FanimeCon 2024 Forums

FanimeCon Events and Discussionmentarianism => General Convention Discussion => Topic started by: xBladeDragonx on May 29, 2011, 01:02:22 AM

Title: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: xBladeDragonx on May 29, 2011, 01:02:22 AM
I mean only 2 out of 4 days have passed, but... sorry to say... this year's Fanime is a huge let down at least for me and a couple of my friends.

The first huge let down was that no schedule book was provided to members like previous years. I mean I can understand if Fanime is wanting to go Green and all and save paper by not printing it on small booklets, but almost every info desk had little to no information on schedules. I mean the karaoke schedule were printed in the main Fanime Handbook... could have spared another 2 pages to print the schedule there? The mobile site was somewhat helpful, but wifi isn't offered everywhere in the convention center and with hotels charging way too much for wifi, it was impossible to know what the schedule was. Not to mention, lots of panels and events were canceled with no updates except on the mobile device website.

Another let down was the fact that a lot of fun panels were deleted off the schedules. Some I guess with valid excuses that's understandable, but others were just canceled with no reason. And on the topic of panels, were there always only 3 panel rooms... I could have sworn there were way more panel rooms than just 3... I guess it's just me and a couple of friends who think this year the panels were far less than previous years. Again on the panels... not much variety.... majority are repeat panels from years before with minor new info. I guess I can't ask for much. Some of the fun panels worth going were scheduled at late hours where most people are too tired of going or not wanting to wait for minimum 4-5 hours for a panel... (And I don't mean the hentai or yaoi) Then some of the good videos are scheduled early in the morning... I mean I just stayed up to 1-2AM finishing this late panel.... drove home, showered... sleep by 3AM the latest...and a funny and cool video worth watching starts 10AM... (so... get up at 8:30 - 9... breakfast... drive back to con... yada yada...) 6 hours of sleep is fine for many people but staying awake 18 hours of constant walking, standing, holding in that temper to punch that person blocking your way... (seriously... don't block traffic!) you get tired out very fast. And being tired... you get irritated easily...

Another that I personally didn't like were the removal of many video rooms. In between panels with nothing to do is for videos. I know this is Fanime... meaning majority anime... but the Asian Video Rooms were my favorite and were very popular previous years... the asian video rooms were always half to 3/4 full previous years. This year... only 1 room.... not much good videos offered and practically empty everytime I passed by or went in. I didn't really bother with the anime rooms so can't really say much there. (As some people say... you don't go to an anime convention to just watch anime. You can do that at home. :D [i guess asian films are an exception?])

Third let down... though I guess was expected... (as previous years) Horrible.. and I mean horrible crowd control. I knew it was going to happen but I was hoping there was at least some control. But Saturday... during the rain... The main entrance... impassable... it was virtually impassible without getting a little physical and shoving people out of the way. (I'll admit it i had to get a bit rude trying to get in) People taking pictures... I mean... honestly go head and ask for pictures, but have some courtesy to move to the side and out of walking traffic... Many times... we see cosplayers and photographers blocking entrances or exit. I mean I ran into people (literally bumping into them) and cos-players many times because the halls were virtually impassible. I mean I don't want to be a photo bomb nor do I want to be in your picture... but when you have other people sitting next to the walls and photo taking happening right in middle of traffic... it's not gonna be a happy ending...


It's probably just me who is finding this year a let down... When the schedule was released a couple days before con and I got to see the panels... I was already a bit let down by the non-interested panels... but other factors made it worst... This is mostly my last full weekend fanime.... If panels are worthy next year... i guess a day pass for me... :D
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Mayhem on May 29, 2011, 03:51:56 AM
QuoteADDENDUM

Other FORBIDDEN costumes include the following:

Modern Paramilitary
Modern Military
ANY costume that could be misunderstood as threatening in the current political climate
Any ROVER has the power to decide what meets the criteria for a forbidden costume.

Do we get told this Months in advance? ... No!
Do we get told this Days in advance? .... No!
Do we get told this on Day zero? .... No!

I get told this on day 1 just before opening ceremonies, and I get told I should have read the rules (which were not amended to reflect the new rule until after my entire ordeal). I get made to feel like crap about not reading the non-existent rules, and When Fanime realizes they Screwed the pooch, do they rescind the the rule till next year (this really should not have been much of a problem) ... no! I get bent over the counter, and they Do me like virgin at a drunken roman orgy! I don't even get the courtesy of a kiss and some lube! All this while being apologized to like I was some sort of molested alter boy the church doesn't want embarrassing them. Thanks fanime! I blew a few hundred buck on a costume I cannot use, not only because of someones lack of intestinal fortitude, but because of their absolute laziness to to keep the fans and attendees informed in a timely manor.

Honestly I do not feel I'm obligated to not talk about this in either my review or rant. If I wanted the sand paper condom treatment I would have gone to Anime Expo as standard attendee. With all the B.S. I have had to put up at Fanime this year I will most likely not be attending next year, and I get paid to go to this! (at best I'm asking for more money).

This was my first attempt at playing dress up at a convention and I have been attending Anime conventions for over a decade, so here I am, about to get my Cospay cherry popped so to speak, and the experience has left me so disappointed (darn near traumatized) That I doubt I will ever dress up even for Halloween in fear that I will get jumped by the fun Nazi and beaten by her killjoy stick.

I would rather be spending my Memorial day weekend honoring my fellow soldiers that have sacrificed their lives for my freedom, then getting made to feel ashamed for my own service to this country.

Yes! I'm still Angry about this.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: mdarkpoet on May 29, 2011, 04:44:51 PM
I agree with everything the original poster said, also...

My biggest complaint was that the people in Swap Meet had their badges pulled and for a lot of people there was NO EMAIL sent out to those people. So we had to wait in line for hours only to find out we could have gone upstairs to get our badge the entire time!!!

Schedules? Hahaha what schedules :P so stupid

The crowd, man what a crowd on Saturday. Some of the people didn't even seem interested in the con at all, why buy passes if you're not even interested?

Another disappointment to me was the Fairmont, they have been nothing but rude since we checked in and the room quality was disappointing. Don't be fooled by outward appearances, our stay at the Marriot last year was eons better than our stay at the Fairmont. Never again for the Fairmont.

Dealer's hall prices seem to have gone up for certain things O_o or is it just me for this one?

Karaoke room not offering as many song options as last year, I know last year you could go up to the guys with the computers and have them search up a song online. This time it's only if you bring a CD or MP3 :(

piiiiiiiiii -_______-
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: D oh on May 29, 2011, 07:19:45 PM
This was my first anime con and was pretty excited (One day pass on Saturday). When we came in we got bored and got out pretty quick.

-Bootleg items in Dealers Room. Maybe I'm just just being paranoid but the stuff that I usually buy online were 100 times better quality than the items at the con.

-Gaming room was a total let down. Some of the arcade machines were from 10-20 years ago and gaming table top was always full. We never got a chance to play.

-No schedule was def a problem. Me and my friends didn't know what or where to go half the time.

-Not going with a lot friends could have been a factor.

Despite the disappointment I would still wanna go next year if I can. Full Weekend to.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: questionette on May 29, 2011, 08:27:20 PM
 This is true for every year at fanime, but does anyone else think it sucks that we have to pay registration fees in order to pay for over priced goods at the dealer's hall? ??? Just a thought...
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Jelly Soup on May 29, 2011, 11:41:06 PM
I think the only real problem I had was with the Artist Alley staff being complete and utter assholes about everything. And I'm not just trying to spill the common 'they wouldn't let me do what I want, they're meany heads!' line you normally see, they were just being outright rude in every situation.

We had short repeat of last years musical exits in the Games Room again on Saturday morning, but that was worked out.

Had a minor problem with the Marriot and ended up staying a night at the Saint Claire. Really nice hotel, I'm thinking they will be getting my future business.

EDIT: And before I forget, I was a little sad to see a lack of Melty Blood in the Games Room. :/
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: LightYagami on May 29, 2011, 11:53:41 PM
Yeah. I think these conventions they over charge for badges. Shud be around 10 to 20 bucks for daily passes.

Dealer halls merchandise is really way too expensive. Then again they gotta make money for the space rental.

N I sorta hope there was a better variety of guess. Hope they were able to get reuben back. What they shud really do is combine fanime guess with sac anime, one in june.

Needed more rooms definitely for movies. Not just anime or asian movies, but movies in general.
Each room different type of category.

General anime, asian action, asian comedy/romance, horror movies(any language), usa action movies, usa comedy/romance. Usa thrillers/mystery.

Sumthing like that. Need to be organized.

Also, peace bonding was annoying. Had my wooden swords peace bond from last year n. This year u needed badge to get peace bond?

Also the staged even on second floor needed to be better organized. There shud also be more stage, entertainment around different areas of the conventions besides upstairs.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: LightYagami on May 29, 2011, 11:57:21 PM
The area where u get peace bond by fountain shud have like sum stage n do other entertainment there. Like karaoke, dance or sumthing else as well. Drawing competitions or costume contest.

Need like to announce stuff so people know when things happen. I have more but these r things off top of my head.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Himeno on May 30, 2011, 12:38:31 AM
Quote from: LightYagami on May 29, 2011, 11:53:41 PM
Yeah. I think these conventions they over charge for badges. Shud be around 10 to 20 bucks for daily passes.
Do you have any idea how much it costs to hire venues like a convention center and event areas of 3 hotels?
Conventions like this cost in the 6-7 figure sum range.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: SukebeStudios on May 30, 2011, 12:51:15 AM
Maybe Fanime is just getting too big for the staffers to handle?
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Himeno on May 30, 2011, 01:07:36 AM
Quote from: SukebeStudios on May 30, 2011, 12:51:15 AM
Maybe Fanime is just getting too big for the staffers to handle?
Given the state of reg, information, schedule etc, that is quick clear.

I know a former Fanime staffer back home. He helped start Fanime. I don't think he'll be very impressed when I tell him about this weekend.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: mdarkpoet on May 30, 2011, 01:56:33 AM
I do agree that the Dealer's Hall was a little more pricey this year than in the years in the past. Typically the Dealer's Hall always runs pricey, the reason for this is revenue. The space costs a lot for these guys to rent, the way I deal with this is I do comparison shopping for the stuff that I really want. Either that or I go to the Swap Meet, the Swap Meet was excellent this year, I got a LOT of amazing stuff for dirt cheap.

Example: King of Hell manga (my favorite manga) for 50 cents!

I think that Fanime was extremely understaffed this year and thus the *&^% really hit the fan. I still had a blast (just won "Worst Concept" over at the Gong Show, go Poland!) and got a lot of really great items and met a lot of great people.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Jelly Soup on May 30, 2011, 02:02:47 AM
What a lot of people don't realize about the dealers room is that the dealers have to pay a more than just the space fees and transportation costs. SJCC has a union and if a given dealer is bringing in more than he/she can carry themselves, he/she has to pay the union to do all the moving, both in and out (this is actually listed in the dealers paper work). As you can imagine, this is pretty expensive, so it makes sense that we'd see some gouging of some kind.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: zeroelement on May 30, 2011, 02:09:08 AM
@Mayhem
Its illegal in California (as far as i know) not just fanime rules. Mostly patches saying anything close is not liked and if its CPD or something like that they and you get in trouble.) They failed to tell everyone but they had to uphold the law. But yea dressing up like miliarty or cops is a BIG no no. Anime and video game ones are often clear they are not military. If your outfit was patchless/wordless (aka no U.S Army) and not 100% semi or current current it should of been fine.

@xBladeDragonx
~Some panels were canceled because the panel people did not follow the rules and CHECK IN __(15 i think) mins before the panel (i asked my friends in staff).
~The schedule thing was a let down. But they tried something new and it blew. I printed out a schedule and put it in the cosplay hangout and today i saw some at the downstairs info booth)
~4 panel rooms. Last year it was 5 but they combined two to make it bigger for bigger panels.  
~Videos are hit and miss every year. There simply no for sure way to keep them packet.
~crowd controll That is VERY hard and people need to learn when to ask for photos and when not to. Also Cosplayers need to not just stop but find a good location thats safe (rare to find safe spot) but also the rain was unexpected and some wanted to get out before they got wet and pervs started getting off on the wet look.

@mdarkpoet
Lot of Noob staff this year which is to blame for the bad treament(mayhem) and bad song lists.

@D oh
Game room reuses what they got. They do need to spend some money on it but your not going to the con to just game right?
If they want more games they will have to cancle special guest and then other people would compain that the main point of the con was stopped to pay for new boardgames which people could of bought. You bring your own Magic cards right? bring your own boards. (they would say not me)

@questionette Dealers hall is out to make a buck. Haggel(those are not stores, its more of a flee market they are not Required to sell for that price)  or take pictures of stuff you want and get it off amazon for cheaper.

