The Middle East has had an annual comic convention in Dubai since 2012, but now Saudi Arabia is getting in on the action. As documented by CNN, Saudi Arabia launched its first pop culture convention this past weekend.
The event, which took place February 16 through 18 in the city of Jeddah, was organised by local company Time Entertainment and sponsored by the Saudi government in an attempt to bring more entertainment opportunities into the Kingdom, where public cinemas and theaters remain illegal.
Despite being a country where strict gender segregation is imposed in most public spaces, comics fans mixed freely at the event’s main venue, although there were separate gendered entrances and a female-only tent for women who wanted to shed their traditional abayas and show off their cosplay skills.
Link: Saudi Arabia Launches Its First Comic Con, Allows Public Gender Mixing
The event, which took place February 16 through 18 in the city of Jeddah, was organised by local company Time Entertainment and sponsored by the Saudi government in an attempt to bring more entertainment opportunities into the Kingdom, where public cinemas and theaters remain illegal.
Despite being a country where strict gender segregation is imposed in most public spaces, comics fans mixed freely at the event’s main venue, although there were separate gendered entrances and a female-only tent for women who wanted to shed their traditional abayas and show off their cosplay skills.
Link: Saudi Arabia Launches Its First Comic Con, Allows Public Gender Mixing
