Sanrio runways and character astrology with the Geek Culture Club

Priscilla Pozo and Kaysea Suzana | Assistant Entertainment Directors

Hello Kitty and friends made their appearance at FIU with the Geek Culture Club’s Sanrio Takeover event.

Sanrio, the Japanese entertainment company known for its soft colored characters and marketable plushies as well as merchandise, was the topic of the GCC’s latest presentation on Oct. 13.

Rivaling the influence of Disney, Sanrio is known for its attribution to the “cute” aesthetic movement, making waves globally with popular characters such as Hello Kitty, Kuromi, Keroppi and more.

The event, hosted at the Graham Center’s room 335, featured a pastel-colored decoration along with a table of assorted food. 

Also with a dedicated table was the “Sanrio Guru,” GCC member and alumni Bridgette Bluitt, who would divinate what Sanrio character attendees were like.

Luis Odon, president of the GCC, spoke about the choice to present Sanrio.

“So, Sanrio is mostly because our Art Guild Manager wanted to portray it. Sanrio is a loveable series which for many people is easy to pick up,” Odon said.

Odon mentioned that the event required a great deal of work to bring together.

“We planned this at least two months in advance. We worked hard on getting purchases, setting up the room, getting people within the [organization] to be gurus, etc. A big thing was to get logistical meetings on a weekly basis,” Odon said.

Off-campus guest Layla Ortiz commented on how the event turned out.

“The event has been awesome so far, the people are so nice here. I’m partially familiar with Sanrio, but I have a good friend who rants to me about it. It’s what got me interested in coming here,” Ortiz said.

Ortiz’ brother, Kymani, also talked about his appreciation for the event.

“It’s comfortable. Nice atmosphere, and it’s good to be with people with a similar interest and age,” Kymani said.

GCC members in attendance gave a rundown of the history of Sanrio, its commercial success in Japan and globally, as well as a crash-course on the more popular Sanrio figures and their trivia. 

Following this demonstration, was a Kahoot game in which attendees clashed to get to the top of the rankings in order to get the top three prizes: Sanrio merch.

The event ended with a runway show, in which attendees who cosplayed could sign up to present their outfits and character impressions.

(Check out our coverage of the event below! Pause to cycle through clips.)

“We’re here to generally attract the Sanrio audience– this event was more for its appreciation,” Odon said.