AnimeIowa

AnimeIowa is an anime convention run by the not-for-profit Mindbridge Foundation and is held annually.^[2] The convention offers anime screening, videogames, an art auction, guest panels, cosplay, and many of the other events typically found at an anime convention.^[3] It was held again at the Coralville Marriott, August 15–17, 2008, although at least 45 sleeping rooms had been transferred to the nearby Hampton/Holiday Inn across Interstate 80 due to extended stays from persons associated with the recent floods of 2008.^[4][5]

Many AnimeIowa attendees cosplay throughout or during part of the convention, and various events are specifically for cosplay participants.^[3][6][7][8] AnimeIowa is a three-day event, operating for 53 straight hours (from noon Friday to 5PM Sunday) during its three-day weekend.^[3]

Programming

AnimeIowa lasts three days, which include several events for its visitors, and admission to any event requires the conspicuous display of an AnimeIowa badge.^[3][9] A writer for a popular Anime news website (Anime News Network), described how shocked she was to find more than "cows, crop circles, and farmers named Jeb" at AnimeIowa.^[10]

• Game Room - Includes video games, such as DDR, and a few other games
• Dealer's Room - Outside vendors sell their products, including mostly video game or anime-related goods and Japanese snack food.
• Artist's Alley - Artists have the opportunity to sell or display their artwork
• Guest Visitors - Famous visitors from the Anime world come for autographs and to talk with convention visitors
• Official Dance
• Video Rooms - Video rooms play anime throughout most of the convention, often including Anime that is hard to find in the USA
• Music Video Contest - Visitors can show off their music video creations
• Cosplay Contest - Visitors can compete to see who's costume is the best.^[11]
• ConSuite - including a small selection of Japanese and American foods (Anime Iowa is lauded by many guests as having a wide array of non junk food items to sustain the con-goers )

History

AnimeIowa began in 1997 as a small convention gathering 150 attendees at the Highlander Inn in Iowa City, IA, featuring only two guests, Steve Bennett and Kuni Kimura.^[12] Events were also fairly limited, featuring an Artists' Alley, Video Games, and a Dealers' Room.^[12] Attendance doubled for its second year, which also included the addition of Robert DeJesus to the guest list.^[13] AnimeIowa has since been held yearly for 13 years, while both the attendance and guest lists have grown each year.

Attendance at AnimeIowa, along with the guest list, has grown every year that has so far been documented. As a result, the convention has occupied several different hotels and convention centers, in an effort to continue expanding to find room for all its attendees. Cassandra Hodges was scheduled to attend the 2011 convention, but died on June 27, 2011.^[14]

Event history

Organizational structure

AnimeIowa is run by The Mindbridge Foundation, a not for profit corporation also responsible for ICON (Iowa science fiction convention) and Gamicon.^[33] The organization was a branching off of the Science Fiction League of Iowa Students, which was founded by award-winning author Joe Haldeman.^[34][35] AnimeIowa was first a production of the "SFLIS Wing of Anime and Manga People" (SWAMP), which later merged the convention into Mindbridge.^[36]

Mascot

In 2006 a cosplaying pig named Buu-chan won a forum competition becoming AnimeIowa's official mascot. An initial convention mascot was an original, unnamed, female anime character.

References

External links

• Official website
• Mindbridge website