First of all, HAPPY NEW YEARS everyone! You know what it means when it’s a new year… it’s time for Anime Los Angeles! It has been 19 years already since ALA first started. Anyways, Anime Los Angeles was being hosted again at the Long Beach Convention Center in Long Beach, CA from January 4th-7th.
Anime Los Angeles is an anime convention that contains all sorts of things: live entertainment, concerts, cosplay masquerade, industry panels, a fashion show, an idol showcase, and more! Tons of brands and artists are showcasing their work in the exhibit hall and artist alley, where you are able to purchase to your hearts content!
This year, it felt super busy and full, that it made me feel happy to see a bunch of anime enjoyers flock and mingle! It was a great sight! For me, it shows that this convention is getting bigger and better as the years go by, which makes me happy since this is one of my favorite conventions I go to.
Let me get into a bit more detail of some of the things that go on in this convention.
ALA EVENTS
As far as events, ALA features a ton of different events to check out:
- Opening Ceremonies
- Cosplay Gatherings
- AMV contest
- Cosplay chess
- Anime Los Angeles Formal Ball
- Fashion Show (Natashia, Venia, Analeia, Elhoffer Design, Miss Alphabet, Ronova, Sass, MUD, BLACK ROS3)
- Live programming
- ALA’s Next Top Star
- ANISTAGEL VOL 2 – Arcade Edition (Hamu Cotton, AsaYoru Maid Cafe, GWIZ, DJ Skibkid, Dj Curry, Bakkun)
- Cosplay Deviant’s Presents: +18 Cosplay Contest
- V4Mirai Concert feat. VShojo
- Saturday Music Stage (Broken By the Scream, SANA, Tonario, Hamu Cotton, Japanese Lunchtime Rush)
- ALA Masquerade
- ALA After-Dark Party (18+)
- ALA Idol Showcase (Annie, Hamu Cotton, Aquarius Encore Project, Bubble Girls Idol Experience, Deco*Pro, Edelweiss)
GUESTS OF HONOR
This year, there were tons of guests of honor that attended this wonderful event. Here is the full of people that made an appearance here:
- Hidetaka Tenjin (Illustrator, Designer, Concept Artist, Voice Actor)
- Broken By The Scream (Metal Idols)
- SANA (Music Artist)
- Kaho Shibuya (Content Creator, Anisong DJ, Singer, Published Author)
- Ezra Weisz (Voice Actor from Miraculous, Megalobox, 86 Eighty-Six, Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure, and more)
- Andrew Alandy (Actor, Competitive Gamer, Host, Singer, TTRPG Streamer)
- Utahim Cosplay (Host, Professional Cosplayer, TTTRPG Performer)
- Victor Frost (Audio Engineer, Performer, Frostworks)
- Emma Fyffe (Gaming, Entertainment, and Pop-Culture Pundit, Host)
- Chris Tergliafera (Voice Actor from Danganronpa, Genshin Impact, Hunter x Hunter, Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure)
- Caitlin Glass (Voice Actor from Fullmetal Alchemist, My Hero Academia, Ouran High School Host Club)
- Tara Sands (Voice Actor from Hunter x Hunter, Pokemon, Shaman King, and Yu-Gi-Oh!)
- Kari Wahlgren (Voice Actor from Durarara!, Fate/Stay Night, Rick and Morty, and The FLCL: Alternative)
- Zack Davisson (Folklorist, Translator, and Writer)
- Ariem Cosplay (Cosplayer)
- Amber May (Voice Actor from Barbie, Genshin Impact, and Honkai Star Rail)
- Akakioga Cosplay (Cosplayer)
- Austin Lee Matthews (Voice Actor from Final Fantasy, Mystery Skulls, and Cookie Run)
- Mark Allen, Jr. (Voice Actor from Bluelock, Dr. Stone, and The Fruit of Evolution)
- Kayleigh McKee (Voice Actor from Jujutsu Kaisen 0, One Piece, and Guilty Gear Strive)
- Lizzie Freeman (Voice Actor from Jojo’s Bizarre Adventur, The Amazing Digital Circus, and Tokyo Revengers)
- Lemar Harris (Comedian, Singer, Streamer, and Entertainer)
- Christopher Niosi “Kirbopher” (Voice Actor from Hunter x Hunter and Mob Psycho 100)
- Midnight Pursona (Kalika Evans) (Cosplayer)
- Evil Ted (Ted Smith) (Worked on films, such as Fifth Element and Xena Warrior Princess)
- Artemis Ai (Cosplayer)
- Cowbutt Crunchies Cosplay (Cosplayer)
- Edward Bosco (Hazbin Hotel, Helluva Boss, and WWE)
MAIN HALL
Within the main hall, this is where the exhibit hall, artist alley, autographs, ribbon station, and more are being held. Also, there was a swap meet event where people are able to sell stuff as well that happens on Thursday, but unfortunately, I was unable to go. 🙁 Also, I would write out all the different booths that were there, but that would take quite some time. Here is the link to give you more details about this.
Exhibit Hall: https://animelosangeles.org/exhibitors/dealers-hall/
Artist Alley: https://animelosangeles.org/exhibitors/artist-alley/
Ribbon Station: https://animelosangeles.org/interactive/ribbon-station/
Itasha Showcase: https://animelosangeles.org/itasha-showcase/
Here are some pictures that I took of things you could have seen in this hall.
Of everything I experienced that Saturday, I got to show you some of my highlights. These were the things that stand out for me and what I enjoyed!
MY TOP HIGHLIGHTS
M.RAGE (@mdotrage)
M.RAGE featured all sorts of techwear styled clothing in their own style, as well as collaborations with famous games, such as Guilty Gear and River City Girls.
ARA CULTURE (@ara.culture)
At Ara Culture, they had a bunch of clothing of famous vtubers, as well as, meet and greets with them!
IGNITION INDUSTRIES (@ignition.industries)
Ignition Industries has a bunch of artwork featuring cars with some anime characters, as well as weaponry. The aesthetic, the look, beautiful.
COZY GREMLIN (@thecozygremlin)
At the Cozy Gremlin’s booth, we were able to have $1 commissions done where the artist would draw commissions within 1 minute based off of a list of questions. Mine ended up causing some problems… lol.
RIBBON STATION
The Ribbon Station is a huge area of the main hall. This is where you could buy ribbons, trade ribbons, and even find information on where you can find all sorts of ribbons.
There were tons that I could of wrote about for this event, but I definitely want you guys to go and check it out for yourself. 😀
Anime Los Angeles is still one of my favorite conventions to go to each year. It always has a different vibe than most conventions in California, so I always feel at home here.
I hope you guys get to check it out next year because every time I go, it feels like it’s just going to keep getting bigger and better.
Thank you Anime Los Angeles team for having me once again. See y’all next year!! 😀
Look at all my sad ribbons this year. I usually go in on getting ribbons, but I was just so tired that day. Also, shoutouts to to our friend, @Joapplesauce for hooking me up with the ribbons. Make sure to check out her artwork and stuff!
SOCIAL MEDIA
Website: animelosangeles.org
Instagram: @anime_los_angeles
Twitter: @AnimeLosAngeles
Facebook: facebook.com/AnimeLosAngelesCon
