Celebrating its 18th anniversary,Anime Los Angeleswas once again held this past weekend at the Long Beach Convention Center in California. Founded in 2005, retired Chair, Hazel Chaz decided to make a convention unlike any other. This meant incorporating collectible ribbons that attendees put on their badges (a common practice at Sci-Fi conventions), benches with fan art, a Con Suite for attendees to hang out with the organizers, and more.
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A Look Inside Anime Los Angeles 2023
Anime Los Angelesalways gives us a unique experience for every individual, while still having more than enough to do. Last weekend, lots of famed industry professionals, two of which were Mamoru Yokota and Kenji Yokoyama were brought on as Guests of Honor (Yokota even wrestled with a cosplayer during a panel). In addition, Program Hosts such as Andrew Alandy and Anne Yatco were also featured as exclusive participants to host panels. The travelingArcane Maid Cafealso made its appearance in which it set up a small cafe in the exhibit hall, menu included!
Arguably, the main appeal that conventions have in general are the places where attendees can spend their money. InALA’s case, it’s the exhibit hall. Let it be known that this place is so popular, every morning when the doors opened, you could hear cheering. With separate sections for vendors, artists, guests, concessions, and even a car exhibit, it was easy to find yourselfspendingthe entire day there (no pun intended). As mentioned previously, character designer and director, Mamoru Yokota, and veteran animator,Kenji Yokoyamahad their very own booth, with the latter offering commissions to those interested. But you don’t have to be a professional to be an exceptional artist.
The Artist Alley hadFinal Fantasy XIVfan artist,floofinstaking sticker character commissions,Peach Slice Creationsselling sweets and food themed jewelry and accessories, and a trio table with artists,mac.uhfee,aprincewei, andtaro_cakes, displaying their unique canvases and pencil art. Hundreds of artists were set up in rows parallel to the vendors' booths, so it was easy for attendees to navigate around - and each booth had a set number, so you could always return to your favorite artist at any time.
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On the vendor side of things, aside from popular retailers likeBook Off,Gamer Suppsteamed up with Guest of Honor, Kaho Shibuya to bring Gamers looking for a healthy drink, Waifu Cups. Attendees could sample different flavors of a healthy but delicious alternative to the standard “Gamer” drinks. Each day they had a different flavor up for samples, and so it made for a good booth to regularly stop by. In addition,Wild Bill’s Craft Sodaalso made their rounds, where they offered attendees a deal of free delicious craft soda refills with a purchase of any mug! Attendees could either buy a mug for the day, or pay a bit extra for a mug for the weekend. Each mug featured a unique design withWild Bill’slogo on it, and some even had cute faces on them to fit the anime theme of the event.
Anime Los Angelesis one of the more memorable conventions of the California con scene, and it has not showed any signs of slowing down. Tickets forAnime Los Angeles2024have yet to be announced, but you can follow their officialTwitteraccount for regular updates and staying in the loop. Until next time!
