Today, the festival includes indoor and outdoor events and programs, such as:
- Video game tournaments
- Anime screenings
- Japanese pop and other musical performances
- Martial arts demonstrations
- Drawing and writing workshops
- Artist/author lectures and panels
- Manga and anime discussions
- Arts and crafts
- Trivia games
One of the major events at the festival is the cosplay contest, in which scores of teens dress up as characters from a movie, book or video game and offer performance art that is judged by experts like professional cosplayer Kira Scarlett.
Schanzer explained that while these creative teenagers’ interests in cosplay and other media aren’t mainstream, EMcon provides them with a safe, fun space in which to celebrate them. “They think differently and march to the beat of a different drummer,” she said. “Sometimes this ostracizes them. But here, they’re the stars. Here, they belong.”
Gordon noted that the teens would also have the chance to show off their talents alongside professionals in the EMcon Artists’ Alley. The festival is an educational event for aspiring writers, designers, animators and others, who are able to meet and listen to professionals.
Guest speakers and performers have a variety of career backgrounds. Schanzer said that because the festival is “the largest small con,” visitors have the unique opportunity to interact with celebrities and experts.
EMcon’s special guests include:
Friday, 6 to 9 p.m.
- J-Pop singer Hitomi Himekawa
- Musicians/entertainers Demon Boy and his Nightly Ghouls
- Professional cosplayer NYC Batman
- McKel Supreme of Night and Day Anime Studios
Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
- Animator Rebecca Friedman (“Zanny Lane”)
- Graphic novelist Oliver Schanzer
- Professional special effects fabricators and cosplayers from Detty Studios
- Voice actress Michele Knotz (Tem Rocket’s Jesse,“Pokemon”)
- Brimstone, comic guru (Hound Comics Inc.)
- Professional cosplayer Kira Scarlett
- Anime voice actor Kyle Hebert, via Skype (“Dragon Ball Z,” “Bleach,” “Street Fighter”)
