Please note the following schedule changes for general meetings for the 2009 convention year:

The staff retreat has been moved to June 12-14, from its previous dates of April 24-26. Because of this, we have added a general meeting in April, and canceled the general meeting on June 7. The April general meeting will be on either Saturday April 25, or Sunday April 26, depending on location availability.

In addition, we have decided on the cities for each general meeting, though the exact locations have not yet been reserved.

Here is the current general meeting schedule. The schedule and details will always be kept up-to-date on the calendar.

Saturday, February 21 – general meeting – Portland, OR
Sunday, March 22 – general meeting – Vancouver, WA
Saturday, April 25 or Sunday, April 26 (TBD) – general meeting – location TBD
Saturday, May 16 – general meeting – Eugene, OR
Friday, June 12 – Sunday, June 14 – staff retreat – details TBA
Saturday, July 11 – general meeting – Salem, OR
Sunday, August 9 – general meeting – Portland, OR
Saturday, August 22 – general meeting – Portland, OR

We are pleased to make our first announcements for guests of honor at Kumoricon 2009:

Soul Candy – an “otaku rock” cover band consisting of talented musicians who are also otaku—big anime fans. As such, they specialize in playing songs and music from your favorite anime series. Hailing from the Seattle/King County area in Washington, Soul Candy is quickly being recognized as a formidable performer in various conventions, rock shows, and festivals. They look forward to get a chance to play for fans of similar interests at events such as Kumoricon.

Last Stop Tokyo – founded by current members of The Slants, who also happened to be former members of San Diego pop punk heroes The Rockaway Teens: Simon Young and Johnny Sars. Joined by AC Slayer (of The Gentry and also formerly of The Slants) and Aaron Sixxx (of Stranger’s Six fame), they are Last Stop Tokyo, a straight up punk rock & roll machine with catchy hooks, driving guitar riffs, and an in-your-face attitude.

Svetlana Chmakova – born and raised Russian, and came to Canada at the tender age of 16. She finished high school here, then graduated Sheridan College with a three-year Classical Animation Diploma and is currently a freelance artist, as well as a fledgling North-American equivalent of a manga-ka. She has been in a love-hate relationship with comics and manga for several years now because she is too weak to break it off. Popular titles include Nightschool and Dramacon.

Watch our Guests of Honor page for more announcements as the con approaches, as well as more details and photos of our current guests.

A location has been set for the Sunday, January 18 general meeting:

Borderlands Games
546 High Street NE
Salem, Oregon 97301

Google Maps

The meeting runs from 1pm-5pm. General meetings are open to the public. Meet and plan with other staff, join staff or become a volunteer, and learn about open positions.

Come join us for a night of music, dancing, and fun at Kumoricon’s (Please Don’t Let It) Snow Ball, featuring anime music, AMVs, and a live DJ!

Kumoricon’s next mini-event will be held on Saturday, February 7th, at the Milwaukie Community Club.

This dance is a casual event, with cosplay acceptable (no flip flops, T-shirts, or ripped jeans) and an optional black and white theme.

Take a break in the Monte Carle gaming room, with light concessions for sale.

Pre-register online or by mail for a discount.

Please visit the themed Winter Ball area of the web site for full details including how to register and policies.

We look forward to seeing you there!

Fans of Kumoricon and of Portland’s Asian dance rock band, The Slants, who have been a twice-previous musical guest of honor at Kumoricon, have a chance to join a studio audience for a TV appearance on January 31:

“We (The Slants) got the green light to invite a limited group of friends to the filming session on January 31st in Portland for “Oregon Music Live” (which will be broad casted across a few Comcast Access channels).

This will be a fun, intimate setting where you can watch the Chinatown face-melting action up close and personal. Crazy, excited behavior such as singing and dancing strongly encouraged. Cosplay, Lolita, or whatever you like—be yourselves and represent who The Slants rep!

If you want to attend, filming will take place on Jan. 31st at 4pm. Just let us know if you want to come and how many so we can reserve a spot for you! Email theslants@theslants.com ASAP!!!”

The first tier of Kumoricon 2009 pre-registration ends at midnight the evening of December 31. You have four days left to register at the lowest rate of $30 for the entire weekend.

Mail-in pre-registrations must be postmarked (not necessarily received) by December 31. Online registrations have until midnight. (We recommend not waiting until the very last minute, though!)

To pre-register, please visit our registration page to find everything you need.

Kumoricon will be hosting a table at Mochitsuki, a Japanese American New Years celebration and cultural fair on Saturday, January 17, 11:00am to 3:00pm, at the PCC Sylvania Campus.

This festival features taiko drumming, mochi (Japanese sticky rice cake) creating, folk dance, storytelling, Japanese food specialties, calligraphy demonstrations, and a cultural fair featuring organizations like Kumoricon with hands-on crafts and activities.

Stop by our table to pre-register for the con or participate in cosplay crafts including cat-ear making.

In addition to the cultural fair, Mochitsuki features stage performance shows at 1:00pm and 3:15pm. Tickets are $12 for adults, $9 for students and seniors (age 62 and up), and $5 for children age 3 to 11. Children age 2 and under are free. The deadline to purchase tickets directly from Kumoricon has passed. However, you can purchase tickets online from Mochitsuki directly for a small service charge. Also, most likely tickets will be available on the day of the cultural fair, or if not, Kumoricon has a few extra tickets which may be available at its table.

We’re looking for volunteers to help setup the table, handle registrations, and create crafts and activities for the booth. If you are interested, please post in this forum thread or contact publicity@kumoricon.org.

Mochitsuki has had an attendance of over 2500 and this year will be its 13th year. Kumoricon returns to the festival after a very successful event last year.

For full details, including activity descriptions, background, and a map and address to the location, please see the Mochitsuki 2009 calendar entry.

You can now pre-register online for Kumoricon 2009. Pre-register by December 31 for the lowest rate available, $30.

Mail-in pre-registration forms are also available, as is information about all types of registration for Kumoricon 2009: Registration Page

The attendee and staff hotel rates are available as is the attendee discount code: Hotel Page

The first general meeting for the 2009 con year will be held on Sunday, November 9, at PSU (the same building and location as Kumoricon Lite the weekend prior).

General meetings are open to the public and intended for potential and current staff and volunteers.

Staff registration for 2009 opens at this meeting. Please see the Get Involved section of the forums for staff position openings, and talk to the director of the department for any positions you are interested in.

Maps and location details are on the calendar entry.

Kumoricon’s one-day mini-event returns on Saturday, November 1, at the PSU campus.

Presented by the Portland State Anime Club and Random Select, Kumoricon Lite features gaming, viewing rooms, a costume contest, manga library, and more.

Admission is free!

Bring a volume of manga to donate to our library, and receive a free raffle ticket.

Update: Unfortunately, due to changes in what the PSU campus will permit, we will no longer be able to host vendors or sell concessions at this event, nor will we be hosting karaoke due to reduced space available. We are very sorry for the change. However, attendees can bring food informally to share.

See the calendar entry for the Kumoricon Lite flyer, location, maps, check-in information, and contact info. Please visit the calendar details page again as the check-in room has changed. Discuss in the forums.

See you there!