Celebrating the 10th anniversary of Anime St. Louis, the anime club travelled to Collinsville IL. Apr. 17-19 to participate in the convention.

“It was crowded, loud, exciting and had a lot happening,” junior Danielle Emanuel said. “There’s a lot to do and a lot of people to meet.”

They had panels, workshops or discussions about anime, manga, fanfiction, video games, webcomics, sound production and cosplay.

“It was a lot of fun to see all the different kinds of costumes and people, and just know when you’re there you’re in a nice, fun environment with other people that have similar interests,” freshman Alex Volz said.

The convention hall held a mix of people in everyday clothes as well as people in cosplay, or outfits made to closely resemble a character from an anime or fandom.

“There was a masquerade with 78 people who went up with the costumes they made,” sophomore Chiron Robinson said.

The masquerade was like a fashion show where cosplayers could show off their hard work. While some people spent $100 on an already made cosplay, others hand made theirs for half the cost.

“I cosplayed as Stein from Soul Eater and a Team Rocket grunt from Pokémon,” sophomore Alex Nevad said. “Alltogether, it took a week to make it.”

If the attendees cosplayed they got a discount entrance fee: $50 for the weekend, $35 for Friday, $40 for Saturday and $25 for Sunday.

“We were paired up and as we went around if we saw somebody else from the club, we’d start hanging out with them. I think we all grew a little closer,” Volz said.

Club members stayed together in a nearby hotel if they chose to stay overnight, carpooling the hour to the convention center each day. With over 4,000 attending, they were not without other company.

“I talked to so many different kinds of people. It’s a lot of fun because I was in costume too, and I had people come up to me – which I really enjoyed – to have a short conversation with them about something we both enjoy,” Volz said.

Many members have been going to the convention since they began high school; however, they are not stopping after their high school days are over.

“I plan to go to more conventions after graduation,” senior Christian Craft said.

Other anime conventions in the area include Arch Anime in Collinsville and Anime Midwest in Chicago.

“Anime STL used to be in Saint Louis; now it’s in Collinsville, and it’s getting moved next year,” Anime Club vice president junior Zoe Goff said.

Next year, the convention will be held May 13 -15, 2016 at the Saint Charles Convention Center.

“My advice for anyone thinking about going is be aware of your surroundings and use common sense,” Goff said.