MomoCon

MomoCon is a fan convention held in March or May in Atlanta, Georgia.

MomoCon
StatusActive
GenreGaming, Comics, and Anime
VenueGeorgia World Congress Center
Omni Hotel Atlanta
Location(s)Atlanta, Georgia
CountryUnited States
Inaugurated2005
Most recent2019
Attendanceover 39,000 in 2019[1]
Organized byMomocon LLC[2]
Filing statusFor-Profit
Websitewww.momocon.com

From its beginning through 2011, it was held on the campus of the Georgia Institute of Technology; in its first year, MomoCon was held in the Georgia Tech Student Center. In 2006, it expanded to include several events, mostly video game tournaments, in the nearby Instructional Center. In 2011, it was held in Technology Square, and in 2012, it was held in the Atlanta Marriott Marquis.

The convention encompasses anime, video games, LARP, webcomics, comics, costuming, card games, board games, science fiction and prop armor construction, among other things.

From 2005 to 2011, there was no entry fee to MomoCon; the convention sold T-shirts and highlight DVDs to fund the next year. Due to rising costs, 2012 was the first year that an admission fee was required.

History

Early history

The word "momo" in Japanese means "peaches", and its host state, Georgia, being the "Peach State" led to the naming of MomoCon.

Every year, MomoCon has a theme that goes into the design of the convention that year. The first year, it was "Southern Hospitality" and T-shirts were black and featured the MomoCon mascot, as created and drawn by H. M. Ogburn. In 2005, MomoCon was run by an estimated 35 volunteers. The convention had over 30 guests and many special demo teams, as well as several special events and feature movies. An article on the anime club and the convention was featured in the February 2005 issue of Newtype USA, and professionally made commercials were seen around Georgia Tech campus before on-campus movies in the Student Center.

In 2006, T-shirts for 2006 were black and featured the same MomoCon mascot in a purple kimono in the moonlight,[3] to coincide with the Tsukimi ("moon-viewing") theme. MomoCon 2006 had a convention motto of "Because You Shouldn't Have to Pay for Quality" and featured an opening ceremonies video that was a parody of Iron Chef, with "Chairman Panda" and the "Iron Staff". Key events for 2006 included a Tsukimi festival with kimono-clad wait staff, a Gaming Decathlon, a Pocky Stop cafe, and a rain-cancelled Sidewalk Art competition. Guests included numerous webcomic and comic artists, voice actress Amy Howard Wilson of Star Blazers fame and prop maker Robert "Vaderpainter" Bean.

In 2007, T-shirts for 2007 were hunter green and featured the MomoCon mascot; the staff theme was "The Family". The video game tournaments were reworked to feature a few large tournaments, as opposed to many smaller tournaments, and a larger costume contest was held at Georgia Tech's Kessler Campanile.[4] The new costume contest location provided seating for a greater number of attendees, and was held earlier in the evening. Local area groups stepped forward to run workshops and seminars on their respective expertise, including a plethora of costuming panels and workshops, Japanese ceremonial demonstrations and game demos. On Sunday (March 18, 2007), the convention was closed nine hours early because several con attendees attempted to set off firecrackers inside the Georgia Tech Student Center.[5]

Because the number 4 is considered unlucky in Japanese culture, MomoCon 2008 (the 4th event) featured a gothic horror-style theme. In addition to several events from past years, 2008's event included a Twilight Tea event, at the end of the day on Sunday, in lieu of a closing ceremony. Con-goers were asked to stop by for some fresh-brewed tea under the light of red paper lanterns at dusk and let the staff know what they would like to see at the event in the future. Due to the security problem in 2007, subsequent MomoCon events (starting with 2008) have required registration to enter. Attendees were required to present a valid photo ID to enter, and children under the age of 16 needed to be accompanied by an adult. Badges were provided, and the event remained free for congoers.

The theme for MomoCon 2009 was retro-campy science fiction. Additional Japanese cultural events were held, including community support from local groups who specialize in these events.[6] The second floor of the Instructional Center building, previously used only for tournaments, was used for additional panel, workshop and anime viewing space. Special events included screenings of public domain science fiction movies from the 1950s and 1960s and a Mechas and Monsters late-night programming block, featuring Kaiju and mecha movies. The first band performance at MomoCon happened in 2009: The Extraordinary Contraptions, a Steampunk-themed rock band.

