Fanime 2006-Feedback Thread

[happysky]

the water dispensers.....they were luke warm or room temperature..thats kinda..nasty....
does San Jose convention center charge for how many watts of power Fanime Con uses up per day?  it wouldn't hurt to plug the dispensers up to the wall to give COOL and refreshing water eh? ;)

i know what you mean about the marriott ones; i walked all the way over to the hilton several times because the dispensers over there had nice cool water (:

another thing i forgot to mention earlier:

I really enjoyed Masako's perfomance during the Masquerade intermission. I just felt bad for her because she (as well as Eugene and JC) was really great, but not many people were paying attention.. which is fine because it was an intermission, but I think they deserve some kind of timeslot or situation where they can have a fully attentive audience!

[Blue-Six]

The Good:
Location of Artist's Alley (or Row, whichever you prefer).
From what I hear, it was in the main path through the con last year - considering how many people travel through it as it was, I can't see that working now without artists getting ripped off, or having to be super-paranoid.  Keeping it in a seperate place means you have to go out of the way, but in some cases it's worth the extra steps.  :)

Stage Zero's "randomness".
It doesn't compare to what random stuff really goes on at night *wink wink* but it's still cool to catch something on the fly as you're coasting inbetween viewings/events.

That-Lady-With-The-Spray.
She was kinda hot, but since I didn't stink, she didn't come near me. 8) :(

The Bad:
There's Yaoi, and then there's...Yaoi?
This was my #1 gripe all con-long (and still is now).  Yaoi.  Yes, it's popular - understatement of the year - but for the love of all that is chibi, remember that there is this other genre called Yuri.  :shock: I could lay on the floor in the Dealer's Room, spin myself in a circle, and still be facing a vendor that had Yaoi, but I would have to hunt (and I did) to find anything Yuri.  Even some of the vendors were disappointed that there wasn't any - and this isn't just the DL; there wasn't really any viewing rooms or the like for it.  I personally would be happy to get something up and running for the next Fanimecon, and even if I couldn't, it would be worth a shot.

The Confusing:
Masquerade: So Many Awards?
Okay, I can see that some of the participants spent more time than would would be deemed "normal" by any non-fan, but why were there so many awards given out?  My mindset is that if there is a competition, and A, B, C and D all enter, if B is the best, why would C and D also get something?  Maybe it didn't end like that; I zoned out after I saw all of the awards on the table.  But near the end, it looked like there were 70% of the people who entered on stage, which makes no sense if "the best" should be the winners.  :?:

I don't mean to come off in negative way (this being my first post here), but I've actually lurked around the forums before con. XD  Just throwing my two cents into the pool that's this forum.  :wink:

[Nyxyin]

I am STILL Not sure why the dealers room has to have a special exit door and a special entrance door.

Having attended Fanime for half a decade already, I have a guess about this.  In previous years (before moving to SJCC), the dealers room was horrendously crowded, and there were huge lines to get in.  I think they had a limit on how many people can be in the room due to fire codes or something, so they could only let more people in when previous shoppers left.  The separate exit was useful so that people who wanted to leave can do that very easily and didn't have to trip over a huge line to get out.  Maybe they keep the entrance and exit still separated just in case there's a sudden demand and they have to implement flow control again.

the water dispensers.....they were luke warm or room temperature..thats kinda..nasty....

I don't think it's so much the temperature as the water.  I think the first batch of water was really bottled water.  After the first bottle ran out at each station, however, I think they replaced it with tap water.  For people who aren't from San Jose, San Jose tap is from well water, unlike higher up on the penninsula (Cupertino, Sunnyvale, Mountain View, etc) where the water comes from the mountains.  (My mom's friend used to work for some water district, so she knows all the details.)  San Jose tap water is totally nasty stuff.  I've learned to bring my own bottled water to Fanime ever since it moved to San Jose.


My biggest gripe is about the panel room.  I tried to listen to the mangaka's panel, but the videos playing next door were really loud and drowned out the speakers on the panel.  From the map in the program guide, the panel room looked like it was in the corner away from everything.  Why was it moved?

I also wanted to suggest putting more of the anime and panel information into the programming guide.  There's all that stuff for asian films.  It'd be nice if there was something similar to that for panels and anime.

I didn't know that there was the tea ceremony and martial artists in the artists alley.  Was that advertised somewhere that I missed?  If I knew about them, I would've made time to go to them, but I didn't find out until after the con was already over.  ;_;  I hope they all come back next year, and if they do, I hope they're advertised better.  I still want to see them.

