The New People center in San Francisco's Japantown has announced that it will host what it describes as "the first-ever U.S. appearance" of the virtual idol singer Hatsune Miku during the J-Pop Summit Festival on September 18. The center will hold a "digital film concert" for this Japanese idol singer whose "voice" is generated on-the-fly by computer software; Crypton Future Media created her as its first "Character Vocal Series 01" release based on YAMAHA's Vocaloid2 vocal synthesis engine.

The character already appeared "live" in concert in Japan via a 2D screen in 2009, and she made holographic "appearances" in later concerts. She also starred in a computer-animated music video which shipped on DVD in July.

New People's Viz Cinema theater will also host screenings of Satoshi Kon's Paprika and Makoto Shinkai's 5 Centimeters Per Second, as well as the live-action films Death Note, Death Note II: The Last Name, and Detroit Metal City. Gloomy Bear creator Mori Chack and Otaku USA editor Patrick Macias are among the guests at the festival.

Image © SEGA

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