A few questions about yearly themes

[royjovero]

Exactly when are themes decided? And who comes up with them? Do the fans themselves have any say-so in the matter?

This past Fanime was my first since 2001, and I don't remember if there was a theme that year. I also know that sports was this year's theme, but I didn't see too many cosplayers adhering to it.

The reason I'm asking is because of how obscure next year's Gothic Fairytale theme is. Yes, I know that there's another thread on next year's theme, but this thread is about themes in general. But let's face it, a gothic theme, fairytale or not, can lead to a pretty drab con, especially if a lot of people decide to partake in the theme. I can assure you that I will not be doing anything gothic in my cosplays next year. Not that it really matters anyway...

I did a bit of forum searching and found out that the theme for the following year is announced during the closing ceremony, but that still doesn't answer who comes up with the theme itself. I've noticed a couple threads about theme ideas, but no real polls or anything of the sort. That being said, this makes me believe that the staff just comes up with the theme without any fan input.

Fanime is supposed to be 'By Fans, For Fans,' so is there a poll for yearly themes? Are suggestions welcome? OK, so next year's theme is decided, and probably won't change, but would there be a possibility of a Fan's Choice theme for 2014 and on?

Yea, a lot of questions, and who knows how many, if any at all, will be answered. Everyone's thoughts and concerns are welcome.

[Maskenlav]

I think the con chairs and subordinates think of it. Not staff per say but the guys just below chairmen position and chairmen themselves

[M]

Exactly when are themes decided? And who comes up with them? Do the fans themselves have any say-so in the matter?

Themes are generally decided a year in advance. We generally come up with the themes ourselves + look at the forum thread for suggestions.

This past Fanime was my first since 2001, and I don't remember if there was a theme that year. I also know that sports was this year's theme, but I didn't see too many cosplayers adhering to it.

I believe that themes were first created either the year we moved to San Jose or the year after. It started with "Cityscapes" as a way to celebrate us moving to a bigger city.

The reason I'm asking is because of how obscure next year's Gothic Fairytale theme is. Yes, I know that there's another thread on next year's theme, but this thread is about themes in general. But let's face it, a gothic theme, fairytale or not, can lead to a pretty drab con, especially if a lot of people decide to partake in the theme. I can assure you that I will not be doing anything gothic in my cosplays next year. Not that it really matters anyway...

We never want to force or make anyone feel as if they have to cosplay a certain thing. You cosplay what you would like.

I did a bit of forum searching and found out that the theme for the following year is announced during the closing ceremony, but that still doesn't answer who comes up with the theme itself. I've noticed a couple threads about theme ideas, but no real polls or anything of the sort. That being said, this makes me believe that the staff just comes up with the theme without any fan input.

Fanime is supposed to be 'By Fans, For Fans,' so is there a poll for yearly themes? Are suggestions welcome? OK, so next year's theme is decided, and probably won't change, but would there be a possibility of a Fan's Choice theme for 2014 and on?

We do have fan input, but having a poll could get quite messy... Which themes would we pick for the poll? What if it doesn't adhere to the overall FanimeCon branding? (etc.)

Even though we've had themes for a few years now, we're only finally starting to truly figure out what we wanted to do with them. Nothing is ever finalized and processes can be changed, so there might be more fan interaction in the future in regards to our theme.

Yea, a lot of questions, and who knows how many, if any at all, will be answered. Everyone's thoughts and concerns are welcome.

I think I answered all of your questions.

[royjovero]

I know that congoers aren't forced to cosplay along with the theme, but it would be nice to see a theme that more people can cosplay with.

As for a poll, maybe there can be two. Like one year out, people will submit their ideas, and the staff can choose x-amount of themes to place in a poll. Have this poll open for, say, 6 months. Then place the top 4 themes in a final poll. Have this final poll open for maybe two weeks. Something along these lines would work pretty well IMO.

MPLe, yes, you did answer all of the questions I posted, but do I sense a bit of snarkiness in that reply? If so, I approve. :)

[chifunii]

Well, the theme thing is still in the works, meaning, I don't think fanime had really figured out what they want to do with the theme yet. I'm sure in the years to come, when themed-events/activities can make their appearance, themes will be much more interactive.

As for polling...it gets really messy really quickly. I remember they do take suggestions, which is nice considering fans usually get no say at all. The team that decides the theme has other things to consider, not just the 'cosplayability' (among other things) of the theme. Fans might not know that, so a fan-only poll might not cover the 'feasibility' base, and just the 'dude that'd be wicked cool' base. I know having preliminary rounds in the polls (where the staff weed out some suggestions) kind of fixes the problem, but then there would be a lot of themes that wouldn't be a surprise anymore, which I find kind of cool [findig out at the closing ceremony].

Tl;dr I like them keeping it a secret til closing ceremony. I'm sure I could say more, but that's the gist of it.