Cool parts: the hentai/yaoi check-in stuff was neat, Stage Zero was a great idea, the artist alley was awesome, the guests were wonderful, the cosplay (for those of us who stayed until the end) was utterly spectacular, the craftsmanship judging category was neat, the very wide selection of videos of all types was excellent.

Actually, I wanted to go back and point out the cosplay judging.  I think it was great the way the judges explained why the winners won.  Previously, several of the winners just didn't seem any better than the people who didn't win.  This year, though, with the judges explaining, I feel that I understood better why the winners deserved their win.  I think those few extra sentences (even as hasty as they were) made the awards part interesting and worthwhile.  In previous years, the awards just felt like such a let-down.  I'm not a cosplayer, and I don't know any of them, so I wasn't emotionally invested in the winner, but I still almost felt bitter about a few of the winners.  This year's awards might've been hasty, but I thought they were much more satisfying.  I particularly agreed with the Utena, Rose of Versailles, Lost in Translation, and Puyopuyo awards.  Those judges totally rocked, and I hope they come back and do the same thing next year.  I know they said who they were before they gave the awards, but I didn't write it down.  Can someone post that information please?

Overall, great con!

[Nyxyin]

I really enjoyed Masako's perfomance during the Masquerade intermission.

I thought her name was Mai-yuu, but whatever her name was, I totally agree that she was great!!  People who left missed out.  The Karaoke winner was really good too.  So was Travelling Valentine.  And the AMV awards.  The extra add-ons to the Masquerade were all excellent by themselves.  Heck, they were so good that it might've been worth sitting through all the acts just to watch the intro, intermission, USA Musume, and the AMVs even if all the cosplayers sucked (which they didn't).  Maybe it would've prevented some people from leaving if, before letting people go for break, the host mentioned that they were going to show USA Musume and AMV finals to people who stayed until the end.

[happysky]

I really enjoyed Masako's perfomance during the Masquerade intermission.

I thought her name was Mai-yuu, but whatever her name was, I totally agree that she was great!!

sorry, that might be her stage name? i couldn't really hear what she/the group was announced as, but i know her as masako through someone else.. ^^;

[milkmandan]

I am STILL Not sure why the dealers room has to have a special exit door and a special entrance door.

Having attended Fanime for half a decade already, I have a guess about this.  In previous years (before moving to SJCC), the dealers room was horrendously crowded, and there were huge lines to get in.  I think they had a limit on how many people can be in the room due to fire codes or something, so they could only let more people in when previous shoppers left.  The separate exit was useful so that people who wanted to leave can do that very easily and didn't have to trip over a huge line to get out.  Maybe they keep the entrance and exit still separated just in case there's a sudden demand and they have to implement flow control again.

the water dispensers.....they were luke warm or room temperature..thats kinda..nasty....

I don't think it's so much the temperature as the water.  I think the first batch of water was really bottled water.  After the first bottle ran out at each station, however, I think they replaced it with tap water.  For people who aren't from San Jose, San Jose tap is from well water, unlike higher up on the penninsula (Cupertino, Sunnyvale, Mountain View, etc) where the water comes from the mountains.  (My mom's friend used to work for some water district, so she knows all the details.)  San Jose tap water is totally nasty stuff.  I've learned to bring my own bottled water to Fanime ever since it moved to San Jose.

I dont mind the water too much as i can stand tap water.

I live in LA and we get all our water from you guys..so yeah...
I just like it cool, plus walking around from end to end at the convention center can get someone thirsty. some nice refreshing Cold water would be nice hahaha but i guess i am pushing it

As for the flow of the people in the rooms. :) why not just make it like Ikea, where each person who enters the room has to shop through the ENTIRE DEALERS ROOM. Mwahhaha~ that be great :)

[madmanlotar]

If I am not posting about it then I either liked it or did not attend.
cons:
1.Game room could have been a little larger and had more stuff like last year.
2.  Stamp rally was crap this year.  Very little organization for it and when it was finally setup, there was a lack of maps for the contest.  I have no idea why they did not include the map in the program guide like last year.
3.  Schedules could have been a bit better this year.
4.  Too many marathons.

[Monica]

Most of my complaints have been hit upon.

The one that pissed me off the most though was the winner of the Best Comedy. I was in the Wii are Ninjas group and I heard the audiance laughing hystaricly at our skit. The one that won I didn't hear to much laughing.

I was really satisfied with all of the marathons, though I missed some due to the fact that I didn't have a map till saturday night and the schedules where somewhat hard to read.

But this was my first fanime and I loved how it was orginized my expectations of it where blown away with the reality of it.

