Nerd-vana

Take note, Sac geeks: Sacramento’s anime and Japanese-pop-culture fans will converge downtown this weekend for SacAnime. The three-day event happens at the Sacramento Convention Center and the Sheraton Grand Sacramento Hotel, with art exhibits, vendors, swap meets, celebrity guests, live music, dancing, and card- and video-game tournaments. It’s basically nerd-vana.

A definite highlight of SacAnime is the abundance and diversity of costumed performers and attendees. There will be a Japanese fashion show (featuring popular dress styles such as aristocrat, gyaru and visual kei), a costume contest (featuring popular anime cosplay characters), and Cafe Hoshi, a place where performers dressed as maids and butlers take orders for snacks and entertain customers. Attendees are also generally encouraged to dress up as their favorite comic-book or anime character.

The event also hosts a dozen or so guests, including voice actors (Kevin Conroy from Batman: The Animated Series; Toshio Furukawa from Dragon Ball Z; and Maile Flanagan from Naruto and The Office), musicians (Raj Ramayya and the Japanese band Kazha), a fashion designer (Cyril Lumboy) and an artist (Tsuyoshi Nonaka). To top it all off, there will be plenty of live music and dancing opportunities, including concerts, karaoke and dance lessons throughout the weekend; a formal dance called the Starlight Ball on Saturday night; and electronic deejay dancing on Friday and Saturday nights.

SacAnime, January 4-6. Friday only: $20; Saturday only: $30; Sunday only: $15; all weekend: $40. Sacramento Convention Center, 1400 J Street; and Sheraton Grand Sacramento Hotel, 1230 J Street; www.sacconventions.com.