Word was, anime fans kept having to travel out of town to meet up with other fans and nerd out over one of their favorite forms of entertainment. Dennis-Michael Broussard and his team didn’t see why San Diego couldn’t put one together, so they did.

“We kept hearing that people had to go to Anaheim, Los Angeles, Long Beach, or wherever just to go to an anime convention,” he said. “We thought that if there is going to be one in San Diego for San Diegans, we’re just going to have to create it ourselves!”

San Diego Anime Con is a pop culture convention centered on anime and cosplay. It started in 2023 and has since expanded to three days (Nov. 15 to 17 at the Legacy Resort Hotel & Spa in Mission Valley), allowing more time for panel discussions, performances, cosplay, entertainment, games, and workshops.

Broussard, who lives in La Jolla and grew up in New Orleans, is the founder and producer of the convention, and also founded Silk Road Productions, an event production company that has organized multiple cultural and entertainment events in Southern California. He took some time to talk about his upcoming anime convention, his volunteer work, and surrounding himself with people who match his self-described “crazy.”

Q: What is your own personal connection to anime?

A: Admittedly, while I like and appreciate anime, I’m not really an avid consumer of modern titles and properties. I’ve seen most of the (Hayao) Miyazaki films. As a kid, I was really into the “Vampire Hunter D” series and some of the “Project A-ko” movies, but haven’t really invested a lot of time into newer stuff. That’s what my team does; they’re all hardcore anime fans and they tell me what the newest trends or the most popular series are. I enjoy creating an event and experience where that community can really come together locally and share their favorites with each other, without having to leave San Diego.

Q: What is it about anime that has held your interest over the years?

A: I do like the artform, animation, storytelling style, themes, and voice talent in anime. Although I am not invested in any current series, sometimes I see various episodes of series and I think I could get into it. I just don’t have time, currently, since I am focused on growing all of our pop culture events. Over the years, though, of seeing anime from the sidelines, I still just appreciate the artform, storytelling, and how overly expressive the Japanese voice actors are.

Q: Do you have favorite anime series that you’re currently watching? Favorite anime creators whose work you never miss? If so, who/what are their names and why are they your favorites?

A: I never miss a Miyazaki film. Some folks don’t consider Studio Ghibli works to be anime, but I’m not that nitpicky about specifics. “Princess Mononoke” and “Spirited Away” are two of my favorite films from Miyazaki.

What I love about La Jolla

I love living in La Jolla, mostly because I love being so close to La Jolla Shores and walking the beach north of the pier. I also like being close to Torrey Pines, as I do that hike about three times a week.

Q: You’re the founder and executive producer of Silk Road Productions, your event production company that produces San Diego Anime Con, along with a host of other events, including the San Diego Ramen Festival, the AMP Music Festival, the Asian and Pacific Islander Festival at the San Diego County Fair, and the Asian Cultural Festival of San Diego. Can you talk about your connection to the Asian community and how this has influenced your work producing cultural events?

A: I created all of those events, but I don’t work on or produce most of them anymore, as I have really taken a turn to producing these pop culture conventions now. But yes, I have had a strong connection to the Asian American community in San Diego, being half Asian myself (my mother is Filipino and is living in the Philippines). I relate to and identify more as Asian American than not, and that connection certainly influenced my early direction in producing events; and indirectly influenced the path I am currently on.

Q: Based on your bio, you don’t play around about your work or your education, earning a bachelor’s degree in marketing, two master’s degrees in business administration and international affairs, and continuing with associate’s degrees in Japanese, French, and anthropology. Where did this passion and commitment to education come from?

A: I’m just a lifelong student, as I love learning. During COVID, I didn’t have much to do in terms of events (because there were none), so I took classes online, which ended up with my earning those associate’s degrees. I’m a huge advocate for education and I seem to collect degrees like they’re Pokemon cards.

Q: You also grew up in New Orleans? How would you describe the impact of your hometown on your work in both entertainment/cultural events and in community service?

A: New Orleans is one of the most unique cities in the country. Growing up there did give me an appreciation for culture and for music, which certainly influenced my approach to how I produce events and which elements I want to include in whatever event. New Orleans always had some kind of festival going on, and I take that “festival” approach into the events we create and produce.

Q: What inspires you, both in creating events and in your volunteer work?

A: I want to say that when it comes to the events I work on, I want them to be memorable experiences for people. I want to create things that I would want to go to and make it fun for people to attend. I want to share cultures and bring people together to celebrate both differences and similarities.

My volunteer work is divided between the international community in San Diego and the international humanitarian work I do around the world. I love to travel and explore different cultures, so that has largely affected what I do in what little free time I have. In San Diego, I sit on multiple local boards and I’m also the president of the House of France, working on developing a sister city relationship between San Diego and Marseille, France.

My humanitarian work deals mostly with bringing water filters to places around the world without access to clean water. I’ve brought water filters to churches, schools, orphanages, and such in Senegal, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, the Philippines, Guatemala, and I’ve distributed education and school supplies to villages in eastern Nepal.

Q: What has your work taught you about yourself?

A: I’ve learned that I am crazy. No one tempers my crazy ambition because I surround myself with people who are equally crazy, people who want to do the things that I am doing and want to be involved with the things I want to create.

Q: What is the best advice you’ve ever received?

A: Just showing up is half the battle, and taking responsibility for yourself and your actions instead of relishing being a victim, will get you far. Also, don’t take advice from people who haven’t done what you want to do in your life. That, and to floss.

Q: What is one thing people would be surprised to find out about you?

A: I have an unhealthy addiction to horror movies.

Q: Please describe your ideal San Diego weekend.

A: I’d start an ideal San Diego weekend with a sunset on Friday at either Sunset Cliffs or La Jolla Shores, then have Thai or Indian food for dinner, either in Hillcrest or Convoy.

Saturday, I’d start with a hike up Cowles or Torrey Pines, have an acai bowl by the beach, maybe go to the Safari Park and enjoy a red blend while watching rhinos at the watering hole, then grab tacos before catching the San Diego Symphony at the Shell.

Sunday, I’d likely be volunteering at the House of France, then spend the rest of the day hanging out in Balboa Park and catch a jazz performance at Panama 66—after getting the calamari fries at the Prado. I’d never have the time to be able to do all of that, but if I did, that would most definitely be an ideal weekend.