Beyond Epic: 10 Years of AnimeKon

Beyond Epic: 10 Years of AnimeKon is a celebration of the first ten years of Barbados’ first pop-culture convention, AnimeKon Expo. A look back at the convention's first decade, Beyond Epic pays tribute to the convention that gave Barbadian geeks, nerds and pop-culture enthusiasts a place to call their own.

  • K.F. Cumberbatch
    Director
    Cosplay Pride & Industry, ZEITGEIST!
  • K.F. Cumberbatch
    Writer
    Cosplay Pride & Industry, ZEITGEIST!
  • K.F. Cumberbatch
    Producer
    ZEITGEIST!
  • Morgan Forde
    Key Cast
    "Self"
  • Omar Kennedy
    Key Cast
    "Self"
    Cosplay Pride & Industry
  • Project Type:
    Documentary, Short, Television
  • Runtime:
    23 minutes 46 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    August 4, 2022
  • Production Budget:
    0 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    Barbados
  • Country of Filming:
    Barbados
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • AnimeKon 2022: The Return of the Kon
    Bridgetown
    Barbados
    August 27, 2022
    Barbados Premiere
Director Biography - K.F. Cumberbatch

With a mother in broadcasting and media, K.F. Cumberbatch often spent her days during her pre-teen and early teen years, watching her mother – journalist and media consultant Dale Forde – read the CBC Evening News, producing programming for television and sometimes, along with her twin sister, being the test audience for her mother’s latest project. It is no wonder then that Cumberbatch eventually found herself on a similar path.

Cumberbatch discovered her love for writing at the age of twelve. Her dream has always been to become a novelist, which led her to study English Literature at the Barbados Community College, graduating with a distinction in 2011.

She considered writing for film for many years, but it was not until she enrolled in the Bachelor of Fine Arts programme at the Errol Barrow Centre for Creative Imagination (EBCCI) at the University of the West Indies Cave Hill in 2012, pursuing a degree in Film, that she wrote her first script. There, she was able to harness her creativity and hone her skills as a writer and gain a deeper knowledge and appreciation for the art of film-making.

Her first film was her 2016 thesis project, Cosplay Pride & Industry. It was screened during the 2016 Barbados Visual Media Festival and at the inaugural Barbados Independent Film Festival in 2017. That same year, it was nominated for five awards at the Barbados Visual Media Awards.

Her next project was the television series ZEITGEIST!, for which is the creator, producer, writer, director, and editor. It was nominated for Series of the Year at the 2022 Gine On?! People's Choice Awards.

Cumberbatch's latest project is Beyond Epic: Ten Years of AnimeKon. It premiered at the AnimeKon in 2022.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

I came of age in Barbados at a time when being a geek made you weird; a freak. When I first heard of AnimeKon, I was excited that there was finally an event that catered to my interests because none such had yet existed.

As a fan who has been going to AnimeKon since its first edition and who looks forward to it every year, I just had to do something to mark it reaching its tenth year and show the co-founders my appreciation for what they had made.

I wanted to create something that wasn’t just what I wanted to see, but something that I knew other fans would love and appreciate. While going through AnimeKon’s archival footage and editing Beyond Epic, there were several moments in which I couldn’t help but reminisce about my experiences at the convention. I even saw myself a few times!

It was an overall nostalgic experience that left me feeling sentimental and that was exactly the emotional response I wanted to elicit in other fans.