Creativity, to us, may mean inventing, experimenting, breaking rules, and having fun, but for top talents in Macau’s 2nd Ani-comics Games Creative Industries Festival, they are aiming to go far beyond – to brand Macau as a hub of creativity, by providing a meeting ground for leading practitioners to showcase Asia’s most stunning innovations.

Following the success of last year’s event, which drew 30,000 people, the organiser (Macau Animation Toy Comic Game Chamber of Commerce) invited 60 local and international makers of comics, toys, and online games to set up over 100 booths, selling creative products, and lending insight to ongoing industry trends.

For instance, Comicfans Culture Media Group from Guangzhou will display its award-winning animations and comics during the festival. “Though Macau is a small market when compare to the Mainland, we can see many business opportunities in its emerging creative industries with increasing support from the Macau government,” says its copyright operation supervisor Yang Wing.

One of the Festival’s highlights is the International Cosplay Competition, which packs in over 100 entries from Macau, Hong Kong, and Guangzhou. Dressing up is no child’s play; cosplay, short for costume play, allows participants to express their enthusiasm and innovation for their favourite characters in Japanese manga (short for comic) and anime (short for animation) on stage.

President of the Festival Choi Meng-tat says popular characters depicted in costume by Macau and Hong Kong contestants include wild-haired samurai and lovelorn Lolita-esque Japanese maids, while Mainland contestants usually prefer to create their own identities. They are judged on their costumes and props design, character imitation and showmanship – and how they can best capture the characters’ ‘spirit’. “Now the standard of emulation is really high. It’s almost like you see the character come to life before you, whereas before you could tell it was someone dressing up,” says Choi.

The Festival also features a smorgasbord of activities, including a talk show by popular stand-up comedian Cheung Tat-ming, movie clips, magic shows, and an open forum to explore trends and implications facing creative industries in Asia.

Natalie Wong