2007 Masquerade News

Started by angeljibrille, June 08, 2006, 12:32:02 PM

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ranma12

Quote from: "angeljibrille"
Quote from: "Shaxel"Okay..so then...because my coat would be an Organization XIII coat..if I buy it..I can list it as a found item??

I just can't make those on my own..the one I tried to make ended up with a giant square hood and tends to choke me if I zip it up.

I mean..I'm not interested in fighting for a craftsmanship(?) prize..but I just want to participate...for the fun of having the experience.

Yup, it's OK. :) Promise!
so we can join as long as we said we bought them? cuz im the same way i dontwant to be in the craftmans part

1Fireforge

Quotepeople who purchased their costumes from eBay, Yahoo Japan, or a Seamstress...

You know, guys can draft patterns and sew too - so, by the letter of the law, if you bought your outfit from a male tailor, then it would be cool, right?  =)

- FF

Let's go VOLTRON force!

angeljibrille

Quote from: "1Fireforge"
Quotepeople who purchased their costumes from eBay, Yahoo Japan, or a Seamstress...

You know, guys can draft patterns and sew too - so, by the letter of the law, if you bought your outfit from a male tailor, then it would be cool, right?  =)

- FF

:P Tailor, Seamstress, whatever. It's all the same ^^

I'll keep that in mind the next time I post though. XD

BrightHeart76

I think I need clarification for "found items"  because as I read these it seems a little confusing.  

I also am not interested in a craftsmanship award, honestly I didn't even know it was a contest I just wanted to be able to do something fun with the cosplay community and share the fun.  I'm feeling a little blind sided by this whole issue to be honest.  Can you please post the official specific rules on the web site before you allow people to sign up?  I'd hate to sign up and then have to bail because I'm not qualified, I'd hate even more to not sign up because I wasn't sure.  

It gets confusing with so many voices and so many questions.  We really need the official rules.  I'm not trying to be pushy, but I'm just so confused by this.  I know you are a busy person, so please don't feel pressured.
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angeljibrille

Quote from: "BrightHeart76"It gets confusing with so many voices and so many questions.  We really need the official rules.  I'm not trying to be pushy, but I'm just so confused by this.  I know you are a busy person, so please don't feel pressured.

Your wish is my command. :)  The web staff finally put up the guidelines yesterday:

http://fanime.com/cosplay/

The section you need to read for information on costumes is here:
http://fanime.com/cosplay/cosplay_guidelines.html#req

And please feel free to PM me or email [email protected] with any clarification questions.

Thanks!
Marisa

SuperKawaiiNeko

It says you must have your dialog pre recorded. What if I dont want to do a "skit" skit? Ive been condsidering doing a short stand-up bit (provided I can remember my material...I dont know why I didnt write it down.) Would I still have to record the whole set or would I be allowed use of the mic?
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Shaxel

Hokai I read the rules and it says Ebay purchased items will not be allowed, but you told me I could list my Org. Coat as a found item and since I'm NOT after any craftsmanship awards/and I never would dream of competeing for one anyway/ I'm just going to list it as a found item.

Cause my boot covers and weapons I'm making myself and really that's all there is to the rest of my cosplay besides my wig.

My real question is the recording thing..now I have a hand held recorder that works pretty well BUT it only records on tapes, not on cds..now can we use tapes? Or does it have to be a cd? Cause if it's cd only then ugh more things to panic over.

angeljibrille

Quote from: "SuperKawaiiNeko"It says you must have your dialog pre recorded. What if I dont want to do a "skit" skit? Ive been condsidering doing a short stand-up bit (provided I can remember my material...I dont know why I didnt write it down.) Would I still have to record the whole set or would I be allowed use of the mic?

You would be allowed to use the mic. :)

However, please let me know in advance what your stand up bit is going to be about, so I am not "shocked". Thanks!

angeljibrille

Quote from: "Shaxel"Hokai I read the rules and it says Ebay purchased items will not be allowed, but you told me I could list my Org. Coat as a found item and since I'm NOT after any craftsmanship awards/and I never would dream of competeing for one anyway/ I'm just going to list it as a found item.

This is what we are prohibiting, fully pre-made costumes or close enough purchased off of eBay:
Click to see this link (goes to eBay)

If you bought your costume that way, or from a costume shop, or off of Yahoo Japan, or you had it made for you by a tailor or seamstress it's not allowed. I just don't now how much clearer I can be about that. Also, we are keeping a close eye on all of those sites and we know the basic costumes that are out there as well as details about them, and we will call people on it if they try to pull a fast one. Sorry. It's just not fair to others who did make their costumes. This isn't a competition for who has the most money to buy a costume off of one of these sites.

