Nan Desu Kan

Now accepting applications for NDK 2010 Artists Alley

Applications for NDK 2010's Artists Alley are now open. We've made some big changes this year, so please read the rules before submitting an application.

The biggest change we've made this year is that we've abandoned the first-come, first-served application system in favor of a new lottery system; the frantic "midnight rush" of years past is gone forever. You now have two full weeks to submit your application. The deadline for submitting applications is Sunday, February 14.

Once all the applications are in, we'll hold a lottery to select the applicants that are awarded tables. Winners will be notified shortly after the deadline passes.

Please note that we require artists to be pre-registered for NDK before we send them contracts, so if your name is picked and you're awarded a table, be sure to pre-register before the contracts are sent out!

We've also changed the method of submitting applications. Instead of sending an e-mail with a form attached, now you just have to fill out and submit our simple Artists Alley application form at any point during the next two weeks.

If you have any comments or questions about submitting an application, please visit our NDK 2010 Artists Alley forum thread.

NDK NYE 2009 Crazy-Big Update

New Year's Eve is nearly upon us, so we thought we'd give you one last update with everything you'll need to know about attending the NDK New Year's Eve Costume Ball...

Registration

Though pre-registration for the NYE Costume Ball is now closed, you can still register at the door for just $15. This is a cash-only event, so be sure to hit the ATM before you get in line to register. (The food and drink stations inside the dance hall will be cash-only as well, so be sure to bring enough for the whole evening. And don't forget that there's an ATM in the hotel lobby if you run out.)

The Hotel

It's not too late to book a hotel room at the Marriott for the low price of $69 for a double-occupancy room. The first 100 people to book a hotel room will be entered in a drawing to stay for free on the night of the dance.

Parking at the Marriott will be free—even overnight.

Dress Code

Because the NYE Costume Ball is a formal event, all those present will be required to be wearing either formal attire or a costume. "Formal attire" means no T-shirts, jeans, or tennis shoes (i.e. no street clothes). If you're in costume, however, the costume itself need not be formal—it is, after all, a costume ball.

Because we require that you be in formal attire or a costume, anyone that shows up in street clothes will be turned away at the door, so please dress up!

Hours of Operation

The NYE Costume Ball will officially run from 8:00 PM to 1:00 AM, but our friendly neighborhood DJ—DJ Bullock—may extend the ending time if there's enough energy left in the room when 1:00 rolls around.

The registration desk—for both will-call and on-site registration—will be open from 6:00 PM to 11:30 PM. Our charity booth will follow the same hours.

Our resident con photographer, Chris Gilstrap of CG Photography, will have a photo booth set up from 6:00 PM to 11:30 PM. He may re-open it after midnight if there are people who want some last-minute, late-night photos.

The Trading Post (the hotel's gift shop) will be open until 11:15 PM. The Lift (the bar and restaurant in the atrium) will be open until 2:00 AM.

Wristbands

Instead of badges, we'll be issuing wristbands to all attendees. If you're 21 or older, you'll get a special wristband that lets us know you're old enough to drink. Be sure to bring your valid photo ID, though, because no one gets a 21+ wristband without showing us an ID—even if you look older than 21. Anyone under 21 (and anyone unable to produce a valid, state-issued photo ID) will get the standard wristband.

The hotel will also be providing a wristband for all those staying in hotel rooms. If you're not wearing a hotel wristband, you won't be allowed up to the hotel rooms, so be sure each person staying in your room gets one. The hotel will be giving these wristbands out at the hotel check-in desk.

Because there's a wristband for attending the NYE Costume Ball and a wristband for the hotel room, some attendees will need to wear two wristbands. Those not staying at the hotel on New Year's Eve will only need to wear the one.

Pre-Register for NDK 2010

If you haven't already pre-registered for NDK 2010, this is the perfect opportunity to do so. We'll be accepting pre-registrations for NDK 2010 in the atrium next to the NYE Costume Ball registration, so bring along some extra cash to take advantage of the pre-registration discount.

Policies

Please keep in mind that this because this is an official NDK event, all of our normal rules apply. That means we'll still be enforcing our weapons policy, our anti-harassment policy, and our costumes policy. We'll be peace-bonding all weapons, just like at the convention, so be sure to visit Ops in the atrium if you're bringing any weapon props.

Alcohol

A large number of our attendees are under the drinking age and we want this to be a fun, safe environment for people of all ages. Because we'll be serving alcohol inside the dance hall, we ask that everyone be responsible when it comes to the handling and consumption of alcohol.

