FOLIO
Words by Johvan Merilus
Florida has always been known to be attractive based on its over-the-top theme parks, energetic nightlife and beautiful beaches.However, in recent years, the Sunshine State has found itself to also become a mecca for pop culture conventions. Becoming a hub for the fans of comic books, shows and movies may night have been foreseen in the Sunshine State, but it’s currently being witnessed as one of the top experiences for those who love pop culture. Megacon Orlando has grown to be one of the liveliest events in the expansion of the entertainment industry.
If you were ever in doubt of Florida’s appeal then look to see where one of the largest pop culture conventions in the Southeast is located. Megacon first made its entrance into the public eye in 1993, and today, it’s one of the biggest draws in the entertainment industry. Up to date it’s been attracting well over 100,000 attendees annually. The convention offers everything that can be imagined to create the best fandemonium experience such as meeting characters from your favorite shows or movies through celebrity panels, vendor marketplaces and amazing prize winning cosplay competitions. What makes an event such as this so significant is the warmth felt through the genuine interaction with someone who may be your favorite voice actor or legendary comic book creator.
Tom Croom, the founder of WasabiAnime, serves as leading organizer for Jacksonville’s WasabiCon convention.The event is a multiple day event which allows fans of aspiring gamers, celebrity guests and fictional series ranging from shows to movies to become immersed in the culture. Conventions throughout all of Florida have each come to create their own legacy.
“I started Wasabi Anime as an anime club in Orlando in 2001. Prior to our arrival in Jacksonville, though, our friends at a group called Fujikoma had started the city’s original anime club in 1998. When we launched in Orlando a few years later, we were encouraged to check out the Jacksonville scene for a potential for expansion,” Croom said. “By 2002, Wasabi Anime club chapters had started in both Jacksonville and Green Cove Springs. In 2004, Wasabi Anime came to Jacksonville, Florida for the first time as event runners as part of a pop culture convention called DreamCon taking place at the then-Adam’s Mark Hotel and the current Hyatt Regency. In 2010, we took over providing the anime programming for Ancient City Con (then located in Jacksonville) in its third year, and ran it for a couple of years before launching our own event, WasabiCon, in 2012,” said Croom.
Wasabicon has grown to be successful in its own way as it’s been driven to entertain and inspire the community. Conventions are typically structured to push forth creativity and the presence of content that would elevate the inner joy in which people have when investing in the things they love. Croom created WasabiCon not only to serve Jacksonville for a few days but to cement itself as an event that will be built up year round due to pure excitement. In order to create things you must be able to invest into the foundation using the best of tools and resources.
What makes Florida such a beloved space for events such as WasabiCon and Megacon is its ability to reach out and attract different demographics through the advertisement of diversity in both interests and acceptance to all people. All the major cities in Florida ranging from Jacksonville, Tampa, Orlando and Miami have benefitted significantly due, in part, to warm weather, picturesque settings, plentiful restaurants and endless entertainment options. Economically there’s been an elevation in activity due to local businesses being presented with the opportunity to draw in larger crowds of traffic with the amount of people visiting for the convention.
Conventions such as WasabiCon and Megacon don’t just help uplift the profile of those who have an official status in the industry but also to those aspiring to make a name for themselves as well. To those who are independent and aspiring to be in the industry whether that’s as a filmmaker, writer or independent artist, a platform such as this can bring you recognition. Megacon allows for creators on all levels to be able to come together and showcase their work so that everyone in attendance — regardless if you’re a creator or a spectator — can share the common love of artistic creation. That’s what separates Wasabicon and Megacon from other conventions based on it’s capability to draw people in and align them not based on the roles they aspire to be but more so on the content in which keeps their inner child alive.
“I regularly refer to Wasabi Anime (Green Mustard Entertainment, Inc.) as a “hobby gone horribly wrong,” Croom said jokingly. “My background is in theme parks, and I worked in entertainment management for both Universal Orlando and the Walt Disney World Resort. Wasabi Anime was originally designed as a club for my friends and fellow fans to have fun while making anime fandom more accessible to the mainstream. About a decade ago, I realized that I had — inadvertently — created a business… The challenges in that transition have mainly been structuring the company, as well, while maintaining the ‘fun factor’ that makes fandom what it is. And, yes, I still watch anime.”
Fostering a creative ecosystem such as Megacon can only contribute to the state’s richness in culture by allowing people to come and build platforms that will only increase in its value. The Megacon convention hasn’t gone unnoticed since big time studios and publishing companies have established Florida as a pop culture powerhouse. Even gaming companies have found themselves to reach out and use the city’s platforms to debut new titles. As years go by the entertainment landscape for Florida only increases in both value and personal appreciation amongst fans and creators alike. Megacon just isn’t a location but rather an experience that can give people the opportunity to come together and bond over the very thing that they love.
“WasabiCon is the largest annual pop culture event in Jacksonville, Florida. Since starting in a hotel in 2012 and subsequently building local support for the acceptance of ‘geek culture,’ we’ve watched as local video games stores, barcades and similar businesses pop up in and around the city,” Croom said. “In 2023, Visit Jacksonville and the Duval County Tourist Development Council reported that WasabiCon had generated a $1.4 million impact on the city.”-
If you were to describe the initial definition of culture, it would be the arts and other manifestations of human intellectual achievement regarded collectively. Pop culture conventions embody every bit of wording in that definition as it draws in the gathering of those who love anime and artistic content. These conventions aren’t just a nerds excuse to dress up but rather let people feel like being a kid again. When creativity is embraced it affects not just the people but its surroundings. So if you’re looking for something that you won’t regret, check out these conventions.
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