Eric Vale is going to take over the world.  Actually, he’s just an actor who has spent a lot of time under lock and key in sound booths voicing anime characters such as Trunks in Dragon Ball Z, Sanji in One Piece, Yuki in Fruits Basket, and Kymblee in Fullmetal Alchemist among many others.  Eric has also spent time as an ADR director in addition to scripting over fifty anime programs as Head Writer with FUNimation Productions.  Outside of the world of anime, Eric has written, produced, and directed three short films, written stories (published), screenplays (sold but unproduced), and acted in film and TV.  As you can see, one should not trifle with Eric Vale.  On the weekends, he travels back in time to right the wrongs of the past, build playgrounds for children, repairs ancient churches in Europe, and crafts your destiny with his buddies the Illuminati. 

Stephen Robert Bennett IV was born *&#@?! years ago at Tachikawa Air Force Base in Tokyo Japan.  Being an Army brat, Steve moved all over the place in his younger days with his parents and four brothers, He spent his early years in Alaska and Colorado, and lived for almost eight years in Germany during elementary and junior high.  The family moved back to Japan when Steve was in his teens, and while he was there he was lucky enough to land a job with Studio Aoehyma, and work under the great Japanese animator, Noboru Furusei (New Dominion Tank Police, Lupin III, etc.)  During his time at Studio Aoehyma, Steve learned quite a bit about anime, and worked on such titles as Cat's Eye, the Urusei Yatsura TV Series and Only You, as well as many others for televison and Movies. But finally, the family moved back to the States and settled in Virginia.  Steve finished up high school, took some college courses, and ended up working at a bunch of different jobs.  He worked at King's Dominion amusement park (where he met his future wife Nikki), and he also worked in a Japanese restaurant, a video store, and ended up working in construction.

Steve's Interest in Military history lead him to take part in such movies as "Gettysburg" and various History Channel shows. Just look for him in the feathered gray slouch hat next to the soldiers in grey kepis! About the time Steve and Nikki tied the knot (1994), Steve attended his first anime convention as a guest --Katsucon 1-- and finally remembered his true calling.  He started up Studio Ironcat, a Japanese manga publisher, in 1997 and quit his construction job.  Ironcat ran until 2004.  Although Steve enjoyed his time with Ironcat, the job kept him too busy to focus on his own art.  With the close of Ironcat, Steve was finally free to create his own comics, and get back into the artistic side of the industry.  Today, Steve is busier than ever at conventions, has two new webcomics on-line at http://www.stevebennettart.com/  ("Shakespeare Rodeo" and "Life With Steve") and is finally letting his creative juices flow!

(And Koala's are running rampant at Koala Klub too!)
Steve has been to numerous anime conventions over the years (too many to mention here!) and has also lent his talents to other venues, such as the American Movie Association, Loyola University in Louisiana, the Smithsonian Institution, and the Iowa Gallery of Art.Steve also won the 1996 Osamu Tezuka Award for outstanding American Anime/Manga artist, and has taught animation/cel painting instructional classes at Comic Anime and Anime Pavillion. Steve's many appearances and personal approach to teaching and talking with anime fans about anime/manga over the years and his involvement with charities American Cancer Society, The Lupus Foundation, and Make A Wish Foundation have earned him the sobriquets of "Anime's Goodwill Ambassador".

Steve's friendly nature will entertain and inform all folks big and small so wherever he appears next, just pull up a chair, sit back, shoot the breeze with him and enjoy the ride!

Lauren Goodnight is an anime voice actress for ADV Films, as well as a radio host and singer, currently based out of South Carolina. In addition to performing various roles in popular anime series, most notably as Natsue Awayuki in Pretear, the Narrator in Angelic Layer, and Sarashina in Aquarian Age: Sign for Evolution, she hosts the radio show Goodnight Sex/8bitSex on the Deviant Radio Network and the 8bitx.com Radio Network.  This is her return to the anime convention scene after a three-year leave. She has worked with Antarctic Press and Fred Perry on the animation of Gold Digger (comic), in the role of Brittany Diggers. From 2004-2006, Goodnight was a music reviewer for AnimeOnDVD.  She is an avid book collector and doll/toy restorer and customizer, and a devotee of designer fashion and Japanese culture.

Shadowfax is probably most recognized as the DJ for his Saturday night convention Raves, the purveyor of randomly appearing beach balls and spontaneous conga lines and as the disembodied voice and tormentor of con owners, celebrity guests and hosts on stage. What most don’t realize is that he really IS a full-time professional disc jockey and that his company actually provides most of the sound and lighting equipment for the conventions he works.

Shadowfax’s background includes over twenty years in the entertainment industry as everything from camera operator, theater engineer and stage manager to technical writer, walking performer and fire-breather.  Prior to becoming a DJ he worked as a professional video editor and assisted as a network administrator to a webhosting company.

When not holding the fort at Tech Ops during a convention, Shadowfax can usually be found hosting wedding receptions, private parties, Karaoke events or providing sound and lighting for any number of bands and several other prominent Florida-based events. He also owns Outlaw Custom Designs and, along with his minions, enjoys creating and selling decals, patches, T-shirts and embroidery for various fandoms, conventions and professional organizations.

Shadowfax is an avid music collector and enjoys listening to a wide variety of music from Techno/Trance/House/Dance to Chill/Downbeat/Lounge and even relaxing to Tribal/New Age.

