Since our founding sixteen years ago, AnimeChicago has grown from a small group of friends to a vibrant and engaged community of anime fans. The world is truly different now—and so are we. In 2022, we doubled down on our most popular initiatives, trimmed unpopular programs, and embraced hybrid events. But what hasn’t changed is…
159 anime titles premiere this Spring 2022. They certainly aren’t all winners. But how can you be the most informed fan if you haven’t watched all 50 shows, OVAs, and movies airing this week? And the week after that? Until the literal end of time? It’s incredibly challenging to stay current every anime season. I gave…
Come rep AnimeChicago at Anime Central 2022! Join us for 3 panels, an IRL Member Mixer, and our first-ever Cosplay Parade! We couldn’t imagine a more perfect way to attend the first ACen since the 2019 Lockdown. The world has certainly changed these last two years. Our meetups also require masks and other prevention measures…
Last year was more of what we didn’t ask for: staying indoors, peeled to screens, creating whatever this “new normal” would be. Anime fandom landed firmly into the mainstream with this perfect storm! Hooray for streaming-on-demand, local movie screenings, and killer merch. Boo to the many large groups flooded with shouting matches, disinfo, and hate…
Anime Central 2020 approved this panel and a pandemic thwarted it. So we’re bringing it online! Four AnimeChicago members will share how their respective fan labor projects created opportunities for career advancement and helped them level up their skills. Bring your questions, leave with solid career advice! ? Thursday, June 17 at 7:00pm CDTFree for…
On March 6th, 2021 – and nearly one year after the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic – AnimeChicago hosted its fifth symposium entirely online, a first for AnimeChicago. Titled .future/now, the event fittingly looked at the intricacies of living in our modern always-online world as it is reflected in anime. Opening the session was the YouTube…
AnimeChicago’s Art Circle rebooted at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic as a weekly online meetup for creatives to de-stress. These passionate artists met throughout 2020 and formed a small and mighty studio. As Art Circle built up steam, the desire to share…
We won’t sugarcoat this update – 2020 was challenging for Americans, nonprofits, and our community. The dumpster fire that was this year raged worldwide via global pandemic, systemic inequality, and rampant racism. Suddenly, meeting people and enjoying anime seemed trivial. Despite the hardships, we found a unique opportunity to serve our nonprofit mission within our…
AnimeChicago is monitoring the COVID-19 situation daily and complying with the state-wide social distancing policy. But that doesn’t mean we can’t support each other in this difficult time. So please join us as we bring our programming online through Spring. Possibly longer. Immediate Changes 1. We’ve launched a Discord server!All AnimeChicago members can create an…
AnimeChicago’s Interview series highlights local organization leaders, artists and personalities. Today we’re chatting with Derrick Fields about his team’s upcoming video game title Onsen Master, which exceeded its Kickstarter goal a few days ago! AC: Tell us a little bit about yourself, and what inspired Onsen Master. DF: Like most anime-loving adults out there, I’m…