator, game creator, character designer and animator born on November 21, 1961 in Yonago, Tottori Prefecture, Japan. Career history Akai attended Osaka University of Arts majoring in fine art . While studying there, Akai created t ...

(Gainax) : Music:

Blood Blood is a body fluid in the circulatory system of humans and other vertebrates that delivers necessary substances such as nutrients and oxygen to the cells, and transports metabolic waste products away from those same cells. Blood in the c ...

, Toru Tanabe (Baritone) : Voice Actors:

Rubina Kuraoka Rubina Kuraoka (born 17 October 1987 in Berlin) is a German voice actress. Dubbing roles (excerpt) *'' My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic'' (Rarity) *''Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters'' (Anzu Mazaki) *''Wow! Wow! Wubbzy!'' (Wubbzy) *''Ruby Gloom'' (Ru ...

, Tobias Müller, Daniel Schlauch,

Sebastian Schulz Sebastian Schulz (born 1977) is a German voice actor from Rostock. Roles Television animation *Angel Sanctuary is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Kaori Yuki. It was serialized in the ''shōjo'' manga magazine ''Han ...

; Connichi 2005 (September 16–18, 2005) : Anime: Kazuhiro Takamura (Gainax), Hiroyuki Yamaga (Gainax) : Manga and Manhwa: Lee So-young,

Sanami Matoh is a Japanese manga artist born in 1969. She debuted in 1990 with ''Next to an Angel'' published by Akita Shoten is a Japanese publishing company headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo. It was founded by Teio Akita on 10 August 1948. As of 2020, ...

: Music:

dream A dream is a succession of images, ideas, emotions, and sensations that usually occur involuntarily in the mind during certain stages of sleep. Humans spend about two hours dreaming per night, and each dream lasts around 5 to 20 minutes, althou ...

, Toru Tanabe (Baritone) : Voice actors:

Sabine Bohlmann Sabine Bohlmann (born 5 March 1969) is a German actress, perhaps most famous as the German voice of Lisa and Maggie Simpson on ''The Simpsons''. She is most active in dubbing children's television. In the 1980s and 1990s, there was hardly any dub ...

; Connichi 2006 (September 15–17, 2006) : Anime: Takami Akai (Gainax),

Yoshiyuki Sadamoto is a Japanese character designer, manga artist, and one of the founding members of the Gainax anime studio. Personal life Before Gainax was founded under the official name (it was originally called Daicon Film), Yoshiyuki served as animator o ...

(Gainax), Shoji Saeki (Gainax), Hiroyuki Yamaga (Gainax) : Manga:

Makoto Tateno , who also uses the pen name Shinjuku Tango, is a Japanese manga artist who made her debut in 1986. Tateno regards her influences as being Go Nagai and Osamu Tezuka. Two of her best-known works are ''Yellow'' and '' Happy Boys''. For the lat ...

: Music: Toru Tanabe (Baritone) : Voice actors:

Yukari Fukui is a Japanese actress, voice actress and gravure idol known by the nickname in Japan. Filmography Anime *''7 of Seven'' as Nanarin *'' Dragonaut -The Resonance-'' as Saki Kurata *''Gundam Reconguista in G'' as Raraiya Monday *''Highschool ...

, David Turba ; Connichi 2007 (September 7–9, 2007) : Anime: Yuji Nunokawa (

Studio Pierrot is a Japanese animation studio established in May 1979 by former employees of both Tatsunoko Production and Mushi Production. Its headquarters are located in Mitaka, Tokyo. Pierrot is renowned for several worldwide popular anime series, such as ...

), Hiroyuki Yamaga (Gainax), Savin Yeatman-Eiffel (Director

Ōban Star-Racers is a French-Japanese anime television series created by Savin Yeatman-Eiffel of Sav! The World Productions in association with multiple international companies. Originally produced as a short movie titled ''Molly Star Racer'', a television series ...

) : Manga:

Ayano Yamane is a Japanese josei manga artist, known for specializing in yaoi manga. She debuted as a professional manga artist in 1996 and since then has published several yaoi series and illustrated many light novels. Ayano Yamane is known for her humour ...

: Music: Haruko Momoi, M.o.v.e., Rentrer En Soi : Voice actors:

Nobuyuki Hiyama is a Japanese Voice acting, voice actor, Narration, narrator, and radio personality currently affiliated with Arts Vision. His vocal register is described as a Tenor#Lyric, metallic lyric tenor suitable to voice a mature variation of coming of a ...

Tetsuya Kakihara is a Japanese voice actor and singer. He was affiliated with 81 Produce before he became a freelancer in June 2013. He set up his own agency, Zynchro, in July 2014. Since 2010, Kakihara has been affiliated with Kiramune, a music label by Bandai ...

