See you all in OtakonEK 2009
Photographers : (click names below to see albums)
Azrael Coladilla, Homer AnthonyMedici, Joebenick Badiola, Johannes Bernardo,
Jonathan de Belen, Rej Bantayan, Rozabelle Julia
This blog post is all about my experience for the OtakonEK Convention 2008 in Enchanted Kingdom, Sta. Rosa City, Laguna.
This is the biggest otaku and cosplay convention in the Philippines as many had mentioned in their blogs and photo albums, and I just used that label in describing the event as for many spectators, visitors and participants shared their experience online.
I’m glad that the event was very successful and it marks another 1st in the Philippines soil that having a pop culture convention for anime, comics, toys, manga, games and cosplay inside a world class theme park, that is in Enchanted Kingdom. Even that many people say that the location of the event venue is far away from Metro Manila, ,many of them still participated and joined the very first convention in Enchanted Kingdom.
I was very excited in organizing another 1st for the Philippines and many otaku or shall I say pop culture fans are very happy that we created another event for everyone and will double the excitement, fun and the otaku experience. I’m very familiar in organizer several conventions here in the Philippines and because that I am very comfortable and inline in organizing conventions like the Toy Con, Manila Comics Creation Seminar, Komikon, Comics and Manga Day, GI JOE 25th Anniversary event, and many others.
In the past I’m very much involved in a monthly anime screenings and campus tour, and also conceptualized the very first anime convention in the country which every convention followed after that year, although that I’m not credited and never earned anything from it, meeting Yuu Watase, creator of Fushi Yuugi and Ayashi no Ceres, standing beside her and talking in Japanese left my most PR power in a dramatic epic fail, I was very star struck to meet her in person, but long before that my otaku enthusiasms began when I met the this Japanese animator in CCP, it was the first event organized by Toei Animation, and there I was shocked to know that he created that Wings of Mazinger Z, even before Great Mazinger, I meet up with him after the seminar lecture, I just got his autograph and also my brother Denver got a Mazinger Z sketch in one my comics backing board. It was a very great experience as a super robot fan, and many people went inline after us, but the animator refuses already to draw some for them. He is already old, I think he is around 70 years old, and after the sketching, he told me that it was his first time after more than 20 years to draw Mazinger Z.
The OtakonEK convention reflects everything that we wanted to happened, having our own venue or kingdom, connecting everyone in one place and in one event, It was the most mind boggling event that I ever organized, and it is the most short time event that I planned and organized with Enchanted Kingdom, for only 1 month, I just organized a big convention that will be observed every year in the month of September, and since that we don’t have any activities on that month, we can say that every September of a given year will be the OtakonEK Convention. (READ MORE BELOW)
Ok now to type here my whole experience, I arrived in Enchanted Kingdom at 7:30am just to facilitate the ingress session with out exhibitors, I traveled from Cavite going to Alabang just to take that jeepney ride going directly to Enchanted Kingdom, it was the most convenient part for me in commuting to the venue, I arrive there 30 minutes, and while I walk going to the admin bldg of the EK, I saw already people outside the theme park on stand by and waiting for the park to open, I know that everyone knew that the park will open at 10am, but I’m surprised to see that they are already there falling in line or maybe waiting for their friends to come. After arriving at the admin bldg. I was informed that there are already exhibitors went inside, so I dash myself going to the Eldar’s tent and saw some of them already placing their stuff outside and preparing for the ingress.
Then as I entered the tent, I was shocked to see that the exhibitors tables are not placed properly, I was babbling and told myself, I can’t do this alone and since that my manpower team will arrive at 10am, nobody in the park can help me set up these 70 plus tables inside the tent, I already relayed my problems to the EK admin and said that the table contractors and providers left those tables inside the tent and promised that they will arrange it the morning, but I told them that I can’t wait for it because we have to be ready by 9am.