@LightYagami just right your name in the deathnote or mine. Video rooms are ment for Anime i personally think the ONE not anime room is fine.

@Himeno Ya bages are priced right for the people they bring in. Dealers hall is dealers not deals. They up the price and some lower the price talk to them check out the products and go home and amazon/google it easy to find it cheaper. (or the swap meet)

@SukebeStudios The staff amount is fine when the protesters aren't there but overall they need to TEACH the rovers what to do. They give them the same rules we get and they interpret it the way they want to. The staff is not trained only experience makes things run well and this year was alot of new guys. (i know 10% of the staff) They just show up and help set up little to no training is given.

I think they staff need to be screened more. Maybe have a complaint box (i hate rovers to) so they can get in trouble in which they might be nicer. But overall Fanime Ranks up with other cons like AX in my mind just smaller with less people. And most say AX is in trouble do to more stuff than Fanime is doing wrong. (at fanime we still get to carry weapon props)

I personally loved this fanime. My schedule was filled with things to do with little time between. Yes some of the panels could of been better, and the empty video rooms can be blamed on the no schedules people just walked around. My cuz came this year, it was her first she said it is currently a blast and will come again.

And btw getting bored at a con is easy. Whats hard is turning your head and talking to the person next to you.

PS before you hate reply me because i tried to find a reasonable reply   think about what other people see. Majority wins. Also suggest different videos in the suggestion topics use of your complaints (aka QQ) could be of good use instead of unaffected @ QQ

@Cure of boredom  Have friends go take pictures.

@mdarkpoet
Blame the protesters hitting during rush time. Staff cost money i personaly think more training vs more staff would work better. Takes 15 staff(not trained) to turn down the volume on a mac vs the 1 trained guy Most staff learn what they are doing day of or day before. (day -1 or day 0)
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: zeroelement on May 30, 2011, 02:13:14 AM
Quote from: Himeno on May 30, 2011, 01:07:36 AM
Quote from: SukebeStudios on May 30, 2011, 12:51:15 AM
Maybe Fanime is just getting too big for the staffers to handle?
Given the state of reg, information, schedule etc, that is quick clear.

I know a former Fanime staffer back home. He helped start Fanime. I don't think he'll be very impressed when I tell him about this weekend.
Na i think most of everything was done LAST min. The app that was out was Fan Made days before the con. Schedule was out late for it was made late. Not much time to print it out. I think the voulenteers who do this are doing a good job but everything needs to be set in stone sooner.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Mayhem on May 30, 2011, 03:37:59 AM
Quote from: zeroelement on May 30, 2011, 02:09:08 AM
@Mayhem
Its illegal in California (as far as i know) not just fanime rules. Mostly patches saying anything close is not liked and if its CPD or something like that they and you get in trouble.) They failed to tell everyone but they had to uphold the law. But yea dressing up like miliarty or cops is a BIG no no. Anime and video game ones are often clear they are not military. If your outfit was patchless/wordless (aka no U.S Army) and not 100% semi or current current it should of been fine.

Considering my back ground both in the military and Law enforcement ... I'm familiar with with the law it is not Illegal when it comes to military uniforms or even if I had put "US army" on my Costume which I didn't out of respect as I'm covered under several portions of 10 USC, Subtitle A, Part II, Chapter 45, Sections 771 and 772. and thanks to SCHACHT v. UNITED STATES I really don't have to worry about those exceptions.



With Law enforcement uniforms it gets a little more tricky as per California Penal Code Section 538d which clearly makes impersonation of a peace officer a Crime and This subdivision shall not apply if the uniform is to be used solely as a prop for a motion picture, television, video production, or a theatrical event, and prior written permission has been obtained from the identified law enforcement agency. You have to be careful with this even when it comes to Security and Security Officers.

http://law.onecle.com/california/penal/538d.html

There is no such state law that applies to military uniforms as costumes unless you use them to deliberately pass for military personnel such as to gain access to restricted military facilities.

Unlike Law enforcement The U.S. military has no authority over civilians outside of military installations unless martial law is declared.

Again my costume had nothing on it that said US ARMY, It simply had some funny milspec monkey patches and a Press and Photographer Name tape. this was a BDU that used the ACUPAT cammo Patern THIS IS NOT THE ACU UNIFORM USED BY THE UNITED STATES ARMY. No military in the word uses this Uniform and Popper had a very limited run on this SO you can no longer purchase this style of uniform You can however purchase the modern ACU uniform in ACUPAT Cammo at your local surplus store.

We still have people walking around in full cammo and even in modern uniforms. I saw a guy Walk around in a flight suite with captains rank and a a 1st Cavalry Division patch - something I would never have done unless I duplicating a specific Anime Character for accuracy. I even saw a guy in a raccoon city PD outfit (resident evil) compete with the word "Police" on it.

What got me jumped was the Cammo pattern my stuff uses. If I had been wearing ACUPAT Cammo Pajamas the would still have crawled up my Butt, However if they where woodland or real tree the Probably would have let me slide.

I had absolutely no prop weapons on me unless you count the Camera (Speed Grapher)

WHAT REALLY CHAPS MY REAR is we got no warning until after con started. at this point I'm already out allot of time and money I'm never going to get back.

Oh and  Army Regualtion 670-1 Does not apply to civilians.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Army_Combat_Uniform
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_Dress_Uniform
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_Camouflage_Pattern
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_camouflage_patterns
http://milspecmonkey.com/store/patches
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: SukebeStudios on May 30, 2011, 04:30:42 AM
Quote from: Mayhem on May 30, 2011, 03:37:59 AM
Quote from: zeroelement on May 30, 2011, 02:09:08 AM
@Mayhem
Its illegal in California (as far as i know) not just fanime rules. Mostly patches saying anything close is not liked and if its CPD or something like that they and you get in trouble.) They failed to tell everyone but they had to uphold the law. But yea dressing up like miliarty or cops is a BIG no no. Anime and video game ones are often clear they are not military. If your outfit was patchless/wordless (aka no U.S Army) and not 100% semi or current current it should of been fine.

Considering my back ground both in the military and Law enforcement ... I'm familiar with with the law it is not Illegal when it comes to military uniforms or even if I had put "US army" on my Costume which I didn't out of respect as I'm covered under several portions of 10 USC, Subtitle A, Part II, Chapter 45, Sections 771 and 772. and thanks to SCHACHT v. UNITED STATES I really don't have to worry about those exceptions.



With Law enforcement uniforms it gets a little more tricky as per California Penal Code Section 538d which clearly makes impersonation of a peace officer a Crime and This subdivision shall not apply if the uniform is to be used solely as a prop for a motion picture, television, video production, or a theatrical event, and prior written permission has been obtained from the identified law enforcement agency. You have to be careful with this even when it comes to Security and Security Officers.

http://law.onecle.com/california/penal/538d.html

There is no such state law that applies to military uniforms as costumes unless you use them to deliberately pass for military personnel such as to gain access to restricted military facilities.

Unlike Law enforcement The U.S. military has no authority over civilians outside of military installations unless martial law is declared.

Again my costume had nothing on it that said US ARMY, It simply had some funny milspec monkey patches and a Press and Photographer Name tape. this was a BDU that used the ACUPAT cammo Patern THIS IS NOT THE ACU UNIFORM USED BY THE UNITED STATES ARMY. No military in the word uses this Uniform and Popper had a very limited run on this SO you can no longer purchase this style of uniform You can however purchase the modern ACU uniform in ACUPAT Cammo at your local surplus store.

We still have people walking around in full cammo and even in modern uniforms. I saw a guy Walk around in a flight suite with captains rank and a a 1st Cavalry Division patch - something I would never have done unless I duplicating a specific Anime Character for accuracy. I even saw a guy in a raccoon city PD outfit (resident evil) compete with the word "Police" on it.

What got me jumped was the Cammo pattern my stuff uses. If I had been wearing ACUPAT Cammo Pajamas the would still have crawled up my Butt, However if they where woodland or real tree the Probably would have let me slide.

I had absolutely no prop weapons on me unless you count the Camera (Speed Grapher)

WHAT REALLY CHAPS MY REAR is we got no warning until after con started. at this point I'm already out allot of time and money I'm never going to get back.

Oh and  Army Regualtion 670-1 Does not apply to civilians.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Army_Combat_Uniform
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_Dress_Uniform
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_Camouflage_Pattern
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_camouflage_patterns
http://milspecmonkey.com/store/patches

Dude, careful. You don't want to bring logic into this. They might get mad. After I started thinking about it...complaining about Fanime is like talking to a brick wall. The only thing they end up doing is saying something like, "If you were displeased...VOLUNTEER!" I think Fanime is too big for them to handle and it's falling apart. Sooner or later, they're going to screw up enough where TOO MANY people are displeased.

I will grant them this. The things they DO get right generally outweigh the bad...so that's probably why not as many people notice.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: hikanteki on May 30, 2011, 04:37:57 AM
Quote from: mdarkpoet on May 29, 2011, 04:44:51 PM
Dealer's hall prices seem to have gone up for certain things O_o or is it just me for this one?

I noticed this was especially the case for Japanese imports.  This is probably due to the exchange rate being as horrible as it's ever been (on our side, anyway) for the past year, like 80 yen to the dollar.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: gsp113 on May 30, 2011, 07:09:12 AM
"ANY costume that could be misunderstood as threatening in the current political climate
Any ROVER has the power to decide what meets the criteria for a forbidden costume."

I'll definitely respond to this one as I agree with what alot of you are saying. Just this rule in particular gets to me because so many things can be misunderstood as threatening etc. First that quote up there: Threatening in the current political climate? Um if someone walked around as a Tea Party member (not that I like these guys but I'm an American and I proudly served my country in the Army before finishing College this past Friday) but political climate and threatening in that category could be a number of things so does that mean the Tea party cosplayer (AKA dressing up as Sarah Palin) is committing an infraction? Or (and this happened at AX one year) what about the guy or girl dressing up as Hadji from Johnny Quest? There is definitely a turban on his head are we gonna say he looks like Taliban? Another question why is the staff at fanime so worried about the Attendees when they should be worried about the Press, and those damn protesters every year(the press I will get into later and I'd love to find the managers contact info and tell them about what I heard and saw from a few of these guys)? What I'm getting at is anything can be deemed threatening in today's political climate though I do understand the decision to make someone green out there Swastika (even though it really doesn't mean white power or anything its a symbol derived from the native Americans) seeing as in Germany displaying that will get you sent to jail. But some of these rules are a bit out of hand and in my opinion and I'm sure many others a tad bit too much for inexperienced staffers. If you walked around as a flamboyantly gay
or lesbian character some high horse mega jerk could see that as threatening. Please Reword and re-tool this rule with some sort of appeal method after all these people did work hard on that costume. A head rover or member of staff should be able to hear both sides of the story in that situation.

Being a military brat as well I understand its the law you cannot impersonate a soldier etc but kids dress up for halloween in mom and dad's BDU (or now ACU) all the time. Last year we saw 2 Campbell cosplayers clearly wearing Military dress greens (which btw remain the same minus the cover)  as long as these people are clearly not impersonating a soldier (AKA carrying a C.a.c card, having U.S.Army, and or a Name on their costume) It shouldn't matter what generation the uniform is because believe it or not alot of those old BDU are still in use on bases and in training runs for groups like OPfour and the 11th ACR (armored Calvary Regiment) so technically that makes them modern day uniforms.

In this case a little comedy a Rover totally rolled up on me and my friend while I was walking (in costume as Zwei someone who isn't in the miltary but an Assassin) and they totally threatened to have my badge pulled if I didn't and I quote "Get rid of my military ID because it's a violation of the rules" 1. Clearly not a person that watches Requiem for the Phantom. 2. An extremely rude and disgusting civilian seriously though he yelled at me he was like "I need to confiscate that GIVE IT TO ME!  3. Not very observant as the ID included my real name and my affiliation as well as my Pay Grade/rank yes thats right it was a legit c.a.c card and it is a felony punishible by imprisonment under federal law as well as U.C.M.J to simply hand over my C.A.C card to anyone no joke we can't even have old ones when it gets renewed they must be destroyed. I signed an oath never to give that card to anyone. I had to convince this guy I was a legitimate soldier and that this wasn't part of my costume. Awkward moment dude.

Where the heck were the schedules other than online? I own a smart phone but come on guys everyone doesn't have one of those and everyone does not get unlimited data every month. Stop it with the Iphone favoritism too some of us own a palm or droid. Everything seemed so disorganized this year in comparison to the years before: Disorganized, rushed,rude, and this is a big problem UNDER-STAFFING half of the staff didn't know what was going on with anything.

