ALT Our next guest needs absolutely no introduction. Prepare to welcome Jez Roth! Jez Roth has represented the United States at the IOEA Otaku Expo in Japan as a Cosplay Guest, and also helped choose the Canadian World Cosplay Summit representative for 2016. He believes that the world of costuming is an endlessly fascinating pursuit-from armor to gowns, giant puppetry to monsters. He shares unique events that educate and involve the community (such as Lip Sync For Your Cosplay and PROJECT: Cosplay!) and has restructured and organized cosplay events for conventions in his goal to make the competition scene more streamlined. His artistic journey came full circle in 2015 when he was hired as an Artistic Consultant for the One Piece: Gold film, working with Toei Animation to give their film a fully realized Las Vegas feel. In 2018 he was hired by Right Stuf Anime to create the Official Brand Costumes for animes Aria, Dirty Pair, and Emma.
ALT It didn't take long to branch into other cosplays as the hobby took the front seat of his creative interests. Pivoting to Gohan from DBZ, to other superheroes like Superman and Spider-Man, he finally found his favorite crowd in anime. DanDaDan's Okarun was next, then quickly found himself a true home in JoJo's Bizarre Adventure thanks to his now waifu, kira_x_cosplay . You'll almost always find them paired in any numerous JoJo's ensembles (or superheroes!), but they went so far as to get married in cosplay! Through face paints to props and cosplay engineering, most importantly the cosplay community and meetups (and friends along the way) continue to be the bass drum of the hobby for him. This is where it's all worth the effort and time. Therefore, it's no surprise he's absolutely stoked to be included in our guests for Arise Con's debut year! A debut is a perfect time for... debuts.. So stay tuned. Muda Muda Muda! Photographers: Star Platinum - Karos_pics Joseph Joestar - @sdmstudios
ALT Lock in your weekend plans, because Amai Devil is officially heading to Arise Con! Amai Devil is a Las Vegas local maid café entertainment group dedicated to bringing fun, laughter, and a touch of devilish mischief to anime conventions and cosplay events. Our maids create interactive experiences through performances, games, and just enough mischief to keep every visit entertaining. Whether we’re serving smiles, performing on stage, or welcoming guests into our world, our goal is to create memories you’ll treasure long after the event ends. After all, every devil has a sweet side, and we hope every guest leaves with a smile, a laugh, and maybe just a little temptation to visit us again.
ALT Another talented guest has entered the grid. Arise Con, get ready to meet Miss Relena! Miss Relena is an unrepentant sewing machine serial killer. After earning bachelor's degrees in both Theatre Arts and History, she went on to specialize in recreating clothing of all kinds - from historic paintings of England's Tudor and Regency eras to anime/manga – including Trinity Blood, Alice in the Country of Hearts, A Bride's Story, and many more. She loves to use classic construction techniques, like hand embroidery and cartridge pleating, while exploring what new materials and technologies have to offer. In total, Miss Relena has made over 350 costumes for stage, TV, cosplay, and competition. She has sewn professionally for several regional theater companies, including the Tony Award winning season of the Utah Shakespeare Festival. She has judged Masquerades all over the United States, some of her favorites being Anime Expo, Katsucon, Animazement, and LvlUp Expo. She has won Master Level
ALT Meet Draxx The Druid , competitive cosplayer, panelist, and award-winning skit goblin. For more than 10 years, she’s been bringing craftsmanship, creativity, and high-energy performances to conventions across the country. From intricate costume builds to interactive panels and stage performances, Draxx believes the best part of cosplay isn’t just wearing the costume it’s creating unforgettable experiences. Whether she’s competing, teaching, or cheering on first-time cosplayers, her mission is to make conventions feel welcoming, inspiring, and ridiculously fun. Because at the end of the day, cosplay is about celebrating the fandoms we love and the community that brings them to life.
ALT Please welcome Ziggy Cosplay as our next guest at Arise Con! Ziggy is a Las Vegas-based cosplayer who has been crafting costumes for over 10 years, with a passion for taking on ambitious builds and bringing complex characters to life from scratch. Never one to shy away from a challenge, Ziggy loves finding creative, budget-friendly ways to tackle intricate costumes without sacrificing detail. While the crafting process is her favorite part of the hobby, nothing beats meeting fellow fans at conventions and sharing excitement for the characters and fandoms that inspire her. She enjoys talking about anything and everything cosplay and also nerding out about anime and video games, so chat her up if you have the chance! Photo Credits: Picture 1: @blizzardterrak Pictures 2 & 3: @allisonthephotographer Picture 4: Unknown - Tag them in the comments if you know who took it!
