Casting Japanese Seiyuu with Michihiko Suwa – A Sakuracon Panel Recap

Perhaps the most appealing feature of Sakuracon (besides meeting and hanging out with dozens of awesome people) was the impressive list of special guests from all levels of the anime industry.  Among the distinguished crowd visiting the 2012 Sakurcon was Michihiko Suwa, a producer for numerous notable anime including Detective Conan, Inuyasha, City Hunter, Black Jack, and most recently, Rinne no Lagrange.  Of his three panels at Sakuracon, this post will provide a summarization a panel led by him that covered an aspect of the anime industry that holds particular importance to me: voice acting.  Using Rinne no Lagrange as his primary example, Michihiko Suwa provided a rare and valuable insight into one of the most essential pieces of anime production.