Quote from: "Shaxel"My real question is the recording thing..now I have a hand held recorder that works pretty well BUT it only records on tapes, not on cds..now can we use tapes? Or does it have to be a cd? Cause if it's cd only then ugh more things to panic over.

We cannot use tapes. If you have a computer, you can record a "WAV" file, that is acceptable. I will post a sub-forum here where people more adept with this process than me can help with this. Also, if you practice and prepare your script in advance, we provide services at the convention Friday & Saturday to help you record your skit. If you have music, please bring it on CD or as an MP3.

LunaNeko

Quote from: "Shaxel"..well I guess I'll back out then. Ebay is really the only place other than a costume shop where I could get my coat because I sincerely can't make one on my own that looks even remotely decent.  I personally don't have the most money to do anything and certainly wouldn't want to make it seem like that's part of this competition but I don't have the sewing skills to compare with other people either so since this is a sewing and crafting competition I'll drop out now so I don't take up space and have to be refused later on.  

Yeah, for those of us to make our own costume - Fanime masq with craftsmanship judging is a blessing now, we can show off our costumes and have fun at the same time. But I totally understand where you are coming from. Maybe Fanime will have something like Chibi masq. like AX has, just for people to put skit together and have fun on stage, without any kind of judging. Hey, maybe Stage Zero will have something like that. Just a suggestion.

Miss Goku

Will there be a map on how to get to the new place where they Masquerade will be heald... I am very good at getting lost. Also I was wondering if the preregistration is up yet. I am just so nervious my group and I wont get our spot >.< I am such a worry wort

angeljibrille

I can't sew very well at all myself. My 4 costumes ever were: Ranma-chan, Tira Misu (red long dress), Kamikaze Kaito Jeanne (1st outfit), and Temari (purple outfit). I suck at sewing, and for a long time I had to have my mom sit down and teach me even the basics. She was totally frustrated with me that I didn't even know what a "dart" was! ^_^;; I still get a LOT of help from her if I make something. I've also purchased a couple of costumes, but I have never ever worn them to a masquerade, they are strictly for hall cosplay or events where your costume's origin doesn't matter.

However, I gave it my best humble effort. The trick here is that you DO NOT need to compete with the person making the huge angel in armor costume with the flufffy wings. You can just as easily make a Luffy costume (from one piece) by purchasing a red shirt, ripped-off jeans, a straw hat, and sandals... and still be able to compete and win the contest. You can make a basic Sakura dress (from Naruto) and still win the contest.

YOU DO NOT NEED TO BE AN AMAZING COSTUME MAKER. PERIOD.

The people with the amazing costumes are going to be competing in the craftsmanship contest. They will also be trying out for the peformance awards, but the performance awards are STRICTLY BASED ON PERFORMANCE (9 awards!).  

The only award that is for "both" Craftsmanship and Performance is Best of Show.

So, if you "mostly" made your costume, you are fine. We all start somewhere, and making your costume (even if it's found items) look right is part of the deal. Of course I expect people to purchase jackets and such... such as a leather jacket for Squall (FFVIII). Examples:
We are OK with people buying Naruto headbands,  Cloud's sword from that spiffy new company making them, prop weapons, boots, shoes,  tights,  jeans,  belts,  wings, wigs, teeth, contacts, leather items, shorts, t-shirts, jewelery, series character items (like the Naruto headbands), etc. The list of things it's OK to buy could go on for about 5 pages.

As long as you did everything else on your outfit, which means putting it together the way it's supposed to look to be the character, and you aren't trying to represent it as something you personally made, you are OK.

An example is my Temari costume.
I bought the purple v-neck shirt that went under it, I bought the headband, I bought my hair ties, and I bought the "Naruto Shoes" because I tried to make them and just about had a nervous breakdown. The major item I spent 10000 years on was the "breastplate" (made of heat sensitive fabric and covered with silver fabric) which I had to fit to my, ah,  chest and I had to learn how to make darts and how to make it fitted-- all just by trying things, ripping it out, trying it again. I also had to learn how to do rivets (sp?), and to make it tied in the back. I also spent a lot of time making the skirt (from a Simplicty pattern that looked close) and the bow (just by eye). I purchased the fan from Cost Plus, spray painted it with white paint (I had to tape it up first) and then painted on the purple circles with paint from my friend's kindergarten class. I made the little black netting things out of nylons from Hot Topic.

