Thank You FanimeCon!

[otakuya]

I would like to congratulate the staff, volunteers, city/CC workers, and local businesses on one of the best and most enjoyable FanimeCons ever.

Thank you for the new registration system and I hope it becomes the standard for every convention from now on.

Thank you hotel and convention center staff for putting up with the usual FanimeCon mess. But also thank you for embracing the event as a welcoming San Jose tradition.

While there may be some issues and complaints, they seem far and few in between; especially that there has been way more praise than complaints.

[Gatsby]

I'm in complete agreement! The Day 0 line was amazing, to the point where I literally was not sure what to do with my time (I had my badge around my neck by 11:50AM). But that's no way a complaint! I prefer early over late any day. :) AA felt better than ever, while Dealers' is still about the same (besides a few shops I've lost interest in Dealers' years ago).

[limDsage]

Yup, huge shoutouts to the staff and volunteers for making this year's Fanime better! Also to the community and everyone else that made this event fun!

[InsaneDavid]

Very much agreed!  I had a spectacular time this year, not to say I didn't have a great time in years previous but this year was superb.  In fact the only annoyance I had was with a roaming staff photographer one morning whom was kind of rude and argumentative, strangely enough.  Shrugged that off though and no issues otherwise - AND I was able to bring a Jet Jaguar figure home! :D

[Jimbly]

Agreed!  The registration lines were amazing!  Though it felt slightly silly walking through a giant yellow maze of tape, I was giggling with joy due to the fact that there was NO LINE, and smiled every time I walked by, looked down, and saw no one waiting to get a badge.  Assuming something like 30k attendees and last year's average of around 3 hours waiting to get a badge, that's OVER 10 MAN-YEARS of convention attendance time saved (or, assuming an average con-goer spends $40 for every 8 hours they're awake at the con, that's just about half a million in revenue for vendors and local businesses)!

[hikanteki]

I agree with everyone.  Thank you Fanime, for one of the best years to date!  After hearing that registration was fixed, I zipped over and bought a Saturday badge with literally NO line.  Walking around, almost everyone seemed to be in a very good mood -- what a difference having a fast, state of the art registration system can make!  The completed convention center is gorgeous and Fanime made good use of the space.  I also liked the use of the Fairmont for panels.  I was able to find a couple new Gloomy Bears in the Dealer's Hall and had a great time seeing everyone's cosplay and watching Gurren Lagann, Sword Art Online, and Anime Hell, and most of all, the fantastic HOME MADE KAZOKU concert!  Only thing I'd suggest is please provide more, and earlier, pre-con updates next year.  Let's keep up the momentum for 2015! XD

[anselmus14]

Yes! This was my first con, and my friends had warned me about the lines (supposedly they spent seven hours in the registration line last year). So I came expecting to be waiting all day, but when I got there -- no line, just a fun power walk through winding lanes of tape.

[SpiritOfKairi]

I have to agree with everyone here =).  Picking up registrations was a breeze, the center was wonderfully reconfigured, and Fanime finally found a good use for the Fairmont by putting the panels over there.  The DH and AA were also vastly improved in the quality and selection of items, and their locations.  The double-wide DH was fantastic, and the lighting in the new AA hall complemented the art so much better than the south hall did in 2013.

My only complaint is that it was disappointing to not have a food court again this year.  I really liked that idea back in 2013, and was hoping to see it again.  However, I think all the major improvements this year more than made up for it =).

Also, for the future, it would be nice to have things set up earlier.  For instance, have pre-reg and hotels up before February, and have sign-ups for things like AA and swap meet at least a few months in advance, rather than one.  I know having things come up so last-minute was a real source of anxiety for artists and swap meet sellers, so more timely sign-ups and better pre-con communication would really help improve a situation that has already improved significantly since 2013.

[FanFicGuru]

Also, for the future, it would be nice to have things set up earlier.  For instance, have pre-reg and hotels up before February, and have sign-ups for things like AA and swap meet at least a few months in advance, rather than one.  I know having things come up so last-minute was a real source of anxiety for artists and swap meet sellers, so more timely sign-ups and better pre-con communication would really help improve a situation that has already improved significantly since 2013.

Agreed, I think the one major improvement Fanime could make for next year would be to improve its pre-con presence and information. As a member of swap meet staff (presumably) for next year, I know our Head is definitely looking at improving sign-up timeframes for next year.

Seriously though, this year's Fanime reminded me why I've attended for a solid decade now. No huge guests of honor or earth-shattering announcements, but a weekend of great memories with fellow anime fans, a great AMV competition and a quick and painless registration process that is worlds beyond anything we've seen in the last 5 years at least.

Congratulations on getting your own holiday as well! Here's to celebrating Fanime Day next year!

[otakuya]

The pre-con problems, like website, registration, and guests, does seem like an afterthought.

That being said, contact guests, make a new website (with direct link to the forums), organize artists alley and swap meet registration, and start the planning now!

[Mayadesu]

I agree with everyone that Fanime 2014 was much more put together this year! Good job to all of the people working on it! Registration was such a breeze that I didn't know how to react at first. I came there on Thursday expecting to wait for hours, but got my badge in less than a few minutes and was ready to go. It was really amazing.

Everything was nicely set up and it didn't feel crowded this year. This year restored my faith in Fanime, and I hope this system is the same next year!

[Otamiyuki009]

I agree. Friday's line took practically no time which gave my group time to walk around until a lot of the events opened. I was kind of dissapointed with how there was a lack of new items out for sale in the dealer's hall, but the artist alley was in better shape compared to last year's.