Oz Comic-Con’s Xmas Edition is gearing up to be a holiday spectacular, featuring a lineup of guests from film and television, alongside festive cornerstones such as Christmas-themed cosplay meet-ups & competitions, an Elf on the Shelf Scavenger Hunt and an extensive pop-culture marketplace for finding unique, last-minute holiday gifts.

Taking place on December 7th and 8th at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre (MCEC), the Oz Comic-Con Xmas Edition rounds out a huge year of conventions, offering pop-culture fans and the cosplay community one last hurrah before the year comes to a close.

Starting off the Xmas guest lineup is Tara Sands! Tara has played over 50 characters in the original 8 seasons of Pokémon (including Bulbasaur, Oddish, Richie, Jasmine, Sammy Oak, Mudkip). Tara has also voiced Momo in Jujutsu Kaisen, Kaya in One Piece and Kari in Digimon amongst hundreds of roles!

Joining Tara and ready to conjure some chaos and charm is Matt Ryan. Best known for his role as John Constantine in the Arrowverse, Ryan is also an esteemed voice actor, lending his voice to the character of Edward Kenway in Assassin’s Creed: Black Flag and Constantine in a number of animated DC projects.

Other content beats to get everyone into the Xmas spirit include:

• Cosplay Photos with Santa;
• Competitions for Christmas Cosplay;
• Elf on the Shelf Photo Scavenger Hunt;
• Xmas Cosplay Bingo;
• Make Your Own Xmas Decoration Stations;
• So Yule Think You Can Just Dance Competition;
• Music & Entertainment Stage for Live Performances;
• Lip Sync Battles & Just Dance Freeplay;
• Christmas / Yuletide-themed TTRPG sessions and a Tabletop Gaming Library;
• Console & PC Freeplay Gaming & Tournaments;
• Christmas themed Cosplay & CommUnity Space Meetups;
• Free Cosplay Photographers;
• The Great Ultimate Christmas Movie debate;
• 3 Stages packed with Q&A sessions, interactive activities, performances and parades;

With plenty more announcements slated for the coming weeks, attendees can expect a show floor and schedule packed full of excitement including mind-blowing activations, industry talks and panels, appearances from guests across a range of franchises, and retail opportunities that will help bolster your gift-giving needs.

For more information, announcements and to buy tickets, please visit: https://ozcomiccon.com/melbourne-xmas-edition/

Oz Comic-Con Xmas Edition Features:

As you weave your way through the show floor of Oz Comic-Con, keep your eyes peeled for activations from film and television, exclusive merchandise, and interactive opportunities that are only possible in a convention setting.

Below are a few highlights, or a bucket list if you wish, for Oz Comic-Con.

Stages:

• Main Stage
  The Main Stage is where you go to catch the Q&A panels with our Film & Television guests and to catch the Cozplay Competition and Cosplay Parades! 

• Workshop Theatre

You’ll be hard-pressed to find a more passionate, engaged and thoughtful group than the fans that converge on Oz Comic-Con for each event. The community showcase is hosted at the Community & Workshop Stage. These Panels are a great way to tell or teach like-minded people about a topic you

are passionate about. Panels can be Q&A style, a moderated affair, interactive or a story journey. Within this space, we can cater to many different topics including cosplay, drawing, crafts, photography, editing and more.

• Music & Entertainment Stage

Look no further than the Music and Entertainment Stage, the perfect venue for live pop culture performances featuring dancing, singing, and maybe even a lip sync competition (or two)!

• Lip Sync Battles
  It’s time to LIP SYNC FOR YOUR….eternal bragging rights!
  Can’t sing but can absolutely nail the silent solo? Watched every season of Ru Paul and want to live out your lip-syncing fantasies live on stage? Do you miss Dubsmash? Then this is the competition for you!

Oz Comic-Con Xmas Edition will be running Lip Sync Battles Saturday and Sunday. Limited registration spots are available, so be sure to register asap! You can enter as an individual or as a group! Register or read more here: https://ozcomiccon.com/occ-music-entertainment-stage/

Comics:

• Artist Alley

A space to celebrate art in pop culture, Artist Alley is a colourful, creative district filled with original and fan art. Take the opportunity to interact with the creative geniuses behind your favourite comic books, graphic novels, literature, and artistic projects – a truly unique and authentic way to get to know local talent as they make waves in the global scene.

It’s in Artist Alley that you can purchase a unique commission, designed and drawn just for you or shop for prints and artistic creations such as novels, jewellery, clothing, and homewares. No matter what you like, you’ll find a creator suited to your interests, whether it be superheroes, manga, sci-fi, fantasy, horror or indie.

• Comics Lounge
  The Oz Comic-Con Comics Lounge supported by Kings Comics is a great spot to take a break from the busy show floor, pull up a beanbag and have a read through of some of our extensive comics and manga library. Pick out something new to try, flick through an old favourite, discuss your favourite titles with other fans in the space.

Cosplay

• Cosplay Central
  Cosplay Central is the meeting place and undeniably the unmissable destination for all cosplayers and cosplay fans at Oz Comic-Con. Meet local cosplay talent for tips and tricks, grab your mates for the perfect photo op in front of cosplay sets and get your photo snapped by local cosplay photographers. https://ozcomiccon.com/occ-cosplay-central/
• Cosplay Parades
  Oz Comic-Con hosts a variety of Cosplay offerings at the event for different skill levels.The Cosplay Parade is a great event showcasing the talent of cosplayers at Oz Comic-Con! It gives everyone the chance to get up on stage and strut their stuff without the stress of competing. Taking place both Saturday and Sunday.