I spent hours on my hair to get the "Temari" poofs. A wig you styled yourself would also be acceptable. I put on extra stage-type makeup (because it looks better on stage / in pictures) and then went on.

A recap: what did I actually make myself? The bodice, the shorts. What did I customize? The fan, hair, makeup, nylons. Found items? The shoes, the shirt, the headband, and technically the fan and nylons.

Could I enter the Fanime masq with this outfit? Yes. Could I win a Craftsmanship award? Maybe a novice or honorable mention award. Could I win a performance award? Absolutely, if my skit was enjoyable.

I'm NOT here to kick you out. I'm just trying to be fair to all participants.

We have to draw the line somewhere, especially because we usually get more people applying each year than we can take in (we have a fixed running time). You will not find very many conventions that do not have the "must make your costumes" rule. I believe that the majority of NorCal conventions (from anime to sci-fi to fantasy to SCA to comic books) and most US conventions all have this same rule.

What is prohibited? When you buy your ENTIRE costume made tailored for you (or in your size) and all you do is your hair and makeup.

We are flexible. We allow found items. We allow your group leader to make costumes for the entire group. We allow everyone in a group (or even with another group) to work together on their costumes. We allow your mom or dad or grandma or cousin or husband or wife to help you. We are a LOT more flexible than many conventions.

It's hard for me, because believe me it isn't fun for me to say "NO!" because I want everyone to have a good time! :( But there HAS to be a base standard.

angeljibrille

Quote from: "Miss Goku"Will there be a map on how to get to the new place where they Masquerade will be heald... I am very good at getting lost. Also I was wondering if the preregistration is up yet. I am just so nervious my group and I wont get our spot >.< I am such a worry wort

Good idea :) I will make sure to put a map on the handouts I give you when you check in at the convention. The registration should be in the convention center like last year.

Registration opens on April 1, at 11:59pm PST.

Thanks! :)

Miss Goku

Quote from: "angeljibrille"
Quote from: "Miss Goku"Will there be a map on how to get to the new place where they Masquerade will be heald... I am very good at getting lost. Also I was wondering if the preregistration is up yet. I am just so nervious my group and I wont get our spot >.< I am such a worry wort

Good idea :) I will make sure to put a map on the handouts I give you when you check in at the convention. The registration should be in the convention center like last year.

Registration opens on April 1, at 11:59pm PST.

Thanks! :)

Okay thanks ^_^. That will really help alot ^.^ I was also wondering... What do you do if you preregister with a group of say... 5 people but when Fanime rolls around one of your group members is not able to make it due to personal problems, so then you only have four in your group. Will your group be disqualified?

angeljibrille

Quote from: "Miss Goku"Okay thanks ^_^. That will really help alot ^.^ I was also wondering... What do you do if you preregister with a group of say... 5 people but when Fanime rolls around one of your group members is not able to make it due to personal problems, so then you only have four in your group. Will your group be disqualified?

Wow! No. Absoultely not! :O

You can add up to 12 people right up until Saturday closing time for Masquerade registration. You can even kill your whole group and start a new one. You can change your costumes, your theme, and your music.

However, it all needs to be in by Saturday Masq Reg at the convention.

If you have an emergency, we do allow limited registration on Sunday, but we cannot guarantee that you can get Craftsmanship judging or custom recorded skits done if this happens. Try to have the bulk of your group register on Friday or Saturday and let me know if you have an emergency and need the Sunday Reg in advance.

If a registered person doesn't show up on the day of the Masq because of some last-minute reason, your group is still welcome to participate.

A couple of Craftsmanship notes though-- if that person was judged for Craftsmanship, he/she is disqualified. Your group can still be judged for Craftsmanship, and still win without that person, but your group will be judged without that costume as a part of the group. I hope that makes sense XD

Miss Goku

Quote from: "angeljibrille"
Quote from: "Miss Goku"Okay thanks ^_^. That will really help alot ^.^ I was also wondering... What do you do if you preregister with a group of say... 5 people but when Fanime rolls around one of your group members is not able to make it due to personal problems, so then you only have four in your group. Will your group be disqualified?

Wow! No. Absoultely not! :O

You can add up to 12 people right up until Saturday closing time for Masquerade registration. You can even kill your whole group and start a new one. You can change your costumes, your theme, and your music.

However, it all needs to be in by Saturday Masq Reg at the convention.

If you have an emergency, we do allow limited registration on Sunday, but we cannot guarantee that you can get Craftsmanship judging or custom recorded skits done if this happens. Try to have the bulk of your group register on Friday or Saturday and let me know if you have an emergency and need the Sunday Reg in advance.

