Ever wondered what an event where doujin artists are in the main spotlight would be like? If your answer is yes, then let us share our experience where we traveled to the heart of Indonesia. Yes, our bizarre adventure in discovering every ACG (Anime, Cosplay and Gaming) convention from around the world has lead us to none other than Comic Frontier (Comifuro), held at Balai Kartini, Jakarta on the 22nd and 23rd of February 2020.
So what about Comifuro draws anime lovers around the world to visit the city of Jakarta? Well, we may have a few ideas as to what made this convention stand out among the rest.
The Crowd’s Purpose
Like at every other ACG event, people who attended Comifuro were passionate about finding doujin goods, anime merchandise and more within the span of 2 days.
In fact, Comifuro itself encourages fans to buy and sell fan art or fan-made products, in contrast to more typical events where cosplayers steal the show with their eye-catching cosplay merchandise. On a side note, a majority of the attendees were not in cosplay as most of them came with the aim of getting fan art featuring their favorite anime characters.
Despite the overwhelming crowd, the organizers managed to dedicate space for visitors to catch their breath after obtaining their spoils of war. This “bonfire” space also allows for cosplayers to showcase their costumes and for photographers to take pictures of them without getting swarmed by people coming to and fro.
The Stage
If you have attended many ACG events in Malaysia, you would normally see the stage being used for performances or guest meet-and-greets. However, that is not the case for Comifuro. The stage is used by the ACG community to showcase their digital creations such as virtual Youtubers, local Vocaloids, indie games and many more! Plus, the community is also given a session to carry out panel discussions and talk about their favorite anime or game series on stage, similar to Visual Arts Expo (VAX) in Malaysia.
Doujin Booths/Merchandise
Doujin artists unleashed their creativity with the various items they had on display. Some even took it one step further by creating a mascot for promoting their coffee while some showed off their photography skills by selling photoshoots of their Nendoroids.
Due to the event being mainly doujin-focused, only a few corporate booths were seen near the entrance. One of the booths that stood out belonged to an anime figure company known as Kyou Hobby Shop, which had a mountain of Nendoroids and figurines piled up throughout the booth that made it resemble a labyrinth near the stage.
The booth was filled with loads of discounted products and anyone who entered the shop would most likely come out with at least a figure or two in their hands.
Final Thoughts
Overall, it was a weekend well-spent going through a mix of official and fan-made goods. We recommend ACG lovers to visit Comifuro at least once in their lifetime.
Fun fact, Comifuro is held twice a year (rumour has it that it is going to be held a 3rd time the next year!), so there are plenty of opportunities to experience the uniqueness of Comifuro.
PS, here are some doujin artists that got our eyes hooked on their creations.
www.facebook.com/mintchanchannel
https://www.instagram.com/ellygretta
https://www.facebook.com/nanasss11