[EternalMalachi]

Masquerade:
Video Programming:
Not too thrilled this year.  There were a couple Asian Live Action shows I enjoyed, but no much in the way of animé.  I'm guessing something happened where fansub animé is no longer allowed to be played?  Two years ago I was running from room to room all day to catch new animé I wanted to check out.  Was much more laid back w/ only a couple shows I had to catch.  This year, however, there were only 2 shows I wanted to see: one was the Shadow Chronicles preview that I missed because I was feeling ill, and the second was a typo on the schedule.  -,-`  All the rest of the animé that played was basically stuff I can just borrow from friends.  *shrugs*
[

We had fansubs running from video 1-8 which is spread out in the hotels and convention center. It sounds like you only watched the videos in the Marriot instead of going out in the CC (specifically across the marriot) and the Hilton.

What is strange about your complaint is that you have allready seen fansubs from your friends but then saying oh we are not showing them at fanime? HUH?

LOL

Maybe I did miss it.  I spent a couple hours over the con looking through the schedule to find things to watch, but kept seeing shows that were already released out here.  Berserk, Bubblegum Crisis, Kenshin, Akira, Guyver, Gankutsuou, Jin Roh, Tetsujin 28.  I don't know, I guess the licensed stuff popped out more, though it may be that I couldn't actually read a lot of the names on the Sunday/Monday schedule....

[EternalMalachi]

Most of my complaints have been hit upon.

The one that pissed me off the most though was the winner of the Best Comedy. I was in the Wii are Ninjas group and I heard the audiance laughing hystaricly at our skit. The one that won I didn't hear to much laughing.

I was really satisfied with all of the marathons, though I missed some due to the fact that I didn't have a map till saturday night and the schedules where somewhat hard to read.

But this was my first fanime and I loved how it was orginized my expectations of it where blown away with the reality of it.

Which was the skit that won for best comedy?

[LawyerGirl]

Cons:

* Please extend registration hours, at least for people who pre-registered!  One thing I did not like was the fact that registration closed at 8 p.m. on Friday.  I work full-time and had a three-hour drive to the con, and I got there at 8:15 p.m., right after registration closed.  Even though I had my pre-reg receipt, I couldn't get a badge that night and had no way to attend any events that required badges until registration opened the next morning.  (I ended up signing up as a volunteer so I could get a badge...but still, I would rather have gotten my member badge on Friday night.)

* You know about the con schedules. ^_~

* The dealer's room needed more variety when it came to anime merchandise, but I did love the Asian clothing retailers and

* I heartily second the call for convention T-shirts in women's sizes.  I had to buy a child's size shirt and it is still quite ill-fitting.  Also...twenty bucks is a little steep for the con shirts, considering their quality.  I bet you would sell more of them at $15 and would sell out at $10.

* The rap on Stage Zero.  Loved Stage Zero, but hated the rapping.

(the following gripes aren't Fanime's fault, but still:)

* Random gentlemen.  Please stop asking for hugs and trying to kiss me in the hallways if I DO NOT KNOW YOU.  

* Mean people who yell rude things at karaoke singers, masquerade participants, Brian Doan, and fashion show participants.  You're not funny.  

Pros:

* The people.  I was the "sign girl" at the end of the masquerade line, pointing out where the end of the line was (anybody have pictures of that, by the way?).  Most people were really nice to me and followed instructions to not crowd, stay in single file, etc.  So thanks guys, you were great!

* The program.  Very nice.  A big improvement on previous years.

* The map of places to eat.  A godsend!  Thank you.

* The masquerade.  I'm not understanding the hate toward walk-ons, I think you'll find that the people who do walk-ons have some of the most intricate and well-done costumes, and it's a pleasure to see them.

* MusicFest.  I adored it this year.  Bring Miami back, as well as GoofyStyle!

* Artist Alley and the gaming section each having huge rooms.  Awesome.

Overall, the con rocked.  Thanks to everyone who participated in running it, it must have been a huge endeavor and we all had a great time!  :)

[AnimeBabeJen]

Also, people would be able to leave their stuff and setups behind because the room was locked up at night when they were finished.

And stuff still got stolen despite everything being "locked up". I NEVER left ANY of my stuff there in the Alley. Ever.

My one gripe (and since I was there most of the time, I suppose it's my only gripe) was Artist "Row". As an artist this year was SO HORRIBLE. If I completely stretched every nickel and dime I made I MAYBE hit half of what I made last year. Maybe.

