NEW PEOPLE ANNOUNCES DATES FOR

THE 2012 J-POP SUMMIT FESTIVAL

One-Of-A-Kind Weekend-Long Festival Celebrates “Cyberpop Overload!” And Showcases The Best In Modern Japanese Film, Anime, Fashion, Music, Art, Retail Design And Popular Culture This August

San Francisco, CA, April 9, 2012 – NEW PEOPLE, a dynamic entertainment destination bringing the latest examples of Japanese popular culture to North American shores, has announced the dates for its 2012 J-Pop Summit Festival. The Festival, now in its fourth year, will be held across San Francisco’s Japantown in association with the Japantown Merchant Association on Saturday, August 25^th and Sunday, August 26^th. 

The theme for 2012 will be “Cyberpop Overload!,” and the all-day, weekend-long event will offer many popular attractions that have made the J-Pop Summit Festival a fun annual gathering for fashion, film, anime, video game, technology and music fans as well as pop culture enthusiasts, Bay Area residents, and tourists visiting the city. More than 55,000 people attended last year’s J-Pop Summit Festival, according to the SFPD, and this year’s Festival is expected to attract even more attendees.

Information about the festival is available at J-pop.com and will feature regular updates. Additional official news alerts over the coming months will detail specific events, attractions, event partners and sponsors as well as Guest of Honor appearances.

Among this year’s most highly anticipated highlights, NEW PEOPLE is partnering with Japan’s Nippon Television Network Corporation (NTV) to present a very special event featuring the EVANGELION series in the U.S. for the first time ever! More information on this attraction will be announced in coming months.

A variety of other pop-inspired attractions including fashion shows, theatrical film premieres,  live art performances, celebrity appearances, and mini-concerts by some of Japan’s hottest bands are planned for the 2012 J-Pop Summit both inside the NEW PEOPLE complex, and also outdoors at the adjacent Peace Plaza. Innovative artists from Japan will join a variety of merchants and food vendors from the Bay Area to offer an array of pop-inspired products and delicacies for sale in open air displays on both sides of Post Street, the main Japantown thoroughfare.

“The J-Pop Summit Festival has become an important part of the cultural fabric of San Francisco and is a unique celebration of Japanese pop culture in all its colorful forms,” says Seiji Horibuchi, the President/CEO of NEW PEOPLE, Inc. and Chairman of the J-Pop Summit Festival Committee. “We’re working closely with a variety of sponsors, partners and the City of San Francisco to prepare a very exciting roster of talent and attractions that will make this year’s Festival the biggest one yet! We look forward to announcing these in coming months.”

NEW PEOPLE opened in 2009 and has become a unique must-see attraction of San Francisco’s cultural landscape. The 20,000 square foot contemporary venue features the latest examples Japanese popular culture expressed though film, art, fashion, and a variety of specialty boutiques and ongoing monthly events. NEW PEOPLE is located at 1746 Post Street in the city’s Japantown.

About NEW PEOPLE, Inc.
Based in San Francisco, California, NEW PEOPLE, Inc. (www.newpeopleworld.com) offers the latest films, art, fashion and retail brands from Japan through its unique entertainment destination as well as through licensing and distribution of selective Japanese films. NEW PEOPLE Entertainment (www.newpeopleent.com), a film division of NEW PEOPLE, Inc. strives to offer the most entertaining motion pictures straight from the "Kingdom of Pop" for audiences of all ages, especially the manga and anime generation, in North America. Some titles include DEATH NOTE, GANTZ, KAMIKAZE GIRLS, and THE TASTE OF TEA.