Anime Expo Like Halloween on Steroids

People from around the world visited the Los Angeles Convention Center last weekend for Anime Expo 2011, where fans dress up as their favorite animated characters.

"I waited all year for this event," said Erik Dantes of Oregon. "I finally get to show off my costume I've been preparing since last year."

The convention has been held annually since 1992. In the past, the Anime Expo has been held in Tokyo, Long Beach, Anaheim and New York, but the large Los Angeles venue accommodates more guest panels, table top gaming, competitions, an arcade and concerts.

Popular events include the Anime Music Video competition, Battle of the Bands and a charity auction run by the Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation.

The main hall at the convention center became a large anime exhibit hall, where fans took in the largest anime expo in the world, including merchandise from artists, mangas, DVDs, costumes, swords and all an otaku—a passionate anime fan—could want to find.

Fans spend many weeks preparing their costumes for the occasion.

"I like to think of the outfits way before the conventions," said Irvine resident Kelly Chen. "It gives me time to find the fabric and accessories that I need."

Local Lake Forest residents like Julie Tran, who has been cosplaying (short for "costume playing") for six years, spends the year before the convention planning and visualizing how she will make her next costume a success.

"My favorite aspect of cosplaying is the ability to transform yourself into whatever character you desire," she said.

Chen said a complicated costume can take a significant amount of time and effort to complete.

"For the simpler outfits, like a shirt and pants, for example, could take a couple days to finish," she said. "The more complicated outfits, those could take as long as a few weeks if you're sewing diligently."

This year, Tran and her sister donned costumes from six Japanese animes and music groups such as Girls' Generation, Tatami Galaxy, Touhou Project, Durarara, F(x) and the Haruna Drop Vocaloids. They also volunteered at the exhibition booths to give guests a chance for a photo with a favorite character.

"It's the biggest anime con where everyone shows off their biggest and best cosplay ... for me, it ... simply [shows] the evolution of how anime used to be an underground sort of medium and now it's liked by people of all ages, backgrounds and different areas," Tran said.

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