Malta Comic Con, the yearly event that attracts hundreds of people – from gaming to cosplay enthusiasts – has grown by a third.

Malta Comic Con weekend, now a staple in the local activity calendar, has increased in popularity to the extent that it has had to move to the Mediterranean Conference Centre.

John Peel in his Death Trooper costume.

One of the organisers, Fabio Agius told Times of Malta that the number of visitors was predicted to surpass the 2,000 mark.

He noted that the event was diversifying and attracting people of all ages, as evidenced by the large number of visitors who turned up with their families, including their parents.

The convention, which now also attracts a good number of people from abroad, was started by a group of five friends nine years ago.

Known as Wicked Comics, the group organises the two-day event to celebrate comic books, films, TV series, tabletop games, video games, cosplaying and virtually anything that is related to the comic culture. Debuting and established writers and artists – both local and international – also set up stalls with their work and engage in live sketching.

Professional creators from England, Ireland, Scotland, Italy, France, Germany, Spain, and the USA also chat with their fans and sign their books.

The returning guests this year included actress Marama Corlett, who was born and raised in Malta, and whose first role was in The Devil’s Double. She went on to perform, among others, in the West End production of The Children’s Hour and the television drama Sinbad.

Currently, Corlett is playing the lead role Aki on SyFy's grind-house series Blood Drive.

William Simpson

Noting that there was a substantial talent pool in Malta, she expressed hope that there would be more Maltese ambassadors within the entertainment industry in the coming years.

Another guest, William Simpson, whose career began in comic-strip art, returned with samples of his work and entertained visitors with his live sketching.

Simpson has worked on a range of character icons including Aliens, Batman, Hellblazer and Transformers. He recently developed his work within the film industry through storyboards and conceptual art for Game of Thrones for HBO and the Tom Hanks-produced City of Ember, among others.

The video above was shot by Andrew Mallia (Kyren Vanagan) and Katya Azzopardi, students from the Department of Digital Arts, Faculty of Media and Knowledge Sciences.

Marama Corlett