Users: 0
Comic Con Portugal 2024 celebrates 10 years and is returning to the city where the event was born. We took the opportunity to speak with the CEO about all the news.
The country’s biggest pop culture event, Comic Con Portugal, turns 10 and to celebrate in the best way, it returns to the city where it was born. Therefore, Exponor will host the event between the 21st and 24th of March.
Comic Con Portugal also stands out at an Iberian level, as it is the largest event of this type in the entire Iberian Peninsula. This year is promising and one of the most anticipated stalls comes from Denmark. The LEGO Group will have a own space and has several activities for the whole family. Visitors will find a life-size replica of the famous Ford Anglia from Harry Potter and an exhibition of sets, within the imagination of Comic Con Portugal, with ranges such as LEGO Star WarsLEGO Icons, LEGO DREAMZzz and LEGO Animal Crossing.
And of course, there will be giveaways too! When it’s less than a week before the start, we spoke with CEO Paulo Rocha Cardoso about this year’s news and CCPT’s 10 years.
MHD: Back in Porto, what can the public expect from the next edition?
PRC: It is important to highlight that this return does not begin or end in March 2024, it began in 2023 and continues after the event. With institutional support from the Municipalities of Porto, Gaia and Matosinhos, the Comic Con Portugal environment has been extended by activations and experiences over the months. A part of our audience is already familiar with Exponor and the areas of pop culture that they can find around the venue, but the differences for the 2017 event are significant.
In addition to occupying the entire Exponor – including parking lots and the outdoor area next to Pavilion 6, with an area that mixes lounge and music – the indoor space is full of brands and, mainly, content. During the four days, visitors will be forced to choose what they want to see in panels, workshops and activities. We have incredible names in BD, Literature, Cinema and Gaming simultaneously in the auditoriums and throughout the venue.
ALL THE NEWS FROM CCPT24
MHD: The participation of families, who visit the space and go dressed up, is increasingly noticeable. Are there any proposals to attract even more families to the event?
PRC: It’s definitely something we’re proud of, seeing how familiar our event is these days. It would be obvious to think that a Comic Con is only for the biggest fans, or only for movie and comic book fans. One of the biggest lessons we learned from these ten years is that Pop Culture belongs to everyone. We’ve all played a game on our cell phone, watched a series, have a favorite movie, loved a record and read a book that left an impression on us.
I would say that our biggest success was being able to offer content for all ages and tastes. At Exponor, a son will be able to see an exclusive PlayStation release and then his father will show him, in the dozens of arcades, the games that brought joy to his youth. One family member can watch the Pokémon premiere while another is signing their book with Samantha Shannon or Frank Sho and another is having fun with LEGO in the kids zone. Comic Con Portugal is admittedly a family event, where everyone can be whoever they want.
COMIC CON PORTUGAL IS 10 YEARS OLD
MHD: How do you define these first 10 years of the event?
PRC: Challengers. Comic Con Portugal grew exponentially and with that our responsibility grew. We had to be able to organize the event under very challenging conditions, but the result is very positive. All the partnerships, projects, events, activations, celebrations and competitions that have taken place over these ten years demonstrate that the public wants to celebrate pop culture. Nowadays, when the global industry looks at Portugal, it may not see a significant market in terms of total audience, but it is capable of welcoming talent, promoting content well and offering a positive experience to everyone present. These relationships with brands, industry and the public are the portrait we have left over the last ten years.
MHD: And in 10 years, where do you hope CCPT will be?
PRC: Where we will be in ten years is much more difficult to predict than imagining in 2014 what 2024 would be like. These ten years have taught us that it is absolutely impossible to predict what the industry will be like in the future. Cinema has already had some deaths announced, streaming has taken over television and no one risks predicting what the world of video games will be like. From an event point of view, our job is to diversify and reach more audiences, being able to anticipate trends and adapt to challenges.
We have no doubt that Comic Con Portugal will be very different from what it is today, because it will have to be, we are open to all possibilities and opportunities. However, at present, there is still a lot of public who recognize the Comic Con Portugal brand, but are not aware of our event and everything we offer. We want to take Pop Culture across the country.
Will you be present at the event? For you, which was the best edition?
Tags: Comic Con Portugal returns Porto CEO Paulo Rocha Cardoso tells
--
