"Everything was very organized and deployed very nicely. I thought all the staff was great, and surprisingly some of them were dressed up too! ^_^”

I definitely look forward in coming to it again if they do it again. It was nice to go to a small con like this in Charlotte."

~participants

Mini-Anime Con

Mountain Island Branch, Public Library of Charlotte & Mecklenburg County

The Public Library of Charlotte & Mecklenburg County (PLCMC) serves a population of 850,000 in 24 locations. The goal for this program was to have people show up! As this was the first time hosting this sort of program, staff weren’t sure that anyone would even come.

Running the Program

photo by Ian Nguyen

The library offered a variety of activities: a Japanese language class, anime screenings, a Cosplay contest, tables for crafts (origami, drawing, button making), as well as the gaming systems which included LAN gaming with Call of Duty 2, DDR, Rock Band, and Super Smash Bros Brawl. Games were purposefully selected to compliment the Japanese cultural theme.

Refreshments included Japanese candy and cookies, such as Pocky. In regards to staffing, it helped to have at least one staff member organizing the gaming systems. Two people who worked together setting up the systems and breaking them down after the Mini-Anime Con was over. One staff member managed the LAN gaming and two floating staff members checked on the other games as they floated through the program.

Marketing

Notices were posted on the library’s MySpace page, including a flyer, blog post, or photos from previous events. The program was marketed during ‘like’ programs such as game design or game tournaments, and periodically, the event was listed in the systemwide newsletter.

Facility

The Mini-Anime Con was held on a Sunday when the Mountain Island Branch was closed to non-participating patrons, so the gaming systems were set up in the main part of the library, using the perimeter walls as the projection surfaces.

Literacy Connections

Impact

The numbers we had might seem low, but when you consider that the branch can only hold about 250 people, then you can see how many people were there that day!

The Mini-Anime Con was an excellent way to connect to teens and families. Many parents came up and said how nice it was to be able to participate with their teens in an event that focused on something that was important to them. Previously shy teens opeed up after the con, becoming more engaged library participants. The young adults (20-somethings) who attended told staff how nice it was for them to be able to come to a program where they could meet other people their age with similar interests.

Funding $500.00

The only real cost was for food—approximately $500, donated by the branch’s Friends of the Library. For the gaming, the library system’s equipment was used. The prizes were donated by publishers.

Resources

For more information, please contact Snow Wildsmith at swildsmith@plcmc.org.

Anime Con Program Flyer

Anime Con Schedule and Rules

Anime Con Flickr Photostream