Quit trying to be AX: yes they are one of these biggest cons ever but that doesn't mean adopt the same fly by night cheap ass policies as them that don't make anything safer or more productive they just exist to be told at the last minute to attendees at the last minute and or to piss them off.

For example no clear rule on weapons that are gun like, peace bonding guitars that are in their cases and someones just taking to their room. If the gun is freaking used for a Karate class to train a class what to do at close range gun point and its color is yellow, completely unable to fire anything because it's freaking rubber it probably feels real but even a cop can tell thats a fake. Not whining though seriously it was a fun con and I had a blast at Yuya and Flow (bring more high energy artists like Flow) Now I'm not taking a dig on the convention because I'm about to defend the prices for registration!

GUYS you get to go to the special events for free once you register at AX you have to pay for the tickets to that too I'd prefer fanime charge me 55 a pop or 60 and I get to see someone perform for free.

Again I love this con it's really awesome and unique with things like the Black and White ball as it's nice to see we anime fans and gamers etc can indeed be gentlemen and decent women (PLEASE DO NOT EVER DROP THIS EVENT) just to name one event. But the way the Yoshiki panel and autograph session was handled was poor managing on someones part. People had been waiting in the front of the line since 5am and due to a game of "Rock Paper Siscor" only 40 random people who won the game got to get his autograph. I understand he was hurt and sick and stuff but seeing as I hear he had another session at stage zero later that night I'm guessing he wasn't to happy about it either. That was totally in bad ethics and taste by management.

I didn't cry about it I was happy my friend got to get his autograph after almost 12 hours of sitting in line it made her day but the first 40 people in the door or the first 5 rows should of gotten his autograph not a random selection of people by rock paper scissor that was super childish. If he was really pressed for time and stuff they should of just canceled the signing. Some of these people didn't even have stuff for him to sign or for that matter one person honestly admitted she didn't know who he was! DX

Finally one more thing that I think really should be addressed cause it was super offensive. If you sat in the first two rows at Yoshiki's panel closest to the stage..you may have over heard some very offensive and downright derogatory names being used during Yoshiki's videos. Bad thing was they were from the press who knew nothing about who they were writing about and taking pics of. I heard one of the press guys watching the video talking to another reporter and saying things like "why does this slant-eye wear a brace on his neck" and "he talks like a f*g". We love Yoshiki and X-Japan, we love the Asian culture and it's music other than anime that's one of the reasons alot of us come to the con! I'm sure I'm not the only one who heard this guy in the second row and was offended and I'm not even Japanese. Invite press members who understand the stuff and why people come out by the millions to see stuff like this.

It really seems like this con is cracking down on the attendees I'll be back next year cause this con kicks ass but get organized for starters not even alot of the staff knew what was going on! That fixes 85% of the problem easy. Some of these staffers didn't look 18 either...maybe this is the maturity level but people skills should be a must even when you have to lay down the law am I right? I mean getting rude with the attendees get's nothing done! "I'm not feeling the shoes, can't let you in" thats just an example I'm not trying to be rude just bringing a few things up that made me and some others im sure frown.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Mayhem on May 30, 2011, 10:17:01 AM
Quote from: SukebeStudios on May 30, 2011, 04:30:42 AM

Dude, careful. You don't want to bring logic into this. They might get mad. After I started thinking about it...complaining about Fanime is like talking to a brick wall. The only thing they end up doing is saying something like, "If you were displeased...VOLUNTEER!" I think Fanime is too big for them to handle and it's falling apart. Sooner or later, they're going to screw up enough where TOO MANY people are displeased.



I've been going to staff meetings since Jan. I was going to staff this year but It conflicted with my Press obligations and that pays for the con. Half my friends are on Staff every year, and my daughter is staffing this year. the concept of "If you were displeased...VOLUNTEER!" doesn't really fly anyway because you have to be way the heck up the food chain to be able to effect these decisions, Unfortunately I don't know if it's altitude sickness or the pod people effect, but once you get to that level people seem to loose the ability to "find their arse with both hands and a road map" and "lead ants to a picnic".

QuoteI will grant them this. The things they DO get right generally outweigh the bad...so that's probably why not as many people notice.

This would probably be due to the people on the ground/Floor adapting and overcoming to the situation best of their ability, I don't think this really has anything to do with the upper leadership. Two big problems with Fanime (and most cons when they reach a certian size) seems to be the upper leadership is out of touch, and the ability to communicate between divisions/departments. Its also almost imposable to pull or shift extra human resources from one. department to another on the fly. Except for maybe the rovers who seem to be the "Goto Guys/Gals"

Staff for fanime also has the least reward of any convention I know of so you know these people are in it for their love of the cone because they don't even get a free T-shirt out of the deal .... they have to pay $10 bucks for that.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Mayhem on May 30, 2011, 10:19:39 AM
Quote from: zeroelement on May 30, 2011, 02:13:14 AM
Na i think most of everything was done LAST min. The app that was out was Fan Made days before the con. Schedule was out late for it was made late. Not much time to print it out. I think the voulenteers who do this are doing a good job but everything needs to be set in stone sooner.

This seemed to be the running theme this year at the staff meetings was every one was talking about how "Behind" everything was, and how something wasn't done yet. Part of this problem is it seems the most stuff doesn't start get rolling until about 6 months before the con.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Jelly Soup on May 30, 2011, 10:36:56 AM
Quote from: hikanteki on May 30, 2011, 04:37:57 AM
Quote from: mdarkpoet on May 29, 2011, 04:44:51 PM
Dealer's hall prices seem to have gone up for certain things O_o or is it just me for this one?

I noticed this was especially the case for Japanese imports.  This is probably due to the exchange rate being as horrible as it's ever been (on our side, anyway) for the past year, like 80 yen to the dollar.

A lot of it is due to the things being sold just being expensive in general. Saw all the Kamen Rider stuff? Thought it was expensive? Look for the same stuff on eBay or Amazon, you'll run back to the dealers double quick and buy from them.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Himeno on May 30, 2011, 11:16:57 AM
Quote from: Mayhem on May 30, 2011, 10:17:01 AMTwo big problems with Fanime (and most cons when they reach a certian size) seems to be the upper leadership is out of touch, and the ability to communicate between divisions/departments.
I've noticed. It generally isn't the 'upper leadership', it only takes one person in the upper levels to bring everything down. It is extremely annoying when (for example) the events team sends info to the promo team to get promoted and the promo team doesn't do it, or even acknowledge that the message was received, then the events team ends up doing their own promo because the people who are meant to be doing it aren't.
QuoteIts also almost imposable to pull or shift extra human resources from one. department to another on the fly.
This is exactly was they need to learn to do. Many of the problems I've seen could easily be mitigated if staff from one department went to help another department. eg, the reg problem on Thursday could have been much improved if one or two staffers each from Panels, programming and traders came down to help. By the time reg opened on Thursday, most, if not all, the work needed in some areas should have been completed and a few people from each department should have been able to be spared.
QuoteExcept for maybe the rovers who seem to be the "Goto Guys/Gals"
I noticed a lot of rovers who either didn't know what they were doing or were 'drunk' on 'power'. I think better training and/or screening of rovers would be a good idea.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: SukebeStudios on May 30, 2011, 11:43:38 AM
QuoteI noticed a lot of rovers who either didn't know what they were doing or were 'drunk' on 'power'. I think better training and/or screening of rovers would be a good idea.

I dunno if they're willing to train their staff much, since it'd be taking time out of changing their rules at the last minute, not printing schedules, losing pre-reg badges, and telling people to not wear costumes based on a non-existent rule. (SJPD told my friend they had nothing to do with the rule about  "no military or law enforcement" costume rule, and that it was stupid.) Oh well, I think it's fair to say that Fanime staff has lost control and it's going to spiral down.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: gsp113 on May 30, 2011, 02:20:05 PM
Quote from: SukebeStudios on May 30, 2011, 11:43:38 AM
QuoteI noticed a lot of rovers who either didn't know what they were doing or were 'drunk' on 'power'. I think better training and/or screening of rovers would be a good idea.

I dunno if they're willing to train their staff much, since it'd be taking time out of changing their rules at the last minute, not printing schedules, losing pre-reg badges, and telling people to not wear costumes based on a non-existent rule. (SJPD told my friend they had nothing to do with the rule about  "no military or law enforcement" costume rule, and that it was stupid.) Oh well, I think it's fair to say that Fanime staff has lost control and it's going to spiral down.

You're kidding me SJPD told u that!? The more I think about it the more silly it sounded to me along with the threatening in todays political climate rule.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: FanFicGuru on May 30, 2011, 02:46:40 PM
My one major gripe is the lack of schedules. I got the sense a lot of people were wandering around aimlessly because besides the big events they didn't have a solid idea of what was going on which is why so many people might have seen this year as a registration just to buy from the dealers hall or whatever. I will say that your con is what you make of it. you're not paying $55 to "pay for overpriced items in the dealers hall". It's on you to figure out what sorts of things you want to do at the convention. Find panels, attend gatherings, meet people, watch new anime, play games, go dancing, find deals at the swap meet, take pictures of awesome cosplayers...these things can easily fill your weekend with fun and memories if you have the initiative to do so.

Personally I wasn't exposed to any poor crowd management because I don't go to any of the really big events like Masquerade or MusicFest. I didn't see the line downstairs on Thursday or Friday but from what I could gather it was par for the course.

Anyways, this might have been my last Fanime, and I had a great time. I'm sorry to hear that others weren't as happy with their experience, but when you've got (probably) 20,000-25,000 people there are sure to be those who didn't have such a good time.

Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: True Fuschnick on May 30, 2011, 02:48:06 PM
Regarding rovers; I only met/interacted with one, and she was pretty awesome.

This year's Fanime was no where as good as last year, but I still had a good time. I guess I got lucky and avoided the crap.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Stythys on May 30, 2011, 04:13:19 PM
yeah, last year's was definitely handled better. how come people always have to screw things up :-\
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: hikari_midorichan on May 30, 2011, 06:06:59 PM
Quote from: FanFicGuru on May 30, 2011, 02:46:40 PM
My one major gripe is the lack of schedules. I got the sense a lot of people were wandering around aimlessly because besides the big events they didn't have a solid idea of what was going on which is why so many people might have seen this year as a registration just to buy from the dealers hall or whatever. I will say that your con is what you make of it. you're not paying $55 to "pay for overpriced items in the dealers hall". It's on you to figure out what sorts of things you want to do at the convention. Find panels, attend gatherings, meet people, watch new anime, play games, go dancing, find deals at the swap meet, take pictures of awesome cosplayers...these things can easily fill your weekend with fun and memories if you have the initiative to do so.

I totally agree with this. I told the exact same thing to my friend, but she didn't seem to understand. I don't believe just because you pay money for something, your expectations will be met automatically. For me, the best part of Fanime are the social events. Whether I see/meet awesome people or not is what makes or breaks my experience, and since I met a lot of really cool people, I was very happy at the end. I guess it all depends on what you're looking for in Fanime  :-\

Of course Fanime could've been much more organized, but I do think the good outweighed the bad. I don't normally go into panels or video rooms, so I can't say whether they were good or bad this year, but I did enjoy the dances, Black and White Ball, and concert. I don't know if it was just me, but Fanime seemed a lot bigger this year, and since staff seemed lacking, so hopefully they know what they're in for next year!

Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Ryo_Hellsing on May 30, 2011, 06:14:06 PM
I have to agree with everyone 100% on this. I only have two main problems with this year that kind of was a let down to me:

1) The bloody schedules. We had no idea what was going on everyday. My group was lucky that they had the phone app for the Fanime Online thing however most of the time it wouldn't work. bad connection or something/. It would only work for us when we where at the hotel. I understand the idea behind it and you know, it was epic of the staff of trying something new but however sadly it failed. I really hope that they return to the printed schedules, if not in a small handbook like in 2010 then in the huge booklet like the page for the Dance schedules (pg 25).


2) People where rude to no end on saturday. Crowd controle, where are you? The whole day I was humming the song "Class" by Chicago while walking down the hallways, trying my best to avoid the crowd, saying sorry every 5 seconds to anyone who I bumped in to. I wanted to scream at people, maybe even punch. I guess I shouldn't be complaining too much, I mean I didn't try to help out the staff or volunteer. I understand that it was under-staffed and I apoplogize to the staff memmbers for this.