The set up for it was awful. I looked back at some of the tables and lots there were 3 or 4 tables empty between artists. I know why they had the seating chart and all but it seemed like everything was... too organized? Some artists may have not come back because of having to get the permit since we all have to report back on our sales and pay taxes on them. That was something we never had to do before. We also had to pay $5 a table or $40 for a 'powered table', which hasn't been done for years either (especially the powered table thing). It almost seemed they put it in a bigger room so they could maximize profits from the tables, as if you could by $5 a table... but still. It felt very empty. I know it was the guy's first year who was running it this year, and no offense to him since I don't think he had any control over where it was placed or anything, but I sorely miss Ted.

I don't think that I talked to any artist that didn't take a hit on sales this year, or any that were really happy with the way that anything was set up, or that we were in a different room. There was even a petition (which I signed, of course) to try and get it back out on the concourse (but, as a staffer said it won't happen, but it never hurts to let someone know how you feel!). The person with the petition informed me that there were many people with artwork stolen this year, some even from the Artists Gallery! I was really shocked since I thought it was stupid to even have a lock up time of 7pm for the "Row".

Perhaps it was because of my sourness at the Artist's "Row", but this year... just didn't feel like Fanime. Which is sad since I've moved across the states 2 years ago when I got married and last year and this year I've flown back just for it. Maybe I'm just better off sticking to Otakon 15 minutes away. :\

~ Jen Brooks
Studio Eternity Artist

[Babbit_Chan]

* The map of places to eat. A godsend! Thank you.

I definitely liked the map of local restaurants that was in the program this year. We hit Tandoori for lunch on Sunday and we were craving curry again the next day. I hope the map stays in the program, because it really helps those who don't want to eat McDonald's or Jack in the Box all weekend.

[LawyerGirl]

Yes!  I found Tandoori Oven through that map also.  I loved it, and will definitely eat there again next year.

[Wasteland]

Overall, I thought the con was a nice improvement compared to previous years.  Stage Zero was good.  I liked the bigger artist area.  The dance in a smaller room was good, although perhaps one a little larger next year would be good (but definitely not the huge hall used in 2005).

My main complaint is about video rooms 6 and 7, which happened to be showing 90% of the anime I wanted to watch (yeah, I'm a shoujo addict).  If there were more than around 10 people in the room, some of the people will not be able to see the subtitles, since the subtitles were at a lower height than where people's heads were, so I always had to end up sitting on the floor, or slouching a massive amount to the people behind me could see.  If you're to use those rooms again next year, even though it would make the visible screen smaller, I'd recommend tilting the projector up, so that the bottom of the visible screen is just above top-of-head level, then most everyone should be able to see the subtitles comfortably.  Anyway, it was still a nice improvement over the TV that was plugged in one of those rooms last year!

[drallcome]

Overall, I thought the con was a nice improvement compared to previous years.  Stage Zero was good.  I liked the bigger artist area.  The dance in a smaller room was good, although perhaps one a little larger next year would be good (but definitely not the huge hall used in 2005).

My main complaint is about video rooms 6 and 7, which happened to be showing 90% of the anime I wanted to watch (yeah, I'm a shoujo addict).  If there were more than around 10 people in the room, some of the people will not be able to see the subtitles, since the subtitles were at a lower height than where people's heads were, so I always had to end up sitting on the floor, or slouching a massive amount to the people behind me could see.  If you're to use those rooms again next year, even though it would make the visible screen smaller, I'd recommend tilting the projector up, so that the bottom of the visible screen is just above top-of-head level, then most everyone should be able to see the subtitles comfortably.  Anyway, it was still a nice improvement over the TV that was plugged in one of those rooms last year!

I agree.. I had to move to the front of most rooms so I could read the subtitles.. I dont care if you have to make the projection smaller. Just arc the projector a little higher please.

[Mach5Motorsport]

For those who have commented on the emcee, that was Brian aka Dieter, who has hosted just about every single Masquerade for the past 10 years or so at Fanime... it wasn't a new guy... we just took over the organization of the background stuff and Brian returned to emcee. Brian just wanted to retire his "Dieter" persona for a while.

We hope to see you back next year.

Thanks,
Marisa
Masquerade Coordinator

Hosted 10 years?!?!?! I haven't done it THAT long!!!! :shock:   This was my sixth year as a host of a cosplay event at Fanime and my first year not serving as event coordinator. :D

It was far easier to just be a part of a cosplay event. (sigh) where did my youth go? :cry:

[Eurobeat King]

Which was the skit that won for best comedy?

