The popularity of Japanese animation shows, which are better known as anime, has been steadily increasing in the Seattle area.

In March, Sakura Con, the largest and most well-attended anime convention in the Pacific Northwest, doubled its yearly attendance. This growth trend has continued since its opening year in 1998 when only about 200 people attended.

The three-day conference put on by the Asia-Northwest Cultural Education Association featured dancing, panels, guest speakers, anime theater rooms and other activities.

In 2007, the conference had more than 10,000 attendees.

Inwa Moon, an employee at Video Hop in the international district, said that Sakura Con explains the growth of the anime video market.

“More and more American people are coming in and renting anime DVDs,” she said.

Sakura Con isn’t the only place where anime fans have been gathering. The University of Washington’s Anime Discovery Project (ADP) began in 1991 and has also grown in its membership.

Junior Jessica Eggerth, the public relations officer of ADP, said that in the past two years, specifically, anime has become more mainstream and the group has expanded on campus.

When the group started in 1991, the only way to obtain anime videos was to get videocassette tapes shipped from Japan. After getting the videos, they added English subtitles. ADP started doing this and began sharing the hard-to-get videos with larger audiences.

Back then, she said, “Anime was really its own subculture — not many people were into it.”

A common misconception at that time was that anime videos were either violent or pornographic, and that isn’t true, she said.

The Internet and a larger market for anime in the United States have changed the once-hidden hobby.

This increased demand, Eggerth said, was influenced by children’s series such as Sailor Moon and Pokémon.

These series opened the door for increased adult shows on U.S. stations and the market for licensed shows to be sold at stores like Best Buy and Frys.

Senior Iche Wang, an ADP member, watches many of his favorite shows online. He no longer watches television because he finds shows boring and unoriginal.

“People have been turning to anime for a change in scene,” he said.

He said he spends most of his time doing anime-related things such as watching anime, drawing amine and listening to anime-related music.

“There hasn’t really been a day where I’m not exposed to anime,” he said.

On Friday nights, the ADP group gathers in Gowen 301 from 5-10 p.m. and watches several different shows throughout the evening.

Eggerth describes it as a really relaxed atmosphere.

“A lot of anime fans feel like they are looked down upon because of their hobby, and this is a place not to feel like that,” she said.

The group’s Web site reports that the number of members in the club varies from 50-80 people, depending on what quarter it is.

Ryan Danner, the customer service manager at Scarecrow Video, has observed the constant popularity of anime for the past 10 years at the store.

The store’s large selection brings anime fans in from all across the greater Seattle area, and the people who rent anime don’t fit into any one demographic.

“It’s all over the board, all ages, no specific race,” he said.