I will go back this year because it was still fun and I enjoyed myself with the people.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: chifunii on May 30, 2011, 06:20:22 PM
I'll keep my dissatisfactions short, as most people have already brought it up, or it's just a tl;dr situation. :/

Schedules: These bloody things...Would've really loved one like the small booklet we got last year, but seeing as things were really thrown together at the final stretch, it was pure chaos. I ended up just looking up the things I wanted to see online the previous night.

Organization: Again, because things were kind of thrown together at the end, it seemed rushed and unorganized. Even the website took a while to go up. I mainly went for MusicFest (and the Q&As/autograph sessions of the respective artists), only to realize that the times conflicted with each other like nobody's business. I know the artists must have their own agenda, but my goodness, what?! Good thing a few of my friends didn't mind waiting in line somewhere else while I ran to each one in total confusion.

But in general I had a great time at Fanime, though this is coming from the perspective of a girl who just wanted to buy some things and watch Yuya and FLOW...I'm sitting at home now, a little sad it's over. Definitely coming back for 2012 (already pre-reg'd), but also DEFINITELY DEFINITELY hoping things will be worked out a little more clearly, both for the staff and attendee's sake.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: AntiVonn on May 30, 2011, 06:21:10 PM
Sorry you had a bad experience with the Rovers. I greatly appreciated their presence as this year. Quite frankly the majority of the attendees seemed to have no manners or common sense. And wtf is the deal with playing on the elevators and setting off the fire alarms? Really? Is your world so small and pitiful that destroying other people's property is what you do for fun?
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Jelly Soup on May 30, 2011, 06:23:31 PM
Quote from: AntiVonn on May 30, 2011, 06:21:10 PM
Sorry you had a bad experience with the Rovers. I greatly appreciated their presence as this year. Quite frankly the majority of the attendees seemed to have no manners or common sense. And wtf is the deal with playing on the elevators and setting off the fire alarms? Really? Is your world so small and pitiful that destroying other people's property is what you do for fun?

I had a small problem with the elevators in the Merriot, but it was my fault. I'm used to staying in a different hotel and forgot that the Merriot elevators has the floor buttons on both sides. I remembered they were there when I unconsciously leaned against them, hitting a bunch of buttons.  :-\
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Tsu on May 30, 2011, 06:39:20 PM
My gripes (might edit with moar detail later, using phone)-

Of course, schedules. Me and my buds missed a lot of things, not knowing when they were or forgetting to look them up online. Didn't realize swap meet was only 2 days, that the dealers room closed an hour earlier on Saturday and missed Redeath for the first time in ages. Also, some info was contradictory- the shiny booklet listed the masquerade and FMVs across the street when they werent ; said the fmv awards were on Monday when they were sunday; and even the map was somewhat out of date, listing things like starbucks at the con. Its Peets now. And I saw lollicup listed, but never saw them there, or was I just there at the wrong times?

At least some of the scheduling was off. I was looking forward to seeing some abridged series, as they were promoted before the con, but it seems they were mostly placeholders. I stumbled across death note abridged which wasn't listed on the schedule (not even generically as "abridged series") and then Nescaflowne started up_ an hour early. If I hadn't stopped in to see DNA, I would've missed Nesca, too!

Finally, registration. I realize we get bigger every year and the lines are bound to be bad, but the excuse of "we have the least volunteers/staffers on Thursday" is a tepid excuse. If you're going to offer pre and early reg pickup Thursday, which must constitute a huge portion of attendees (opposed to those who reg at the con), then make sure you have enough people to handle it. Waiting is a pain, sure, but to get up there and see that they only have like 5 people looking up the badges and handing over pre with a few more on the early print-out side is just bad. There's thousands of us... can't you russle up more people?

I think that's it for me. Didn't have issues with rovers, hotel problems or the like...
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Artemis.exe on May 30, 2011, 07:36:00 PM
In my personal opinion, Fanime was exquisite, but the lack of schedules was a HUGE letdown. I mean, I had fun nonetheless, but the lack of schedules had me running around the con trying to find out times of supposed events through word-of-mouth which was REALLY annoying. though, I do concur about the gripes of the Dealer's Hall prices. Like, $60 for a Zero No Tsukaima artbook.... WTH!? It was an issue that prevented me from getting that "Ore No Imouto" artbook when I saw it, when I came back they were outttt! :(
I mean, I still had a blast, but those two minor nitpicks were kinda downers. :P
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Rhornez on May 30, 2011, 08:13:20 PM
Masquerade,Cross Players,Cross Players Everywhere, and lack of organization like the above posts,lack of guests imo not alot of interesting things on the video rooms, the only ones i actually watched was madoka magica and kare kano the best years of the video rooms was 2009 :3 but yeah and my hotel drama as well :/
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Veriitas on May 30, 2011, 08:17:27 PM
Its true what everyone is saying there was no schedule provided, i miss thursday friday and saturday this year!!!! blahh and yes i only got 1 magazine on my bag i was hoping for some cool stuff like last year like the SCHEDULES!. Anyways i cant say much about this year i was only there for Sunday and Monday. hopefully next year they will print out schedules.




P.S i miss watching people sing and those awesome costumes. I think the best one that i saw was the 2 pokemon characters THAT WAS AN EPIC COS!!!!
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: cr08 on May 30, 2011, 08:21:37 PM
More tongue in cheek than anything: Prepare a more appropriate playlist of music to play around the con. It's not Christmas nor is it even July!  :P
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: zeroelement on May 30, 2011, 08:24:53 PM
Overall The main thing which made this Fanime less fun was the Staff not being well trained, and the lack of schedules. Lets head to the suggestion thread and tell them this.
Also Dealer hall prices cant be controlled they can ask them not to sell bootleg and that's about it. (don't forget its imported they use it as an excuse you use it as an excuse (so they don't have to ship it back to get it cheaper).

@army costume guy  Most people don't know it word for word. They guess and get it wrong like it did.

PS on the staff thing i was disappointed of the 2-3 guys checking badges outside 1 video room. Having one upper staff member walk around to see overmanned positions might of been helpful on the staff situation.

Musicale doors   There are like 6 doors on each side 2 should go in 2 should go out Easy

Overall i had fun and that was the point. Could i of had more fun HECK YES!!! But im happy with the fun i had.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: ice queen on May 30, 2011, 08:29:44 PM
You know I had these feelings last year so This year i decided to join rovers. Personally I felt we were under staff. Also they do train rovers for fyi. We even have to take tests and pass before we can rove. Trust me its very hard to be the bad guy at a place were everyone wants to have fun. This year i can tell you ive been yelled at, spat at or curse while trying to ensure peoples safety while roving. While i really understand your fusteations on blocked areas on convention floor or even fustrating lines. But in the flip side its just as fustrating for us when no one wants to listen to you when you ask politely to stay in line or out of the way. Rovers cant do what sjpd do.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: PLUMPKIN on May 30, 2011, 09:06:51 PM
I had a pretty good time at this year's Fanime.  Of course there are always a handful of con-goers/staffers that irk me in one way or another, but I'll try not to nitpick.

I think my biggest complaint would have to be the pre-reg badge pickup.  I found it rather shocking that given the number of people in line, there were only 5 booths open on Thursday night.  A few people I was in line with even joked that pick-up of Friday may be shorter.  Thankfully, the group registration process helped with the line somewhat.

Is it possible to just mail out badges?  Fanime grows in attendance each year, and at this rate 5 staffers handing out badges to thousands of people may not cut it.  Is there a reason that badges aren't mailed out?  I understand that IDs are checked when badges are picked up, but only if you're a group leader or group of one.  I think that charging $5-$10 to have badges mailed out would be a great way to make profit, since postage for a single badge isn't going to cost $5.  I would be more than happy to pay that much (or more) if it saves me from 3 hours of standing in line.

If this isn't possible, maybe have more than 5 booths open during pre-reg pickup.  If there's difficulty obtaining bodies, then provide incentives for volunteering, such as picking up your badge without having to in line.  Do they still provide double hours on Thursday?

Anyway, I had fun this year at Fanime.  Staffing something of this magnitude is hard work; I know from experience.  Kudos to everyone who put their time and effort into this.  I'm thinking of possibly staffing/volunteering next year.  Can't wait!
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: zeroelement on May 30, 2011, 09:10:25 PM
Quote from: PLUMPKIN on May 30, 2011, 09:06:51 PM
I had a pretty good time at this year's Fanime.  Of course there are always a handful of con-goers/staffers that irk me in one way or another, but I'll try not to nitpick.

I think my biggest complaint would have to be the pre-reg badge pickup.  I found it rather shocking that given the number of people in line, there were only 5 booths open on Thursday night.  A few people I was in line with even joked that pick-up of Friday may be shorter.  Thankfully, the group registration process helped with the line somewhat.

Is it possible to just mail out badges?  Fanime grows in attendance each year, and at this rate 5 staffers handing out badges to thousands of people may not cut it.  Is there a reason that badges aren't mailed out?  I understand that IDs are checked when badges are picked up, but only if you're a group leader or group of one.  I think that charging $5-$10 to have badges mailed out would be a great way to make profit, since postage for a single badge isn't going to cost $5.  I would be more than happy to pay that much (or more) if it saves me from 3 hours of standing in line.

If this isn't possible, maybe have more than 5 booths open during pre-reg pickup.  If there's difficulty obtaining bodies, then provide incentives for volunteering, such as picking up your badge without having to in line.  Do they still provide double hours on Thursday?

Anyway, I had fun this year at Fanime.  Staffing something of this magnitude is hard work; I know from experience.  Kudos to everyone who put their time and effort into this.  I'm thinking of possibly staffing/volunteering next year.  Can't wait!
Day 0 is optional Also if you get their early once the line opens up you don't have to wait long.
And heck line talk is fun!
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: crystalsoul on May 30, 2011, 09:12:49 PM
Quote from: zeroelement on May 30, 2011, 09:10:25 PM
Quote from: PLUMPKIN on May 30, 2011, 09:06:51 PM
I had a pretty good time at this year's Fanime.  Of course there are always a handful of con-goers/staffers that irk me in one way or another, but I'll try not to nitpick.

I think my biggest complaint would have to be the pre-reg badge pickup.  I found it rather shocking that given the number of people in line, there were only 5 booths open on Thursday night.  A few people I was in line with even joked that pick-up of Friday may be shorter.  Thankfully, the group registration process helped with the line somewhat.

Is it possible to just mail out badges?  Fanime grows in attendance each year, and at this rate 5 staffers handing out badges to thousands of people may not cut it.  Is there a reason that badges aren't mailed out?  I understand that IDs are checked when badges are picked up, but only if you're a group leader or group of one.  I think that charging $5-$10 to have badges mailed out would be a great way to make profit, since postage for a single badge isn't going to cost $5.  I would be more than happy to pay that much (or more) if it saves me from 3 hours of standing in line.

If this isn't possible, maybe have more than 5 booths open during pre-reg pickup.  If there's difficulty obtaining bodies, then provide incentives for volunteering, such as picking up your badge without having to in line.  Do they still provide double hours on Thursday?

Anyway, I had fun this year at Fanime.  Staffing something of this magnitude is hard work; I know from experience.  Kudos to everyone who put their time and effort into this.  I'm thinking of possibly staffing/volunteering next year.  Can't wait!
Day 0 is optional Also if you get their early once the line opens up you don't have to wait long.
And heck line talk is fun!
but i can sympathize with him. if you get stuck in the back of the line it is a long wait :<

i was lucky some friends saved me a spot so the line was not too long Dx
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: PLUMPKIN on May 30, 2011, 09:21:35 PM
Quote from: zeroelement on May 30, 2011, 09:10:25 PM

Day 0 is optional Also if you get their early once the line opens up you don't have to wait long.
And heck line talk is fun!

I understand that, but some of us have jobs and can't get in line until after 5pm.  Also, some of us want to get our badges early so we can make the most of the rest of the weekend.  Isn't early badge pick-up part of the point of pre-registration?

I suppose I don't see why badges can't be mailed out.  I think it would be a great way for Fanime to generate more profit by charging an extra $5-$10 for mailing, and I'm sure there are many ways you can incentivize it (i.e. volunteer hours, early badge pickup, cookies) so you can get volunteers!  Just an idea :)
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: zeroelement on May 30, 2011, 09:28:58 PM
Quote from: PLUMPKIN on May 30, 2011, 09:21:35 PM
Quote from: zeroelement on May 30, 2011, 09:10:25 PM

Day 0 is optional Also if you get their early once the line opens up you don't have to wait long.
And heck line talk is fun!

I understand that, but some of us have jobs and can't get in line until after 5pm.  Also, some of us want to get our badges early so we can make the most of the rest of the weekend.  Isn't early badge pick-up part of the point of pre-registration?

