Anime Central 2026 is soon upon us, and this year the IDOLM@STER is officially presenting a concert (two parts, one with cast member and the other with mixed-reality style), panels and autographs at the con. Big thanks to the GR and other teams of Acen that made it happen and also Bandai Namco Entertainment for rolling the dice with Acen. It’s definitely their best opportunity for something like this in the USA, so I’m glad they are shooting their shot.
Along with the official programs listed on Acen’s Guidebook, there was a drawing for VIP tickets to the concert. If you won that, congratulations, enjoy my envy, and remember to pay for it.
I am running an “afterparty” for Producers. Currently it’s sold out but I’m trying to move to a larger space(it’s sold out for good now). Tickets and details can be seen here. It’s turning out to be a big party. We will have a few DJs play music. There’ll be a birthday cake. We’ll have some stuff to give away. Maybe more stuff to-be-determined, but it’s in the middle of me trying to fast track a new venue contract to a new space so it’s kind of painful right now. I hope it’s worth it!
There is a separate meetup for Produnus on Sunday. It might already be full.
There is a general meet up, which is your usual cosplay meeting at cons but for im@s it has been a general one where you can meet, trade producer cards, and do all that stuff. Cosplay is optional. It’s on Friday at 2pm, flag 6 (check Acen Guidebook for maps). You can see a list of “idol vibe” events here.
For EN first time traveling to Acen there’s a guide some folks put together. I’d endorse like a good 75% of it, the rest I would rephrase differently. That’s still a passing grade so it’s worth a look if you are new. If you read my blog and wants to go, it’s definitely cutting it close, but it’s still very doable if you can manage an affordable flight to Chicago. Food, hotel, and the con itself are not really expensive. Chicago is one of the cheaper cost-of-living cities in the USA, and unlike many cities in this country it’s a real city (lol). It also helps that Acen is right near Chicago O’Hare, which is one of the largest airline hubs in North America with a lot of flight options. It is literally a free hotel shuttle ride away from the airport, or you can take the Blue L.
In terms of the logistics of the IM@S concert on Friday, it’s officially from 6 to 8pm. If you want to get a good seat, you will need to line up early, which will depend on Acen staff and lineup policy. In general they’re not going to allow people to line up more than 2 hours earlier, but it is case-by-case. Looking at the schedule there’s nothing earlier in the day besides the ballroom panels next door, so it could be a sweaty camp.
In addition, it is rumored that there will be merch for sale. More details hopefully will be announced soon. This could change the plans for camping for a space. Anyways, please follow the instruction from staff and try to not cause any issues with traffic flow and the like, when you camp anywhere.
Also, don’t forget about the flower stands in the Exhibition Hall, as well as some banners behind Retro Saikou booth. I’ll have a binder for your Producer Cards and will try to canvas the lines for it. Messages on shikishi is also happening as per prior years
A bunch of imas-fan-DJs will be playing an IM@S set starting around 8:30pm outdoors somewhere Friday night. Details are here. I’ll try to show up after dinner.
Lastly, I will be ghetto-trying to group watch the Gakuen IDOLM@STER HIF Selection event somewhere. I have no idea how, but it does start at 3am for both days, so it ain’t for everyone. I’m just hoping the now DRM-laden Asobistage stream works when I do a HDMI out from a laptop.
Aside from the IDOLM@STER, there are still many other events going on at Acen. There’s like 3 screenings I will have to miss that I would go otherwise. The new Hathaway, for example. Or the world premiere of Goodbye Lara. Yuki Kajiura is returning to Acen also for a concert with FictionJunction, plus panels and autograph ops. There are the guests from Sekai Project also, like U3 and the other illustrators.
Should be a great time. See y’all there?
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