The 2023 edition of Be Comics!: the most important festival dedicated to pop culture, nerds and geeks in the Veneto and the North-East. Throughout the past weekend, the whole city was filled with fans of comics, manga, cosplayers, video games and esports. They were 20 mila the participants of Be Comics! 2023, confirming and surpassing the excellent results of the previous edition. The great interest awakened in the area has pushed Fandango Club Creatorsthe organizer in partnership with Padova Hall, already set the appointment for next year: the 2024 edition will take place on 16 and the March 17.
The Be Comics Festival! 2023 welcomed, in the two days, over 130 exhibitors among the major publishing houses, the most beloved comics stores and board game publishers with their highly anticipated demo areas, as well as the many retailers of must-have gadgets and collectibles. The event was held in Pavilion 7 and in Galleria 78 from the Padua Fairanimated by the presence of fans of all generations ready to share their greatest passions. Be Comics! 2023, in fact, has united the world of comics, manga, cosplay, with that of video games and esports, thus embracing all areas of pop culture, for a truly rich and engaging offer. The Be Stagethe main stage of the event, hosted shows, panels and meetings with international artists, authors, creators and talent led by Rebecca Staffellispeaker of Radio 105. Impossible not to mention among the most important and appreciated guests by the public SIObut also Gary “King Pokémon” Haasethe oscar award Sarah Arduino e Richard Meneghellodirector Niko Maggi and the young actor Alexander Bedetti and many others. Great turnout also in the areas dedicated to gaming and esports: the Gaming & Fun Zone Of GameStop it was set up with numerous game stations dedicated to the most recent video games. Even the renowned hall of the GameStop TVwho moved specifically to Padua, made unboxings, interviews for a weekend of non-stop streaming on the channel GameStopIT. Thanks also to Pokémon Millenniumall the fans of the world Nintendo they were able to test themselves with tournaments and quizzes with lots of surprises for all the participants. The area Gaming & Esportshow it also boasted stations with next-gen consoles that allowed the public to challenge their friends to games such as FIFA 23, Call of Duty o Mario Strikersin addition to the possibility of visiting the Metaverso.
In keeping with the theme of Be Comics! 2023 – that is “East of West, West of East”which also inspired the poster of the event designed by the artist from Trieste Mario Alberti – Asian pop culture was given ample space throughout the weekend. Lots of manga to discover and moments on stage Be Talk! Living in Korea e Living in Japan, transported audiences directly to the Far East. The K-POP reigned supreme these two days with the K-POP Show and the K-POP Contest which decreed the representatives of Veneto, Trentino-Alto Adige and Friuli-Venezia Giulia for the competition that aims to elect the best crew in Italy. There random dance instead it was an important moment of unity between the public who danced to the latest hits of the most popular groups. Among the many thematic areas, the world of cosplay could not be missing! Personalities of all kinds and ages populated the two days of the event. The best competed on the Be Stage, with the Cosplay battle and the Epic Cosplay Contest. Thanks to the parade of 501st Legion Italica Garrisonthe Rebel Legion Italian Base and the Mando Mercs Costume Club Ori’Cetar Clan, the entire audience of Be Comics! he was also momentarily transported to the galaxy far far away.
Nicholas Rossi, President Of Padova Hall confirms that:
the success of this edition of Be Comics! testifies once again unequivocally how much our area felt the need to host an event entirely dedicated to entertainment, from comics to videogames, open to families and enthusiasts of all ages. Furthermore, the strong presence of university students makes the city of Padua the ideal place to host an event capable of attracting young people. Padova Hall is therefore ready, thanks to the collaboration with Fandango Club Creators, to host the next edition to confirm Be Comics! as the most popular appointment not only in Veneto but throughout the North-East”.
Marco Moretti, CEO Of Fandango Club Creatorsgoes on to state that:
the exponential growth of Be Comics! confirms that the path taken is the right one and that is why for the next edition we are already thinking about an enlarged proposal that involves even more companies in the entertainment sector, expanding the spaces and developing the world of gaming and esports to give more and more complete offer.
