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[citrus]

This is what I never understand about the convention. How come there is never any sponsorship? During 2014 I think I saw some sponsorship panels. Or are industry panels and sponsorship completely different? anyways, If there is some pride in having a big convention without sponsorship I think it's time the convention changes it's thinking. (note yes I know complain a lot and I still will continue to do so. Just in more of a calm fashion if I can)

I can don't see that many cons in doing in getting sponsorship unless someone can correct me otherwise. Anyways, 1. With sponsorship you will be able to bring guests otherwise you might not be able to get at all. The attendees will be happy and be more willing to fly or drive to the convention if sponsorship can bring in more big name Japanese guests. 2 What if it was big name companies like Good Smile Company willing to sponsor and sell their products? People love their products and how fast they sell is amazing. Or anime companies like Aniplex or Pony canyon. I've been to conventions like Sakura-con (Almost the same size in attendance as Fanime now) and AX. Because of those events Sakuracon was able to get Yoshitsugu Matsuoka, Voice actor of Kirito. If anything company sponsorship can many things. If it means giving the company a nice, flashy vendor booth selling their products then I be more happy and 3. Who doesn't like learning the hottest new anime coming soon or the next figurine being made?

I've seen what sponsorship can do and it's amazing so why not start getting some now or at least start slowly implementing it? I can give an example Touhoucon 2015 was a small convention that focuses solely on the game series were able to bring in the biggest name guests related to the series as well as non-related touhou guest but is known for other things. While they had an excessive amount of sponsorship unentirely related to the convention in the vendors hall and some booth areas but at the same time they must have used the funds from unrelated sponsorship to get guests related to the game series itself.

My point being is that other small conventions are slowly implementing sponsorship and I don't think that's a bad thing. Unless if the staff or other members of the forums have counter-arguments I'd be more then happy to read them, as all I want is discussion.

[echoshadow]

Well..... This has been asked since I been coming to Fanime in 2008.
It's been asked at every closing feedback panel.

So....??

Unless Fanime moves to a bigger venue or inplace an attendance cap. Then that would happen.
Or we get a new chair that flips the whole system out the window.

So like every year, we will have to wait and see if the next year would be better.

[Nina Star 9]

I think that the "by fans, for fans" tagline is supposed to mean "regular people, not industry people." While I wouldn't be opposed to industry sponsorship (except that it might create a new set of problems, like overcrowding), I feel like it goes against this con's self-perceived mission and climate, and thus will always be hit with opposition from staff. I feel like this con tries to be "not AX," and industry sponsorship would go against that.

Of course, the con can have sponsorship and not be an industry-run con, but I'm not sure if the heads of the con would want that, either.

[SquishyK]

Fanime has in the past put industry adds in the schedule books (probably to offset the cost of printing) and I'm not sure if they still do that or not but it was a big change at the time. And they allow industry people like Crunchy Roll to get a booth in the dealers hall. But I do think fanime makes it a goal to be a "fan run" convention. That's what it was to start out with, so much so that they adopted it as a moto. It's really quite remarkable what Fanime has been able to accomplish given that outlook. If you want to sit through industry panels about the next anime or figurine then go to AX, Silicon Valley Comi Con, or some other industry run con.  I'm not saying that it's a bad thing to have those but Fanime has a different focus and that's good too. Fact is there are plenty of big industry cons and there are also fan con. Let industry cons be what they are and the fan cons be what they are and attend the one you like more. Don't try to "fix" something you think is "broken" just because it doesn't match your tastes.

[Amanojaku]

Fact is there are plenty of big industry cons and there are also fan con. Let industry cons be what they are and the fan cons be what they are and attend the one you like more. Don't try to "fix" something you think is "broken" just because it doesn't match your tastes.

^ This, so much.

[eHash]

Sponsorship is not free money, and with every sponsor comes a new set of rules and requirements.  Also, if a big sponsor comes in one year and pulls out for the future, could the con sustain expectations?  If you sell out just a little, you might end up selling out on everything..look at levi's stadium.

