Anime-con showcases Batangas fan knife, Filipino artists with day jobs

TV Huynh flipping a balisong trainer at Squid Industries’ Crunchyroll booth (ROBIN BARKIN)

SAN JOSE, California — After two years of Covid lockdown, Crunchyroll, the annual 3-day anime/manga convention, came back to the San Jose McEnery Convention Center last August 5 -7, “celebrating diverse voices in the anime community.”

Among the exhibitors at Crunchyroll 2022, the call to diversity was not just a response to polarized politics and racism. The pandemic brought out not only the worst but the best in people. Now people have also begun to diversify in the way they do things.

Balisong slingers at Squid Industries showcased flipping balisong (fan knife) trainers for get-togethers, parties and tournaments.

Gabrielle Argonza, earned a BSN from San Jose State, passed the NCLEX and thought she was happy at a stable job until Covid shut down the world she knew. She found new satisfaction in selling her art prints. At this year’s Crunchyroll, she even got connected to Rosalie Chiang (the voice actress for Leilin Lee in Pixar’s ‘Turning Red”) and the creator of Cartoon Network’s “We Bare Bears.”

Gemma Genoveva has been in operations for a global company for 11 years. She walks the thin line between career and craft but couldn’t do one without the other. After Covid, her bestselling jewelry took on an exquisitely macabre form in floral skeletal hand hairclips.

Flipping balisong as a party ice-breaker

A gang of balisong slingers put on a show at Crunchyroll. They were not juvenile delinquents and they were not Filipino. Squid Industries CEO Lucas Cao has a story to tell about how the balisong figured in his life.

Some people told Cao he resembled Squidward (from “Spongebob Squarepants”) when he walked. “Most people called me by the nickname Squid.” And they “did so out of good natured fun and not mockery. It wasn’t something that I was comfortable with at first, but I got used to it after a while.”

In the summer of 2013, he was gifted a balisong by a close friend. The friend knew Cao was into hobbies that showed off his hand dexterity like spinning a pencil, Rubik’s cube and yoyo tricks.

Cao explained, “Flipping balisongs was difficult and scary at first. But I gained an interest in it and eventually started (gathering like-minded friends) and helping them get into it.” He realized that a balisong hobby was expensive. “So, I decided to create a balisong trainer that is more affordable” and had blunt edge for safety. That’s how his balisong trainer business became Squid Industries.

From middle: Princess Mononoke crystal scenes and assorted jewelry by Gemma Genoveva; “Strolling with Bantay” by Gabrielle Argonza. CONTRIBUTED PHOTOS

The traditional balisong is hand-made, Squid Industries’ is machine-made. Said Cao, “The advantage of machine-made balisong is the significantly improved accuracy, consistency and production capability of the parts.”

Cao said Squiddy is their bestselling balisong trainer. For beginners, he suggests the Mako; for experts, the Krake Raken and Nautilus.

Squid Industries is on-line and does not have a physical retail store. Its customers range from 12 to 28 years old. YouTube’s Swedish personalities Pewdiepie (Felix Arvid Ulf Kjellberg) and Canadian Peter McKinnon bought balisong trainers from Squid Industries.

The Balisong trainer took the lethal balisong out of the dark alleys and made it a trend-setting ice breaker at parties, said Squid Industries’ Thai Vinh (TV) Huynh. They even hold annual balisong flipping contests with valuable prizes at Balicomp by BladeHQ at Blade Show Atlanta and the SMKW Bali Competition by Smoky Mountain Knife Works in Tennessee.

Her art won’t be denied

Gabrielle Argonza is a first gen born in Bauang, La Union. She was a year old when she joined Mom and Dad in San Jose, California. She won certificates and money prizes in school art contests. She continued to draw in between studies in nursing school.

Before Covid, she worked as a school nurse for grade school children but always dreamed of being a children’s book illustrator and a full-time artist.

“When the world shut down in 2020, I began pursuing art, a venture I always wanted to embark on. There are definitely days when I question my decision to leave healthcare. But what keeps me going is the happiness I feel when creating. Being able to draw and connect with strangers with my art profoundly fulfills me in ways that nursing never could.”

“I often doubt my place in the creative space and imposter syndrome definitely pops its ugly head from time to time but my only hope is that by following my truest passion, I am living authentically for myself rather than living up to other people’s expectations.”

Argonza didn’t know if people will buy her art. But she wanted to be an artist even if it would be only in artists alleys. Then she applied to be an exhibitor at Crunchyroll 2017. When she got in, she became a Crunchyroll habitue in 2018 and 2019. She intends to be there again in 2023.

Many of Argonza’s illustrated prints harken back to idyllic provincial life in the Philippines.

“When I do get a Filipino customer, I find an even deeper connection with them. I often get the comment, ‘They look like me!’ And that in itself is such a treasured response. I recognize that representation is so important and it’s humbling to know that my art can garner such a reaction from fellow Filipinos.”

Argonza’s bestsellers are her art prints. She also sells vinyl stickers, bookmarks, buttons and clear acrylic pins. Her angel hamsters Hazel and Maple pins are her muses. She is a participating artist with local Bay Area business SJMade. Through them, Argonza gets an online storefront and pop-up opportunities.

She gets to do art and keep her day job

Gemma Genoveva is a California gal born and raised. Her mom is from Pampanga; her dad, Manila. At first, you wouldn’t see the artist in her – she’s professionally focused on project management, asset management and data analysis.

But even when she was small, she was writing stories and creating make-believe worlds with dolls and teddy bears. When she grew older, she was curating curious and odd treasures. Pretty soon, she began creating jewelry. One day somebody asked if her jewelry was for sale.

Genoveva is one of the few who enjoys the best of both worlds – prized art and niched profession.

“Both my job and art fulfill me equally and for different reasons. I feel I can’t have one without the other. My art recharges me from a long stressful day at work and yet when I’m having creative blocks, my job takes me to a different mindset that allows me to reset and by the time I come back to my art, new ideas flow again.”

This is her first Crunchyroll and already she’s decided she’ll be back in 2023.

Genoveva’s customers find “a little bit of everything” in her art: “whimsical, steampunk, metaphysical and sometimes even a little spooky.”

Many of her pieces are made from scratch. If she creates from sourced materials, she adds her own touch. Because she has a day job, she exhibits and sells her art at conventions and expos. She also does commission work.

She creates hair accessories, necklaces with charms, pendants and gemstones, earrings and scenery domes décor. She works in metal, resin, acrylic and paper embellishments.

Having the best of both worlds, Genoveva said she is both artist and artisan. “I am an artist for my creative imagination and because I create unique items by hand, I also consider myself an artisan.”

Elsewhere at Crunchyroll, unique and unexpected art was seen in exclusive merchandise, music and performances. More than 100 exhibitors and more than 150 artists participated in the weekend-long event. Next generation anime was featured: Mob Psycho 100 III, Chainsaw Man, My Hero Academia. Rock bands Atarashii Gakko, SiM and Burnout Syndromes also performed.