Fans at last year's Enchantment Con gaze at a statue of a basilisk — a fictional serpent-like creature. | Enchantment Con
Published on July 25, 2024 at 4:31 pm
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Stormtroopers and faeries … Sailor Moon and Death Eaters … these denizens of science fiction, fantasy and anime could materialize Saturday at the one-day Enchantment Con.
The event will take place at the Glass Factory, 601 Myrtle Ave. N., and next door at Myrtle Avenue Brewing.
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Enchantment Con is produced by Hall of Heroes LLC, a company that holds more-traditional conventions like this fall’s Ancient City Con in St. Augustine and JekyllHyde Con in Brunswick. But Saturday’s event is aimed at lovers of all things fantastic, organizers said.
The event is set up in what event co-producer Max Michaels calls an “unconventional space” instead of the usual cookie-cutter convention with row after row of exhibitors, guests and vendors.
“That’s our schtick, to find new, unusual spaces, unconventional spaces to put these events in,” he said. “We wanted to create something that’s a little different, a little more personal and a bit more immersive for our attendees.”
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Hall of Heroes opted to rent out the Glass factory, a former warehouse turned event space just west of the LaVilla community and Interstate 95. The brewery is next door and became part of the “whole new kind of thing” for Jacksonville, Michaels said.
“One-day cons are pretty popular all over the country,” he said. “We wanted to kind of do a surgical strike and see how it works. And with Enchanted Con, we wanted to do something that would draw the broadest type of demographic from the pop culture realm.”
Guests arriving at the convention will find it divided into themed realms. One is called Docking Bay 904, with all things sci-fi from Star Trek to Star Wars. Populating this realm will be the 501st Legion, Rebel Legion and Mandalorian Mercs Star Wars cosplay groups, anime comic writer Isaac Fox and other professional cosplayers.
The next space is Anime Realm, featuring Japanese animation with more cosplayers like Pikabellachu, Lynn Jutsu, El Nerdy Senpai, Ribaques and the Sailor scouts of Jacksonville. Artists include comic book writer Isaac Fox.
The Fantasy Faire Realm has wizardly cosplayers like CinCrawler, CrabbyFins and Blight Fang, and the Shattermare Comics creators. And the Dark Worlds Realm will see the Death Eater Alliance and Cassielecos cosplayers joined by author Cliff Hensley.
Guests on Saturday will get free Chromadepth glasses that “make colors pop out” in each realm, Michaels said. They also can rent headphones that will play special audio customized for each realm.
There will be a vendor and artist realm with crafters, creators and artisans, while the Myrtle Avenue Brewery becomes the Nerd Tavern for a day.
Tickets are $23.84 with fee. More information is available at EnchantmentCon.com. The after-con party is a Goth Night at 9 p.m. at Underbelly, at 113 E. Bay St.
