Dive Into The Competitive World Of Anime Voice Acting As A Talented Girl Rises To The Top Of The Industry In This New Shojo Manga Series From The Creator Of S•A

San Francisco, CA, September 24, 2013 – VIZ Media, LLC (VIZ Media), the largest publisher, distributor and licensor of manga and anime in North America, takes readers on a journey into Japan’s burgeoning anime voice acting industry with the release of VOICE OVER!: SEIYU ACADEMY on October 1^st. The new manga (graphic novel) series by Maki Minami will be published under the company’s Shojo Beat imprint, is rated ‘T’ for Teens, and will carry an MSRP of $9.99 U.S. / $12.99 CAN.

VOICE OVER!: SEIYU ACADEMY will also be available digitally for $6.99 (U.S / CAN) from VIZManga.com and for digital download through the VIZ MANGA App for the Apple iPad^®, iPhone^® and iPod^® touch, Android-powered smart phones, and also for NOOK tablets and devices.

Hime Kino’s dream is to one day become a voice actor like her hero Sakura Aoyama from the Lovely ♥ Blazers anime, and getting accepted to the prestigious Holly Academy’s voice actor department is the first step in the right direction! But Hime’s gruff voice has earned her the scorn of teachers and students alike. Hime will not let that stand unchallenged. She’ll show everyone that she is too a voice acting princess, whether they like it or not!!

“Creator Maki Minami thoroughly researched the Japanese voice acting, or ‘seiyu,’ industry for her ongoing series, VOICE OVER!: SEIYU ACADEMY, and accurately presents this competitive, high pressure world as the backdrop for a romance-tinged story of a talented girl’s ascension to the top of her profession,” says Pancha Diaz, Editor. “Hime Kino’s husky voice often has her portraying male characters and already frustrated at becoming typecast, and her personal life becomes even more complicated when one of her already-famous classmates starts paying her special attention!”

Manga creator Maki Minami is debuted in 2001 with Kanata no Ao (Faraway Blue). Her other works include Kimi wa Girlfriend (You’re My Girlfriend), Mainichi ga Takaramono (Every Day Is a Treasure) and Yuki Atataka (Warm Winter). Maki Minami is best known in North America for her shojo manga series, S•A, which was serialized in Japan’s Hana to Yume magazine and made into an anime in 2008. S•A is published domestically by VIZ Media.

For more information on VOICE OVER: SEIYU ACADEMY or other popular shojo manga titles from VIZ Media, please visit http://www.viz.com/manga/print/shojo-beat.

About VIZ Media, LLC

Headquartered in San Francisco, California, VIZ Media distributes, markets and licenses the best anime and manga titles direct from Japan.  Owned by three of Japan’s largest manga and animation companies, Shueisha Inc., Shogakukan Inc., and Shogakukan-Shueisha Productions, Co., Ltd., VIZ Media has the most extensive library of anime and manga for English speaking audiences in North America, the United Kingdom, Ireland and South Africa. With its popular digital manga anthology WEEKLY SHONEN JUMP and blockbuster properties like NARUTO, BLEACH and INUYASHA, VIZ Media offers cutting-edge action, romance and family friendly properties for anime, manga, science fiction and fantasy fans of all ages.  VIZ Media properties are available as graphic novels, DVDs, animated television series, feature films, downloadable and streaming video and a variety of consumer products.  Learn more about VIZ Media, anime and manga at www.VIZ.com.