; Connichi 2008 (September 12–14, 2008) : Anime: Takami Akai (Gainax), Hiroyuki Yamaga (Gainax), Yasuhiro Takeda (Gainax),

Hiroyuki Imaishi is a Japanese key animator and animation director and one of the co-founders of Studio Trigger. His style is marked by fast and frantic animation combined with elaborate storyboarding and punchy direction. Prior to founding Trigger, he was an a ...

(Director Gurren Lagann), Atsushi Nishigori (Charakter Design Gurren Lagann), Masahiko Ōtsuka (Storyboard Gurren Lagann), Yō Yoshinari (Mecha Design Gurren Lagann), Ryōji Masuyama (Artist Gurren Lagann) : Manga:

Kazusa Takashima is a Japanese manga artist, famous for her yaoi manga. After being a doujinshi artist from 1999 to 2000, she became an official manga artist in 2001. In addition to this, she has also illustrated a number of light novels. Biography Born in Hokk ...

: Music: Haruko Momoi, Pornophonique ; Connichi 2009 (September 18–20, 2009) : Anime: Hidenori Matsubara (Gainax), Takami Akai (Gainax), Hiroyuki Yamaga (Gainax), Haruko Momoi : Manga: Robert Labs : Music:

Back-On Back-On (stylized as BACK-ON) is a Japanese rock band from Tokyo, Japan. They are recognized for creating anime and game opening themes such as the '' Tales of the World: Radiant Mythology 2'' opening theme, "fly away"; ''Air Gear'' opening theme ...

;Connichi 2010 (September 10–12, 2010) :Anime: Hiroyuki Yamaga (Gainax), Yutaka Uemura (Gainax, Director Dantalian no Shoka),

Gakuto Mikumo is a Japanese writer of mystery and science fiction light novels from the Oita Prefecture in Japan. He is a member of the Mystery Writers of Japan and the Honkaku Mystery Writers Club of Japan. He studied the English language at Sophia Univers ...

(Gainax, Writer Dantalian no Shoka) :Manga:

You Higuri is a Japanese '' shōjo'' and yaoi manga artist who has made several appearances at anime and manga conventions in the United States, as well as in Germany. Her first U.S. appearance was at the initial Yaoi-Con in San Francisco in 2001 (Yaoi-Con ...

:Music:

Olivia Lufkin Olivia Lufkin (born December 9, 1979), professionally known as Olivia, is a Japanese-American bilingual singer and songwriter.

, Haruko Momoi,

Rumi Shishido is a Japanese singer and voice actress from Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. Shishido debuted as an idol singer with Sony Records in 1990 with the single "Cosmic Rendezvous." In 1992, she left her management and began releasing music independently. ...

:Misc: Kumiko Uehara (Lead Design for fashion label

Baby, The Stars Shine Bright is the name of a Japanese clothing brand created in 1988 by Akinori Isobe and his wife, Fumiyo. Baby, The Stars Shine Bright specializes in Lolita fashion. The company's flagship store, opened in 1999 in Daikanyamachō, Shibuya, was relocated t ...

), Noir (Gainax, Director Market Research) ;Connichi 2011 (September 16–18, 2011) :Anime: Hiroyuki Yamaga (Gainax), Osamu Kobayashi (Director), Michihiko Suwa (Yomiuri TV) :Music: Kouhei Tanaka,

Cécile Corbel Cécile Corbel (born 28 March 1980, in Pont-Croix, Finistère, France) is a French and Breton singer, harpist, and composer. She has released five albums of original music and worked for Studio Ghibli as a composer for its 2010 film, ''The Borr ...

May'n , better known by her stage name , is a Japanese singer from Nagoya. Aspiring to become a musician since childhood, she began her music activities in 2003 upon passing an audition held by talent agency Horipro International. She made her major d ...

Novala Takemoto is the professional name of , a Japanese author and fashion designer. Biography Takemoto was born in Uji, south of Kyoto. As a child, he was shy and preferred drawing and reading (two of his favorite authors were Osamu Dazai and Yasunari Kawab ...

(Dantalian no Shoka ending song writer) :Misc: Kumiko Uehara, Hideki Kenmochi (

Vocaloid is a singing voice synthesizer software product. Its signal processing part was developed through a joint research project led by Kenmochi Hideki at the Pompeu Fabra University in Barcelona, Spain, in 2000 and was not originally intended to b ...

chief developer for Yamaha) :Voice Actor: Kaya Matsutani

Show acts

Apart from Japanese artists that go on stage, Connichi hosts a variety of amateur performers showing plays and musicals, singing and/or doing standup comedy with anime-related themes.

Workshops

The workshops vary from event to event. The following workshops are staple to Connichi. * Fandub Workshop Various scenes from anime are dubbed by visitors. The result is presented at the closing ceremony. * Go Workshop Visitors can get familiar with the game of Go or improve their skills.

References

External links

* http://www.connichi.de/ Official Homepage (German) {{Anime conventions in Europe Anime conventions in Germany 2002 establishments in Germany