If a registered person doesn't show up on the day of the Masq because of some last-minute reason, your group is still welcome to participate.

A couple of Craftsmanship notes though-- if that person was judged for Craftsmanship, he/she is disqualified. Your group can still be judged for Craftsmanship, and still win without that person, but your group will be judged without that costume as a part of the group. I hope that makes sense XD

Yes, It makes alot of sense. Thanks again. This really helps because I don't know if a few people from my group will be able to make it ^_^. I so can't wait for the cosplay compatition. We have been working on our skit for weeks and I just want to make everything work. Thanks again for answering my many questions, and I am sure there will be more later on ^_^;;

angeljibrille

On the purchased costume question:

Posting here for those who won't see it in the other thread.

The rules are the same (pretty much, very minor changes) as last year's:
http://www.fanime.com/2006/cosplay/

So this is not a new thing. ^_^; We are honestly not imposing draconian measures. In fact, you can ask several people who have participated in other Masquerades (AX, ComicCon, WonderCon, WorldCon, etc.) and ours are some of the most flexible and reasonable rules around. We aren't of the "it's mandatory for you to bring in pictures of the entire construction of your costume as well as mandatory craftsmanship judging"... like other cons (coughcoughAXcough). One ONE hard rule is that you must have contributed to your own costume (found item or heck even your mom making it), or had your group leader make it or the  group makes the costume together. That's it.

These rules are also based on ICG rules (though I tend not to go with the classes -- I don't like classing people) and all "large" California (and most of the USA) have these exact same rules. I've run and attended several conventions out of state, and they all have the same rule.

Fanime is no longer a tiny little event at the Foothill College, or even the small con in Santa Clara. Fanime is getting bigger and bigger, and, honestly, we just don't have the time or facilities to accommodate everyone... more on that later.

I'll be honest with you that when we WERE at Foothill College and at Santa Clara... this wasn't even an issue. EVERYONE made their own costumes or their mom made it or similar. You couldn't go on eBay or Yahoo Japan or even to a tailor and have them make you something like this. The reason why we had to add this rule, and that all conventions have added this rule, is because we suddenly had several people showing up with their movie-quality Darth Vader costume made for them by Master Replicas or something (just kidding) and wanting to compete against the people who had been making their costumes. This has only in the past 5 years been a huge problem, we started noticing it around AX2002.

Unfortunately, you are looking at this as if we are going backwards. Instead, we are trying to maintain the character of the COSTUME (now cosplay) contest (not skit contest). This is a costume contest, with added skits and performances. Der Cosplay (circa Fanime 1995 ~~sooo long ago~~) were more walk-ons and only a few really good skits... things have really changed in the following years, and we welcome more skits, but, hey we have to keep the spirit of the contest that the heart and soul of this baby is cosplay.

How would you feel about a Mini-Masquerade (like at AX -- but in a public  area instead of hidden away) or designated cosplay block (like, say, 2 hours) on Stage Zero that is advertised and targeted towards cosplay so that you get an active and appreciative crowd?

I have been involved in Masquerade at various conventions for a very long time -- almost 12 years now -- in both management positions and as a contestant. It's because a couple of my REALLY bad experiences in Masquerade when I was younger that I because really interested in trying to bring about a better Masquerade where we cared about both the cosplayers and the audience. At a lot of shows, they stick cosplayers backstage -- I always make sure they can see the Masquerade by sitting in the audience or with a simulcast. I make sure they have water. I make sure they aren't stuck there for 8 hours and that there is personal hands-on judging and not just a cattle call. I have tried to make a Masquerade that is reasonably easy for the entrant.

Because of this, I know the reality of how everything behind the scenes works. When we were at Santa Clara and Foothill, we did not have the limiting union rules we had last year and this year at the Performing Arts Center. Last year was a personal nightmare for me because I had scheduled out a rehearsal and a meeting time for the Masq, and both got terribly screwed up because the union literally packed up and left for their designated breaks with no warning and no flexibility. If we had used them through their breaks, it would have cost the convention a fortune. We are not allowed to touch any union equipment without breaking our contract and again costing us a fortune. It's a VERY rigid system, there is absolutely no "bending" the rules as we used to do in the old days.

As it is, the Masquerade is hands down one of the biggest expenses for Fanime. The Facilities and Union costs which are in the ten thousands (just for our event). We have an extremely tight budget, and every year Fanime is lucky to break even.

