Over the last few years Anime NYC has continually cropped up on my radar but because of poor personal timing, when it was held in November, I was never able to attend. However, even though I am still in a bit of recovery mode now that Anime NYC has settled into August I felt I was overdue to give the event my attention and attend.
Created in 2017 by LeftField Media Anime NYC is dedicated to celebrating Japanese pop culture, animation, manga, and cosplay. Held in New York at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center, Anime NYC, offers screenings, panels, and celebrity appearances by some of the biggest names in Japanese pop culture. The show also features exhibitors from the largest companies in the anime space including Viz, Anniplex, Bandai, and Crunchyroll to name a few. What began as a modest event with just over 20,000 fans in attendance Anime NYC has since seen exponential growth and is now the East Coast’s premier anime convention. In 2025 the show expanded into a four day event and had a record breaking 148,000 fans in attendance.
To be 100% honest I was a bit hesitant to try this show out as in general anime as a genre, while great, is not an area I’ve been comfortable covering in the past. With many series featuring long running stories, deep histories, and a very committed fan base it can feel intimidating to cover an anime forward event when you are not as familiar with the genre. But seeing how large the show has gotten over the last few years I really wanted to dip my feet into it and a get a taste for the show.
So this year I applied and was approved for press and decided to go for two of the shows four days and what I found was that while some aspects of the show were different ultimately much of the show was the same as any other convention just with panels, a show floor, artists alley and cosplay focused on anime. While Anime NYC was on the larger side it didn’t quite take up the entire convention center and with the exception of panels and a gaming area, all other elements of the show including exhibit booths, artists alley, signing, and even a food court area took place on the show floor. Another element I found that set the show apart was the seemingly huge cosplay culture which felt as large as even the largest conventions I’ve attended.
During my two days at Anime NYC I explored the floor, learned a bit more about various anime, saw some amazing artwork and cosplay, got into a Star Wars Visions panel with new Anime NYC partner Lucasfilm , and even got some swag. Since everyone has to start somewhere and this was my anime focused show I really only dipped my toes into the water and likely the coverage is a bit less anime focused than it should be. Much of my time was spent walking the show floor (and because there was a no photos policy at their panels limiting my coverage from them) I’m going to keep my coverage focused on the booths and artists I saw during my time at the show.
I can’t say I’m now an anime expert and by no means should I be consulted about the goings on of a particular show. Maybe one day I’ll get into an anime a bit more, maybe not but I will say that LeftField media has all the right elements of a winning show in Anime NYC and I hope that come this time next year I’ll be ready to spend more time and get more into the weeds into anime culture.
VIZ
https://www.viz.com/
VIZ media is the number one source for manga in America and has been an authority in the area for over three decades. They feature some of top anime brands out there including Dragon Ball, Naruto, Pokémon, Sailor Moon, and Shonen Jump and reach multiple industries including print, animation, film, and gaming as well as other merchandising. Aside from a shop with show exclusives VIZ had panels, a One Punch Man photo-op, and other booth activities throughout the convention.
Den of Geek – Sakamoto Days AR Experience
As announced just prior to San Diego Comic-Con Den of Geek in partnership with Netflix concluded their Augmented Reality (AR) collaboration with Medialife.AI at Anime NYC. Medialife.AI’s work blurs the line between physical and digital by delivering Japanese anime straight into the physical world. The AR experience gives fans access to exclusive browser-based experiences through in-store displays posters, and magazines as well as limited-edition AR-activated merchandise including stickers, magazines, and posters.
At the Den of Geek booth fans were able to snag their special issue centered around the series and some other goodies while also experiencing the AR activation in person. Additionally on On Thursday of Anime NYC Netflix held a panel which included the Sakamoto DaysPart 2 series. The Den of Geek booth also had some Animebae products on display, more on that below.
And here is some of the activations at work
Sakamoto Days follows the story of Taro Sakamoto once the greatest hitman of all who has since retired in the name of love. But when his past catches up, he must fight to protect his beloved family.
Animebae
https://animebae.co/
Speaking of Medialife.AI Animebae is another partner they are collaborating with. Animebae produces anime inspired apparel including hoodies, long sleeve shirts, tees, hats, bags, accessories, and stickers. The team, based out of Vancouver BC creates each piece through collaboration with artists while trying to maintain an authentic look all centered around anime. Their activated apparel, which are embedded with NFC tags, works similar to the above mentioned AR experience where the shirts come to life once scanned on your smartphone.
