Kyoto International Manga Anime Fair 2012 opens in Japan

OSAKA, Sept. 21 (Xinhua) -- The Kyoto International Manga Anime Fair 2012 opened on Friday afternoon in the western Japanese city of Kyoto, featuring more than 30 publishers, companies, colleges and universities based in the city and its surrounding Kansai Region.

The cultural fair, held at "Miyakomesse," a major exhibition hall in the city center, is organized by Kyoto International Manga Anime Fair Executive Committee and Kyoto City.

According to the city, the Kyoto event is intended to be a general trade fair for contents centered on manga (comic) and animated works with the aim to promote contents markets by unearthing new audiences among manga and anime fans as well as tourists from around the world.

During the three-day fair, each exhibitor will show new manga releases or the latest in anime creations in its booth while films and works using computer-generated (CG) animation will be contested for the awards.

Following the main exhibition, several thematic sessions or seminars to learn more about manga or the animation industry are also scheduled by the organizers to widely introduce the country's cultural diversity.