On April 6, 2020, it was announced that the 2020 MomoCon, which was scheduled for May 21–24, was canceled, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[7] The next MomoCon will take place in 2021, with dates set for May 27–30.[8]

Event history
DatesLocationAtten.Guests
March 26–27, 2005[9] Georgia Institute of Technology - Student Center & Commons
Atlanta, Georgia		700[9][10]Amy-Howard Wilson, Robert 'Vaderpainter' Bean, Nightmare Armor Studios, Gamesare, Terminus Media, Kittyhawk, Jennie Breeden[11]
March 18–19, 2006 Georgia Institute of Technology - Student Center & Commons
Atlanta, Georgia		1,800[3][10]John Lotshaw, R. Dustin Kramer, Jennie Breeden, Andy Runton, Sith Vixen, Brent Allison, Amy-Howard Wilson, Bill Holbrook[12]
March 17–18, 2007 Georgia Institute of Technology - Student Center & Commons,
Student Services Building, Kessler Campanile and Instructional Center
Atlanta, Georgia		2,600[5][10][13]
March 15–16, 2008 Georgia Institute of Technology - Student Center & Commons,
Student Services Building, Kessler Campanile, and Instructional Center
Atlanta, Georgia		4,840[14]
March 14–15, 2009 Georgia Institute of Technology - Student Center & Commons,
Student Services Building, Kessler Campanile, and Instructional Center
Atlanta, Georgia		7,200[15]
March 20–21, 2010 Georgia Institute of Technology - Student Center & Commons,
Student Services Building, Kessler Campanile, and Instructional Center
Atlanta, Georgia		7,800 [16]
March 12–13, 2011 Georgia Institute of Technology - Technology Square (College of Management)
Georgia Tech Hotel and Conference Center
Atlanta Biltmore Hotel and Biltmore Apartments
Atlanta, Georgia		10,300[17]
March 16–18, 2012 Atlanta Marriott Marquis
Atlanta, Georgia		8,640[18]Brent Allison, Atlanta Imaginarium, Gina Biggs, Martin Billany, Jennie Breeden, Gamesare, The Gekkos, Go, Robo! Go!, Catherine Jones, Kittyhawk, Harrison Krix, Laugh Out Loud, Wendee Lee, Ellen McLain, Sketch MacQuinor, Penny Dreadful Productions, Bill Winans[18]
March 8–10, 2013 Hilton Atlanta
Atlanta, Georgia		12,200[19]Brent Allison, Manda Bear, Martin Billany, Steven Blum, Sean Patrick Fannon, Katie George, Jennifer Hale, Yaya Han, Eric Hokanson, Catherine Jones, Sifu Kisu, Eloy Lasanta, Riki "Riddle" LeCotey, Monika Lee, Sketch MacQuinor, Mark Meer, Lindze Merritt, Marianne Miller, Cara Ann Murray, Meredith Placko Mike Reiss, Zachary Rich, Mark Zoran.[19]
May 23–25, 2014 Hilton Atlanta and Marriott Marquis
Atlanta, Georgia		14,600+[20]Brent Allison, Troy Baker, Dante Basco, Courtnee Draper, Katie George, Jess Harnell, Sifu Kisu, Harrison Krix, Maurice LaMarche, Cherami Leigh, Tress MacNeille, Bryce Papenbrook, Rob Paulsen, Leo "That Sci-Fi Guy" Thompson, Doug Walker, Rob Walker, Mark Zoran.[21]
May 28–31, 2015 Georgia World Congress Center and Omni Hotel Atlanta[22]
Atlanta, Georgia		22,600[23]Brent Allison, Jon Bailey, Jennifer Barclay, Martin Billany, Ashly Burch, Chalk Twins, Keith David, Steve Downes, Crispin Freeman, Katie George, Charlene Ingram, Ke Jiang, Harrison Krix, Mega Ran, Lindze Merritt, Amanda C. Miller, Marianne Miller, Professor Shyguy, The Protomen, Doug Walker, Greg Weisman, Sarah Anne Williams[23]
May 26–29, 2016[24] Georgia World Congress Center and Omni Hotel Atlanta[25]
