Otaku Fiesta

“Otaku” is a matter of fact, a negative Japanese term pertaining to people with obsessive geek-like interests in anime and manga, Japanese comics. But here in the Philippines, Otaku is seen in a positive light, followers have decided to celebrate the growing number of otakus in a Fiesta held in Bagumbuhay Covered Court and Wildlife Center, Quezon City.

“The Otaku Fiesta intends to unite the Japanese and Filipino culture by combining Japan’s lively festival with the Filipino fiesta into one big event,” says event organizer and founder of Dream2reality Productions company Rhea Ayunan in an interview. True enough, the event was indeed a fiesta, a celebration of Japanese culture appreciated by the young Filipino crowd.

Artists, anime fans and gamers collected in the covered court and participated in a colorful parade of J-Pop and J-Rock themed costumes and jumped to the cool tunes of local J-Rock bands. On the side of the courts, tables were lined showcasing artwork by the talented locals, beautiful photography of cosplayers, and rare collectibles of Japanese dolls. In between, mini food booths stood selling Japanese cuisine concocted for the Filipino tongues.

From an outsiders’ perspective, everyone in the covered court belonged to the same group, if not, the same community in love with the Japanese pop culture. A blind dating game grabbed every one’s attention as various boys contended for who was described as a beautiful, attractive woman, and in the end revealed as a fairly large homosexual dying for a kiss from her prince charming. Mobile marriage booths declared engagements of their favourite Japanese characters causing loud screams especially when engaged characters are actually in a relationship.

“Not only does this event aim to bring together subgroups of the Japanese sub-culture, but this event aims to raise funds to help our beneficiaries in their upcoming ventures,” says Ayunan.