March 31, 2006

Ai-Kon weekend passes on sale Saturday morning

Manitoba's largest anime event returns to the Winnipeg Convention Centre for 2006

Winnipeg, MB - March 30, 2006 - Weekend passes for Ai-Kon, Manitoba's largest Japanese animation event go on sale April 1 at 10 a.m. through Ticketmaster.

Ai-Kon weekend passes are $29 plus agency fees until June 30, 2006 and $39 plus agency fees after July 1, 2006. Individual day passes are available only on their respective days. Children under 8 are free and must be accompanied by a paying adult. Full details are available at http://www.ai-kon.org.

Activities planned for this year's convention, scheduled for July 21, 22 and 23 at the Winnipeg Convention Centre, include 24-hour anime showings, panels, video games, contests, fan art, a vendor's room, and cosplay ("costume play" - dressing as an anime/video game character).

In 2005 approximately 960 people attended Ai-Kon, and organizers anticipate attendance numbers of 1,000 to 1,200 for this year's convention. Ai-Kon was moved to a larger facility in 2005 increase the comfort and enjoyment of those attending.

ABOUT AI-KON: Ai-Kon is Manitoba's largest anime convention. An all-ages event, the goal of Ai-Kon is the promotion of Japanese/Asian animation and culture to the public. Started by the University of Manitoba Japanese Animation Club (UMAnime) in 2001, Ai-Kon took a reorganizational hiatus in 2002, returning in 2003. Ai-Kon has since become an autonomous event, run by an independent volunteer board. "Ai" means "love" in Japanese, hence Ai-Kon's slogan "For the Love of Anime".

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