LEAPING OFF THE PAGE
LIBRARY’S 2ND ANNUAL COMIC CON TURNS MAKE BELIEVE INTO REALITY
SANTA CLARA » A quiet place normally filled with books turned into a buzzing wonderland of robots and “Star Wars” icons and princesses Saturday at the Santa Clara Library’s second annual Comic Con.
The event featured Bay Area artists, comic book shop owners, cosplayers and authors, who all helped to turn make believe into reality for a day. It was an opportunity for hundreds of families to experience a community-based Comic Con event, according to organizers. Attendees bonded with people who, like them, enjoy the wonders of comics.
Jin Di Giordano, 28, of Vallejo, dressed up as Padmé Amidala, a fictional human character in the “Star Wars” franchise who was married to Anakin Skywalker.
“I like that strangers will see you and they just know you because they know the character,” said the software developer. “Usually I like to cosplay with people that I relate to on some level. You meet new friends that way.”
“And I feel like I look awesome,” she added.
The library expected about 6,000 attendees, according to John Schlosser, a program coordinator for the library system. The event, which was free to the public, was funded by the Santa Clara City Library Foundation and Friends.
“It’s a huge draw,” Schlosser said. “It’s really to get the community involved and it’s also to push reading. A lot of these people will never get to go to a real Comic Con, so we wanted to bring that feeling to them to see what it’s like.”
Though Comic Con events are held regularly in Silicon Valley and all over the world, it’s San Diego’s annual Comic Con that turned it into an extremely lucrative phenomenon. What started off as a small comic book convention in 1970 with only 300 attendees now draws more than 100,000 people to San Diego and has morphed into a four-day, multimilliondollar production showcasing the best movies, video games and anime.
In Santa Clara on Saturday, each attendee was offered a free comic with the hope that it will motivate them to read, according to Schlosser.
“A lot of people are reluctant readers, so a great way for them to get into it is to start with comics,” he said. “It’s a great visual medium to get that going for them.”
Every inch of the library was filled with activity Sunday, with panels and workshops from special guests, virtual reality gaming, anime showings, photo-opps with popular comic figures and hands-on crafts for all ages. “Star Wars Rebels” creators from Lucasfilm and Marvel Comics artist Ron Lim of “Infinity War” headlined the event.
In one corner of the library, Sunnyvale resident Jeannie Lee and her 13-year-old daughter, Kiana, glued Inuyasha comic strips onto small wooden picture frames. The Japanese manga series is written and illustrated by Rumiko Takahashi. It was the second year the pair attended.
“My daughter is really into art and comics, so I wanted to come with her to explore,” said Lee, 44, who works for the children’s ministry at Great Exchange Covenant Church in Sunnyvale.
Kiana said she was impressed by the cosplay she saw.
“It was really nice seeing everyone dressed up,” she said. “It was cool how people make those kinds of things. It looked really realistic.”