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SMASH! Sydney Manga and Anime Show (typically abbreviated to SMASH!) is an annual
Japanese pop culture Japanese popular culture includes Japanese cinema, cuisine, television programs, anime, manga, video games, music, and doujinshi, all of which retain older artistic and literary traditions; many of their themes and styles of presentation can be t ...
convention held during July/August at the International Convention Centre Sydney in
Sydney, New South Wales Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
, and is the largest
anime convention An anime and manga convention (often called just anime convention) is a fan convention with a primary focus on anime, manga and Japanese culture. Anime conventions are commonly multi-day events hosted at convention centers, hotels or college cam ...
in Australia.


Programming

The convention typically offers an artist circle, art competitions, community groups, cosplay competition and games, karaoke competition, maid cafe, merchandise vendors, panels, stage events, trivia, video game tournaments, and workshops. It also hosts the Gunpla Builders World Cup and World Cosplay Summit preliminary. On some years, a concert or after hours event also takes place that feature musical guests.


Organization

SMASH! is run by SMASH Inc, a non-profit association incorporated in New South Wales that began in 2007. SMASH Inc is controlled by a board elected each year by the members of the association. The board in turn selects a management team responsible for the planning and day-to-day conduct of the convention as well as a staff of volunteers organised into various departments. The board, management and staff total more than 200 people.


Mascots

The convention features two mascots, a boy, Cyrus, and a girl, Skadi. The pair are twin prince and princesses of the planet "Sumashcomianganimelis" (or "Smash" for short) in the "Ota Kuu" galaxy, who have been sent on a mission by the King of the Cosmos to spread Ota Kuu culture to Earth. The mascots were designed in 2007 by Sai Nitivoranant and have been drawn by numerous artists, including guests of the convention, Tan Kit Mun, Alexandra Szweryn and Shaun Healey.


History

SMASH! was conceived by Katie Huang, an artist and illustrator living and working in Sydney. The event was originally called ComicWorld Sydney and was more closely modelled on the Comic World events held in
Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...
,
Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...
and
Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...
. As the number of people involved in organising the event increased, the focus broadened and the name was changed to SMASH! Sydney Manga and Anime Show. In the first year, the convention setup the first maid cafe and host club to be at an anime convention in Australia. It was also where The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya and
Death Note ''Death Note'' (stylized in all caps) is a Japanese manga series written by Tsugumi Ohba and illustrated by Takeshi Obata. It was serialized in Shueisha's Shōnen manga, manga magazine ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' from December 2003 to ...
made their Australian premiere. In 2010, SMASH! hosted the first national final of the Bandai Action Kit Universal Cup held in Australia in conjunction with Hobbyco and
Namco Bandai (commonly known as and formerly Namco Bandai until 2015, also known as Bandai Namco Group,) is a Japanese mass media and entertainment conglomerate founded in 2005 by the merger of Namco and Bandai. The company specializes in toys, video ...
; it was also the first year the convention reached its attendance cap. In 2014, SMASH! began its association with the World Cosplay Summit, holding the Australian Preliminary Final. That same year it also staged the NIPPON World Karaoke Grand Prix Australian Preliminary Final. In 2020 and 2021, the convention was first postponed, then cancelled due to the Australian Government advice regarding the organisation of public gatherings during the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
.


Event History


References


External links

{{commons category
SMASH! Official Website
Anime conventions in Australia Annual events in Australia Festivals in Sydney Recurring events established in 2007 2007 establishments in Australia