We have zero tolerance for underage drinking. If we catch a minor drinking, or anyone providing a minor with a drink, we'll turn the matter over to the authorities. Anyone caught engaging in such activities will also be permanently banned from NDK and all future NDK events.

We'll also be involving the authorities in any instances of drunk driving or drunk and disorderly conduct. If you abuse alcohol at the NYE Costume Ball, your night probably isn't going to end well...

Talk Amongst Yourselves

And finally, don't forget that we've got a discussion thread going for the NYE Costume Ball (if you'd like to ask us any questions about the NYE Costume Ball, that's where to do it), as well as a thread where you can discuss your costume plans.

Pre-registration for the NDK New Year's Eve Costume Ball ends soon

Just a quick reminder that if you haven't pre-registered for our New Year's Eve Costume Ball yet, you may want to get the jump on it soon. The last day for pre-registration is Sunday, December 27th. After that, you'll have to register at the door.

We're looking forward to seeing you all there!

NDK 2009 Crazy-Big Update

This is our first-annual Crazy-Big Update, where we bring together all kinds of information about the convention, and even make a few announcements to boot. Here you'll find information about our guests, convention and department schedules, our new itinerary system, and more.

Guests

In addition to our previously-announced guests, we have one more guest announcement to make: Rica Matsumoto. Unfortunately, we're still waiting on her official bio and headshot, but we'll get those posted as soon as we can. Meanwhile, here's a brief introduction to tide you over:

Rica Matsumoto

Rica Matsumoto is a Japanese voice actress, singer, and all-around idol.

Rica is best known for her role as Satoshi in Pokémon—the character known to most American audiences as Ash Ketchum. Her other notable roles include Bikki in Fake, Sinunora in Gun Frontier, Sandie in Lupin III: Missed by a Dollar, Warren Trace (and others) in Mobile Suit Gundam Victory, Hibiki in My Dear Marie, James "Jim" Hawking in Outlaw Star, Rumi in Perfect Blue, Raishinshi in Soul Hunter, Nataku in X the Movie, and Futaba Aoi in You're Under Arrest.

As one of the original members of the JAM Project and as a solo artist, Rica has released a number of hit singles and albums. She's provided performances for a number of anime theme songs, including those for EX-Driver, Fake, Pokémon, Panda-Z: The Robonimation, Ruin Explorers, and Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters GX.

Previously-Announced Guests

Of course, all of the other guests that we've previously announced are still coming:

• Aaron Dismuke
• Chris Patton
• Cristina Valenzuela
• Jan Scott-Frazier
• Jason and Heather Martin
• Kyle Hebert
• Melodee Spevack
• Michael McConnohie
• Michael Powell
• Miki Nagasawa
• Steve Yun
• Todd Haberkorn
• Tommy Yune
• Wendy Powell

Several of them are returning guests and many are new to NDK, so be sure to give them all a warm welcome!

Schedules

Our schedules have been sent to the printers, which means they're as finalized as they're going to get and we're ready to share them with the world...

Programming

Our Programming Schedule [PDF] has virtually all of the activities at NDK. And our Program Guide [PDF], with the gorgeous artwork from Stephanie Kao on the cover, provides descriptions for those activities as well as additional information about NDK, our guests, and other fun stuff.

You can find paper copies of both the Programming Schedule and Program Guide at the registration desk and at Ops. If you pre-registered, you'll receive a copy of each in the pre-registration bag you'll receive when you pick up your badge.

Video

We have two 24-hour video rooms that open at 2:00 PM on Friday and run until 6:00 PM on Sunday. You can see what we'll be playing throughout the weekend by checking out our Video Schedule [PDF] and get descriptions of what we'll be showing from our Anime Synopses Booklet [PDF] (the pages may seem out of order, but if you print it out on four front-and-back pages, it comes out just right). We'll have paper copies of both of these at the registration desk, at Ops, and in front of each video room.

We're also proud to announce the premiere of Ichi, the live-action movie from FUNimation about a blind woman who wanders the countryside fighting off yakuza and other villains with nothing but her shamisen and her exceptional sword skills. This is the first time the movie's been shown at an anime convention in the US. The premiere will be in HD, and we'll be playing it in Primrose on Friday at 7:30 PM. We'll have an encore presentation of the movie (in SD) on Saturday at 10:00 PM in Long's Peak. The movie is rated R, so please be aware that anyone under 17 not accompanied by a parent or guardian will be turned away at the door. Seating is limited, so be sure to arrive early to find a seat!

