The Calgary Comic & Entertainment Expo was born in 2006 after carefully evaluating the potential of a show dedicated to not only comics, but to the cross-media attention that exists in the entertainment industry. As has been the result, our expo has become the single largest event of its kind across all of Western Canada. We feature all elements of pop culture including sci-fi, fantasy, anime, gaming, animation, and the horror genres.

The Attendance:

In our very first year, over 3,000 individual people attended what became a beyond-our-expectations hit! Our second year more than doubled for an attendance of 6,500+! Year 3 experienced another jump, and we had 8,000+ that came out. 2009 was our most successful year, as we broke the 5 digit mark with over 10,000 people coming out over the weekend.

The Location:

The Calgary Expo has always been hosted on the Stampede Grounds, in the heart of the city of Calgary. Everyone in Calgary knows where the Stampede is, with easy accessibility to everyone. In our first year, the event was held at the Big Four Building, with over 32,000 sq. ft. of exhibit space. We expanded in our second year and moved over to the Round Up Centre's 50,000 sq. ft. Hall D. In 2008 we also added the 12,000 sq. ft. Palomino rooms for programming. For our 2010 event, we're planning on adding an extra hall (the newly constructed Hall E), which will give us over 112,000 sq. ft. of space!

Yearly Growth

In 2006 and 2007, our shows were restricted to one-day events as we continued to grow and as we needed to gauge the growth potential. In 2008 we went up to a 2-day event, and we haven't looked back. With a larger cast of guests, more events than ever before, and a vision for a much larger attendance record, this was a decision we just couldn't pass up!

We've had a very positive increase in attendance, guests, exhibitors, and volunteers every year. We are trying our best to build the a great experience for everyone involved, and we're striving to continue with that trend.

For any event to be successful, you need to be constantly growing and improving. Each year we've added 1 major element to our event, and our 2010 will feature the horror genre AND the extra exhibit hall.

Our Wonderful Guests

Our inaugural year saw Peter “Chewbacca” Mayhew as our marquis guest of honor, with a slew of creators from the worlds of film, television, animation, anime, comics, and gaming.

For 2007, we broadened our scope and had media guests such as Robert “The Doctor” Picardo from Star Trek Voyager, Star Wars' own Ray “Darth Maul” Park, Disney's Mulan Director Tony Bancroft, Firely's Morena Baccarin & Christina Hendricks, The Incredible Hulk's Lou Ferrigno, Batman Animated's Paul Dini & Bruce Timm, Gail Simone, Humberto Ramos, Eric Powell, and many more new and returning guests.

Our 2008 lineup featured Battlestar Galactica's Tricia Helfer, Smallville's Michael Rosenbaum, Star Trek's George Takei, Hercules' Kevin Sorbo, Star Wars' Daniel Logan, Sponge Bob's Carolyn Lawrence, voice actors Vic Mignogna & Travis Willingham, creators Mark Waid, Marko Djurdjevic, Stepjan Sejic, Darick Robertson, Jo Chen, Greg Rucka, Ethan Van Sciver, and David Petersen just to name a few!

In 2009, we had a powerhouse lineup with Battlestar Galactica's Admiral Adama aka Edward James Olmos, Kandyse McClure, Lord of the Rings' Sean Astin, Firefly's Jewel Staite, Harry Potter's Matthew Lewis, Heroes' James Kyson Lee, voice actors Brad Swaile, Yuri Lowenthal, Halo's Master Chief Steve Downes, creators Sergio Aragones, Ruben Procopio, Frank Cho, Darwyn Cooke, Mike Allred, Bryan Lee O'Malley, Ron Marz, Mike Choi, Dave Johnson, Joe Jusko, Mark Brooks, Yanick Paquette...and the list goes on.

Our plans for 2010 will be revealed soon...

What We Offer

For the Fans: They get to meet the creators & celebrities behind their favorite pop culture heroes.

For Artists & Writers: They have an outlet to showcase their work and meet the fanbase they've established (and hopefully grow it too!)

For Exhibitors & Vendors: They have direct access to their target market.

For Volunteers & Organizers: We have the opportunity to create a unique experience for everyone involved, and be part of a growing community!