About 5500 miles away from Japan, Anime Expo, or AX, 2024 took place at the Los Angeles Convention Center from July 4. 2024 – July 7, 2024. The event featured over 1000 hours of simultaneous programming. Put on by The Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation, or SPJA, AX brought anime, manga and Japanese pop culture to Los Angeles. Many fans from all over came cosplaying as their favorite characters and were all very excited to celebrate what Anime Expo had to offer. Over the four days, attendees were able to participate in various workshops, listen to panels with special guests, explore the convention grounds to their liking and immerse themselves in the world of Japanese pop culture.
West Hall
Housing the main events like the opening ceremony on day one and the Jujustu Kaisen panel on day four, attendees were greeted with large banners promoting upcoming seasons of various anime series and directories. Set up into two main sections, West Hall A was for the main programming and West Hall B for the entertainment hall and other exhibits. Many of the highlighted events featured special guests such as voice actors from famous anime, and gave AX attendees exclusive insights and merchandise for attending. On day one, the opening ceremony featured many performers straight from Japan. This excitement carried over to day four. The Jujustu Kaisen panel in particular gave fans a special treat as the voice actor, Junya Enoki, for one of the main characters, Yuji Itadori, performed a live voiceover for the audience.
After leaving the main event rooms, fans had the choice to line up for other events, get some free promotional merch or attend one of the workshops. At the “Shoestring Scientists Presents- Make Your Own Book Page Wall Art” workshop held on Friday, Chris U., an AX 2024 attendee, stated “Ya you can buy stuff here, but coming home with something you made yourself and only you’d uniquely have is really cool,” when asked as to why he chose to attend this specific workshop. This attendee, like many others, came to AX cosplaying an anime character with a group of friends. Upon finishing workshops, attendees could head back down to the ground level and enter the entertainment hall for more to see and do.
Entertainment Hall
From interactive exhibits to cosplay and gaming, the entertainment hall had many different booths to entertain Anime Expo guests. Notably, companies such as Hulu, Bandai Namco, and Studio Ghibli welcomed in fans at the entrances of the hall. Walking through the different exhibits, the back of the hall held gaming consoles and tv’s where attendees could test their luck against others in Super Smash Bros or race their friends in Mario Kart. On the opposite end, cosplayers were able to make any repairs needed and meet other cosplayers.
South Hall
In South Hall’s lobby, tons of cosplayers, influencers and friends were seen taking pictures together. Many were eager to take photos with other attendees and each other in their cosplay. Once enough photos were taken, Anime Expo fans were able to either explore the exhibit hall by taking staircases up or prepare their wallets for Kentia Hall on the lower levels.
Attendees could also make their way over to West Hall through a hallway connecting the two. Many fans lined up in this walkway for the workshops and events taking place in West Hall. Walking amongst them, UCLA Class of 2023 Alumni Karina Mara, Caro Serna and Sara Shao were asked, “What are you most excited about for this Anime Expo?” They all responded together with, “This is all our very first anime convention related event, so overall we are very excited to be here!” They came to the event on day two cosplaying as “Tengen’s 3 wives from Demon Slayer,” Mara stated. Serna then went on to say, “We are currently looking for Tengen to take a picture with him.” Like them, many attendees were seen taking both solo and group pictures in their various costumes.
Kentia Hall and Artist Alley
Leaving South Hall’s lobby, fans were presented with rows upon rows of small business owners and vendors that filled up Artist Alley alongside various exhibits in Kentia Hall. AX attendees could purchase their favorite characters in the form of enamel pins, stickers, keychains, figurines, tote bags and so much more. Artist Alley participants were featuring their artwork to all the fans and onlookers, promoting a community for AX-goers to find what fit their liking. To the right of the artists, Kentia Hall housed an area for the exhibits of brands and companies and an 18+ area towards the very back.
Among the many booths and over 500 artists present, some familiar faces were seen at the convention. Henry, otherwise known as @stickerzoodesigns on Instagram, had visited UCLA’s campus on April 18, 2024 to give out free Bruin and UCLA-themed stickers. Upon finding his booth in Artist Alley and being asked how AX was for him so far, he stated, “I am grateful to have this opportunity and genuinely being able to meet everyone!”
Exhibit Hall
On the upper level of South Hall above the Artist Alley, attendees were able to make their way to the exhibit hall. The booths and exhibits were each promoting various anime, recognizable brand names and other aspects of Japanese pop culture. Towards the back end of the hall, Crunchyroll, an anime streaming service, had a booth set with their own MC’s and claw machines to promote the various anime viewers can watch with a subscription. At other booths, there were live performances from virtual guests and live demonstrations from artists alike. People also had the option to purchase branded merchandise from their favorite series.
Anime Expo Crossing
When taking a break from activities like shopping, perusing through the various mazes that were the exhibits or downtime during a programming block, people were able to head to AX Crossing for their food and drink needs. Drawing inspiration from the famous Shibuya Crossing from Japan, food stalls and trucks lined this area of the convention center. Smoke filled the air as many Japanese dishes such as takoyaki, ramen, and karaage were readily available to feed AX attendees. To escape the heat from the LA sun, desserts like kakigori (Japanese shaved ice) and ice-cold drinks were promoted by food vendors. The food stalls aimed to give convention-goers a little taste of Japan. As people ate, they could also listen to or watch different performances occurring on the community stage.
Overall, AX 2024 had much to offer for avid anime viewers and casual Japanese pop culture fans alike. Each workshop, panel and exhibition area was filled with AX attendees every day. Everywhere you turned, there was always something happening. Bustling like its own little city, AX 2024 celebrated Japanese culture and animation for the 33rd year as one of the largest events of its kind in North America. To end it all off, the devoted AX community was bid a farewell with a banner already promoting next year’s dates, Anime Expo 2025 from July 3, 2025 – July 6, 2025.
