Flip through the latest issue of Gulf Weekly.
Local artists and cosplayers are gearing up for the largest pop culture event of the year, with organisers hoping to make it bigger and better than before.
Registration is now open for the 2023 Bahrain Comic Con’s (BCC2023) ever-popular Cosplay Competition, taking place on the sidelines of the event at the Bahrain International Circuit on October 6 and 7.
“We are hoping to see even more cosplayers at this year’s event,” BCC2023 organisers Dallah Promotions’ managing partner Salman Bukhari told GulfWeekly.
“Our competition last year was extremely popular and it was great to see so many excited fans dressing up as their favourite characters. We are planning on making this year’s competition even better!”
For the uninitiated, cosplay – the practice of dressing up as a character from your favourite film, book, television series or video game – has been skyrocketing in popularity since comic conventions became a worldwide phenomenon.
Last year, the competition was judged by professional cosplayers, including Aisha Alhammdi, better known as ‘Paris’ and Majed Alkanderi known as ‘Majed Cosplay’.
This year’s judges will be announced in the coming weeks, ahead of the convention.
“We want to include more local creatives this year, whether that’s cosplayers or in the artists alley,” Salman added.
From pieces inspired by pop culture to customised collectibles, all kinds of artists exhibited their wares during last year’s convention and Artist Alley registrations are now open for BCC2023.
Registration for both events can be done through the BCC Instagram.
The organisers are also looking for volunteers, aged 18 and above, to support the event and its many activities.
The Artist Alley, Cosplay Competition and more activities are set to be key features at this year’s Comic Con, alongside a number of celebrities.
So far, Alexander Ludwig from Vikings and Carolina Ravassa who voices Sombra in the Overwatch game series have been confirmed to be attending the convention.
The fourth edition will boast more top names, although organisers are tight-lipped about exact details as part of promotional plans to build up excitement closer to the show dates.
Last year’s line-up included Paul Anderson (Arthur Shelby in Peaky Blinders), Aimee Garcia (Ella in Lucifer and Jamie in Dexter), Clive Standen (Rollo in Vikings), Mason Dye (Jason Carver in Stranger Things), Leilani Shiu (Teeka in Obi-Wan Kenobi) and David Angelo Roman (artist of cult classic comic book, Rick and Morty).
For details and to register, follow @bahraincomiccon on Instagram.
