Big Minneapolis Anime 2025 Artist Alley at the Minneapolis Convention Center

This August it was the first Big Minneapolis Anime in Minnesota at the Minneapolis Convention Center and we decided to get it a try. One of our goals is to increase our attendance at Comic or Anime conventions in our local area before we branch out to places outside our State. We will be returning to Des Moines Con next year but we’re just getting used to convention life. We had no idea what to expect for a first year event and other creators told it can go either way but we try events 1 -2 times before we decide. This event was smaller in scale and to some who are tired being crammed in tight spaces this was the perfect amount of stimulation. They had guest celebrities, panels, and a cosplay contest. Normally, conventions are 3 days but for the first year, they decided to only have it on Saturday and Sunday. We did live on con food and get to catch of with fellow artists before adding to our celebrity experience. One highlight was getting a signature from Megan Shipman, voice actor for Anya of Spy X Family. We would say that due to the size two days was enough. Financially, we didn’t quite hit our goal of $1,000 minimum a day for an event but we did make some profit after table and expenses. We were able to save since we didn’t have to get a hotel. They are returning the 2nd week of August next year, but it conflicts with another event that we’ve been participating in every year and that other event is half the cost. We’ll have to decide which one to participate in next year, and we think we would need another year or two to decide if it’s worth it as creators. Thank you to all those stopped by our space, and thank you fellow artists for making things so much better at the event! Next, week we have another art festival so look for that video soon!