SPJA Partners with World Cosplay Summit to Organize US Preliminary
WCS 2017 US Representatives to be decided at Anime Expo 2017
Santa Ana, CA (May 19, 2017) – Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation, the nonprofit responsible for Anime Expo, announced today that it has partnered with World Cosplay Summit to organize its US Preliminary.
The “World Cosplay Summit (WCS)” was created to promote international exchange through the Japanese youth culture of manga and anime. The World Cosplay Summit began in Osu, Nagoya in 2003 and has since then grown to include 30 countries and regions from around the world.
“We are thrilled to announce that the WCS US preliminary is to be held at the premier convention for Japanese pop culture in the USA – Anime Expo,” said WCS Founder, Tokumaru Oguri, “I am looking forward to meeting all of the entrants and fans at the preliminary stage.”
The World Cosplay Summit US Preliminary will take place during Anime Expo’s Masquerade on July 2nd, running as a separate competition in accordance with WCS rules and regulations. There will be no skill requirements for WCS, and all cosplayers are invited to enter.
The winner of the World Cosplay Summit US Finals at Anime Expo will then travel to Nagoya as representatives of the USA in the Cosplay Championship at WCS 2017 (July 29 – August 6).
“We are very honored that World Cosplay Summit has found a home for its US finals at Anime Expo, and we’re looking forward to partnering with other events across the nation to hold the regional qualifiers for WCS in the future,” said Mark Manansala, CEO of SPJA.
Anime Expo will run from July 1 through July 4, 2017 at the Los Angeles Convention Center, with Pre-Show Night on June 30, 2017. To purchase passes for Anime Expo, please visit http://www.anime-expo.org/registration/
For more information about attending, please visit http://www.anime-expo.org/registration-help/
About Anime Expo
Anime Expo (AX) brings together fans and industry from Japan, the US, and all over the world for the largest celebration of Japanese pop culture in North America. Taking place every year since 1992, Anime Expo features the best in Japanese entertainment, music, fashion, and video games. For more information, visit www.anime-expo.org.
About SPJA
SPJA is a non-profit organization dedicated to popularize and educate the American public about Japanese entertainment and pop culture, as well as provide a forum to facilitate communication between professionals and fans. For more information, please visit www.spja.org.
About World Cosplay Summit
The World Cosplay Summit began in 2003 in Nagoya Japan to create a new sense of international friendship with cosplayers from all over the world. Year after year, the number of participating countries has been increasing. In 2012, the number grew to 20 countries. Now, many cosplayers from around the world aim to get to the Cosplay Holy Land; namely Nagoya, Japan. The World Cosplay Championship is where representatives from each country display their best performances on stage to determine the grand champion. The Championship doesn’t just judge the quality of participants’ costumes, but also the art direction and overall performance. It’s the ultimate world championship of cosplay. For more information, please visit http://www.worldcosplaysummit.jp/en/
World Cosplay Summit US Preliminary at Anime Expo
URL: http://www.anime-expo.org/spja-partners-world-cosplay-summit-organize-us-preliminary
Event Date/Time: July 2, 2017 at 8 PM
Event Location: Anime Expo (Main Events Hall)
Admission Fee: AX Pass ($50 – 85) + Masquerade Ticket ($5 – 15)
For more information about how to enter: http://www.anime-expo.org/world-cosplay-summit-usa/
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For more information, please contact:
Meg Tsuruda