Nan Desu Kan

DFS announces the Focus on Japanese Cinema film series!

Our friends at the Denver Film Society are excited to announce their latest film series, running Feb 21-24: Focus on Japanese Cinema! The series spotlights filmmaker Shohei Imamura, the only Japanese director to twice win the prestigious Palme d’or at the Cannes Film Festival, as well as a new film by Kiyoshi Kurosawa, two critically-acclaimed animes, and the last film by 99-year-old Kaneto Shindo.

As part of their series, they're offering NDK attendees an exclusive discount to Grave of the Fireflies and A Letter to Momo! Both (subbed) films will show on Feb. 24. Buy your tickets in advance and save $2 by entering code NDK213 at checkout. Don't delay, they'll sell fast!

Planning a meetup? Post on our Facebook Page and let us know! You can buy up to 10 tickets at a time with that discount code.

They also have a series pass available if you're interested for very reasonable rates, given the amount of films: $50 for non-members and $40 for members.

We'd like to thank the DFS for continuing to bring high-quality anime to the big screen here in Colorado. See you at the movies!

Hotel link announcement

We'll release the hotel link for NDK 2013 on Thursday, Jan. 17 at 6pm (mountain time). The link will be posted across all social media networks and the website. However, going by last year's experience, we'd suggest relying on social media and not our website server. This is your advance notice, per majority request. :)

The day before reserving your room, head over to the Denver Film Center/Colfax! Don't miss the 7pm (English subtitles) presentation of Puella Magi Madoka Magica (Parts I & II), from our friends at the Denver Film Society. One night only! It's nearly sold out, so you probably want to buy your tickets in advance. The first 30 people will receive a limited edition poster.

We also have some unhappy internal NDK news. The RMAA (NDK's parent organization) announces the departure of William Menke from the Board of Directors. Will was a dedicated behind-the-scenes Director, who was rarely seen by attendees because his area focused on Guest Services. However, he and his wife Lindsay (a departing member of the Advisory Committee) both made key, lasting contributions to that extremely important area. They also helped guide the Board through recent changes and will be sorely missed. We wish them the very best as they move on to focus on their personal lives.

(We previously announced 1/16 for the hotel link release. Please disregard that previous announcement.)

NDK NYE pre-reg now over!

Pre-registration for NDK NYE has now ended! If you were unable to do so, you can still purchase admission at the door for $20. Cash and credit cards accepted.

If you follow us on social media, you've seen these updates already. But just to make sure:

1. Not sure what to spend your Christmas money on? Here’s a preview of selected silent auction items on our Facebook or Tumblr. Stay tuned for more! All proceeds benefit the American Heart Association. To bid, visit the silent auction area onsite at NDK NYE next week!

2. The picture shows our other addition to NDK NYE: pachinko machines! They are pay to play. All proceeds will benefit the American Heart Association for these as well.

Here’s a Google search link to help you get a head start and learn how to play. We’ll have specific instructions and help at the hotel.

Book your room for NDK NYE!

Ready to say good-bye to 2012 and welcome 2013 in style? Join NDK on Dec. 31, 2012 as we count down to the Year of the Snake with formal costumes, photos by CG Photography, dancing, music by DJ Bullock, food, cash bar, games, Royalty, and friends! Register now!

The fourth-annual semi-formal costume ball starts at 7 p.m., Dec. 31, 2012, and programming ends around 2 a.m. on New Year's Day, Jan. 1, 2013. (After the countdown ends, it's up to DJ Ben to decide how long to keep the party going!)

NDK NYE is one of the few, if not only, New Year's events in the Denver Metro area to welcome all ages. We want to make sure everyone has a great time, so please review our policies (especially the strict semi-formal dress code) prior to NYE.

NDK NYE is held at the Renaissance Denver Hotel, just off I-70 and Quebec. The 3.5-star hotel features free wireless Internet in the lobby, free parking, three restaurants, 24 hour room service, an extensive plug-in panel for game consoles, laptops, etc. inside each room, as well as a free shuttle for DIA and nearby shopping areas (Quebec Square and Northfield Stapleton).

HOW TO MAKE RESERVATIONS

To make reservations for NDK NYE, please call 1-800-468-3571 and say you are with "NDK NYE" or "Nan Desu Kan" to get the room rate. If you don't say that, you won't get our rate!

Hotel rate: $91/up to four people

You must reserve your room by Dec. 1, 2012 to get that price.

Updated 10/9 with the corrected hotel rate, see here for details.

Pre-reg now for NDK 2013!

Want to make sure your badge is guaranteed for next year? Pre-register now through Sept. 22, 2012 for $30 and save $20 off the at-the-door price.

Returning attendees might notice that the early bird discount this year has a slight bump up $5. (After this week, prices will return to the normal pre-con price of $40. The $50 weekend and $30 one-day at-the-door prices will also stay the same.)

We want to be clear, we take price discussions very, very seriously. After all, we live here too! We know how expensive life can be here in Denver. That's why, except for redoing some of the price tiers a couple years ago, we haven't raised prices for the past 8 years. We're doing so now for the following reasons:

• Eight years ago, we were a relatively small convention. (Our paid attendance was around 4,300, and it was our first year at the Marriott.) Today, we're among the country's larger anime conventions. Our guest list has more than doubled, and our attendance (if we included all the people in the building like paying attendees, industry and press), is twice that. But that also means our expenses are higher than they were before.
• NDK NYE, our formal costume ball, is only $20 at the door (and $15 pre-reg.) NDK, meanwhile, is a 3-day nonstop weekend. We felt the tiny increase in price, which made us comparable to other in-town conventions, was a better value statement for what we offer for attendees: everything from special guests we bring in, five panel rooms with programming from morning to early morning, two dances, round-the-clock gaming, 3 video rooms, an activity room and countless more.
• We genuinely didn't expect to hit the attendance cap this year. Now that we have, however, it's time to secure NDK's future and think about when we'll be forced to cap all three days. The $5 bump on just the first price level is very small, but adds up. And remember: All the money made by the convention goes back into it, to make it better every single year. That's why our parent organization, the Rocky Mountain Anime Association, is a 501(c)(4) registered non-profit.

We are more than happy to answer any questions you may have on this. It was not a decision we made lightly.

Thank you for coming!