Atlanta, Georgia		28,300Brent Allison, Irene Bedard, Martin Billany, Steven Blum, brentalfloss, Zach Callison, Chalk Twins,Mr. Creepy Pasta, Jim Cummings, Benjamin Diskin, Caleb Hyles, Catherine Jones, Harrison Krix, Riki "Riddle" LeCotey, Allyssa Lewis, Mary Elizabeth McGlynn, Erica Mendez, Matthew Mercer, Marianne Miller, Mandy "AmazonMandy" Moore, Yad-Ming Mui, Nolan North, Paige O'Hara, Laura Post, Cree Summer, The Runaway Guys, David Vincent, Doug Walker, Adam WarRock[25]
May 25-28, 2017[26] Georgia World Congress Center and Omni Hotel Atlanta[26]
Atlanta, Georgia		31,132[27]Brent Allison, Bit Brigade, Zach Callison, Charlet Chung, Mr. Creepy Pasta, Jonny Cruz, Michaela Dietz, Josh Grelle, Samantha Inoue-Harte, Taliesin Jaffe, Jerry Jewell, Catherine Jones, Harrison Krix, Maurice LaMarche, Brendan LaSalle, Allyssa Lewis, Matthew Mercer, A New World, Rob Paulsen, Marisha Ray, The Runaway Guys, Fred Tatasciore, J. Michael Tatum, Mark Zoran.[26]
May 24-27, 2018[28] Georgia World Congress Center and Omni Hotel Atlanta
Atlanta, Georgia		35,400[29]Akidearest, The Anime Man, Troy Baker, Bit Brigade, brentalfloss, Kimberly Brooks, SungWon Cho, Richard Epcar, Crispin Freeman, Barbara Goodson, Haiden Hazard, Caleb Hyles, Catherine Jones, Christopher Jones, Josh Keaton, Harrison Krix, Monika Lee, Josh Martin, Carey Means, Misty/Chronexia, Nolan North, Octopimp, Chris Parson, Chris Rager, Arnie Roth, Chris Sabat, Sean Schemmel, Emily Schmidt, Justin Sevakis, SUDA51,[30] The Triforce Quartet, Kari Wahlgren, Hiromi Wakabayashi and Elise Zhang.[28]
May 23-26, 2019 Georgia World Congress Center and Omni Hotel Atlanta
Atlanta, Georgia		> 39,000[1]Adam Bryce Thomas, A7L PROPS, Adam Nusrallah, Adriana Figueroa, Amy Chu, April Borchelt, Ronald B. Seaman Jr. (Aracknoid3 Cosplay), Asheru, BeeNerdish, Benjamin Byron Davis, Bit Birgade, Brain ScratchComms, Brendan J. LaSalle, Brenden Fletcher, Caleb Hyles, Carolina Ravassa, Casey Renee Cosplay, Catherine Jones (GSTQ Fashions), Charles Martinet, Chris Miller, Cosplay Collective, CutiePieSensei, DAGames, Dan Salvato, Dave Silva, David and Alex Harmer, Deans Lyst, Dedren Snead, Deedee Magno Hall, dj-jo, Donny Cates, Estelle, Fabrice Sapolsky, Jules Conroy (FamilyJules), Dustin Fletcher (Flashfletch Cosplay), Gabi, Gaku Space, Gigguk, Go Big or Go Home Cosplay, Grant, Greg Burnham, Hiroaki Yura, Hoyt Silva, Jarman Props, Jim Mahfood, Jonah Levy, Jonny Cruz, JT Music, Justin Briner, Kamikaze, Keith Silverstein, Kenji Kamiyama, Kenny James, Kyle Starks, Laura Martin, Lee "Fev" Camara-Smith, Luci Christian, Maki Terashima-Furuta, Marcus Williams, Matt Silva, Matt Wilson, Mckenzie Atwood, Megan Hutchinson, Michaela Dietz, Mikal Mosley, Mike Salcedo, Monica Rial, Mr. CreepyPasta, Myuu: Dark Piano, OR30, Overworld Designs, Patrick Warburton, Pixelbash Props, Sungwon Cho, rabbidluigi, Rebel Taxi, Reuben Langdon, Rico Renzi, Robert Wilson, Roger Clark, Samantha Kelly, Shingo2, Shinji Aramaki, Spatcave Studios, Steve Blum, Substantial, Suda 51, Supergiant Games, Susan Egan, Sydsnap, Talynn Kel, The NPC Collective, The Runaway Guys, Jerod Collins (The8BitDrummer), Thrill Builds, Tim Effler, Tony Anselmo, Tony Weaver, Tracy Yardley, Vivienne M. (Vivziepop), Volpin Props, Zach Callison [31][32]

