In 2007, Anime Kanarazu was formed to give people who were fans of Japanese Animation and Graphic Novels a place to come to socialize and be with people of like interests. Our mission is to help people gain a greater understanding of anime and manga and to attempt to remove the negative stereotypes that so often surround this genre. We hold regular showings of selected anime series. (Unless otherwise noted, all of the titles that we show are in Japanese with English subtitles.) Information on our meetings, including time and place, can be found on our calendar.
We hold regular meetings on the second and fourth Saturday of every month. Our screenings are open to the public, however our panels and special member functions are not. We welcome anyone age 14 and over to come join us. Anyone under the age of 18 will be required to have a consent form signed by their parent or legal guardian, and anyone over the age of 18 will be required to sign a consent form before attending a viewing. Upon starting a membership, each new member will receive two free meetings and at the end of that can decide if they wish to become a member.
Even though the name Anime Kanarazu may seem like a strange and randomly selected name, it is actually far from it. In order to completely explain the name, I must tell a little bit of history. The three original planning committee members were involved in an anime club for approximately a year which was much the same as ours is today. Prompted by what was learned from this club, the first leader (Barry Hylton) set out to re-create the club with much more planning involved, as well as a different approach to the governmental system used by the majority of clubs today. After getting backing from the other two council members (Brandon Hamilton, The Ambassador and Casey Alvis, The Scribe) they set out with this design. Even though several names were submitted as suggestions, it ultimately came down to using Anime Kanarazu for its meaning. I can assume that most everyone knows what anime is by now, so I'll skip that, but the meaning behind Kanarazu is "without fail" or "definitely." This was selected in light of the original club which all three felt was a failure, so it was decided that the name was to help ensure that what happened before would not happen again.
Anime Kanarazu
Anime without fail
The Mascots
First of all, the official design sketches of the Anime Kanarazu mascots... Everyone say hello to Kimiko and Natsumi!
These two ladies were designed by Barry Hylton and Brandon Hamilton after a lot of planning and brainstorming. Though neither can recall the conversation verbatim, it boiled down to this idea.
"What if we could have two mascots? That way we can have a mascot for every anime fan."
The essential idea behind the two is this. They're twin sisters, and though they have some what of a similar appearance, they are the polar opposites. Kimiko is a somewhat reserved girl. Straight-laced and studious, she likes peace and quiet when she is reading manga, but when it comes to the anime she watches, she enjoys viewing with her friends or her sister. She enjoys anime/manga series that have serious plots and that are well written, but she has a secret taste for the bizarre and the romantic comedies as well. Natsumi on the other hand is a very outgoing, energetic, and mischievous person. Like her sister, she enjoys watching anime and reading manga, but she is more known for her personality and leadership skills. While a romantic at heart (guilty pleasures include bishoujo anime series in general, fanfics, and shoujo/shonen-ai) this rarely shows through in her personality.
The idealism behind these two goes somewhat deeper, though really just an extended version of the original statement. In creating two mascots that were polar opposites of each other, this was meant to show that anime fans from all walks of life can come together for a common bond. The reasoning behind them being twin sisters is to represent the bond that an anime club can create amongst people who might have never otherwise met and the fraternity that can be formed.
Rules & Regulations
The Rules & Regulations of Anime Kanarazu will be outlined in the Constitution, Amendments, and Bylaws, which can be found in the archives section of this site. In the unlikely event that there is a discrepancy between the site and the documented rules, the documented rules will be followed.
Contact Us
You can reach us through e-mail (Council(at)animekanarazu.com). We do not give out individual member's e-mails, so if you need to contact a particular member, you can send them a private message on our forums.