Best Comedic Skit
Gomu Mochi
Maes Hughes (Full Metal Alchemist), by Hiku
Roy Mustang (Full Metal Alchemist), by Aya

I thought it was quite funny considering the voice-overs were recorded by guys, there was a cute song & dance, and a hint of yaoi..

In the end, it's whether or not the judges were amused to decide on who to give the award for best comedy to.

[mDuo13]

There's Yaoi, and then there's...Yaoi?
This was my #1 gripe all con-long (and still is now).  Yaoi.  Yes, it's popular - understatement of the year - but for the love of all that is chibi, remember that there is this other genre called Yuri.  :shock: I could lay on the floor in the Dealer's Room, spin myself in a circle, and still be facing a vendor that had Yaoi, but I would have to hunt (and I did) to find anything Yuri.  Even some of the vendors were disappointed that there wasn't any - and this isn't just the DL; there wasn't really any viewing rooms or the like for it.  I personally would be happy to get something up and running for the next Fanimecon, and even if I couldn't, it would be worth a shot.

Seconded!

Also, I remembered a few other things:
Video Rooms 6 & 7: Having projectors instead of TVs was great. Unfortunately, those rooms have rather low ceilings, so when anyone of somewhat average height or taller sat down, everyone behind him or her completely lost sight of the subtitles. It was extremely frustrating. I also encountered video problems in rooms 6 and 7 more than once: Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha had terrible playback issues. It was like the file was corrupted, because it kept looping back, displaying artifacts, and stuff. Also, I went to see Hitsuji no Uta, and they didn't have the DVD at all, so they just showed more School Rumble. Okay, I have nothing against School Rumble, but it's a lot easier to find than HnU! Oh, also, I was upset when at 6am in Video Room 1, Macross came on instead of Haibane Renmei. I was hoping so bad for it, too!

AMV Contest: I loved the "24" theme, and overall the preparedness of the presentation was excellent, as it was last year. However... the showing itself was really disappointing compared to last year! Was it that the judges picked the wrong finalists, or were the entries really just that much weaker than last year? No offense to anyone who entered this year, but last year's Das Omen, Apocalypse Now, Vash the Desperado, the Patlabor one, 2525, Muppet Hunter D, 1985, Lord of the Yen, AMG Darkness, and company completely blew this year's showing out of the water. What the hell?

Asian Cinema: One thing I remembered is that in some of the rooms here, the projectors were kind of midway forward on tall stands, so that they were blocking the subtitles! Generally they weren't full enough that I couldn't find a seat that wasn't, but still, that's a lot of seats which were no good because of the projector's location.

[angeljibrille]

I really enjoyed Masako's perfomance during the Masquerade intermission. I just felt bad for her because she (as well as Eugene and JC) was really great, but not many people were paying attention.. which is fine because it was an intermission, but I think they deserve some kind of timeslot or situation where they can have a fully attentive audience!

This was probably the most bizarre thing that happened to me while running Fanime's Masquerade. There was NEVER intended to be an "intermission" -- none -- we were introducing the next performance, a set by Maiyu and Luno (her band) and it took a few moments to set up her equipment. Everyone on my staff was in absolute shock when everyone started standing up, talking, walking around, etc.... right in the middle of the performance. We were honestly horrified. I was running around the theater myself trying to get people to sit back down, especially the cosplayers who were wandering around with non-peace-bonded equipment which was completely prohibited and against various violations. When I went to go ask the union staff to bring the house lights down to indicate that this was not an intermission, I discovered the lighting/sound union theater staff had disappeared on a break-- they figured since everyone else was getting up that it was a scheduled break (even though it was not in our script or our program).

I later found out that Fanime has traditionally had an "intermission" the past couple of years. The last Fanime Masquerade I attended was still at the old Santa Clara Convention center before they moved to the new SJCC, and we never had an intermission in Santa Clara, so I did not know that enough people expected an intermission. We almost did not make our cutoff time (11:00pm) because of this "intermission"- Maiyu-san had only planned for 3 songs and we already had people staged backstage for the next skit.  Fortunately, there was not this confusion with the USA Musume presentation, but I feel awful for Maiyu and Luno about the situation that I couldn't do anything to "fix".

My sincere apologies to Maiyu and Luno and to the audience as well that there was this accidental miscommunication with the audience and obviously with the union staff. We will NOT be able to afford time for an "intermission" in the future with our limited schedule in the theater based on blocked union time, so instead of making it confusing by having a special performance in the middle, we are just going to slog through all the skits next year and put any special peformance at the end during the judging break.

My apologies to all,
Marisa
Masquerade Coordinator