Peripheral events/MomoCon on Tour
Cosplayers at MomoCon's Cosplayers on Ice 2008

MomoCon also sponsors local events that bolster awareness of the convention and of Japanese culture. Anime O-Tekku began this tradition by bringing many movies and gatherings to Georgia Tech's campus and Atlanta, and MomoCon continues it.

  • Georgia Tech Riki-Oh Night 2005 - MomoCon helped staff and financially sponsor the annual Georgia Tech cult film festival and Super Smash Brothers Melee tournament, Riki-Oh Night. The convention paid in part for the banner and prizes for the tournament.
  • Photoshoots on Tour 2006-2017 - MomoCon on Tour has hosted photoshoots around the southeast since 2006, including two Savannah shoots (one on Tybee Island), three South Carolina shoots, a zombie-themed Halloween shoot in Perry, GA, joint photoshoots with Middle Tennessee Anime Convention and Anime Weekend Atlanta in Chattanooga, TN and Rhodes Hall in Atlanta, respectively.
  • Gaming Festivals 2009-2010, 2012-2014 MomoCon hosted a Summer and Winter Gaming Festival at the Georgia Tech Student Center. Events included board, card, and RPG gaming, as well as retro video gaming.
  • Cosplayers on Ice 2007-2016 - Annually in December, MomoCon on Tour welcomes attendees to the Cosplayers on Ice event.
  • Steampunk Photoshoot 2008 - On May 24, 2008, MomoCon in association with Peach State Cosplay Society hosted a Steampunk photoshoot on Georgia Tech campus. The shoot took advantage of some of the unique campus architecture and was open to all types of costumers.
  • MomoCon Winter Ball 2008-2015 - MomoCon hosts a winter semi-formal ball event annually. It features wintery decorations, DJs playing danceable anime/video game tunes as well as classic pop, rock, big band, lounge, and jazz music.
  • MomoCon Summer Charity Ball 2008-2010, 2012-2014 - MomoCon hosts a summer semi-formal ball with all proceeds benefiting the Susan G. Komen organization for breast cancer awareness.
  • Twilight Masquerade 2015, The Crystal Ball 2017 - MomoCon hosted (alongside Dragon Con for The Crystal Ball) a full formal masquerade event in 2015 and 2017 held in the Oceans Ballroom at the Georgia Aquarium.

References
  1. MomoCon (May 27, 2019). "MomoCon Facebook". Facebook.
  2. "Georgia Corporations Division Business Search". Retrieved May 29, 2017.
  3. Garcia, Nathan (2006-03-31). "Second Momocon proves successful". Archived from the original on 2007-04-27. Retrieved March 1, 2007.
  4. "Anime-O-Tekku Announces the Return of MomoCon". Anime News Network. 2007-01-11. Retrieved November 5, 2011.
  5. Guyton, Andrew (2007-03-30). "Third annual MomoCon draws 2,600 gaming fans". The Technique. Archived from the original on 2007-07-15. Retrieved April 3, 2007.
  6. "MomoCon 2009". Anime News Network. 2008-10-30. Retrieved November 5, 2011.
  7. Hansen, Zachary (April 6, 2020). "MomoCon 2020 canceled due to coronavirus pandemic". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved November 17, 2020.
  8. Wong, Alistair (April 6, 2020). "MomoCon 2020 Cancelled, But Returning in 2021 'Bigger and Better'". Siliconera. Retrieved November 17, 2020.
  9. Cuneo, Joshua (2005-04-01). "Tech hosts anime, gaming convention". Archived from the original on 2007-05-28. Retrieved March 1, 2007.
  10. A hard number is not available because of the lack of convention registration. In particular, it is difficult to determine unique visitors over both days of the convention. In 2006, the location of several tournaments outside the Student Center complicated the count.
  11. "Momo-con 2005 Information". AnimeCons.com. Retrieved 2020-01-22.
  12. "MomoCon 2006 Information". AnimeCons.com. Retrieved 2020-01-22.
  13. "MomoCon 2007 Information". AnimeCons.com. Retrieved 2020-01-22.
  14. "MomoCon 2008 Information". AnimeCons.com. Retrieved 2020-01-22.
  15. "MomoCon 2009 Information". AnimeCons.com. Retrieved 2020-01-22.
  16. "MomoCon 2010 Information". AnimeCons.com. Retrieved 2020-01-22.
  17. "MomoCon 2011 Information". AnimeCons.com. Retrieved 2020-01-22.
  18. "MomoCon 2012 Information". AnimeCons.com. Retrieved 2020-01-22.
  19. "MomoCon 2013 Information". AnimeCons.com. Retrieved 2020-01-22.
  20. "Atlanta's May Fan Convention MomoCon Announces Over 14,600 in Attendance this Past Weekend and Move to the Georgia World Congress Center for 2015". PR Newswire. Atlanta, GA. May 28, 2014. Retrieved May 29, 2014.
  21. "MomoCon 2014 Information". AnimeCons.com. Retrieved 2020-01-22.
  22. "MomoCon FAQ". MomoCon. Archived from the original on 2015-03-16. Retrieved 2015-10-11.
  23. "MomoCon 2015 Information". AnimeCons.com. Retrieved 2020-01-22.
  24. "MomoCon 2016 Important Information". MomoCon. Archived from the original on February 14, 2017. Retrieved February 13, 2017.
  25. "MomoCon 2016 Information". AnimeCons.com. Retrieved 2020-01-22.
  26. "MomoCon 2017 Information". AnimeCons.com. Retrieved 2020-01-22.
  27. "Registration for MomoCon 2018". MomoCOn. Retrieved October 30, 2017.
  28. "MomoCon 2018 Information". AnimeCons.com. Retrieved 2020-01-22.
  29. "MomoCon". MomoCon.
  30. "Suda51 is Coming to MomoCon with a 'Special Announcement'". Crunchyroll. May 7, 2018. Retrieved May 7, 2018.
  31. "MomoCon 2019 Guests". MomoCon. Retrieved June 3, 2019.
  32. "MomoCon 2019 Information". AnimeCons.com. Retrieved 2020-01-22.

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