• Christmas Cosplay Competition
  The Cosplay Competition is the competition for mainstream competitors. This event is perfect for you to showcase your crafting, needlework or armour build talents. Entry into the Cozplay Competition is by application ahead of the show, so if this is something you’re interested in being sure to check out the applications here: https://ozcomiccon.com/occ-cosplay-competitions-parades/ 

• Kids Cosplay Parade
  The kid’s cosplay parade is a great way for our littlest cosplayers to get into the cosplay spirit! Kids can go on stage either on their own, in a group, or, for those who are either too little or too shy, with a guardian.
• Cosplay Photographers
  Coming to Oz Comic-Con in cosplay? Local cosplay photographers will be present, ready to take your photo in Cosplay Central. The best part? All photo sessions are complimentary!
• Cosplay Sing-Alongs

If you live for musicals, or you just can’t watch a Disney film without singing along, then this is the room for you! Join us for a full schedule of musical goodness, ready for you to sing along to your heart’s content! In or out of cosplay, the choice is yours!

The District

 Cosplay Meetups

• Whether you’ve gone all out or you’re just in casual cosplay, be sure to swing by our Cosplay Meetups for some serious fun with fellow fans! Don’t miss out on the chance to snap some epic group pics at our photo wall and create memories that’ll last a lifetime. Let’s get ready for a weekend of awesome shenanigans! https://ozcomiccon.com/occ-the-district/
• Oz Comic-Con Drawing Competition
  If you fancy yourself an up-and-coming artist, head over to The District to take part in our official Oz Comic-Con Drawing Competition. There are awesome prizes to be won. Entries are open all weekend until 3 pm Sunday. You can draw in any medium you like, pencil, markers etc. As long as it’s drawn on an official competition entry sheet at the show you can enter! You are welcome to bring your own drawing supplies with you to the show, but we will have drawing supplies available to use.

There are several prizes to be won. There’s even a kids category for our littlest artists!

• Scribble Wall

Our epic scribble wall returns to The District for 2024. For all you colouring addicts out there, it’s time for you to scratch that itch to leave your mark!

• CommUnity Space
  Welcome to the Oz Comic-Con CommUnity Space. A safe and inclusive haven for members and allies of the LGBTQIA+ community at the show.

The CommUnity Space is designed to be a place where attendees can come together to socialize and celebrate their love for all things queer pop culture. We provide a welcoming atmosphere where you can engage in activities, discussions and meetups that centre around queer representation and diversity in pop culture. Read more about the space and what’s on here: https://ozcomiccon.com/comm-unity-space/

Gaming

• Gaming Zone and Esports Tournaments

Australian Esports League (AEL) joins forces with Oz Comic-Con bringing their free play gaming zone and esports tournaments to each show. AEL recognises the importance of building ‘grassroots’ esports, delivering a gaming experience like no other to the broader gaming community.

The gaming zone will showcase the latest games and products, with an opportunity for attendees to battle it out against their mates and other attendees.  https://ozcomiccon.com/occ-console-gaming/

• Tabletop Gaming Library
  Not one for console games? No problem! We got you covered with a library of tabletop games to satisfy your needs. Ticket to Ride, Pandemic, Catan. Heard of those? Maybe you like Zombie Dice, Small World, or Red Dragon Inn? Well, this year Oz Comic-Con is giving you access to all of these games, and more! We’ll be using our tabletop resources to bring you a two-day gaming extravaganza.

Get along to the Tabletop Gaming Zone featuring a library of over 40 different games you can play. https://ozcomiccon.com/oz-comic-con-tabletop-gaming/

• Magic: The Gathering – Learn to Play

We’ll have a dedicated zone for all attendees to try their hand at a game. Available for new and veteran players alike! Join the team from AEL at Oz Comic-Con Xmas Edition for an exciting opportunity to dive into the world of Magic: The Gathering! Whether you’re a seasoned player or brand new to the game, our “Learn to Play” zone is perfect for everyone.

 Local TTRPG Groups – Learn to Play

• From Pathfinder to D&D, if you’re looking to play some TTRPG’s at Oz Comic-Con, we have you covered! Local groups will be on hand to guide you through one shot campaigns across the weekend. Whether you are a seasoned player, or this is your first time, you are welcome to participate. Characters will be generated by DMs so players are all on the same level (1 to 5).

  Campaigns will be taking place during Oz Comic-Con each day! https://ozcomiccon.com/oz-comic-con-tabletop-gaming/

• Just Dance Stage

So you think you can Just Dance? Well, you’ll be able to show everyone your moves at the Just Dance stage. Open for free play all weekend. Play as a group, or individually, the party at Oz Comic-Con starts here. https://ozcomiccon.com/occ-console-gaming/

Dr Pickles Tattoo Alley 

• Feeling Brave? Would you trust a stranger to pick your next tattoo?

Would you put your arm into a mystery hole, where the end result is a tattoo?

Dr Pickles is now inviting Oz Comic-Con Patrons to try their unique Tattoo Mystery Hole experience! https://ozcomiccon.com/dr-pickles-tattoo/