I suppose I don't see why badges can't be mailed out.  I think it would be a great way for Fanime to generate more profit by charging an extra $5-$10 for mailing, and I'm sure there are many ways you can incentivize it (i.e. volunteer hours, early badge pickup, cookies) so you can get volunteers!  Just an idea :)

Yea they used to mail them out. But they would need to get ready before that. Most the staff and voulenteers at that point i think. Overall normally the line is only supposed to be open 2-3 hours not the many it was.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: bebop on May 30, 2011, 09:38:11 PM
I think Fanime really is dying out, which mostly pertains to the new people and their new ways or organizing.

- Too many Crossplayers this year. What the hell? Hado Gei should be the only exception but aside from that I think I saw more Crossplayer guys than I saw Cosplayer girls.

- Crooks. The scene is getting invaded by more crooks every year. This is really affecting the scene, for it was once a scene with innocence and respect. The scene is getting more creepier in every way possible. I feel like it is getting less safe for the younger generations.

- what was with all the Yoko Ritona cosplayers? Everywhere I went I saw a Yoko cosplayer, or some other Gurren Lagann cosplayer. Don't get me wrong, that Anime was great (uh, back in 2007-2008) and I think it's time to move on or be somewhat original! I remember Fanime 2007-2009 had the best costumes. everybody was pretty different, unique, and creative cosplayers. this year it seemed like everybody just bought their costumes on those cheap cosplay websites and half assed their costumes.

- i hate to say it but i think fanime is just getting messier every year. it is either the people who go, or the staff. I am not sure but one thing for sure is that the schedules not printed out was a major issue for me. I didn't even know where I was going most of the time this year.

- Fanimaid Cafe really sucks.... really, you're just going there to buy overpriced sandwiches and look at maids. and to add on to that, the maids don't even give you good service. they don't check up on their customers. the food sucks.

- The Dance had an AWESOME dancefloor with so much good space and the lights were decent. however, the DJs playing were mediocre in terms of song selection. they didn't know how to really move a crowd throughout the night. I mean, dont get me wrong, it's fun dancing in there for only about 20 minutes until you actually get really bored and leave. The DJs was crap and the music was crap as well. I was in there for a few hours at certain moments and it just seemed to me like the music was never changing, or evolving to more innovating track selections.

- The dealer's hall has nothing new or interesting. it has remained stagnant. I seriously bought nothing in there except a wig so I could get better hair next year.

personally I think most people nowadays aren't into "Anime" anymore. I think that if people stop watching anime or lose interest in anime, then it would greatly affect the bliss of the convention. I dont blame them though, these last couple years the Anime scene has greatly been displeasing. Around 2006-2008 we had the Naruto, Bleach, Fate/Stay Night phase but the cosplayers were pretty awesome. around 2009-2010 there was a load of Code Geass, Vocaloid, and the early upspring of Tohou Cosplayers. but this year, there was nothing new. I hate to say it but there needs to be a new innovating anime that is worth watching and bringing forth the interest again. maybe we're just getting too old for shit


Mod edit: It's called a dance:)
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Kite on May 30, 2011, 09:42:21 PM
 I do have to agree with some of the complaints made here.

There is this one thing, but I'm bot sure how to describe it.

If in my crude attempt I would describe it as the energy the con-goers were giving off. Two or three conventions ago, the energy felt spectacular. But last year and this year, well the energy seemed kind of dwindled. But of course it could have just been me. However this was just a thought I had.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: otakuya on May 30, 2011, 09:53:48 PM
^ it doesn't feel like an ANIME convention anymore, rather a free-for-all anything-goes gathering.

10 years ago, conventions were nerdy gatherings, meaningful anime discussion panels, world-premiere video rooms, and stuff-you-can't-find-anywhere-else items in the dealers. Nowadays, is it really about anime?

I understand, though, that it is in tune with the times and the anime industry and market. However, the city of San Jose must have benefited financially for all the business the con generated
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Rhornez on May 30, 2011, 09:57:36 PM
Quote from: bebop on May 30, 2011, 09:38:11 PM
I think Fanime really is dying out, which mostly pertains to the new people and their new ways or organizing.

- Too many Crossplayers this year. What the hell? Hado Gei should be the only exception but aside from that I think I saw more Crossplayer guys than I saw Cosplayer girls.

- Crooks. The scene is getting invaded by more crooks every year. This is really affecting the scene, for it was once a scene with innocence and respect. The scene is getting more creepier in every way possible. I feel like it is getting less safe for the younger generations.

- what was with all the Yoko Ritona cosplayers? Everywhere I went I saw a Yoko cosplayer, or some other Gurren Lagann cosplayer. Don't get me wrong, that Anime was great (uh, back in 2007-2008) and I think it's time to move on or be somewhat original! I remember Fanime 2007-2009 had the best costumes. everybody was pretty different, unique, and creative cosplayers. this year it seemed like everybody just bought their costumes on those cheap cosplay websites and half assed their costumes.

- i hate to say it but i think fanime is just getting messier every year. it is either the people who go, or the staff. I am not sure but one thing for sure is that the schedules not printed out was a major issue for me. I didn't even know where I was going most of the time this year.

- Fanimaid Cafe really sucks.... really, you're just going there to buy overpriced sandwiches and look at maids. and to add on to that, the maids don't even give you good service. they don't check up on their customers. the food sucks.

- The Dance had an AWESOME dancefloor with so much good space and the lights were decent. however, the DJs playing were mediocre in terms of song selection. they didn't know how to really move a crowd throughout the night. I mean, dont get me wrong, it's fun dancing in there for only about 20 minutes until you actually get really bored and leave. The DJs was crap and the music was crap as well. I was in there for a few hours at certain moments and it just seemed to me like the music was never changing, or evolving to more innovating track selections.

- The dealer's hall has nothing new or interesting. it has remained stagnant. I seriously bought nothing in there except a wig so I could get better hair next year.

personally I think most people nowadays aren't into "Anime" anymore. I think that if people stop watching anime or lose interest in anime, then it would greatly affect the bliss of the convention. I dont blame them though, these last couple years the Anime scene has greatly been displeasing. Around 2006-2008 we had the Naruto, Bleach, Fate/Stay Night phase but the cosplayers were pretty awesome. around 2009-2010 there was a load of Code Geass, Vocaloid, and the early upspring of Tohou Cosplayers. but this year, there was nothing new. I hate to say it but there needs to be a new innovating anime that is worth watching and bringing forth the interest again. maybe we're just getting too old for shit

I saw crooks in the dance, LIKE 6 people standing there obviously they stood out and didnt belong there, they just stared and talked amongst each other .....
and i am creating an innovative anime on my own that wont be released in another 5 years  :-\


Mod edit: It's called a dance:)
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: LordKefka on May 30, 2011, 09:57:58 PM
I don't think I've ever had a bad FanimeCon experience since 2004 when I started going

:V
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: LordKefka on May 30, 2011, 10:05:21 PM
Ok I want to add on people saying how it doesn't feel like an anime con anymore.

I actually want to agree and disagree. When I was at Anime Boston a month ago, good cosplayers were so scarce I literally had to look through a hundred to even get one.

The problem isn't with the people but with any recent " big hit" anime other than Madoka Magica which I did see a good number at FanimeCon (where as Anime Boston had... 1 )

K-On! was last year and Lucky Star, Haruhi, TTGL, Code Geass and etc were the last previous whatever years.

I'm sure a lot of cosplayers WANT to cosplay as something but problem numero uno is the anime hence why the feeling of that lack of. People follow the fandom here at FanimeCon in respect to what's released in Japan quite closely and I would say probably on the same level of AX if not more since AX is an industry con (not saying that's a bad thing) where many fans are casual and not as closely in tuned with releases overseas as much as they are with domestic licenses and such.

I wish you all were at Anime Boston to see the dry spell. In comparison, you guys are spoiled here.

And the guy talking shit about the maids, what service were you expecting? I was there for both Saturday and Sunday and after visiting about oh I don't know, every table that was set up, there was a maid present either chatting with the people there or playing games with them. I spoke with a maid in her after hours and she worked 12+ hours in the combined two days. Take the time they have to train for their performances on Stage Zero and so forth, I don't know why there should even be any negative attitude towards them.

Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Rhornez on May 30, 2011, 10:11:48 PM
anime i havent seen cosplayed yet, Baka To Test To Shoukanjuu
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: bebop on May 30, 2011, 10:14:27 PM
Yeah the crooks are really killing the scene! I do agree too that it is turning too much into a free-style, all around convention.

it's true, I enjoyed the innocence and the bliss of the nerd energy back then. well don't get me wrong, I was only 15-17 years old when I truly enjoyed Fanime the most. maybe yeah, I'm getting too old, but I just get a vibe that the older crowd had much more charisma.

There are definitely crooks there and they seem to be doubling in size and numbers since last year. (last year was when I noticed it was bad, but this year was even WORSE) pretty soon, the scene will be more about "protecting myself, staying safe, gotta stay away from this area and that because there are creeps," blah blah.

I think the original nerdy people (who were awesome) and used to go have been reduced.

honestly it seems like people don't respect the convention anymore

edit:
Quote from: LordKefkaAnd the guy talking shit about the maids, what service were you expecting?

What was I expecting? Not much. I am not expecting a 5 star restaurant service. In fact, maybe I was being a little too critical, since I work at a 4/4.5 star restaurant, and since I do great customer service on the ordinary. So if I sounded too blunt, I apologize. but what do you want me to say? Should I have worded it alternatively?
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: REPO77 on May 30, 2011, 10:21:22 PM
I think I will add my 2 cents here. My big issue was the reservations at the Fairmont. I had Reservations but had to change things. And the website said there were rooms available, but every time I would try to reserve one it would say otherwise. I think some events should have been labeled better. Also there was one dealer in the vendor hall who was a major jerk. I bought something from another table and they did not have a bag for it. So I walked around holding the box. I went into the area selling all the Models and they guy grills me about where I bought it, how much, and damn near cussed me out for not having a bag for it. And instead of being cool, and offering me a bag he tells me to get out. And the item I bought was a TOY, not a freaking model kit. I hope they do not invite that moron back.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: DarkfallDC on May 30, 2011, 10:23:30 PM
Before I add to the compaints here, let me say I love Fanime. It's always a nice way to spend my weekend and unwind, especially after the school semester. However, this year, I was feeling a bit let down by the organization.

1. No schedules - Wiith so many events going on, you're bound to miss something important or something you'd like to go to without a schedule to tell you when everything is happening.

2. Congestion - There needs to be some ways to deal with the massive crowds that might occur. I never had a problem with this before, but with the super-heavy rain that occured this year, it was literally shoulder-to-shoulder costume-breaking crowds.

3. Rudeness of rovers - During the dance, my girlfriend wasn't dancing and instead was holding onto both of our badges while I mixed it up. She went outside to get a drink of water, and a rover threatened to pull both of the badges. Also, waiting in lines for events was absolutely ridiculous, especially in regards to the B&W ball (though I'm not sure if those are Fanime officials or not). The people supervising were just obscenely rude to those in line.

4. Supervision at the B&W ball - Very simple, but people should not be running through the dance floor or trying to start conga lines at the ball. That kind of thing needs to be put down fast.

5. Lastly, the DJs at the dances- The beats were super weak this year. The music would not keep flowing like it should for a rave.

However, despite all these, I still had plenty of fun at this year's Fanime. I especially enjoyed plaing Marvel on Stage Zero. It was a nice touch not having to donate tons of money to get up on stage.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Wabbit98 on May 30, 2011, 10:27:50 PM
Quote from: DarkfallDC on May 30, 2011, 10:23:30 PM

4. Supervision at the B&W ball - Very simple, but people should not be running through the dance floor or trying to start conga lines at the ball. That kind of thing needs to be put down fast.


We did try to keep it under control, but at times it is difficult to always stop every person doing something like that.  Thank you for your comments and we will take them under consideration for next year.

Thank you,
Kevin
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: bebop on May 30, 2011, 10:28:26 PM
Yeah, geez... I think even the rain on Saturday was nature's way of saying this year we were gonna be screwed.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: LordKefka on May 30, 2011, 10:30:13 PM
Quote from: bebop on May 30, 2011, 10:14:27 PM
Yeah the crooks are really killing the scene! I do agree too that it is turning too much into a free-style, all around convention.

it's true, I enjoyed the innocence and the bliss of the nerd energy back then. well don't get me wrong, I was only 15-17 years old when I truly enjoyed Fanime the most. maybe yeah, I'm getting too old, but I just get a vibe that the older crowd had much more charisma.

