<div><div data-journey-hook="client-content" data-testid="BodyWrapper"><div><p>“The [convention] scene was very restricted, and then it gained a new horizon,â€ attests Perifacon regular <a data-event-click="{&quot;element&quot;:&quot;ExternalLink&quot;,&quot;outgoingURL&quot;:&quot;https://www.instagram.com/leaaojamaicano/&quot;}" data-offer-url="https://www.instagram.com/leaaojamaicano/" href="https://www.instagram.com/leaaojamaicano/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">Eduardo “Duâ€ Marques</a>. Marques, who is Black, is deep into geek culture and hails from the Jardim Robrú neighborhood, east of the city.</p><p>Marques recounts that he was amazed to meet and interact with artists, game developers, and new generations of nerds from his part of the city. He was also thrilled that so many of them are working on ideas while also cosplaying “with many smiles on their faces,â€ he explains. <br></br>“It is beautiful to see a big affirmation space like Perifacon.â€</p><p>The convention is not restricted to gaming and cosplaying, either. Perifacon gives space “to music, visual arts, theater, TV shows, movies, and literature. It opens doors for the whole city to look at and enjoy what we’ve been consuming. Events like this change lives,â€ says Marques.</p><p>Professor <a data-event-click="{&quot;element&quot;:&quot;ExternalLink&quot;,&quot;outgoingURL&quot;:&quot;https://nev.prp.usp.br/equipe/daniela-osvald-ramos/&quot;}" data-offer-url="https://nev.prp.usp.br/equipe/daniela-osvald-ramos/" href="https://nev.prp.usp.br/equipe/daniela-osvald-ramos/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">Daniela Osvald Ramos</a> from the Arts and Communications School at the University of São Paulo (USP) agrees that Perifacon pulls the eyes of the mainstream to underground production, and in the process keeps away from the usual stereotypes of poverty and racism.</p><p>She adds that the name itself acts as vindication for the communities it serves, and the event invites “the central gentrified areas to look to the outskirts and see that everything that happens in downtown and in the white rich uptown also happens there,â€ she says. “The market can see how absent it has been in those areas, and the market doesn’t want to be absent in any territory.â€</p><p>In 2022, <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20230323085046/https:/esportes.yahoo.com/streamer-mariana-ayrez-ve-avanco-no-mercado-gamer-no-brasil-mas-relembra-dois-episodios-de-haters-071734208.html">I interviewed journalist</a> <a data-event-click="{&quot;element&quot;:&quot;ExternalLink&quot;,&quot;outgoingURL&quot;:&quot;https://twitter.com/ayrezmariana&quot;}" data-offer-url="https://twitter.com/ayrezmariana" href="https://twitter.com/ayrezmariana" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">Mariana Ayrez</a>, who opened my eyes to the relevance of Perifacon. She reiterated that “while other events promote pop culture and bring together artists and the public, they have a lot of incentive from private business players. Meanwhile, Perifacon delivers geek culture, love, and fun to all involved independent of their budget. Their main goal is accessibility.â€</p><p>Delgado believes that while Perifacon calls attention to social inequality, it also promotes artists from those marginalized communities and showcases their products to a public that wants them and can’t get them in any other way. Favela influence is everywhere in Brazilian art, culture, and sports.</p><p>“The favela is the powerhouse that people already know. However, brands and enterprises are still after the same profile of people that already have access to everything. We know this because of the lack of support to unfavored areas,â€ Ayrez explains.</p><p>Meanwhile, for the young people growing up in the favelas, the convention is an event to look forward to. “Perifacon is everything that the 12-year-old Eduardo dreamed of being part of, as he grew up being bullied for liking ‘weird’ things,â€ says Marques.</p><p>“My experiences outside the hood with people from other social classes showed me how prejudice operates in a systematic way, he says. “The simple fact that I come from the favela and I like comics fascinated the rich kids. My experiences as a nerd were marked by a series of contradictions, stereotypes, and conflicting images. However, at the same time, it is an honor to be able to affirm myself as a hood nerd even with those setbacks.â€</p></div></div></div>