We are pleased to announce Bizarre Couture as our 2020 Fashion Guest of Honor!

The fashion visionaries based in Tulsa, Oklahoma have traveled all this way to be the Fashion Guests of Honor for AnimeIowa 2020! Their studio specializes in mixing time periods, motifs, cultures, and textiles to create stunning acts of fashion. They have been invited to headline the J-Fashion show based on their particularly Japanese fashion inspired work, which often draws from Visual Kei and other Harajuku street fashions. The duo officially started designing together three years ago and, since then, the two have been creating works of art and leveling up with each new garment. With 20+ years of sewing experience behind each piece, these two are not afraid of creating looks from the wearable all the way to the most avant-garde. They have been featured at other fashion events such as Paradiso: A Lolita Fashion Event, and Northwest Arkansas Fashion Week.

While by night we know them as Bizarre Couture, Ariel and Billie are newlyweds and engineers by day. Ariel is a Mechanical Design Engineer, while Billie is working towards a degree in Environmental Engineering. If they have a moment to breathe, they can be found caring for their pet rabbit. 

The designers want Anime Iowa to know that, “We strongly believe that there’s no one look or feature that is beautiful, but rather that everyone is beautiful in their own way, and they should have the freedom to express that how they choose.” This quote is flawlessly executed by the brand’s diverse portfolio. 

You can see many of their looks at the Fashion Show presented by the AnimeIowa Fashion Department. There will also be a trunk show featuring the work of all of the participants after the show.

We’re pleased to announce that Chris Hackney will be appearing as a Guest of Honor for AnimeIowa 2020!

Chris Hackney is an American voice actor currently residing in Los Angeles, CA.

Originally from Florida, Chris found his way to acting when in college for music. While looking for more outlets for artistic expression, he discovered an entire new world of creativity in acting. Several years of training and a cross-country move later, Chris has found his life and passion in voiceover.

Chris can be heard in various forms including commercials, video games, anime, and animation. Currently, he’s most known for titles such as Fire Emblem: Three Houses (Dimitri), Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia (Boey), Hunter x Hunter, Mega Man 11, K Project, Valkyria Chronicles 4, and Gundam SEED. Chris is always looking forward to the next exciting opportunity he can lend his passion to.

We are pleased to announce TyrannosaurusLexCosplay as our 2020 Cosplay Guest of Honor!

Lex, also known as TyrannosaurusLexCosplay, is a Midwest cosplayer who loves the process of creating costumes and the awesomeness of the cosplay community. Lex officially started cosplaying in 2013, and created her first self-sewn cosplay in 2014. Since then, Lex has been creating cosplays non-stop and working on leveling up her skills. Lex is never afraid to start learning a new skill in sewing, thermoplastics or foam armor and loves talking with anyone about cosplay tips and tricks! Lex always attends conventions with one goal in mind, to encourage others to take part in the fun and exciting hobby of cosplaying!

When not cosplaying, Lex can most likely be found watching anime, playing D&D or spending time with her two very spoiled dogs.  

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tyrannosauruslexcosplay/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Tyrannosaurus.Lex.Cosplay/

Our Guests Team is happy to announce APRILAPIN as an Artist Guest of Honor for AnimeIowa 2020!

APRILAPIN (pronounced like “april-a-pawn”) is an illustrator and graphic designer from Davenport, Iowa. Growing up, she was heavily influenced by anime and manga such as Sailor Moon, X/1999, Chobits, and Fruits Basket. These influences, along with her interest in horror, video games, fashion, and cosplay, formed the bedrock of her work today. These days, some of her favorites are Revolutionary Girl Utena, Madoka Magica, Oyasumi Punpun, and Mawaru Penguindrum. She loves to create illustrations that evoke a mood, juxtapose the unexpected, and unsettle.
APRILAPIN can usually be found drawing at home, eating chips, petting her cat, sewing cosplay, or on social media at @aprilwithfluff on Twitter or Instagram. You can also visit her on the web at www.aprilapin.com.

We are pleased to announce our first Guest of Honor for AnimeIowa 2020: Cristina Vee!

Cristina Vee is a Los Angeles based voice actress, director, and producer. In animation, she is known as Sailor Mars in Sailor Moon, Hawk in The Seven Deadly Sins, Killua in Hunter x Hunter, Darkness in Konosuba, Homura Akemi in Madoka Magica, Meiko in Digimon Adventure Tri, Sakura Matou in Fate Stay/Night, Mio Akiyama in K-ON!, Miki Makimura in Devilman Crybaby, Kotori Minami in Love Live!, Xochi in Victor and Valentino, Jay-Ten in Steven Universe, and Marinette Dupain Cheng aka Ladybug in Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir. Other roles include parts in Re:Zero, Bleach, One Punch Man, Mob Psycho 100, Sword Art Online, Tiger and Bunny, One Piece, Violet Evergarden, Naruto, Boruto, Fairy Tail, Magi, Kill la Kill, Your Lie in April, Kakegurui, Pokémon, Gantz: O, Godzilla: Planet of the Monsters,The Promised Neverland, Lupin III, Yokai Watch, Inazuma Eleven, and so many others. Fans may be surprised that she provides the English voices for Disney’s Violetta and Tokyo in Netflix’s Money Heist.
You can hear her in Disney World’s Avatar Land, but you’ll have to find her yourself!

She has also worked in hundreds of video games, as Velvet in Tales of Berseria, Ophillia in Octopath Traveler, Riven in League of Legends, Eagle Eye in Fortnite, Noel Vermillion, Nu-13, Lambda-11, and Mu-12 in BlazBlue, Cerebella in Skullgirls, Tatiana, Athena, and Lachesis in Fire Emblem, Cinque in Final Fantasy Type-0, 5-Volt and 13-Amp in Warriors Ware Gold, Shantae in Shantae, and can also be heard in Kingdom Hearts 3, Command and Conquer: Rivals, Monster Prom, Soul Calibur 6, Xenoblade Chronicles, Star Wars: KOTOR, Dangan Ronpa, Street Fighter V, Hyperdimension Neptunia, Just Cause 4, Drakengard 3, to name a few.

Her singing can be heard in the 3DS game Adventure Time: Hey Ice King! Why’d You Steal Our Garbage!? and in Shantae: Half Genie Hero.
Her directing credits include Skullgirls, Skip Beat!, Indivisible, and Last Hope. She was the first canon female Black Ranger in the official Power Rangers TTRPG. Her character Anya was a fan favorite in the short lived Wizards of the Coast D&D show Dark & Dicey. She is also known for her music, with her most popular song, Bad Apple!! English, standing at over 20 million views.