But I’m glad that all my problems were solved when these booth exhibitors and sponsors helped me set up the table. I was about to cry to see the team effort we are doing and because of them we set up the tables and chairs before 9am, and everyone set up their own booth and me started to relax and breathe a lot of air just to make myself ready for the program proper.
here's my video blog special coverage
My team mates and crew arrived early as we planned, my photographers arrived one by one, and then while I position myself near the entrance, I waited for all the exhibitors to be completed. Then at 10am I just heard that they opened the gate and they let people come in, and I was surprised that many of them entered the tent first. I’m very happy that they do understand on all the information I posted in the website about the event, and the event map really helped them to pin point were the tent is located. At that time my crew is in the front gate waiting and manning the registration booth for all Cosplayers who registered online, all of them who are in costume are entitled to have a free entrance fee.
I got a total of 384 registered Cosplayers and 49 walk in registrant who are in costume. But 294 made it in the event and that’s a total of 343 who are in our list, but we already stop recording the number of Cosplayers at 2pm, I just heard that there are many Cosplayers entering the event. So for my calculations, I think we have more than 350 cosplayers in OtakonEK, I’m not sure if it is the biggest cosplay gatherings in all events, but some say that it was the biggest cosplay number ever in an event.
We got the first band to play in the hour of 1pm, it was a Japanese rock and anime music day and in the long stretched of the hours we experience a lot of head banging and dancing with the cover and garage bands. Thanks to Juujiro J Culture for helping me in the band productions, and it was a big help for me to focus more on the program and event, since their organization is inline with organizing lots of Japanese rock events in Manila.
During the whole event, my laptop is online and I’m broadcasting the event live via video stream, its another gimik that I created in broadcasting the event live in the internet and after the success of broadcasting Toy Con, I used the gimik again here in OtakonEK and many people are watching online and also chatting about the event and also give their virtual participation for OtakonEK.
The anime singing contest just started and we got around 12 participants for the contest, I’m glad that they followed the rules by bringing their own audio CD, so no hassle for everyone and we started the singing contest so smooth. Many of them are cosplyers who joined the singing contest, it was very entertaining that while they are singing, they are also acting as one of the anime characters.
The parade started at 2:30pm after the singing contest, I just encountered a big problem on how to gather all the Cosplayers in one area of the park, since most of them are scattered in all over the place, very busy in lot of photo shoots, busy in their own activities and theme park rides, the EK admin advised me to call them and do an assembly near the Jungle Log Jam, so after a few minutes with the help of my crew, we talk to each cosplayer we see on site that there is an assembly for the cosplay parade. After a few minutes everyone was there and the parade started, I just didn’t know they already walked half of the theme park and as I stroll around just to get some air after I did some dealings inside the tent, I saw the end of the parade and then I took a video and document everything I can see, it was a great site and happy to see that everyone enjoys the parade of Cosplayers, some of them stopped in some area just to give a chance to theme park visitors a nice photo op, while others enjoyed being a star by posing with professional photographers. And in the beginning of the parade, I got surprised again to see the musical band in all bright and shiny uniform performing nice music scores, and there are group of girls dancing in front of the parade.
After the parade, the everyone stayed near the tent, and because that then is almost full of people and buyers of items, The theme park was transformed into something we didn’t expected,. It was like a different world out there, and we were just in it having the joy of our life being a big fan and actors of the pop culture world. Superman sitting beside Darth Vader, Zombie Spiderman fooling around with Catwoman, The Joker eating ice cream, Transformers robot roaming around the street, Counter strike soldiers running and do some funny pose, Samurai clad warriors walking around with their high tech weapon armed friends. It was a different experience and everyone really made it a big blast!.