[echoshadow]

Sponsorship is not free money, and with every sponsor comes a new set of rules and requirements.  Also, if a big sponsor comes in one year and pulls out for the future, could the con sustain expectations?  If you sell out just a little, you might end up selling out on everything..look at levi's stadium.

Yep pretty much. Perfect example Danny Cho at AX
Yeah he gives them lots of money and guests but they in turn comform to him and his demands. His booth right in front of the main entrance his artwork on the cover of the program guide, his plugs are at every panel, so yeah it's good and or bad. Depends how you take it.

[aetherltd]

The Cool Japan Fund (this is a real thing) might be interested in having a presence at Fanime. They own "daisuki.net" (free anime streaming) and a translation/subbing company. It's funded by the Government of Japan and some of the big banks. The Korean government is funding K-Pop and they want to catch up.

[echoshadow]

That's cool, but I don't think this I that kind of thread.
Hell if we where requesting companies I'm sure there would be a mile long list.

The topic is should fanime have corporate influence.
If I'm not mistaken Fanime does have a bit of sponsors when it comes anime videos. But that's more like licenses than sponsored

[cutiebunny]

..Because of those events Sakuracon was able to get Yoshitsugu Matsuoka, Voice actor of Kirito. If anything company sponsorship can many things. If it means giving the company a nice, flashy vendor booth selling their products then I be more happy and 3. Who doesn't like learning the hottest new anime coming soon or the next figurine being made?

Ugh.  An Aniplex sponsored guest.  Seriously...when I see Aniplex is sponsoring anyone on the art portion of production, I don't go to that con.  I've yet to meet a more controlling and shady sponsor.  I remember when the Magi guys came to SakuraCon that a fellow collector was threatened with legal action because she had obtained production artwork that was sold on a large, public Japanese auction site. 

I think you need to come to the conclusion that Fanime will not be the kind of con you want it to be, Citrus.  You plug AX as being an awesome con, and if that's what works for you, I would recommend you go there instead of Fanime.  If Fanime wanted to be more in bed with the industry than it already it, I'm sure they would have already put Aniplex, PonyCan and other companies on speed dial.

[echoshadow]

In the end cutie bunny is right. Fanime will never be like AX, SakuraCon, Otakcon,etc...

So do like her and what I'll do. Spend more time and money on other cons than Fanime. This year depending on the guests....wait who am I kidding I'm just going there for the B&W Ball and 1 hour of the dealers hall. So yeah pretty much half day at Fanime con. The rest of the 4 days was me and my friends running around downtown drinking and eating.

[citrus]

@cutiebunny & echoshadow.

I know both of you are right. It's just... I've been going to Fanimecon since 2009 and it was also my very first convention. Fanime has proven that they could get awesome guests without sponsorship in the past. I'm still thinking of the past of Fanime's best year which was in 2011. I know I have re-iterated several times and many other past fanime attendees that 2011 was the best year ever. It offered a little bit of everything to everyone. I still remember 2011 and will always hold dear to my heart on that year. I think after going to many other conventions I have come to the conclusion that conventions with sponsorship always win me. I'm still very loyal to Fanime but they changed so much and my expectations for the convention has immensely dropped 2012. 2015 was going in the right direction but still could have been better. I mean it's why most attendees stopped attending Fanime because they've been let down too many times. Yet at the same time. Every attendee I come across the internet say the same thing. They all would come back to the convention in a heartbeat if it was like 2011.

I mean... can you blame me for trying so hard to see if Fanime can bring back the same expectations they had during 2011? Regardless, I'll still come to Fanime simply because it's "something to do." and for the concerts. Because that's Fanime's only REDEEMING quality and that's it's music guests.

[echoshadow]

You mean musical "guest". As much as I want stick up for Fanime's musical line up I can't anymore. Not after reading that one post about how great Music Fest was, and how bad it's now. It's more general cosplayer hangout con than anime fandom.
Still it's a great "something to do" thing, if your local.

But meh, you can never have enough beating a dead horse

[Nina Star 9]

citrus, I feel like its time you cut your losses, and instead of focusing on what Fanimecon was, you should focus on what it is, and whether other cons will better suit your needs. (I think they will.)

