Sunshine City Scare is a new breed of horror convention that features four horror subgenres: Anime horror and video game horror as well as horror in movies & TV and a very special guest. Celebrity guests include voice actors and live-action actors from popular anime shows, video games, and movies like Chainsaw Man, Tokyo Ghoul, Resident Evil, Silent Hill, Cabin in the Woods, and Sleepy Hollow. And the very special guest is the creator of the iconic Monster High. Not to mention the contests that offer $1,500 in cash prizes.
The event is May 13-14 at the Coliseum and surrounding area in downtown St. Petersburg. And Florida Comic Cons is a sponsor, so we’re giving you 10 Big Reasons to attend Sunshine City Scare.
Big Reason #1: See the Evil Side of Anime
Sometimes the cute and adorable side of anime needs to get out of the way and let the evil side take over for a bit (which may also be good advice for life!-lol). And Sunshine City Scare is celebrating the evil side of anime, making it the first anime horror convention in Florida (we couldn’t find any other conventions with ‘anime horror’ as a main focus). And the event features major characters from popular shows/manga below, so get your tickets today.
- Denji from Chainsaw Man
- Pochita from Chainsaw Man
- Future Devil from Chainsaw Man
- Enmu from Demon Slayer
- Shinichi Izumi from Parasyte
- Celestia Ludenburg from Dangonronpa: The Animation
- Kuki Urie from Tokyo Ghoul:Re
- Eto from Tokyo Ghoul
- Gabi Braun from Attack on Titan
- Furlan Church from Attack on Titan: No Regrets
Big Reason #2: Cast of Chainsaw Man
Denji, Pochita, and Future Devil will be at Sunshine City Scare, making the event a rare opportunity to see three major characters of what is arguably the most popular anime right now. Voice actor Ryan Colt Levy voices Denji, Lindsay Seidel voices Pochita, and Landon McDonald voices Future Devil. Learn more in the video below. And come meet the voice actors! Get your tickets today.
Big Reason #3: 3 Undead Little Girls
What do these characters have in common: Bree from Twilight: Eclipse, Alessa and Dark Alessa in Silent Hill, and Patience Buckner from Cabin in the Woods? First, they’re all undead. Second, all characters are played by Jodelle Ferland, who is appearing both days at Sunshine City Scare.
The actor is widely known for her portrayals of little girls in horror movies, making the minor roles really stand-out. Not to mention she has appeared in three major horror movies before becoming a teenager. Twilight is iconic, Cabin in the Woods is arguably one of the best horror movies of our time, and Silent Hill was a great supernatural thriller based on the epic video game. That’s a lot to accomplish while you’re a kid! Come meet the adult who did it all at Sunshine City Scare. Learn more in video below. And get your tickets today.
Big Reason #4: Our Fav Zombie Killer
Our fav zombie killer Claire Redfield from Resident Evil 2 will be at Sunshine City Scare! (or we should say voice actor Stephanie Panisello). And Claire will be looking for action. Learn more in Sunshine City Scare’s video about our fav zombie killer, and come to the event and meet Stephanie! Get your tickets today.
Big Reason #5: Creator of Monster High
The creator of the iconic Monster High, Garrett Sander, is making his first convention visit to Florida — and it’s Sunshine City Scare! In addition, he is signing dolls for free (so bring your own, or buy one from a vendor at the event). Come meet the talent behind the iconic dolls that spawned a franchise with two generations of fans. Check-out Sunshine City Scare’s video below on Sander’s appearance and the event’s celebration of Monster High! Get your tickets today.
Big Reason #6: Do Not Scare characters
It’s a horror convention, but the voice actors also portray anime characters unrelated to horror — and they’ll all be inside the same building! What to do? Please Do Not Scare these 13 characters, who are from anime and animations like My Hero Academia, Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure, Bungo Stray Dog, Marvel’s What If?, and more. Some of the characters are so sweet and adorable, and it wouldn’t be nice to scare them. And others include a warrior princess and a superhero, neither of which would we recommend scaring. All voice actors are at the event both days, and will be offering autographs and merch for all of their horror and non-horror characters. Get your tickets today.
