It’s colorful and charming and crazy good! Anime Las Vegas returns to The Expo at World Market Center March 29-30, 2025. We spoke to the marketing director Colin Bass about how they create this unforgettable experience, featuring a diverse lineup of celebrity guests, engaging panels, and interactive activities.
How has the anime community in Las Vegas influenced the event’s growth and direction?
“Well, this convention wouldn’t happen without the amazing anime community in Las Vegas. We’re so grateful to our local attendees that help us grow our event and have made us the largest anime convention in Nevada. We’ve also been fortunate to team up with local Las Vegas businesses like Anime Gear Guru, Manga Hole, Downtown Cinemas, Millennium Fandom Bar and more. And we’re also grateful to local vendors and artists that are part of the show.”
Are there any exciting new features or guests planned for the next event?
“This is our biggest event so far! Over 60 guests. 350 vendors. We have huge cast panels, cosplay contests, free arcade zone, karaoke lounge and so much more. Some celebrities of note that are coming this year are: Maile Flanagan (“Naruto”), Dante Basco (Prince Zuko from “Avatar: The Last Airbender”), Eric Vale (Trunks from “Dragon Ball Z”), Jim Cummings (Winnie the Pooh/Tigger), Kaiji Tang (Gojo from “Jujutsu Kaisen”) and so many more!”
What’s been the most surprising or memorable moment at Anime Las Vegas so far?
“We were nervous to create the event in Las Vegas. We’ve seen similar events come and go. It’s a hard market! But one of the best moments was seeing the amount of attendees come in our first year and see them embrace the event. Nothing beats seeing people have fun.”
Can you share any behind-the-scenes stories from past events?
“Oh, man, these things go by so fast it’s hard to take mental notes of the behind-the-scenes moments. But, one moment that sticks out is when we switched from having side panels to creating the Anime Activity Zone. It was so much fun discussing ideas with our program director, Tyler McPhail. We have so many games, activities and screenings that lead to a lot of fun times and even more free stuff. It’s one of my favorite parts of our con.”
How do you see Anime Las Vegas evolving in the future?
“Well, we definitely have the space! So I’m just imagining more people with more fun things to do at the convention. The Expo at The World Market Center is beautiful and allows us to spread our wings and continue to grow!”
More Anime Events
This annual anime event is taking place April 25-27, 2025, at the Las Vegas Convention Center’s South Hall. LVL Up Expo unites fans for three days of fun.
LVL Up Expo will feature more than 50 special guests and influencers and over 250 exhibitors.