Anime Central

Anime Central (ACen) is the largest anime, manga and Japanese popular culture convention in Chicago and the Midwest. Held in Rosemont, Illinois (less than 30 minutes from downtown Chicago), ACen brings fans together with guests from the Japanese and US anime and manga industries, plus gaming, cinema, and Asian culture personalities.

Next edition

• Dates: May 14-16, 2027 (day-level; no session hours published on the homepage)
• Venue: Donald E. Stephens Convention Center & Hyatt Regency O'Hare, Rosemont, IL 60018
• Attendance mode: in-person (offline)
• Frequency: annual

What to expect

The event includes a large exhibit/retailer hall, one of the country's largest Artist Alleys, a free-to-play gaming hall (tournaments, arcade, PC and console), concerts, dances, educational panels and workshops, premiere screenings, autograph sessions, 24-hour video rooms, tabletop gaming, and more. The site cites 36,000+ unique attendees.

Registration

Attendees purchase a MAPS (Midwest Animation Promotion Society) membership for weekend or single-day access. Membership is required for all ages. Pre-registration and pricing tiers are listed on the official registration page: https://www.acen.org/registration/

Sources

• Official homepage (dates, venue, description): https://www.acen.org/
• Guest requests page (confirms May 14-16, 2027): https://www.acen.org/guest-requests/
• Registration: https://www.acen.org/registration/
• Hotels: https://www.acen.org/hotels/

CMS title "Anime Central - Homepage" and prior year-long date span (2026-05-05 to 2027-05-16) were replaced with the official next future edition only. May 2026 is past as of 2026-09-30; listing uses 2027.