Other

Several of our departments run on their own schedules independent of the overall convention schedule. Those schedules are:

Registration

Friday: 10:00 AM to 7:00 PM (Pre-Registrations)

Friday: Noon to 7:00 PM (On-Site Registration)

Saturday: 9:00 AM to 7:00 PM

Sunday: 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM

Sunday: 5:00 PM to 6:00 PM (Pre-Registration in Main Events)

Dealers Room

Friday: 2:00 PM to 7:00 PM (Pre-Registered Attendees)

Friday: 3:00 PM to 7:00 PM (All Other Attendees)

Saturday: 9:30 AM to 6:00 PM

Sunday: 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM

Artists Alley

Friday: 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM

Saturday: 10:00 AM to 8:00 PM

Sunday: 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM

Art and Model

Friday: 3:00 PM to 9:00 PM

Saturday: 9:00 AM to 7:00 PM

Sunday: 9:00 AM to Noon

Video Gaming Room

Friday: 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM

Saturday: 10:00 AM to 9:00 PM

Sunday: 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM

DDR Room

Friday: 6:00 PM to Midnight

Saturday: 9:00 AM to Midnight

Sunday: 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM

Some of these departments will open earlier or close later than their scheduled times, so if you show up a little early, you may find that they're already open for business.

Itinerary System

We're debuting a new feature to our website this week: an NDK itinerary builder. Built by Xander G., one of the people behind our online pre-registration system, the itinerary builder lets you add most of the activities at NDK—both con-run and attendee-run—to your personal itinerary. We've been busy entering all the activities from our programming schedule and video schedule, so you should find most of the activities we have to offer for your itinerary.

To get started, first register an account if you don't have one already (or login to your account if you do; please note that these are different from forum accounts), then go to the My Itinerary page. From there, you can start adding activities to your itinerary. If you've added multiple activities to your itinerary that are scheduled for the same timeframe, you can resolve any overlaps before finally checking out a printable version of your itinerary, which you can bring with you to the convention.

We've still got a few theming issues to work out, but don't let that stop you from taking advantage of this really cool tool. No other convention has anything like it!

Policies and Rules

We've got a few new rules that everyone should be aware of, plus a few things that everyone should know, whether they're new to NDK or a seasoned veteran:

Anti-Harassment

We have a new anti-harassment policy at NDK this year, and we're taking it very seriously. Unwanted affection, touching, hugging, kissing, and glomping will not be tolerated. If you're caught or reported for violating these rules, you may be banned from the convention. So be sure to ask and make sure it's OK before you touch, hug, kiss, or glomp anyone at the convention.

We also take a zero-tolerance approach to verbal harassment. Using derogatory terms, hate speech, and all manners of verbal abuse could similarly earn you a permanent ban from NDK, so please respect your fellow attendees.

Elevators

We're taking a no-nonsense approach to the elevators this year because our attendees can be really rough on the elevators, which causes the elevators to break down, which in turn causes many people great frustration throughout the weekend. It's only with your help and cooperation that we can keep all of the elevators running smoothly throughout the convention.

In addition to stationing staff members inside the elevators during peak hours, there will be severe consequences for anyone who abuses the elevators. Inappropriate behavior includes riding the elevators for hours on end, overcrowding elevators, jumping up and down while in the elevators, and roughhousing in the elevators. If you're caught doing any of these things, you may be subject to a badge punch or even a ban from the convention. As we said, we're taking this very seriously.

Other Concerns

We've got a bunch of staffers that help run the convention, so if you need anything, flag down a staffer and they'll try to help. And if you see someone causing problems (and taking the fun out of NDK), find someone from our security staff or go to Ops—that little hole in the wall between the hotel registration desk and the convention registration desk—and report what's going on, no matter the time of day (Ops doesn't close during the convention). They'll be happy to take care of any troublemakers so you can get back to enjoying the convention. We've also got a full-time EMS staff in case you or someone you know has a medical emergency.

Have Fun

Finally, the most important part: you need to have fun! Part of that means taking care of yourself: drink plenty of water, get plenty of rest, and bathe (your friends will thank you for that last one). And part of it means doing your best to enjoy all the con has to offer.

We'll see you all at NDK 2009!