Aniplex
https://aniplexusa.com/
Aniplex Inc., a sub-group of Sony Music Entertainment, are a leading provider of anime and music distribution throughout Japan. Their releases include Fate/stay night [Unlimited Blade Works], Fate/Zero, the Sword Art Online series, Your lie in April, and KILL la KILL to name a few. 2025 was also a perfect time for them to attend Anime NYC as they celebrate their 20th anniversary.
RSVLTS
https://www.rsvlts.com/
RSVLTS, named after namesake Teddy Roosevelt, are an apparel brand bringing officially licensed unique and daring designs from a span of movies, shows, artists, and sports. Their signature KUNUFLEX™ button down shirts are lightweight, soft, and stretchy; the shirts rarely wrinkle and don’t shrink in the wash. 2025 also marked RSVLTs first appearance at Anime NYC. A regular at many popular conventions RSVLTs were trying to expand into the anime market and gain exposure in the community. For the event they had a few first appearance shirts including an Anime Luke panel shirt and a Anime Gundam Floral.
Aviot
https://en.aviot.jp/
A Visionary Innovation On Technology (AVIOT) delivers premium earphones delivering superior sound and seamless usability combined with the highest quality of Japanese manufacturing. Established in 2018 AVIOT has a wide range of products including a range of anime crossovers.
EGG Atelier
https://eggatelier.com/
EGG Atelier is a family run business. Founder and creator Quan specializes in offering hand crafted crochet and micro crochet creations. Beginning from childhood Quan under guidance from his mother, Grandma Mu, combined generations of skill and passion to develop and design hand-stitched wearable art, accessories, and home décor. Quan’s elegant designs show a love for craftsmanship and charm and each piece is crafted using high-quality, sustainable.
V1Tech
https://www.v1tech.com/
Along with RGB Backlit PC Mod parts that combine art and technology, V1 Tech offers a line of plexi glass acrylic wall art posters. Established in 2014 the company works with over a hundred artists and currently offers over 12,000 designs. At Anime NYC they had a few 1 of 1 acrylic prints for sale.
The Art of James C. Mulligan
https://theartofmulligan.com/
A regular at various conventions including San Diego Comic-Con, New York Comic Con, Anime NYC and more James’ art spans many fandoms including Disney, Marvel, and Star Wars. He is also a featured artist in Ravensburger Disney’s Lorcana cards.
Kehasuk
https://www.kehasuk.com/
Kris, the artist behind Kehasuk, uses his love of older TV series to create unique and stunning pieces of art. Each painting of his explores different techniques, settings, placement, expression, color, and shapes to create a cohesive story of each a character he draws. I ran across Kris’ work back in 2022 and I am happy to see his work has been thriving since then.
Lanny Ho
https://lannyho.com/
Residing in Brooklyn, NY Lanny Ho is a Vietnamese American print and tattoo artist. His style of art featuring limited edition wood cut prints features many anime and sci-fi properties. If his Yu-Gi-Oh!, Spirited Away, Godzilla, or Alien prints and shirts aren’t to your tastes I am sure he has something else that would work for you.
Babs Webb
https://www.babswebb.com/
Denver based artist Babs Webb was on hand with a range of art showing off her affinity to occult. Often working with graphite, her offerings span original art, prints, playmats, book illustrations, and more.
VENF3LL
https://www.instagram.com/venf3ll/
Working as a freelance illustrator and background designer in the animation industry Venf3ll creates semi-realistic pieces in the fantasy, horro, and manga genre. Everything that is just up my alley. For Anime NYC there were a few exclusive hand printed shirts with some amazing designs including a decomposing dragon.
DopePope
https://www.instagram.com/d0pep0pe/
DopePope is an artist I had seen at previous Five Points Fest shows generally showing off his love of designer toys and sofubi. A Brooklyn based artist he works as a character designer and concept illustrator for films, TV, toys, and games. At Anime NYC he was showing off his range of 3D printed kaiju creatures.
Soothing Lotus
https://soothinglotus.com/
Offering a range of hand blended teas, coffees, scents, room sprays, honey crystals, and more Soothing Lotus can provide anyone with a bit of zen. Their goal is to provide items to soothe and calm.
Afeela
https://www.shm-afeela.com/en/
Sony and Honda’s joint electric vehicle (EV) venture Afeela was on hand to showcase the new product. The EV is fully electric and with a customizable media bar, immersive entertainment, and driver assist puts focus on the user experience. I appreciate the mystery box keychain handed out during the show but this does harkens back to my displeasure when Chevy occupied space on the New York Comic Con show floor; I will give this a pass as there was still room to allow for the booth; if space was an issue I would be skeptical.
