Inspired by photo studios in Japan that are geared toward cosplayers, Anime Expo first introduced the photo sets in 2013. These professionally-built sets represent a broad range of themes and offer a photo taking experience that can only be found at Anime Expo. With so many attendees not only cosplaying at Anime Expo, but also debuting their cosplays at AX, we also wanted to help attendees take great photos of their cosplays while at AX. 

So, who makes the photo sets? 

The ideas for the sets come from the us here at AX (with the help of attendee suggestions, of course!) Then, we work with Hollywood Haunter to bring the ideas to life! We reached out to them to get some input about the photo set creation process; check out their answers below!

How is the process of making AX photo sets different from other projects?

“Getting to build the AX sets is different from our other projects because we get the opportunity to see our sets become live art. While the backdrops remain the same the cosplayers each with their own character and amazing costumes give it new life.”

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Out of all the sets made for AX, which one is Hollywood Haunter’s favorite?

“We love so many aspects from the sets it’s hard to choose. Each one has a design element that was fun to create and bring to life. We loved building the Torii gates. Not only was it fun to research them and their history but designing them to be safe and easy to set up became a fun challenge. We also really enjoyed making the scenery for the post apocalyptic scene that was new this year.”

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Check out the video below for a little behind-the-scenes look on the making of the new post-apocalyptic set from this past year:

About Hollywood Haunter

Hollywood Haunter is a husband and wife team that enjoys creating themed environments. Using their scenic design and fabrication skills, they have worked on several different projects in the film, television, music, and tradeshow industry. They began bringing that creative process to their own neighborhood each year for Halloween by transforming their yard into its own little movie set. They also enjoy sharing their process with the community on YouTube in an educational but entertaining way. In 2014 Hollywood Haunter was a contestant on ABC’s “The Great Halloween Fright Fight” competing for the most extreme yard haunt in America. Hollywood Haunter is looking forward to next year’s Anime Expo and another chance to create new scenery for attendees to enjoy.