There are definitely crooks there and they seem to be doubling in size and numbers since last year. (last year was when I noticed it was bad, but this year was even WORSE) pretty soon, the scene will be more about "protecting myself, staying safe, gotta stay away from this area and that because there are creeps," blah blah.

I think the original nerdy people (who were awesome) and used to go have been reduced.

honestly it seems like people don't respect the convention anymore

edit:
Quote from: LordKefkaAnd the guy talking shit about the maids, what service were you expecting?

What was I expecting? Not much. I am not expecting a 5 star restaurant service. In fact, maybe I was being a little too critical, since I work at a 4/4.5 star restaurant, and since I do great customer service on the ordinary. So if I sounded too blunt, I apologize. but what do you want me to say? Should I have worded it alternatively?

First off, you didn't even back anything up. All you based it off of was... I don't even know. You just said it sucked and they don't check on their customers. As in what? You want them, with a crowd looping half way around the maid cafe area, to literally every time I checked up to offer whatever star service on your level of expectations while offering service on a 100% volunteer basis? And I'm almost positive you haven't taken the time to sit down and chat with people for hours on end while playing games and providing other people their " bad service" at your amazing half a dozen star place you work at.

Also the food they don't make. You can thank the Hilton for whatever food and price they charge before you start ignorantly blaming the maid cafe itself in that aspect.

You can also say whatever you want. Just make sure you get the facts straight next time before wording whatever you wanted to word.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: LordKefka on May 30, 2011, 10:36:14 PM
Quote from: DarkfallDC on May 30, 2011, 10:23:30 PM
Before I add to the compaints here, let me say I love Fanime. It's always a nice way to spend my weekend and unwind, especially after the school semester. However, this year, I was feeling a bit let down by the organization.

1. No schedules - Wiith so many events going on, you're bound to miss something important or something you'd like to go to without a schedule to tell you when everything is happening.

2. Congestion - There needs to be some ways to deal with the massive crowds that might occur. I never had a problem with this before, but with the super-heavy rain that occured this year, it was literally shoulder-to-shoulder costume-breaking crowds.

3. Rudeness of rovers - During the dance, my girlfriend wasn't dancing and instead was holding onto both of our badges while I mixed it up. She went outside to get a drink of water, and a rover threatened to pull both of the badges. Also, waiting in lines for events was absolutely ridiculous, especially in regards to the B&W ball (though I'm not sure if those are Fanime officials or not). The people supervising were just obscenely rude to those in line.

4. Supervision at the B&W ball - Very simple, but people should not be running through the dance floor or trying to start conga lines at the ball. That kind of thing needs to be put down fast.

5. Lastly, the DJs at the dances - The beats were super weak this year. The music would not keep flowing like it should for a rave.

However, despite all these, I still had plenty of fun at this year's Fanime. I especially enjoyed plaing Marvel on Stage Zero. It was a nice touch not having to donate tons of money to get up on stage.

No schedule was the biggest issue for people.

Congestion - there were... a lot of people this year.

Rudeness of Rovers - well I have to admit I even got that attitude at the Yuya/FLOW concert. I watched one toss a girl out for recording part of Yuya's concert. That said, the guy then went to the side and told a few other staffers he just had to throw someone out for recording the concert and high-fived them cause he did it. THAT wasn't appropriate.

Didn't go to B&W ball or Dance so I can't comment.


Mod edit: It's called a dance:)
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Ryo_Hellsing on May 30, 2011, 10:36:58 PM
Quote from: bebop on May 30, 2011, 09:38:11 PM
- Too many Crossplayers this year. What the hell? Hado Gei should be the only exception but aside from that I think I saw more Crossplayer guys than I saw Cosplayer girls.

I am confused on this. Why is this in the problem thread? I mean so what if there was more male crossplayers this year. Go them for having the guts to do it.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: zeroelement on May 30, 2011, 10:42:59 PM
Quote from: Rhornez on May 30, 2011, 10:11:48 PM
anime i havent seen cosplayed yet, Baka To Test To Shoukanjuu
my friend did it one day
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: zeroelement on May 30, 2011, 10:57:47 PM
Quote from: bebop on May 30, 2011, 09:38:11 PM


- Too many Crossplayers this year. What the hell? Hado Gei should be the only exception but aside from that I think I saw more Crossplayer guys than I saw Cosplayer girls.



- what was with all the Yoko Ritona cosplayers? Everywhere I went I saw a Yoko cosplayer, or some other Gurren Lagann cosplayer. Don't get me wrong, that Anime was great (uh, back in 2007-2008) and I think it's time to move on or be somewhat original! I remember Fanime 2007-2009 had the best costumes. everybody was pretty different, unique, and creative cosplayers. this year it seemed like everybody just bought their costumes on those cheap cosplay websites and half assed their costumes.

First Crossplay is 100% fine. If you just go to look at hot girls and girls showing alot of skin go to a strip club. Most girls tend to do alot of male cosplay better than most guys. And some girls are not conferable with showing much skin or don't have the perfect figures nearly every anime character has.  Also Guys outfit tends to be more fun to be in and warmer. (also how would you like to know that nearly every guy there is looking at your but and junk? Now imagen all of those guys way older than you.)

Yoko is a favorite cosplay to do because its fun. People cosplay there fav animes and recently there hasnt been a BIG influx on new animes with the ability to cosplay (school uniform or street cloths are easy to do hard to let people notice).

Some people cant build their own cosplay, it may be easy to some but its hard to others. Not every girl or guy knows or even owns a needle and thread. Sometimes its cheaper to buy it. I have bought one cosplay online just because of cloth cost and it looked good. My other cosplays i have made myself.

As for the people who "half ass it" well sorry that they aren't perfect like you. Also i dont see you complaining about people dressing up as team rocket. Thats from the 90's  yoko is 100% new compared to pokemon red and blue. Also i saw maybe 2-3 yoko's this year thats a small amount unlike last year. Also people watch anime at different times sorry if they are late to the party lets them have their fun.

Ps my cosplay was from a manga thats current. I was the Fat free yes im overweight but thats not going to stop me from having fun at a convention.


B&W ball Dude let them have fun the line will last 2-3 mins then end.

Damce Not Fanime's fault DJ's should of done better but then again they mostly DJ other songs i would guess so nothing would be perfect. Also its not like they got to practice with the set up there.

Maid Cafe guy.  I thought the same thing years ago when i noticed the prices. But if you did go there you should of looked from the line what was going on. They say hi, give you your food, ask if everything is ok, kick you out. Sounds right to me. Do i wish they would of given me a massage or more food for less? no der but they got to get threw tons of horny guys looken at their outfits thinking things. Also most of the guys at the convention don't bath (i do) 


Mod edit: It's called a dance:)
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: hikanteki on May 30, 2011, 11:05:23 PM
Quote from: Kite on May 30, 2011, 09:42:21 PM
I do have to agree with some of the complaints made here.

There is this one thing, but I'm bot sure how to describe it.

If in my crude attempt I would describe it as the energy the con-goers were giving off. Two or three conventions ago, the energy felt spectacular. But last year and this year, well the energy seemed kind of dwindled. But of course it could have just been me. However this was just a thought I had.

This.

The attendees in general (and even many of the panelists) did seem pretty lackadaisical.  I don't think it has to do with the size, because some bigger conventions (i.e. WonderCon, ComicCon -- I know those aren't anime-focused but they are examples of big conventions with a great energy) & smaller conventions alike have the same great energy.  I thought it was a *slight* step up from last year, however.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Rhornez on May 30, 2011, 11:07:51 PM
i dont mind girl cross players but the male cross players....rant lol
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: zeroelement on May 30, 2011, 11:13:48 PM
Quote from: Rhornez on May 30, 2011, 11:07:51 PM
i dont mind girl cross players but the male cross players....rant lol

You don't mind the girls getting half naked then don't rant. (i don't mind guys crossplaying i think its odd but not weird, Dont forget cons are were people can go out and have fun if thats fun for them let them have fun)
PS don't look at them perversely and its ok XD
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Rhornez on May 30, 2011, 11:17:05 PM
Quote from: zeroelement on May 30, 2011, 11:13:48 PM
Quote from: Rhornez on May 30, 2011, 11:07:51 PM
i dont mind girl cross players but the male cross players....rant lol

You don't mind the girls getting half naked then don't rant. (i don't mind guys crossplaying i think its odd but not weird, Dont forget cons are were people can go out and have fun if thats fun for them let them have fun)
PS don't look at them perversely and its ok XD
I THOUGHT ONE OF THE crossplayers WAS A GIRL FAR AWAY,my face when i was severely disappointed and i got scarred
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: zeroelement on May 30, 2011, 11:23:36 PM
Quote from: Rhornez on May 30, 2011, 11:17:05 PM
Quote from: zeroelement on May 30, 2011, 11:13:48 PM
Quote from: Rhornez on May 30, 2011, 11:07:51 PM
i dont mind girl cross players but the male cross players....rant lol

You don't mind the girls getting half naked then don't rant. (i don't mind guys crossplaying i think its odd but not weird, Dont forget cons are were people can go out and have fun if thats fun for them let them have fun)
PS don't look at them perversely and its ok XD
I THOUGHT ONE OF THE crossplayers WAS A GIRL FAR AWAY,my face when i was severely disappointed and i got scarred
I learned this lessen on my first Fanime walking there. Saw a school girl cosplay thought it was a girl. The walk was wrong and the heck was manly. The neck tends to give the gender away.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Rhornez on May 30, 2011, 11:24:15 PM
ahaha
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: bebop on May 30, 2011, 11:26:05 PM
yeah these "traps" from Japan have started to become a trend here as well. I didn't know I took pictures of a guy when I was doing a group photo.

You guys brought up good arguments but it won't change anything. I still think this year was pretty bad.

no I dont go just to check out girls. I didn't see much good male cosplayers this year though, however

I guess perhaps it is the trickle down theory. if the anime scene is stagnant or sucks, then the community gets driven down too  ???
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: kaizoku on May 30, 2011, 11:33:45 PM
Quote from: Mayhem on May 29, 2011, 03:51:56 AM
QuoteADDENDUM

Other FORBIDDEN costumes include the following:

Modern Paramilitary
Modern Military
ANY costume that could be misunderstood as threatening in the current political climate
Any ROVER has the power to decide what meets the criteria for a forbidden costume.

Do we get told this Months in advance? ... No!
Do we get told this Days in advance? .... No!
Do we get told this on Day zero? .... No!

I get told this on day 1 just before opening ceremonies, and I get told I should have read the rules (which were not amended to reflect the new rule until after my entire ordeal). I get made to feel like crap about not reading the non-existent rules, and When Fanime realizes they Screwed the pooch, do they rescind the the rule till next year (this really should not have been much of a problem) ... no! I get bent over the counter, and they Do me like virgin at a drunken roman orgy! I don't even get the courtesy of a kiss and some lube! All this while being apologized to like I was some sort of molested alter boy the church doesn't want embarrassing them. Thanks fanime! I blew a few hundred buck on a costume I cannot use, not only because of someones lack of intestinal fortitude, but because of their absolute laziness to to keep the fans and attendees informed in a timely manor.

Honestly I do not feel I'm obligated to not talk about this in either my review or rant. If I wanted the sand paper condom treatment I would have gone to Anime Expo as standard attendee. With all the B.S. I have had to put up at Fanime this year I will most likely not be attending next year, and I get paid to go to this! (at best I'm asking for more money).

This was my first attempt at playing dress up at a convention and I have been attending Anime conventions for over a decade, so here I am, about to get my Cospay cherry popped so to speak, and the experience has left me so disappointed (darn near traumatized) That I doubt I will ever dress up even for Halloween in fear that I will get jumped by the fun Nazi and beaten by her killjoy stick.

I would rather be spending my Memorial day weekend honoring my fellow soldiers that have sacrificed their lives for my freedom, then getting made to feel ashamed for my own service to this country.

Yes! I'm still Angry about this.
get over it.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: zeroelement on May 30, 2011, 11:38:45 PM
Quote from: bebop on May 30, 2011, 11:26:05 PM
yeah these "traps" from Japan have started to become a trend here as well. I didn't know I took pictures of a guy when I was doing a group photo.