Fanime tends to be going more in the direction of "hangout and party con," which is cool if that's what you're into, but that's obviously not what you in particular are into. I still go because it is local and relatively inexpensive (it's the only larger con I can afford to go to), and it has a great cosplay scene. since I'm primarily a cosplayer, it suits my needs just fine, despite some of its other issues (which have been improving in some ways, but not in all). If you go primarily for guests, though, Fanimecon does not typically deliver on this front, and you should go to another con. If you are able to still go to Fanime and not spend a lot of money on hotels and travel and such and just enjoy it for what it is, great, but if not, save your money and take it elsewhere.

It may be hard, especially if it was your first con (Fanime was my first con...in 2003, haha), since you have that nostalgia factor, but really, it's clearly not the con for you.

(I also wouldn't say that "most attendees have stopped attending," since the attendance numbers don't really back that up, though I'm sure there are quite a few ghosters who come just for cosplay and room parties, and I'm sure there are people who left after the few disastrous years the con has had, but there's hasn't been a huge drop in attendance, as far as I know.)

Is there room for improvement at this con? Certainly. But your tactics aren't really the way to go about it.

[cutiebunny]

I mean... can you blame me for trying so hard to see if Fanime can bring back the same expectations they had during 2011?

Complaining on an internet board does not equal 'trying'.  Volunteering your time to work at Fanime to make the differences you want to see would constitute as 'trying'.

I get the feeling that you really don't understand what a sponsored convention really entails.  You seem to say that sponsored conventions are the best, but then you point to Fanime 2011 as being the best.  Fanime 2011, with exception to MusicFest, was not sponsored.  The guests that came to Fanime were partially motivated to help out with the tsunami relief efforts in Japan and wanted to raise money to aid those affected.  You were able to spend time with these guests because they weren't sponsored.  Had Yokota or Yoshimatsu been sponsored by Aniplex, the lines would have been cut off at exactly 1 hour into the autograph session, there would be no special panels where the guest could speak their mind, and instead, you would have the pre-scripted garbage that appears at every panel sponsored by industry.

What industry sponsorship has done is created a two tier system, and one that favors attendees with more cash to spend.  The same mingling with guests that used to be free at many conventions in the 1990s-early 2000s is now only available for a price.  Back in the early days, if you wanted to ask a guest a question or maybe get more than 1 item signed, it used to be that you could line up super early, and chances are, you could do that.  Now, with corporate sponsored guests, you have to be one of the first 100 to buy some super ultra deluxe Blu-Ray collector's edition or some other equally pricey merchandise and then the only thing you'll get is a quick autograph on the official merchandise. Additionally, this means that the only guests that will ever attend a corporately sponsored convention are those from recently released titles, or an older title where the company is planning on releasing a new, expensive collectors version of the show that you'll be forced to buy if you want that autograph.  I'd be willing to bet that Amano attending AX next year will coincide with a new DVD/Blu-Ray edition that some company will force you to buy if you want to be one of the 100 or so people to get that autograph.

[eHash]

<REMOVED>
<ELECTED TO RESTATE>
Touhoucon is definitely not the best example to use.

[cutiebunny]

Citrus wrote "What if it was big name companies like Good Smile Company willing to sponsor and sell their products?"
*cough* I believe Good Smile is being paid or compensated to have a presence at some of these conventions..

Yup.  They get free booth space, usually in a premium location.  That's the standard agreement that most sellers have with conventions, such as SakuraCon and Anime Expo.

[Rhornez]

revive the old fanime con SOMEONE DO IT

[eHash]

Citrus wrote "What if it was big name companies like Good Smile Company willing to sponsor and sell their products?"
*cough* I believe Good Smile is being paid or compensated to have a presence at some of these conventions..

Yup.  They get free booth space, usually in a premium location.  That's the standard agreement that most sellers have with conventions, such as SakuraCon and Anime Expo.

What is the source of your info? I talked to someone from gsc and they pay "premium" prices for dealers hall space at ax.