From Anime to K-pop: Asian Pop Culture Finds a Home in Ecuador

For a weekend in Guayaquil, the characters of Japanese animation seemed to step off the screen and into the Palacio de Cristal. Fans dressed as their favourite heroes, artists displayed their illustrations, and visitors gathered around video games, music and elaborate costumes.

Budokan, held October 17–18, brought together enthusiasts of anime, Korean entertainment and gaming. Among the international guests were South Korean actor Shin Hyun-joon, familiar to Ecuadorian audiences from the television drama Stairway to Heaven, and Japanese singer Maki Ōtsuki, whose songs are associated with One Piece. The convention also hosted Ecuador's national final for the World Cosplay Summit, whose winners will represent the country in Japan in 2027.

The enthusiasm extends well beyond Guayaquil.

In Cuenca, the South Korean Embassy organized a K-pop festival at Teatro Sucre on October 22, with singing and dancing competitions. The embassy offered travel assistance to qualifying participants from other provinces, helping make the event accessible beyond the host city.

Meanwhile, Quito's Plaza Cívica Quitumbe is hosting QAsianFest II from October 23–25. The free festival brings together K-pop dancing, cosplay, Asian food, games and local entrepreneurs selling their creations. It also includes Halloween costume competitions, illustrating how different international pop-culture traditions increasingly overlap.

These gatherings are more than opportunities to meet celebrities or buy collectibles. Cosplay requires costume design, sewing and performance skills. Artists and small businesses find customers, while dancers and musicians have opportunities to perform before an audience.

For young Ecuadorians, the appeal of Japanese and Korean entertainment has become something they can participate in and create themselves. What began with television programmes, comics and online videos now fills theatres, public squares and convention halls.