You guys brought up good arguments but it won't change anything. I still think this year was pretty bad.

no I dont go just to check out girls. I didn't see much good male cosplayers this year though, however

I guess perhaps it is the trickle down theory. if the anime scene is stagnant or sucks, then the community gets driven down too  ???

anime outfits of this years anime weren't that good tbh to start with so cospalyers didnt have alot to work with. Star driver and Kore wa zombie desu kai (sp) were the main new ones and i saw some but the outfits werent that easy to make. Also some people like me are making their own now so just because its not perfect does not mean its not cosplay. Also the good ones tend to be bought or made by people with skill.  I thought this year was great with the little kids cosplays. Mini doctor mini tifa mini maka and medusa and FMA. (sp idc its late) I personaly thought my Free cosplay was great yea i have a gut and the legs were to wide but hey it was my frist cosplay i made myself bound to not be perfect i never even turned on a sewing machine before and im betting im not alone there. (also the enconemy(sp) how it is not that easy to get best of best or more than one try)
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: cutiebunny on May 31, 2011, 12:45:11 AM
Complaint - Lack of Events on Friday

Other than the 'Opening Ceremony', why didn't Fanime schedule anything guest of honor related for Friday? I would have loved to have attended some guest related panels on Friday, but instead, everything was packed into Saturday and Sunday.  And while having a back-to-back panel and autograph session makes it easier for the guest, it makes it difficult for attendees that would like to show support for the guest by attending the panel instead of waiting in line for the autograph session.

What I loved about Fanime 2010 was that things were spread out.  And while I know that it's impossible to do 'everything' at a convention, I felt that I had the option of doing multiple things rather than spending the bulk of my time going from line to line.  Because of this, I was able to attend the FLOW concert on Friday but then also check out Mori & Ishiwatari's autograph session on Saturday.  Yes, there were fewer guests at Fanime 2010, but it seemed that each of the four days in 2010 was utilized, rather than the 'must-cram-everything-on-Saturday/Sunday' attitude that was present this year. My guess is that Fanime staff received complaints from 2010 con-goers frustrated that they couldn't attend the FLOW concert because it was on Friday.  I think a simple 'Sorry' should suffice.  If you want to attend all four days, make arrangements to do so.  I know it's hard when you have a job, attend school or have to travel a significant distance to do so.  Most of us fit somewhere in this general classification.  But, we manage.


Oh, and the lack of schedules that everyone has already mentioned...


Compliment - Everything Else!

Having experienced a few large conventions, I thought that Fanime ran smoothly.  Yes, there were some rovers that acted as if they were attending Police Academy training and the lack of communication regarding current events amongst staff was sometimes very obvious, but, they're something that happens at every convention. Unless you're a Disneyland greeter, not everyone is going to be friendly to you every minute of the day.  Nor will they be on their A game at all times.  But there were a lot of staff members that were completely dedicated and were enthusiastic.  I saw a staffer who was still standing up, working, despite having a sprained ankle.  That's dedication right there and kudos for you for doing so!

Above all, I thought the guests who I met were spectacular and I really want to thank them for putting up with us, despite the grouchiness (and smell) that comes from an entire day spent in multiple autograph lines, with little food/water and what sometimes felt like a sauna.  Guests like Yokota-san who stayed until 3am to finish sketches for attendees, Iida-san who scratched his dinner reservations to work through the line and Yoshimatsu, who, despite wanting to see the concert, stayed a good 1.5 hours beyond his autograph session to draw sketches really should be thanked.  I absolutely love guests like this and it's a real treat to meet people who are this dedicated.  I've gone to conventions where the exact opposite guests exist, and it really dampers a convention experience.  A big *thanks* to guests this year, and for those who selected them.  Stellar job!

And last but not least, the Charity Auctions!  I'm not sure how much Sunday's auctions brought in, but the $38,800 that Monday's auctions earned was incredible and a feat I'm sure many attendees would love to repeat.

Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Miyu_Mya on May 31, 2011, 01:01:39 AM
The things I noticed was how there were a lot more people(like double last year) at the con and that most con goers were more irritated, snappy, and insulting.
I've always known Fanime to be a friendly convention unlike the Big convention, Anime Expo. I was really disappointed when a girl walking behind me bluntly said "Why are b**ches calling me ...." because they thought she was a different Character. People have named cosplayers wrong before and they never get mean about it. I remember thinking "mean people should not be a Fanime."
I was also on an Elevator where a person got upset because someone from the 5th floor was going down. Quote "people who are on the 5th floor should just take the stairs."
Another, My friend fell against the buttons on the elevator hitting 5 floors and the people in the elevator started yelling at her. She even apologized but that didn't help. They should be mad at is the guy that hit a lot of buttons and ran out of the Elevator rather then the girl that got tired and fell upon it.
I have never heard or experience this when I attended previous Fanime con.
Lets keep Fanime a friendly convention. Thats why I love going here.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: heroblade20 on May 31, 2011, 01:22:05 AM
It seems to me the best complaint is lack of schedule, but even then the argument is floppy.
Schedule, I realize this was a huge problem for everyone it even pissed me off-_-, BUT the schedule was posted a week or two in advance so you could print it at your own discretion. Though I do agree with something an earlier poster stated, they could have sacrificed a page or two from the guide book to the schedule. In the end it is a cost cutting measure that excises what is not entirely necessary just be thankful that they offered the schedule in advance at all I suppose.

Crowd Control- Unless u want to be herded like sheep or something this is a difficult thing to enforce. There will always be ppl taking pictures I mean hell thats half the fun of a con right there. The rovers did their best imo. The number of times I heard stay against the wall was sufficient.
The protestors played a large part in the lack of staff to control the crowd. Yes this cult of protestors is rather obnoxious and annoying, but on saturday there were three max I think. The staff made the right choice of prtecting them considering there was a mob of about 100( minimum) ready to rip them in half.
Rover respect- Rudeness is annoying yes, but put yourself in their shoes please. Some ppl come to cons to get wasted and harass ppl try getting a bunch of those in one day and see how short tempered you are( u dont count velociraptor Jesus). It isn't like some fans don't ask for it; I saw a rover who was simply directing traffic get asked so disrespectfully, " Why can't we go in yet? What is wrong with you guys?" this is in addition to the number of ppl who didnt get how many times they needed to repeat this isn thte exit.-_-

Crowds/ doesn't feel like an animecon- Its a good thing isnt it? It means our con is growing. What're we gonna do punish ppl for dressing up as wolverine? I mean there isnt really anything wrong with a anime con which appeals to its attendees. :)
Crime- Hard to enforce with all teh costumed ppl unless we get otaku police who remember every character and their belongings xD which I would be all for. More ppl= more problems. This does not however forgive it and I am truly sorry to the victims, " Shut Up Crime!!"
My annoyances
haha,-_- Too many kids. I swear it was like middle school just got out... I saw the line for the Black and White ball and thought," Is there a prom going on right now?"
I realize there is nothing that can be done(*.* Unless we become an 18+ con... Sounds kinda gross) but :D I do enjoy whining about it.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Mayhem on May 31, 2011, 01:26:48 AM
Quote from: kaizoku on May 30, 2011, 11:33:45 PM
get over it.

Now why would I do something like that?
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Tsubasakissu on May 31, 2011, 02:05:11 AM
Also, the Panels Head, is/was rude to alot of the panelists, and she wouldnt give out panelists tickets on day 0, like SHE SAID SHE WOULD in emails sent out. She said she would be out on the Stage 0 info desk. People came and waited. and guess what ? She never came. Ever. And we were given no fore-warning at all. I mean, people DONT have to do panels. They want to. the LEAST you could do is be courteous to them.Alot of other panelists had/have had problems with her in the past too/
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: bebop on May 31, 2011, 02:21:42 AM
who is she?
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: idontknow on May 31, 2011, 08:18:24 AM
ranting time!

SCHEDULES. Seems like everyone was frustrated about this, but I might as well put my input. As an artist at artist alley, it was difficult to decide when to leave my booth and when to stay. I actually missed out on a lot of things I wanted to do just because I didn't have a schedule with me. I'm all for "going green" and "save paper" mumbo jumbo, but if you're going to print out the Fanime booklets that they gave out to the pre-registers, why not just print the schedule out in there? As long as you plan ahead, everything should be okay. Maybe even make small Fanime booklets that can fit in your pocket. I think they did it one year and I LOVED IT.

SCHEDULING. (Different from schedules :P) I'm pretty sure staff members thought about this a lot more thoroughly than I did, but might as well put my input. Why were big events like the B&W Ball and the Masquerade scheduled at the same time?! Couldn't it have been possible to make the big off-site events like B&W Ball, Masquerade, and the music concert thing on different days (Friday, Saturday, Sunday?).

DANCING. No offense, but I'm not a big fan of techno music. The only dancing I enjoy is to "booty-popping music" LOL. I know there's clubs in Downtown SJ that play that music, but it would be more convenient for me to just dance at Fanime xD Anyways, the closest thing to "booty-popping" music was the Asian Pop (which I don't really mind dancing to, btw), bu it was during the B&W ball. Since all the other dancing times were techno, I just wished the Asian Pop dances were NOT during B&W ball because it prevented me from attending it. And maybe later in the night too, not at 6pm when no one really dances lol.

STAFF. Oh my gawd, staff. I believe this year wins for RUDEST STAFF MEMBERS. I understand some staff personal have to be mean every now and then to make sure everything runs smoothly, but I felt like some staff members got power hungry. I can't think of a specific example at the moment because not all of them were bad ... but I remember being irked at staff for part of the con.

TABLETOP GAMING. Someone mentioned this already but YES, PLEASE GET MORE TABLES! And possibly more cards for Bingo?! :D I wasn't able to play :(

GAMES. MORE CRANE MACHINES PLEASEEEE! So sad that one of the only two crane machines kept breaking, so I had to suffice with the candy crane machine :[

CON-GOERS. There's not really anything Fanime could do about this, but I would like to rant a little. Even though I'm happy Fanime is becoming bigger, a lot of the con-goers are getting a lot ruder. A girl almost hit hit me while she was trying to put a box on her head. Her friend told her "be careful, you might hit someone" and she just replied saying, "That's their own fault." I'm sorry if you were STANDING IN THE WALKWAY AND YOUR BOXHEAD GOT IN MY WAY. I was ready to rip that box off her head.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Mango Bunny on May 31, 2011, 08:53:14 AM
Some thoughts!

Schedules. Kind of put a huge damper on my con experience. Having the ability to decide what you're doing next or to check what's up wherever you currently are instead of fighting through a crowd to stand at the info desk is major. Also, a girl working the info desk was pretty rude at times. People need to understand that just because you have heard the question 100 times that day, doesn't mean that person had any other way of finding out. Also, info is your job.

I had some disappointments with the way the Yoshiki panel was conducted. Press taking up the first two rows and ro sham bo were not appreciated. Everything else about that panel ROCKED.

The Masquerade was actually.... amazing! First time I've ever stayed all the way through. And the waiting period for the judging was really fun and really felt like 'fanime'.

FMVs.... missed these this year because I had no schedule. I'm not sure when they were.

Musicfest... I didn't go, because I wasn't interested in the bands, although Yuya was hecka pretty.

The dealer's hall didn't have what I wanted, but that's okay since I don't expect it to. And the prices were pricy as always, but any imports or official merchandise are.

Artist Alley... I would have liked to see more wearable items that I was interested in, but it was still great.

Overall it was a wonderful Fanime.

The cosplay was good, but yes, there is a dry spell. We can't blame people for not cosplaying what YOU want to see. You cosplay what you want to see. Problem solved. And who cares about crossplayers? They're there to have fun, JUST LIKE YOU.

I loved Fanime 2011!!!
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: PyronIkari on May 31, 2011, 10:20:02 AM
I haven't read stuff and I only have like 2 minutes while I'm printing stuff. Yes I'm staff, no I'm not talking on behalf of staff as I only take care of my dept and the conjoining issues of my dept.

Mayhem: You got screwed, I was talking about you with some other staffers actually and we thought your idea was awesome, I wonder what happened.

A lot of your complaints are kind of dumb. Dealers hall prices? Really? Do I need to explain economy to year? The Yen's value and the dollars value were at some extreme highs for a majority of this year. You realize that when dealers import items from Japan, the value of said item may not change, but the value of the dollar does. So a dollar may have been 98 yen last year, but this year, it was as low as 70 yen to the dollar. This means things that were 9000 yen in Japan costed 100.00$ but now 7000 yen items are now 100$. That's not even including exchange fees or taxes/shipping etc. So of course prices went up, that's how economy works. So complaining about prices at the dealers hall is quite... dumb. Have you looked online recently at prices for imported goods? They went up pretty much every where. My local Marukai charges an extra 40cents now for canned coffee. My local Mitsuwa charges and extra 4$ for the shampoo I buy.

THIS IS ECONOMY... It's not Fanime nor the dealers fault that stuff is more expensive.

Something to learn about rovers, crowd control etc. There are always bad and good staff members on the lower level(or any level). If you get a bad staff member, get their name and description and report them. Upper management does care about this stuff. They do not want bad staff members, but they don't know they're bad unless people report them.

