Mari Morimoto, DVM.

A woman of many hats, Mari Morimoto is a big city veterinarian by day, freelance manga translator by night, and interpreter and panelist at several northeast anime/manga conventions and other local events throughout the year. She got her foot in the door with VIZ Media through luck and circumstance 14 years ago, and since then has been blessed with the opportunity to work on many of their top titles, including Maison Ikkoku, Dragonball, and current titles Naruto, Inuyasha, and Knights of the Zodiac. Since the middle of 2006, she has also been working on Dragon Eye for Del Rey Manga. In addition, she was a research assistant for Jason Thompson's Manga: The Complete Guide, wrote about the history of manga publishing in the U.S. for Chopsticks magazine, and was most recently quoted in The Advocate for an article on yuri manga.

Misako Rocks!

Misako Rocks! developed a love for comics and manga at an early age and drew her first comic at the age of 13. She moved to New York in 2001 and since have had her illustrations published in The Onion, scored a two-book deal with Hyperion, a three-book deal with Henry Holt, a writing gig for Archie Comics. She is currently working on Detective Jermain vol2 and David Fickling's comic magazine DFC.  She has been featured in many magazines and newspapers, including Elle Girl and the New York Times. The BBC also featured her in a documentary about comic book creators. On top of that, she has recenctly received the Venice Beach, LA Playwright award! For more information on Misako Rocks and her upcoming events please visit her website.

Rica Takashima

Appropriately born on Tokyo's infamous Shinjuku Nicho-me, pop artist/performer and manga-ka Rica Takashima is an accomplished visual artist who has had exhibitions and shows in museums and galleries internationally (Paris, Moscow, and Hong Kong) as well as all across Japan.  She is the founder of the avant-garde street art show studio "Aozora Art" and the writer and artist of the semi-autobiographical manga Rica 'tte Kanji!?, which initially ran in Anise, Japan's premier lesbian magazine at the time, before being compiled and released as a graphic novel.  She currently has an ongoing 4-panel manga strip "Susume! NY-michi" in the free weekly Japanese language paper NY Japion and is in the process of permanently moving to the Big Apple, so please welcome trailblazer and pioneer Rica Takashima!

Shihan Chris Carbonaro

Shihan Carbonaro has been studying martial arts for over 15 years, and lived and trained in Japan from 2001-2004. His first encounter with the Bujinkan was through Kamioka-Shihan, who was very gracious to teach him the basics of Bujinkan Budo Taijutsu. Not only did Kamioka Sensei teach him about the Bujinkan, but he also taught Shihan Carbonaro about the Japanese culture and way of life. After passing his Godan test in November 2003, Shihan Carbonaro was then told by Kamioka Sensei that Nagato Sensei will be his main teacher from this point forward. He was personally introduced to Hatsumi and Nagato Sensei, by Kamioka Sensei. While living in Japan, Shihan Carbonaro also picked up the Japanese language. Under the guidance of Craig Olson and Tim Bathurst, Shihan Carbonaro became a regular translator for Nagato Sensei's classes. Shihan Carbonaro also has the rare opportunity to translate for Grandmaster Masaaki Hatsumi whenever necessary.

Shihan Carbonaro is a 5 year Veteran of the United States Air force. He served as a Military Police Officer. Upon returning home to Pennsylvania after living in Japan for 3 years, he became a Corrections officer for Pike County Correctional facility. Shortly after he found himself leaving the field of corrections to work for a Japanese company, as a Sales rep. Shihan Carbonaro travels back to Japan to continue his Bujinkan training twice a year. He especially likes to go during the DKMS in December every year, because he likes to meet up with all of his BUYU friends from around the world.

Come see the Tanuki Bujinkan Dojo Demonstration on Saturday in Main Events. For more information or if interested in training at the Tanuki Bujinkan Dojo located in Bloomfield, N.J. 0700, please visit their website, www.newjerseyninja.com.