Big Reason #7: Lots of Contests
Sunshine City Scare has lots of contests with $1,500 in cash prizes, which makes it our Big Reason #7 to attend.
Cosplay Contests
Sunshine City Scare is excited to host two cosplay competitions and celebrate the costumers who bring our favorite characters to life! the Craftsmanship Competition is Saturday at 4 p.m., and there is $1,000 in cash prizes awarded to winners. Pre-registration is recommended. In addition, the Runway competition is Sunday at 4 p.m., and winners receive a really cool medal.
Lip Sync Competition
The new breed of horror con brings you a sensational Lip Sync Competition where entrants will compete for $200 in cash prizes! Sign up now to join in on the fun!
TikTok Film Festival
Sunshine City Scare welcomes a one-of-a-kind TikTok Film Festival to celebrate the overlap between anime horror fans and TikTok users. Bring your creativity and show us what you’ve got by submitting your own TikTok! $300 in cash prizes available for winners.
Fan Art Contest
Sunday, May 14th, you’ll have the chance to win $100 in our Fan Art Contest! Join us in a 45 minute race to create the best fan art creation!
Big Reason #8: Mother’s Day Family Fun
Sunday May 14 is Mother’s Day. And when it comes to Mother’s Day, Sunshine City Scare believes mom’s deserve more than a boring ham dinner and soon-to-be-dead roses. So they planned a special celebration called “Happy Murder’s Day” celebrating mothers who are murderers or who have birthed murderers in horror movies. Happy Murder’s Day represents a wide range of horrifically wonderful movies that started with Psycho and continues today. Learn more about the Happy Murder’s Day activities like holiday card-crafting and a special photo space in the video below and in the Sunshine City Scare blog on the celebration of moms. Join us – get your tickets today.
Big Reason #9: St. Pete’s First Horror Con
Just as recent as 2021, St. Petersburg didn’t have any pop-culture conventions — no comic convention, anime convention, or horror convention. In 2022, St. Pete Comic Con and Anime St. Pete were born, giving the fourth largest city in the state its first comic con and first anime convention. And in 2023, St. Petersburg welcome its first horror convention: Sunshine City Scare. All three cons are owned by the same group.
Logos localized to reflect St. Petersburg
You’ll see the logos of the cons are localized with St. Pete Comic Con including a dolphin fin (it’s not a shark fin!) and a wave, and Anime St. Pete with similar treatment featuring a full dolphin surrounded by waves. An evil pelican is in the spotlight for the Sunshine City Scare logo (for reference, the pelican is the official bird of the city, and St. Pete is aka the Sunshine City).
Big Reason #10: Larger-Than-Life Cosplay
Allison Chase Cosplay is known for extra-large cosplay builds that have garnered her several cosplay contest awards from MegaCon Orlando, which includes her builds of Cart Titan from Attack on Titan, Catbus from My Neighbor Totoro, and The Power Loader from Alien. She will be hosting panels and visiting fans at her booth as well as judging the cosplay competitions. In addition, Cart Titan is coming with her! Come see the cosplay build that is 14-feet long, 8-feet high, 5-feet wide (and it moves- see more in the video below). Get your tickets today.
Sunshine City Scare tickets
Single day ticket is $25, and weekend pass is $40 (prices increase $5 at door). Get your tickets today.
Need help finding cons in Florida?
Florida Comic Cons has the Con Calendar, a curated calendar of comic, anime, horror, and other pop-culture conventions to keep you, the fandom, informed and apprised (you’re welcome). Quit wasting time with internet searches that take too long and still leave you asking questions. The Con Calendar’s event listings include all the con info like ticket prices and links, vendor registration, and lots more!
