Get ready for a heart-thumping pop culture extravaganza at the Singapore Toy, Game & Comic Convention this September!
Kuala Lumpur, 24 June 2015 – The Singapore Toy, Game and Comic Convention (STGCC) – one of the region’s most international events for comic art and cosplay – will see the participation of Malaysian artists; two of whom are making their first appearance at this annual pop culture gathering. They will be displaying their prowess in character design, monsters and whimsical depictions of Malaysian towns and chibi – a Japanese cartoon form that emphasises cute, small bodies.
Making their debut at STGCC 2015 are Monochrome Rainbow, specialising in the adorable chibi form, and Monstres, a team of close friends who work with fanmade collectible.
Monochrome Rainbow’s work features cute, colourful chibi fan-based illustration, which are made into badges and keychains. They will also be showcasing some chibi Gundam merchandise and movie-based fan art.
Monstres will be making special merchandises exclusively for STGCC 2015, along with its childhood-themed artwork that feature many classic cartoons and anime characters.
Returning to STGCC 2015 is Running Snail Studio, a creative illustration studio comprising contemporary artists driven by art, personality and life, and known for the illustrations it has done for PETRONAS. Running Snail Studio’s will be launching its very first art book at STGCC 2015, which will feature their Studio Ghibli anime style illustrations from the past five years.
Behind every superhero and superheroine lies an artist recognised for his vision and artistic talent. Renowned comic book artist Adam Hughes, who will appear for the first time in Asia at STGCC 2015, is one of the best. An Eisner, Harvey and Inkpot award-winner, he has brought to life legendary heroes like Captain America, Hellboy, Wonder Woman and Supergirl. With over 25 years of experience as a professional illustrator, he has worked with notable companies to produce favourites such as DC Comics – Catwoman, Marvel Comics – X Men, Dark Horse Comics – Star Wars Legacy and Warner Bros. Pictures – Wonder Woman.
In addition to savouring Adam Hughes’ unique “realist” style, fans will also experience a seamless spectrum of emotions as Camilla d’Errico brings to STGCC her distinctive form of art, engaging both manga and western styles with surrealist elements. Her famous works include the Helmetgirls, with Dark Horse Comics, Tony Tony Lollipop for Disney’s Stitch Experiment 626 and her self-published graphic novel, Tanpopo.
Six of Camilla’s one-of-a-kind Artist Proof Kuro Vinyl Toys will make their first public appearance at STGCC. The numbered pieces of these designer vinyl toys were sold out completely in a limited production run. Camilla has also confirmed a special print release of 25 pieces of Tree of Life, which she will hand-embellish with gold paint at STGCC and offer for sale.
Fans of Disney’s popular animated feature film, Big Hero 6, will not want to miss designer Koyama Shigeto, who was part of the talented team that did the concept design for Baymax, the movie’s iconic superhero. A veteran designer on popular Japanese animated television series, Evangelion, Koyama’s other notable works include Heroman, Eureka Seven, Star Driver, Captain Earth, Gunbuster 2 and most recently, G-Reko.
Joining the line-up of distinguished guests this year will be one of the most high-profile and well known character designers and manga artists from Japan, Sadamoto Yoshiyuki. The founding member of the Gainax anime studio, which is famous for productions such as Gunbuster and Nadia: The Secret of Blue Water, Sadamoto is also known for his work on the popular Japanese animated television series – Neon Genesis Evangelion and the Japanese hit movie – The Girl Who Leapt Through Time.
Elevating the sensory experience at this year’s STGCC will be stage performances by popular musicians, Animenz and TAMUSIC, well-known for their unique renditions of Japanese anime music. A classically trained pianist, Maik Guo (aka Animenz), is internationally known for his distinctive, virtuosic performances. Some of his most popular pieces are soundtracks from popular manga series such as Shingeki no Kyojin, No Game No Life and Tokyo Ghoul.
Likewise, TAMUSIC will set hearts pumping at STGCC as he performs a repertoire of famous musical tunes from genres spanning Anime, Game, Vocaloid and Touhou.
“Triumphing in the pop culture scene to give fans in Singapore and the region an immersive experience, STGCC has been delivering an incredible multitude of pop culture content from the East and West over the past seven years. This year, we continue to fill the stage with a star-studded list of pop culture personalities and bring the universe of toys, games, anime, manga and collectibles together once again for an exhilarating weekend!
“Brace yourselves! The 8th edition is definitely hyping up to be the coolest event of the year!” Said Ms. Lin Koh, Assistant Project Director, Pop Culture Cluster.
STGCC Championships of Cosplay
STGCC is also stoked to present the inaugural Championships of Cosplay this year! Raising the standards of cosplay in Singapore, watch as the region’s top cosplayers and budding enthusiasts battle it out to represent STGCC at the 2016 C2E2 Crown Championships of Cosplay in Chicago, where they will compete for international glory among the best cosplayers in the world! To mark Hasbro’s first participation and celebration of cosplay with STGCC, Hasbro will be sponsoring close to SGD 2,000 worth of Magic: The Gathering merchandise, which includes the latest Magic Origins and Battle for Zendikar products for the top three winners. The champion will be rewarded with a grand prize of 1 x return economy class air ticket to Chicago and SGD 1,000 in cash, sponsored by XM Studios.
Judging the competition are renowned cosplayers, Tadaaki “Jacky” Dosai from Japan and Yui from Hong Kong, alongside representatives from Moviemania and XM Studios.
STGCC tickets will be available for sale from 1 July 2015 and priced at SGD$19 for a one-day pass and SGD$28 for a two-day pass. Get ready and grab your tickets at selected authorised retail outlets and at the event itself! Visit www.singaporetgcc.com/tickets-queues for more ticketing details.
Check out www.singaporetgcc.com for the latest STGCC news!
Photos credits to Singapore Toy Game & Comic Convention STGCC 2015.