Enjoy those movies where the boy meets the girl, they fall in love, and then either something terrible happens or they end up living happily ever after? aniRAGE doesn't either! Come join Northwest Florida's Greatest Improv group as they delight and excite with games, skits, and all around awesomeness as Zeke, Kirby, Dashi, Miroku, and Sibby come to you live with their special blend of humor and nonsense. From their smash hit "Whose Line Is It aniRAGE?" performances to their unruly and erratic "Anime XD", to whatever else they come up with off the tops of their heads, you can bet that they'll have you jumping out of your seat in stitches, and begging for more!

PikaBelleChu has been cosplaying for over 12 years and has over 80 costumes to date ranging from original Pokemon inpired gowns to Disney, Sci-Fi and other anime characters. She is most famous for her continuing passion for Pokemon though and has appeared at many Pokemon events and tours, appeared on several televison shows, appeared in magazines and newspapers but is most known for gaining a spot in the Guinness Book of World Records for having the World's Largest Pikachu collection with over 12,000 items of the famous electric mouse. She does many children's events and has done charity work for Make-A Wish foundation and also teaches classes on how to draw cartoons at a craft store. Also a big naruto fan she also is gaining quite a collection with that as well and hosts many Naruto based panels at conventins, most known as Itachi to many and gained a new nickname ItaBelleChu..

Trixie J. Valentine is a Cosplayer and Gamer. She has been an Anime and Gaming fan since she was 8 years old and has been attending Conventions as Cosplayer for 7 years. Like many Cosplay guests, she began as an attendee and everything grew from there. Her cosplay got her noticed by Anime Company Gaijin USA, Inc and she was hired to head the Gaijin USA STAR GIRLS, booth girls that do photoshoot and promo advertisements for Anime merchandise. She has gone on to run panels as a Cosplay guest at various Anime Conventions. As a certified stylist and avid gamer, she provides a variety of panels from cosplay panels like wig styling, and make-up to her gamer favorite Resident Evil panels. She has been a cosplay guest judge for conventions like Animeland & Anime Karnival. She recently scored the honor of being Convention Chairman for Sukoshi Con in her home state of Alabama. She also operates her own wig styling and accessories business Lovely Lockpicks Couture. Trixie plans on attending more conventions as a guest to operate panels and judge contests and also loves to provide panels via webcam for smaller conventions.

The Gin Rebellion (fully titled "The Uprising of The Gin Rebellion") is the musical collective formed by the dapper dandies H.M. and Renfield, performing music in a manner never before heard in this century or any other. They draw their inspiration from Vaudeville, early American folk songs, musical theater, and regions of Eastern Europe.

H.M. brings a trained musical background to the group, studying music since childhood and offering dark, humorous, or romantic narratives in lyric. Renfield is the most varied in instrumental prowess, switching from guitar to banjo, ukulele to accordion, and sometimes hammering out a Weillian song. The most recent addition is the talented singer/songwriter Ophelia Baptista, whose deeply meaningful narratives are as universally relatable as they are beautifully written.

Their diversity in style and background brings forth a cultural and stylistic mix that melds into our veritable assault of melodic noise designed to soothe and salve even the most savage of souls.

We join together to further spread the word of The Uprising.

The theatrics of J-Rock, the melancholy nostalgia of Visual Kei, and the soundtrack accompanying the most stirring scene from your favorite anime. Through our music, we want to convey the impression that S.S. HANAMI is, at heart, more than just simply a band — it’s an anime, and these songs are the soundtrack.

In the beginning there were game shows. Then there was anime. Then a group of 3 guys decided to do the unthinkable. Combine the two. That’s how FWE was founded. 

Florida Whammy Entertainment is the name of the Panelist Organization that produces otaku game shows across Florida and have been expanding throughout the state like lightning! With 5 years of experience under their belt, they have seen and done almost everything you can think of.

Being die hard game show and anime fans from childhood, one day 2 of them got together and said “Hey, let’s come up with a solution to these poorly done “Who’s line is it Anime” and all these other “game shows” and do our own!” 5 years later and plenty of friends and acquaintances added, you have present-day Florida Whammy Entertainment! From Password to Press Your Luck, from Body Language to Who Wants to be a Millionaire, Florida Whammy Entertainment does it all!

FWE is led by a core team of 3 people who are in charge of 3 divisions within the team. Executive Producer Bryan Espinoza heads up the Operations Division which is in charge of day-to-day operations outside of conventions, and to keep the website and Social Media sites up to date and monitored. Executive Producer Kayleigh DeGollier is the head of our Production Division, which houses our graphics department, our question writers, our production assistants, and everyone else you could ever need to help build or run a game show. Executive Director Jonathan T. Nielsen is the head of our Direction Division which manages operations at conventions, and is also home of the programming department, which creates all the fabulous shows, which is the most important part of the team. FWE is also backed by a support team of over 20 individuals who lend their time and talent to helping FWE achieve its mission statement of bringing quality game shows to conventions across the southeast.

Besides hosting game shows at conventions, the team has diverse interests ranging from collecting Command and Conquer memorabilia to cosplaying a Ghostbusters crossover of Admiral Ackbar, and diverse backgrounds ranging from a web designer, to a logistics manager, to a collegiate faculty, musicians, students, and plenty more!

Florida Whammy Entertainment is proud to have been a part of this community for 5 years, and hopes to be hosting game shows and other entertainment for at least 5 more years to come! 

You can visit them online at www.floridawhammy.com or connect with them on facebook at www.facebook.com/floridawhammy!