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Under the pen name TurtleMe, Brandon Lee blends Western and Eastern influences in his award-winning series, The Beginning After the End (TBATE). TBATE is the first English webnovel to webcomic series to receive an anime adaptation with its premiere in April 2025 on Crunchyroll. This long-running popular action-fantasy web novel and webcomic are available on Tapas Entertainment. It is also available as a graphic novel from Yen Press.

TBATE has garnered over 700K followers across its webnovel and webcomic on Tapas and has been honored with the prestigious Japanese Piccoma Award in both 2021 and 2022. The series has also been released internationally in countries including the United States, Japan, South Korea, China, Thailand, Indonesia, France, Germany, Mexico, and India.

You can apply here: 2025 Sakura-Con Cosplay Chess Application

If you’ve never been in Cosplay Chess before and just want to sample the carnage, consider applying for our Improv Cosplay Chess where the audience gets to be a part of the action! If you’d rather watch from the sidelines, we are also looking for Stage Ninjas to help with special moves and to keep the fights moving along. No headbands required, but there will be running involved! If you have any questions about Cosplay Chess, please feel free to send an email to cosplay.chess@sakuracon.org.

Hope to see you at Sakura-Con 2025!

Sakura-Con is pleased to announce Reol will perform at this year’s convention!

Reol began creating and releasing music in 2012, and quickly hit 1 million subscribers. She was later chosen for the first global YouTube campaign, “Artist on the Rise”.

An internet-born songwriter, record producer, and rapper with clear electronic and rock influences, her music is a distinctive fusion of western and Asian pop. Her music is defined by her expressive voice combined with appealing, upbeat melodies. Currently, she has over 1.71 million Youtube subscribers with a total of 1.08 billion views, and her hit song, “THE SIXTH SENSE” exceeded 100 million streams. Reol is gaining international popularity with her one-and-only joyful, bitter dark, twisted, and kawaii vibes.

Anime Day with the Seattle Mariners is back! 

Join Sakura-Con on April 13th at T-Mobile Park for our second year of Anime Day. Come cheer on the Mariners, get your limited-edition Anime Day shirt featuring Ikuta and the Mariner Moose, and help support Sakura-Con! 

Deadline to purchase: Friday, Apr 11 at 5pm

https://www.mlb.com/mariners/tickets/specials/anime

We are proud to announce the 2025 Cosplay Contest and 18+ Skit Contest will be opening applications on January 19th at 12PM PST. They will be open until January 25th at 11:59PM PST. Links will be posted both on the Sakura-con website and via social media posts.

Please review the updated rules for both events at the link below:

Cosplay Contest

Skit Contest 18+

Thank you to everyone who visited our photobooth at Sakura-Con 2025.  We’re so happy to be able to share your amazing cosplays!
We’d like to offer a special thanks to Mahou Photo for their fantastic work; you can find them on X and Instagram at @MahouPhotoPNW & online at https://MahouPhoto.com/

Friday Photo Booth 2025

Scroll through for a selection of Friday’s photos, or click the following link to see all of them: Sakura-Con 2025 Friday Photobooth ...

Saturday Photo Booth 2025

Scroll through for a selection of Saturday’s photos, or click the following link to see all of them: Sakura-Con 2025 Saturday Photobooth ...

Sunday Photo Booth 2025

Scroll through for a selection of Sunday’s photos, or click the following link to see all of them: Sakura-Con 2025 Sunday Photobooth ...

Sakura-Con is thrilled to welcome back the Dreamland Maid Cafe! 

Dreamland Maid Café is the USA’s largest travelling Maid Café! 
Guests can expect to experience the most authentic Maid Café experience outside of Japan with immersive table-side entertainment, dazzling dance performances, one-of-a-kind photo opportunities, and super-cute food and drink!

Stay tuned to our social media to see when bookings will open.

Scroll through for a selection of Friday’s photos, or click the following link to see all of them: Sakura-Con 2025 Friday Photobooth

Always wanted to be in a Fashion show?
Well here’s your chance!!!!
h.NAOTO Tokyo Fashion is holding an open call for models.
Selected applicants will model in the h.NAOTO Tokyo Fashion shows held Saturday 4/19/25.

To enter, please send an email to
fashion@jhouserock.com with the following:

• Two Photos (One headshot, One full body)
• Measurements (height, weight, bust/hip/waist)
• A brief statement telling why you want to be a part of the fashion event
• All applications must be submitted by Monday March 31, 2025

All applicants must be convention attendees to be eligible.  

h.NAOTO is a charismatic gothic fashion brand, debuted in the year 2000, which sparked a global movement.

He is a central figure in Cool Japan fashion, incorporating Japan’s unique cultures of Gothic Lolita, punk, anime, games, and visual kei into fashion, and bringing about a change from “fashion for dressing up” to “fashion for acting.”  He has received support from many Cool Japan artists, including musicians such as X-JAPAN’s YOSHIKI, HYDE, and GACKT, anime voice actors, and manga artists, and even including Marilyn Manson, Amy Lee of Evanescence, and Steven Tyler of Aerosmith. His fashion has a huge influence on artists around the world and has enthusiastic fans.

He has created his original fashion images involving Japanese culture along with Gothic, Lolita, and Visual-kei elements. He has also designed stage costumes for musicians and works as a lecturer at a fashion school. In recent years, he has also designed costumes for television, including costumes for Japan’s Kamen Rider and Super Sentai series.