People in downtown Lancaster may notice some interesting characters walking around this weekend.
Japanese Anime characters are coming to life at the Zenkaikon 2013 convention at the Lancaster Marriott and Convention Center.
Everywhere you go, you can see that a key part of the three-day Anime and Sci-Fi convention is cosplay, short for costume play.
“Mihawk has always been my favorite character. So this is the one costume I always wanted to pull off. I finally found all the pieces that made it come to fruition. So happy!” said Derrick Jones of Nottingham, PA.
“I worked on this cosplay for about a year,” said Caro Much of Germany. “But I wanted it to be perfect and I love it. It’s like the best cosplay I have.”
Anime conventions full of cosplayers are the perfect place for Manheim-based costumer Susan Belloff to market her handiwork.
“I do love when someone finds just the thing they’ve been looking for, just that one thing,” she said. “It’s like I made it for them and I didn’t even know them. But I make them happy and it makes me happy to sew it and make it for them.”
“You won’t be judged when it comes to what you like for shows or games, you can like mingle with your fellow cosplayers and fellow fans and even get to learn some new animes and games while you’re at it,” said Brianne Shepherd of Berwick, PA.
The convention continues Friday and Saturday. A full schedule is here.