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 Happy 21st A-kon! With Photos and Video! [Updated With More Video!]Written by Liz Reed In this update to the original piece, Liz provides a second video looking at some other facets of A-Kon 21. You can find the original piece beneath the new video. - CW Cosplay is a major force at any anime convention—whether you buy a Faye Valentine costume online or are talented enough to sew Ciel’s dress from Kuroshitsuji, only the people dressed in everyday clothes seem weird at conventions! I wasn’t even embarrassed to ride the DART to downtown Dallas for A-Kon in my getup because there were so many other cosplayers stuffed in the train with me. This year, however, I opted to make my own Bleach Soi Fon costume for less than $40. I bought material at Wal-Mart and a pattern for a scrub and doctor’s jacket to make Soi Fon’s robe. Since I’m not handy with a needle and thread, I used sewing tape to hold the outfit together, a black marker to draw the markings on her robe, and wore my own black gaucho pants to mimic her ninja style. The most expensive item was the wig—$20 from a local costume shop. Overall, my costume wasn’t the most elaborate, but I was recognizable and it beat paying $80 on eBay. I had the chance to talk to and take pictures with multiple cosplayers at A-Kon and was amazed to see how creative people get with their costumes. Who knows, maybe next year I’ll save up for a really cool costume, or beg my grandma to sew me a Cardcaptor Sakura battle outfit! MangaLife.com - A-Kon 21 Part 2 from Liz Reed on Vimeo. It’s funny to think that way back in 1990, A-Kon, now one of the largest anime conventions in the U.S., had only 380 people in attendance. Fast-forward 20 years and the con anticipates more than 15,000 cosplayers and anime junkies of all ages to flock to Dallas and partake in the three-day festivities that include merchandise booths, volumes upon volumes of manga, contests, workshops, and so much more. As a local, I’ve gone to A-Kon every year since 2006, and I can’t begin to describe the crowd I saw on Sunday. It was the last day, and typically there’s not much to do but take advantage of the sales and the cheaper registration price, but that didn’t stop the hardcore cosplayers from strutting their outfits and dancing in the lobby. I saw a wide range of characters from Pokemon to Silent Hill and Vampire Night to Gundam Wing — and the level of detail in each costume was unparallel to years I’d been before. A refreshing change to the usual A-Kon setup was the increased number of artist and handmade booths throughout the convention space. In past years these booths were usually limited to the downstairs area of the convention and the artists were literally begging passersby to flip through their comics or try on crocheted panda hats. But this year, booths dominated both the upstairs and downstairs areas and put the focus on up and coming artists and mangaka. I had the opportunity to speak with a few artists and many said they were overwhelmed with how much they sell during the con. Even if they have little name recognition or a small online audience, A-Kon is filled with eager buyers looking for fresh stories and talent. Gina Biggs, author of Red String, a webcomic now in print, told me that A-Kon helped her increase her audience tremendously in prior years, and that she plans to return next year. Some of the things I was less-than-thrilled about at this year’s A-Kon was the hefty registration price—I’m sure I’m not the only one. A Friday- or Saturday-only pass cost $40 and Sunday was $25. While the fee gets you into the contests, programming, the concert, and the masquerade ball, for those of us who are just interested in checking out the merchandise and taking pictures, the price was exorbitant. It seems to increase every year, but I hope they don’t get to the point of charging $50 a pop. Who knows, if you’re die-hard enough about showing off a costume you hand stitched for months, registration might be a small price to pay. Whether you read manga in secret or jump at the chance to throw on your Bleach captain’s robe, A-Kon is a convention every fan should go to at least once. You’ll meet people who love the same things you do and aren’t afraid to embrace their inner nerd. I mean, my first thought when walking into the Sheraton Hotel was, “I’m home!” Check out some of Liz's photos from the event in the gallery below: You can find more of Liz's work at her site Japanization. |
15 June 2010 10 June 2010 26 May 2010
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