Because of that, our options for Masquerade are this:
ONE Day in the big theater with these fixed hours:
12pm - 1pm UNION LUNCH  - Theater Closed
1pm - 2pm - Tech Setup
2 - 5pm - Rehearsal
5pm - 6pm UNION DINNER - Theater Closed
(Mandatory Masquerade Meeting is probably going to be at 5:30pm)
6pm - 6:30pm - Seating
6:30pm - 9:00pm Masquerade (2.5 hours)
9:00pm - 9:30pm Judging / Special Performance
9:30pm - 10:00pm - Awards presented, Theater Vacated
10:00pm END OF UNION HOURS - Theater closes

And, just to let you know, last year at 9:30 pm I was being stalked by a union guy and a Fanime staff member to MAKE SURE we were out of there by 10:00pm or there would be heck to pay.

55 (maximum) groups at 3 minutes each (sometimes a little less which helps) is pretty much exactly 2.5 hours in our experience. The exact math is 2.75 hours, but it never works out that way -- it's always about 2.5 hours. This is the standard number of entries for all conventions.

30 minutes of judging is heroic, and I think I am one of the few Masquerade Coordinators that consistently pulls it off. It's because we already decided most of the Craftsmanship winners in advance, so they are deciding the Performance awards only. They spend 30 minutes talking about you :)

The awards and recognition portion are necessary for those who worked so hard, I don't want to take away their half hour of glory (and press photographs) to squeeze in 5 or 6 more groups.

So, you see, there is very little room for modification of the Masquerade.

I'd LOVE to be able to accommodate everyone; seriously. But it's simply not possible with the resources and time that we have allocated to us.

I also like to point out that the other major conventions I've worked with (AX for example) have these exact same problems, which is why they "rush" through entries now and usually do 50 groups at 2 minutes max. We are trying to be kind with offering 3 minutes, which was a time limit decided on by Brian Doan before he retired.

So, now knowing the realities and that not much can change, unless Fanime wins the lottery or something, or we start getting 50,000 attendees, do you understand a little bit better where I am coming from?

And, that said, I'd be happy to try to make something work. I can do my best to get some sort of matinee Masquerade going on Stage Zero and make sure it's advertised to heck and back. It will be improv (with the PG rules still in force though, of course) and completely free of any craftsmanship standards -- feel free to wear your Imported Gundam costume. I will do my best to make it happen if this sounds interesting to you and others.

However, I know the big crux of the matter here is that people want to get up on that big shiny stage in front of 5000 people and do their skit. That's simply not something I can promise to everyone, though I wish I could.

Thank you for reading and I hope you understand where I'm (and the convention) are coming from.

Shaxel

o_o;

Personally I would still someday like to see more accomodating changes but I *DO* see now where you're coming from and the problems with trying to make everyone happy. I guess the old stand by is quite true you can't please everyone all the time but you do your best.

I'm feeling like somehow I've cracked the lid on a Pandora's Box in some cases here..and I never intended to see a boycott thread show up, even if DM is one of my best friends.

I don't know if I should remove my posts now or what? I mean I still would love to be able to compete someday regardless of where my costume came from, since I know by my bank account I am not someone who can afford frivilous stuff I've been saving tooth and nail to get my coat. But regardless I'm not going to wail about it anymore..got it outta my system and then it seems to have exploded into something entirely that I never expected to see. O_o;;

So er...ugh I dunno anymore x.x;!

LunaNeko

I don't get it, why people whine about stuff like that. If you REALLY REALLY want to do the skit and CAN'T because you can't sew - glue your costume together for gods sake, show SOME effort! Or even better, FIND someone who can sew, interest them in your skit, invite them to perform with you - and bam - you got what you want. Boycotting masq just because you didn't get things your way is just rude, what will those 50 groups who slaved on their costumes for months supposed to do when people don't care if they make their costumes and don't want to see them perform just because someone decided: "rulez suck - don't go to masq"! I go to see masq FIRSTLY because I want to see people's costumes. Usually masq costumes are saved for the very last minute and people do their best and amaze everyone with their skills. Good skits are plus, and its hard to make a good skit, not everyone knows your favourite anime/manga/game you are cosplaying from and making your skit entertaining and understandable is not as easy as you think.

Miss Goku

Wow thats alot you have to deal with. I understand fully what you have said. I also think that adn it makes me mad to know people want to boycott the masquerade. I stumbled accross and thread yesterday about it. I didnt say anything kuz I had to go to bed but it made me mad. I think you guys working the masquerade are doing a great job and you deserve a cookie ^_^ .