Then the cosplay competition was about to begin in a few minutes, but another problem struck me, that how will I ever get them assemble in one line and form them according to their cosplay contest number entry. So we did the same thing we do in the parade, talk to them personally and arrange them in numbers. As they are inline, we got a total of 138 cosplayers for the contest, while others went there just to cosplay and not join the contest, and others just back out and continue their fun outside and enjoy the rides, but having a hundred participants is not that bad, and we really enjoyed seeing them doing the stage catwalk, and in the end of the catwalk, members of the Black Pearl Philippines showed up, Capt. Jack Sparrow and Will Turner Cosplayers came in and did the final catwalk, and amazes the crowd because many says that they look like a real Johnny Depp and Orlando Bloom.
After the cosplay contest, another hot Japanese rock cover band performed, so while they performed, me and Ronald Guanzon prepares for the announcement of the winners and because of the pressure of the tabulation, RG did everything as fast he can compute and select via its rating the winners of the cosplay contest, thanks to Ms. Cynthia Mamon and Dolly Anne Carvajal for being our judges with RG. As we compute the ratings, I worked around with the EK admin to get the prizes, so after getting items as prizes, I sorted it out and prepared to give it away during the awarding, we gave away some prizes in our trivia and bring me contest and I got wowed! To see that EK gave away lots of Spider-man 3 and Shrek DVDs and also some cool EK merchandise and items.
As the event ends at around 7pm, we awarded the winners and then Ms. Mamon, VP-smile of EK, announces that there will be another OtakonEK in 2009, after seeing the success of the 1st ever event of EK. And also she invited everyone also to come in their costume on the end of October for another Halloween event for EK, details was to be posted soon in their website.
I’m very happy that the event ended well, so after the last band, Packed up myself and prepared for a little walk with my team, we watched the fireworks display and it was great!, then I tried this ride that I hate hahahaha, it’s the Flying Fiesta, I took a video of me riding that thing and I was about to do a video blog, but I got scared and cry all the way down till it got a complete stop haahaha..
After that we tried other rides. I met a lot of visitors after the event and they say that they really enjoyed the OtakonEK, and my projection was right.. double the fun and experience only here at OtakonEK. I just can’t wait for another round next year 2009, and this OtakonEK 2008 is just the beginning, we will make it more big and much more prepared for the upcoming 2nd annual OtakonEK Convention 2008 in Enchanted Kingdom.
See you all next year!
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=Post Release Article=
More than 300 cosplayers from around the metro flocked to Enchanted Kingdom and came in for free last September 28, 2008 for a pop culture festival of anime, toys, manga, movies and video games dubbed as “OtakonEK 2008”
“Otaku” is the Japanese term for people with obsessive interests, particularly anime and manga.
Around 3PM, the parade of cosplayers commenced around the Park led by Eldar the Wizard and Princess Victoria followed by the Los Baños Drum & Lyre Band. It was a real sight watching the OtakonEK revelers marching around the Park. Guests, especially the children, were delighted to see their favorite characters in the flesh.
Right after the parade, the participants sashayed down the stage at Eldar’s Tent and showed off their costumes. The judges of the Cosplay Contest were Dr. Cynthia R. Mamon, EK’s VP for Sales & Marketing Division, Ms. Dolly Anne Carvajal of Philippine Daily Inquirer and Mr. Ronald Guanzon, Founder of WeAreAnime.
The winners of the Cosplay Contest were: Otaku King – Arjay Navarro (Hyuuga Neji of Naruto); Otaku Queens – Jorgette Aguirre (Catwoman from Batman) and Patricia Matibag (Misa Amane of Death Note); Otaku Princess – Trixie Sameguin (Chun Li of Street Fighter); and Best Craftmanship – Paulo Cordero (Star Saber of Transformers Victory).
April Khristine Lacson won first place in the Tales from the Enchanted Kingdom Drawing Contest. Alvin Balce, dressed as Kamen Rider Black, bagged the prize for the Anime Singing Contest and Jerome Lopez, who brought his Charzard Stuffed Toy (Pokemon), won first place in the Anime Collectible Contest.
The evening was capped with the skies all lit up in a spectacular display of fire and light at the Spaceport Zone with Enchanted Kingdom’s fireworks show.
