Fanime FMV 2011 Survey

[Marin Jei El]

Hi everyone!

The time draws close for us to finalize this years rules. We plan to keep most things the same but are working on some submission options and minor changes, but before we post the finished product we would love to hear what you have to say!

With that being said, I have some basic questions for both editors and audience alike that covers FMV judging, submitting, showing, categories, prizes or anything else that you can think of:

1. What did you like? What worked for you?


2. What did you not like? Is there anything you feel needs to be improved?


3. What would you like to see from the show? Do you like animated shorts/trailers? Any ideas for prizes? What day would be preferred for the show? Stuff like that. Basically ANYTHING that comes to mind about ANYTHING related to FMV.


*Keep in mind that we are aware of certian issues such as the late start that happened at FMV 2010 and have been working with the appropriate contacts to ensure that is not repeated.


Please be as honest as possible, but keep it respectful. The more feedback the better! If you have one sentence or a long response, that's great! The sooner we hear from you, the sooner we can finalize and post this years rules!

I can't wait to hear back from everyone.

[Tsu]

Let me just say, I really appreciate/love the fact that you guys are looking for opinions from the fans. It's a nice touch. I might post multiple times 'cause I can't think of everything all at once, but here goes!

1. What did you like? What worked for you?

Loved it that we were at the big theater again. The year we got moved into a regular room was unavoidable, if I remember right, but was really disappointing. The fact that the editors were greeted and introduced by the coordinator was awesome, really made us feel like the stars of the show. In prior years there were times where you couldn't even get in because the editor seating hadn't been made known to whoever was watching the door, so it was especially cool this year.


2. What did you not like? Is there anything you feel needs to be improved?

Hope this doesn't sound too critical, I just had a lot of thoughts on the subject. I think moving Comedy anywhere but the last category is a mistake.. It's usually what most people wait for, and ends the competition (hopefully) with a big bang of laughter, which is great. One thing I cannot stress enough is audio balance. I know y'all weren't let in until pretty late on this year, but almost every year something is wrong with the audio- too loud, too quiet, the bass is too high, etc. Since we editors usually base our videos around tempo, beats in the music in the lyrics and so forth, the audio being poorly balanced can break a video's watchability altogether. It's really upsetting. Thankfully the overly high bass was corrected, but it did take a while. I think it worked better in prior years when the videos would stop after each category so people could vote with a quick review clip. That way it's not as difficult to remember what you liked; even if the end review had been played, it might've been a bit much to try and remember what you liked the most after the 20+ videos. I know this isn't entirely up to the coordinators of the FMVs and it's possible that it's cheaper for Fanime to do everything one after another, BUT, I think the numbers for people watching the FMVs would be vastly improved if the masquerade/concert (I don't remember which one it was, sorry) hadn't been following immediately afterwards. I'm sure there were plenty of people in line (as the line was already huge by the time the FMVs were starting) that would've happily watched if they could- but didn't want to give up their spot in line.

3. What would you like to see from the show? Do you like animated shorts/trailers? Any ideas for prizes? What day would be preferred for the show? Stuff like that. Basically ANYTHING that comes to mind about ANYTHING related to FMV.

I think, considering what we saw this last year, that the trailer category could definitely make a come-back. A lot of the videos were basically trailers, and there's nothing wrong with that, but if you have a trailer category, it leaves more room in the other categories for generic videos, which is nice. I think the prizes were great this year and were a wonderful addition/thank you to the editors, don't think there's any real change needed there. It also promotes us being able to buy our materials for future videos. I think Saturday is the best day for the show. Friday's OK, but some people can't make it there by Friday afternoon or get caught in check-in/getting their badges/etc. Sunday's OK, I guess, but Saturday just feels right to me, at least. (Having it on Saturday also gives a chance to maybe announce it during the Masquerade, if that's on a Sunday. That was always a nice treat to have at the end of the masquerade, so anyone who missed the FMVs could get another chance to see the winners on the big screens.) I also think the idea of having an FMV editor get together again isn't a bad idea, but it needs more promotion. It was announced so late on the boards and I didn't see much about it in the schedule, either. Maybe an email to all the editors who entered videos after the deadline would be in order, just to let everyone know? After all, those who enter are the most likely to want to show up to it. 

That's it for now, can't think of anything else.  ??? Hope it helps. Thanks for asking!

