by Tom Good
Photography by Gregor Torrence and Tom Good

“I like getting to hug people.” That’s how one young woman answered the question, “what do you like best about Sakura-Con?”

“What is it about an anime convention that allows you to hug people?” I asked.

“It feels like we’re all one big family,” she said.

The convention keeps growing, with this year’s member count at 16,586 — up from 13,600 last year — and a “turnstile” count of 45,560 for the weekend. Can 16,000 people really feel like a family? Yes, at Sakura-Con they can. The convention takes its name from the Japanese word for cherry blossoms, which fits well with the blossoming anime subculture.
» Continue reading “Convention Report: Sakura-Con 2009″

Wow. Convention report on the way, more pictures here. I like this one, too.

From Tom Good’s iPhone!

Updating throughout the weekend!

April 10, 2009
10:17AM
“On the train now with Gregor. Fun ride!”

5:39PM
“Wow they put artist alley at the very front before you even get to other exhibitors, that is so cool, it makes them seem like the stars.”

6:27PM
“In the artists area at Sakuracon, I discovered an artist named Allison Theus who has a book of illustrations called ‘A Book of Mostly Creatures.’ I instantly liked the style of the art — it reminded me of old 17th century illustrations of animals, only these are fantastic creatures from her imagination. I talked to her about how she came up with this. She said she was inspired by being really interested in dinosaurs and also in anatomy, and wondering how the various pieces of animals could go together in new ways to create a new creature. I bought the book and she autographed it.

“She has a web site at www.oblivionunleashed.com where you can see her work.

“Another good change this year is that they put the line for registration off in an out-of-the way hall, so that the registration line doesn’t make the main area of the convention feel overcrowded. I’ve only been here a few hours but already things seem better organized than ever (not that it was bad in the past, but they have continued to improve it).”

April 11, 2009
10:49AM

“Flickr stuff, more to come.”

Photos!

3:11PM

More photos!