ALT His animation credits include Akaza in Demon Slayer: Mugen Train, Mahito in Jujutsu Kaisen, Zoicite and Motoki in the Viz Media dub of Sailor Moon, Waver Velvet in Fate/Zero and Lord El Melloi II’s Case Files, Amuro Ray in Gundam: The Origin, Okami in Aggretsuko, Takumu Mayuzumi in Accel World, Ja'far in Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic and Magi: Adventure of Sinbad, Keisuke Baji in Tokyo Revengers, Tatara Totsuka in K, and Blue in Pokémon Origins. Video game credits include Felix in Fire Emblem: Three Houses, Dust in Dust: An Elysian Tail, Kibo and Hifumi Yamada in the Danganronpa series, Clover Cookie in Cookie Run: Kingdom, Elliot Craig in Trails of Cold Steel, Hojo in Monster Hunter: Rise, Aries in Fallout 76, Amador Jack in Deathloop, Spartan Voiceprint 2SAW in Halo Infinite & additional voices Spider Man: Miles Morales & more. You can find out more about Lucien and his work by visiting his web-site at luciendodge.com
ALT If you love voice acting, you are going to love AVAG! Tales of their legendary voice acting events have been gossiped among aspiring voice actors and whispered in recording booths throughout the country. From their highly acclaimed voice acting competitions, to their unforgettable workshops and interactive events, the Arizona Voice Acting Guild (AVAG for short) strives to make the magic of voice acting accessible to anyone and everyone with a dream of someday standing behind the condenser mic. AVAG is comprised of the quirkiest, silliest, and unquestionably overly-energetic professionals and aspiring voice actors from multiple chapters in Phoenix, Tucson and Las Vegas. AVAG and their free events want to inspire YOU to test your acting chops in our mobile studio. For information on the events and competition they will be running at Arise Con please visit our website!
ALT Midnight Pursona is an award-winning competitive cosplayer, well known for her comedy skits and musical parodies! Though shes won many competitions, her main focus is to make people smile or get a fun reaction from the crowd. She’s a self taught sewist learning new skills as she experiments with makeup, materials, and fabrics. As a Black, Plus-Size, Disabled, & Queer cosplayer, Midnight is always advocating strongly for diversity and representation in nerdy spaces. She believes everyone should enjoy cosplay and celebrate who they are, no matter how they look or identify as. She’s always willing to be a Cos-Auntie if you’re ever looking for someone who you can show cosplay to or ask for advice!
ALT Erica Mendez is a Chicago-native now living in Los Angeles and working in the field of voice-over. She has played many fan-favorite characters, including: Retsuko in Aggretsuko, Ryuko in KILL la KILL, Gon in Hunter x Hunter, Aladdin in Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic, Yuuki in Sword Art Online II, Sailor Uranus in the Viz Media dub of Sailor Moon, Megumin in Konosuba, Emma in The Promised Neverland, Akko in Little Witch Academia, Diane in Seven Deadly Sins, Nico in Love Live!, Mash in Fate/Grand Order, Raphtalia in The Rising of the Shield Hero, Bernadetta in Fire Emblem Three Houses and Kamisato Ayaka in Genshin Impact. You can also hear her in video games such as Final Fantasy XIV:Dawntrail, Final Fantasy VII Remake, Legends of Runeterra, Octopath Traveler II, Scarlet Nexus, 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim, The Fire Emblem series, Triangle Strategy, New Pokémon Snap, Ys IX, Tales of Berseria, The Danganronpa franchise, Code Vein & more! keep up with Erica by following her on Twitter tsunderica
ALT Help us greet Ugami Cosplay! Ugami is a cosplayer and crafter specializing in prop building and 3D modeling. Combining a background in engineering and game design with a passion for creativity, she is known for building detailed cosplays and props that have earned multiple competition awards, including Best in Show. Beyond cosplay, Ugami works as a professional actor and model, bringing the same dedication, adaptability, and attention to detail to every project. Whether on camera, behind a microphone, or in the workshop, she is driven by a love for entertainment, craftsmanship, and inspiring others to explore their own creativity.