[Jebus]

yeah, i think saturday or sunday would be best for the awards. which if i remember correctly this year was on monday. then again that might have been an encore. which i had to skip because i was just so tired over the weekend by the time i had gotten everything straight with check out i just wanted to go home. and as for the meetup, im not a morning person even when im not exhausting myself at a convention so the farther past noon you get, the better chance id actually be able to work up the energy to show up. but then everyones got their gatherings and whatnot to work around so maybe thats just me

[The Dude]

@ Jebus and Forester, I cannot speak for jose(AMV Head) But im trying to make sure we have a spot open for his award show on Stage Zero on sunday. I'm sure he has been working tirelessly with the coordinator of the Civic Auditorium to see if he can have time on Saturday.

When it comes to the Audio. I know that jose normalizes the audio. The audio at the civic was an issue with the technician and not the content. I think it took the tech a while to clue into the fact that he was pushing the lows to much and distorting the mids by running the gain to hot.

Recap at the end? Is there a big desire for the recap video at the end of the contest? I think I could petition jose to work on that.

My question. . .

What do think would be easier for people to vote with? A number system or just using the name of the video?

[Tsu]

I think the best way to do it would be the old way- a sheet with the name, song and anime of all the finalist videos and you pick one for each category. It does the best job of reminding what vid they liked, I think. Sometimes I love a vid but don't recognize the anime, just the song, or vice versa... I think the most important part is helping the viewers vote for the video they wanted and not mistaking one for another.

[Jebus]

yeah, id go with both if possible. the more info to vote by, the better. probably easier for the people that dont necessarily watch much anime to pick accurately

[Marin Jei El]

Thanks for all the feedback. I will be posting the finalized rules tomorrow night, so let me know if you have any other comments or ideas specifically for the rules by then.

We're LOVING the feedback about the show in general. Keep it coming!

Sean is correct, we are trying to get the show to go on Saturday in order to have the award ceremony on Sunday. I will keep every one posted on updates.

[FanFicGuru]

1. What did you like? What worked for you?

Initially I was disappointed that the FMVs weren't going to be in the civic center, but seeing how you guys worked it out, I actually really enjoyed it. The guy we had running our videos was really funny. The whole part where he was using Mac talkback to call out people in the audience and stuff was hilarious and a great way to kill time. Also, I'm glad he really tested out the stuff before starting the contest to avoid any technical difficulties. Also, excellent time management. I saw it was scheduled from 2:30-5:30, even though the whole show was only 2 and a half hours, which means you made room for overlap or difficulties if needed and we didn't feel rushed out at the end.

Doing the different play order I thought was interesting too. Gave people different experiences to see the categories and I guess if you really wanted to see the same vid twice you could hop over to the next room and see if they got to that category yet. Haha.

The ballot - awesome. Very simple and to the point.

Having the detailed info outside - also awesome. Found like 4 or 5 anime and 3 or 4 bands I want to check out, as good AMVs should do!

Overall it was really well run. Efficient, on time, organized and a fun experience. Kudos!

2. What did you not like? Is there anything you feel needs to be improved?

Now there are a few things that could be improved...

First - categories. I think there need to be finer category distinctions. From my understanding it seemed that experimental would be anything that wasn't comedy, drama or action, but there were a few videos, at least one in each category, that seemed a bit out of place. I think "Dance" needs to be a category again, as it had about 4 vids this year from what I can remember. Also, just as a side note, it would be cool to have a "trailer" category as well for next year. Those can be really good, and I'd be interested to see some more recent movie trailers AMV-ified. In any case, I guess it comes down to individual interpretation, but just try to make sure that they're all categorized correctly for maximum competitiveness. That glee dance club vid of Eva for example could have done very well in Comedy instead of experimental, but I gathered that since they used mash-up songs that's why they were placed there? Just curious.

Second - location. The setup this year was great, dont get me wrong, but the Civic theater has always been a great experience for FMVs. I understand it was a scheduling conflict, not much you can do about that, but definitely fight for it next year.

Third - showtimes. If there's room on the schedule I  think the FMV contest should have three showings: one on Friday in the same style you had this year, the main show on Saturday at the Civic center, and then one on Sunday at like 10 or 11 AM in the same manner as friday. That way you have a better chance of reaching more people, and/or the people who really enjoyed the vids from the previous day can re-watch them. It might be a bit taxing on the schedule, but if you can do it that would be great.

I think that's about it for now as far feedback goes. Thanks for running a great FMV contest!

[Marin Jei El]

Thanks for the AWESOME feedback!
We're already working on creating a balance with the venue and the time slots. I'll post anything new that may come up regarding that. My FMV 2nd and I have been thinking of mixing up the categories and will also announce what those might be as soon as the plan is finalized. In the mean time, I will be posting a new topic for feed back. We'd really like to here from everyone!