Comic Con Africa is heading to Cape Town in early 2023. Picture: Comin=c Con Africa
If gaming and Cosplay are your things, you better dust off your superhero costume, review your wish list of collectibles, and get your gaming on, because Comic Con is infiltrating Cape Town in a couple of months.
To the geek community, this event is known for bringing in a host of international comic-book authors, allowing the attendees to meet the artists responsible for creating some of their favourite creations. Cosplay, aka costume play, has become a huge part of the event over the past few years. This form of entertainment has grown substantially in South Africa. The country’s cosplay community is becoming so active that it has begun to compete on an international standard.
Gamers will be excited to know that Africa’s largest multi-genre pop-culture and gaming festival Comic Con has joined forces with Cape Town’s long-standing pop-culture convention, FanCon.
Game developers have an opportunity to create a gaming experience where attendees can enjoy fun and meaningful engagement. They can build relationships with their fans and also enjoy an opportunity to get to understand their audience better.
“Partnering with Comic Con Cape Town enables us to create a bigger, and even more awesome event that will reinvigorate the pop culture community in the province,” says Nizar Abrahams, FanCon event coordinator.
The Comic Con in Cape Town in 2021 was well received by many residents of the geekdom (geek kingdom) from all over the city. After getting a taste of what Comic Con Cape Town had to offer in 2021, next year’s event is scheduled to be a weekend event. The three-day festival is scheduled to take place from 27 April to 29 April 2023 at the world-class Greenpoint stadium.
The City of Cape Town has pledged its support and commitment to the organisers to help ensure the success of the event and to see it truly becoming a world-class event.
Comic Con Africa is heading to Cape Town in early 2023. Image: Comic Con Africa
What you can expect
Attendees can look forward to a mind-blowing weekend filled with fun and excitement that will cater to enthusiasts, newcomers and families. The festival will host an exhibition floor featuring the latest and greatest in pop-culture merchandise, comics and collectibles. This will include the best of the best in the Artist Alley as curated by FanCon, an exciting panel programme of talks and presentations, gaming activations and tournaments, plus the latest in gaming gear and accessories as well as hosting the fan-favourite Cosplay Regional Championship competition.
“Following all the chaos caused by the pandemic over the past few years, we simply cannot wait to treat the Western Cape with the mother of all events that celebrate geek and pop culture,” says Comic Con Africa general manager Rene Staack.
The event has also roped in StreetCon and The Cape Town International Animation Festival. StreetCon is a celebration of urban and pop culture, while StreamerCon will bring together content creators, streamers and everything related to the making, watching, promoting and creating of online video content in real life. The Cape Town International Animation Festival will captivate Capetonians with talks, workshops, networking opportunities and skill sharing — exhibiting the incredible talent of local animators within the ever-growing local scene.
Cape Town, the undisputed digiTech hub, stands to benefit from this event as it gives ordinary citizens an opportunity to gain access to jobs, providing an opportunity for the limitless potential of the creative sector.
What you need to know
The three-day festival focuses on all elements of pop culture and brings international and local comic artists, film and TV celebrities as well as cosplayers to South African shores where they meet fans, sign autographs and have photo opportunities. Packed with championships, competitions, super show specials, product launches, workshops, panels, Q&A sessions, screenings, activations, and interactive experiences, there is something for everyone to enjoy whether you are a casual fan or a bona fide geek.
This is an opportunity for creatives and gamers to enjoy a whole weekend of tapping into their creative vibe that’s supported by an amazing city.
For more information and updates, visit the Comic Con Cape Town website or follow Comic Con Cape Town on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Comic Con Cape Town will take place on 27–29 April 2023 at DHL Stadium, Cape Town. Tickets will soon be available on Howler.