I'll write more, but my files are done printing.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: pandacon on May 31, 2011, 11:50:24 AM
For me, the biggest issue was the schedules. Probably due to my expectations, the last two years we got the little booklet schedules that were easy to carry around and very convenient. So I expected the same this year.

Three+ years ago, getting schedules from the con was always iffy, so I use to make my own mini-schedules to carry with me, I think I'll be starting this practice up again next year.

Though one positive about not having schedules, is I found myself walking around more than usual, mainly to check out what was going on in the different rooms. But it gave me a chance to also check out the cosplay stuff and what not, so I still had fun either way.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: eHash on May 31, 2011, 12:28:36 PM
-REMOVED-

As someone who stepped up an spent hundreds of hours and thousands of dollars (of my own money) to pull off my part of the con to hear some of your complaints is hurtful and does not necessarily encourage me to come back or volunteer.  If you complain, be prepared to step up and volunteer.  I mean, I did... For every hater there is someone who appreciates what you do.   If you didn't like something then perhaps all the others that feel the same way and you will help make improvements or at least understand why it isn't a certain way.

SJCC is a union venue and as a result, there are union rules for a lot of things that limit what the con can do either due to liability or cost.  To put it in perspective, tradeshows at sjcc (even with millions of dollars in sponsorships) cost at least over a two hundred for a multi-day ticket and those don't include the overtime or double overtime costs of being on a weekend or holiday.  

In the support of the rovers,  would you rather be hassled by a coplayer friendly rover or a non-cosplayer union security guard?

Summarized remarks:
Lack of schedules sucked.
not having posted schedules at the info desk sucked.
signage needs to be improved.
Step up or shut up.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Persona on May 31, 2011, 12:49:59 PM
I agree with a lot of what eHash said. I'd also like to add that staffing is not so much "be the change you want to see" as a lot of us, apart from reg and rovers, work behind the scenes, but rather it lets you get an inside look on how a con/large event works and how/why things turn out the way they do.

I have worked tech and other ops-related positions in larger events (ie. film festivals that run from 10-13 days) and, no matter how well the heads plan and execute, something always goes wrong and we always try our best to fix it -- that is, if we even know something IS wrong.

Something else that I think most people don't know is that ALL staff, even the heads, are taking time out of their own busy lives to plan and run Fanime for no pay. While that means that a lot of these people are truly passionate about what they do, it also means that they do not have time to screen and train lower level staff to the last detail. I'm sure they hope that their staff use common sense in whatever they do, but in practice it doesn't always happen.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: otaku_duckie on May 31, 2011, 12:55:15 PM
i wasnt really let down by the con other than me missing my mini schedule xP i like to plan my day, the thing that let me down most was my hotel. NEVER EVER EVER stay at the crowne plaza. the bathtub was broken, the toilet broke, the hairdryer was broken, the promised mini fridge wasnt there, the coffee maker was broken, and there was hair in the shower. and at the con there was a rude rover i had to deal with once, i wasnt able to get his name to report him but if youre gonna be a rover and all i did was ask a question you could be nice about it and not be an ass to me kthx lol
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: DivineVTDragon on May 31, 2011, 01:23:18 PM
Quote from: bebop on May 30, 2011, 11:26:05 PM
yeah these "traps" from Japan have started to become a trend here as well. I didn't know I took pictures of a guy when I was doing a group photo.

You guys brought up good arguments but it won't change anything. I still think this year was pretty bad.

no I dont go just to check out girls. I didn't see much good male cosplayers this year though, however

I guess perhaps it is the trickle down theory. if the anime scene is stagnant or sucks, then the community gets driven down too  ???

Uh.. get over it? I'm male, and I love dressing up in cute outfits because people like you seem to have a problem gender biases. Is there anything wrong with the males who crossplay because they enjoy it? No. If you're really this paranoid just go up to people and ask their gender. Sorry that you fell and got caught in a trap, but we're not going to stop crossplaying because some people feel uncomfortable about it (I'm not).

Oh, and to clear up any misconceptions, I only like girls.

Anywho... complaints:

2 Rovers: I was in my Zero (MMX) costume and walked from the Marriot to the opposite side of the Con (Room F) and I was about 15 feet away when a rover comes up and stops me. He asks about my lightsaber and if it's peace-bonded yet. I tell him my story; I'm late to check in for the Masquerade and I will do it as soon as I finish checking it. It took me about 20 minutes to walk from one side to another (and it's quite uncomfortable to be in also) and if I turn around and go all the way back... I'd be late. So, he thought I was lying and decided it was a good idea to be pushy/touchy to move me... a big no-no. I was very fortunate that another nicer rover came up, stopped him, and let me pass.

One of the peace-bonding people said my wooden scythe was a Sai. I then look around and see other people with scythes walking around just fine and was wondering  what she was talking about. Needless to say, she refused to peace-bond my scythe...

Schedule: No big deal for me, though I would have liked to have went to a few panels.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: TC X0 Lt 0X on May 31, 2011, 01:51:25 PM
Only real complaint I have this year that is not a personal problem was a lack of a printed schedule, and not properly informing attendees that there would be no printed one, as far as I know. But basically everyone agrees in this and it was stupid to not include one.

Everything else is insignificant and based off the person, their tastes, their personality, and where they were. Though of particular note.

STAFF - Almost all of them I encountered were very nice. Only a few at best were somewhat moody,and that was not a big deal.

ATTENDEES - Today's Economy leaves more then a few of us stressed so it is no surprise that some would be a bit more cranky then usual. But even then, it is a personal experience and all depends on who you encounter, and more importantly, how YOU present yourself. For instance, I would be quite rude to a Teen/Tween Attendee whom is flipping off the walls in excitement as in general is being a nuisance. On the other hand, I would be nice and calm to someone who is laidback and keeping their cool in general.


Yeah, I had a fun time. It was not as fun as my other years, but that was because I did not have my MoeBroMo with me and was forced to chill with people who had, some different tastes then me in things.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: SquallLHeart on May 31, 2011, 01:56:36 PM
Seriously people?? seriously?

I've been attending Fanime and have been behind the curtains this entire time... in many ways.. holding back the need to register for this forum.
Reading over these complaints... I have crawled out of my hiding... and will place my feedback. If you find me rude as such.. than it shall be.. but most of the stuff I'm seeing are from a very select few that had some disappointing moments.. and does not reflect on the overall success of the convention this year. And for goodness sake.. DO NOT take my opinions and think that just because I am staff myself, that it reflects upon the rest of us. That's just being ignorant.

I will agree on the aspect where schedules were lacking.. but knowing that things were thrown upon the staff almost only a week before the convention itself started.. it is NOT THEIR FAULT that things went the way it did.

Such "rudeness" from the staff that you may have experienced, I would have to say from observation, can be blamed from to the rudeness of the ATTENDEES. As conventions of any sort, or of any genre grow.. you get more and more individuals who are nothing more than belligerent folks who make the job of the staff much more difficult. Each attendee needs to be treated the same way from all the staff.. and as such.. they need to make judgement to do what they need to to keep order. If that requires enforcing rules they were told to enforce in a stern manner.. then why would you be complaining about them just doing their job?! I witnessed behind the scenes of how many intoxicated people they had to deal with. Not to be a killjoy, but it is very much emphasized that Fanime is a DRY CON. I have no sympathy for those that fail to abide that rule.. and you can blame them for ruining your fun.

Now... continuing on with "proper training" of the staff.. I don't know what other departments do.. but with Rovers in particular.. they were given PLENTY of training.. and to the point where they have implemented proficiency tests to filter out people. There's ALWAYS an understaffing issue.. and as the con grows.. and as more and more people who want to join staff increases as well... it makes it more difficult to make the balance between filtering out people vs. making sure we have enough.. I'm sure a few slithered their way in.. having that knowledge.. but perhaps poor application was witnessed. There is absolutely NO WAY you can be trained for that... that only comes from on-hand experience.

With regards to the military outfits and uniform stuff... the people you had to deal with (probably rovers)... the people that had to tell you no.... they weren't the ones that made the call.. they were following orders from higher ups.. where, from somewhere.. made the decision that it was the proper thing to do. Does that make those higher ups correct? no.. they're human... we make mistakes... but to complain about the person "power tripping" only because they were doing what they were told to do?? SERIOUSLY? You're going to whine about that? Sorry, but that's the way it is.

(FYI, I'm former military myself.. and we have plenty of active and former active military on our staff that have the same thoughts and concerns)

If you really have an issue with a particular staffer, do what any person would do: Take their name, and file a complaint. It's that easy. You can't complain about an entire group of staffers or a certain department off of what one or a few people that you had a bad experience with.

I suppose I'll add something else about me that might help with my credibility: I have worked at MANY different conventions, along with AX (which you guys seem to love to compare Fanime to).. and there is no comparison for me. Fanime is the most organized group of staffers for what they need to do.. and with what they have to work with. I parted my ways with AX during the 2010 staff walk-out... and guess what? Did you see the numerous complaints on the AX 2010 staff??? SOOO MUCH more worse than I have ever seen... and nowhere close to how bad some of you guys make this year's Fanime seem to be.

Other things I saw earlier in this topic:
- something about bootlegs being sold in the Dealer's hall? Simple solution.. report them. They are not supposed to be selling them.. obviously.. and unless you tell someone... WE CAN'T DO ANYTHING.
- Money stuff: with regards to reg. prices.. and dealers price gouging... People already answered about the economy, exchange rates, as well as operating fees that you guys seem to forget about. No further commenting needed.
- video rooms: contact Fanime and make sure your input is heard, but again.. agreeing with other people, I liked the setup they did.
- crowd control: staff can only do so much.. and unless YOU GUYS HELP us (by self-policing lines, cooperating with staff, etc)... we can't really help you beyond that.

In the meantime.. having being stuck at the Autographs room the entire day Sat & Sun... I have to thank everyone who came by that helped make my job easier. I personally am sorry about how long the lines got and profusely have to apologize to those that could not get an autograph. I think we did the best we can to be able to get that many people through with how things had to be set up. In only one hour, Yuya was able to sign close to 400 autographs each on both Sat and Sun.. which was amazing (~800 in 2 hrs total?!). FLOW, even with a 2-hr session on Sunday.. I think the numbers were just under 600 because of slower pace that we got from having a 5 person group. That, I know... and AM VERY SORRY for those who couldn't make the cut... even after we even capped off the line, towards the end.. we still had to cut a large group. :(
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: SOawesomeness on May 31, 2011, 02:09:54 PM
Quote from: idontknow on May 31, 2011, 08:18:24 AM
SCHEDULING. (Different from schedules :P) I'm pretty sure staff members thought about this a lot more thoroughly than I did, but might as well put my input. Why were big events like the B&W Ball and the Masquerade scheduled at the same time?! Couldn't it have been possible to make the big off-site events like B&W Ball, Masquerade, and the music concert thing on different days (Friday, Saturday, Sunday?).
Tbh I think that they schedule it that way so that there is space. If you go to the BWB, even with the Masquerade going on at the same time, it is SUPER packed. @w@ I don't think that if they were spaced out, that there would be any room at all. I think it would just lead to more people complaining that BWB was super packed and not fun and that Masquerade was super packed and not fun either. Eh, my two cents. :x

Quote from: idontknow on May 31, 2011, 08:18:24 AMSTAFF. Oh my gawd, staff. I believe this year wins for RUDEST STAFF MEMBERS. I understand some staff personal have to be mean every now and then to make sure everything runs smoothly, but I felt like some staff members got power hungry. I can't think of a specific example at the moment because not all of them were bad ... but I remember being irked at staff for part of the con.
Tbh it might also be that some departments are understaffed and they might just feel the pressure. Registration had about 70 staff members but Saturday, we were totally just @W@ really bad because of the huge demand for at-con membership. We knew that the line was uber long, but we always try our hardest to go fast and be polite at the same time. Think about this for other staff depts who have more pressure than us = x.x Of course, if you feel that staff are completely out of line, you can always voice your concerns and let a higher-up know. That way we can make sure that it doesn't happen again. (:

Quote from: idontknow on May 31, 2011, 08:18:24 AMCON-GOERS. There's not really anything Fanime could do about this, but I would like to rant a little. Even though I'm happy Fanime is becoming bigger, a lot of the con-goers are getting a lot ruder. A girl almost hit hit me while she was trying to put a box on her head. Her friend told her "be careful, you might hit someone" and she just replied saying, "That's their own fault." I'm sorry if you were STANDING IN THE WALKWAY AND YOUR BOXHEAD GOT IN MY WAY. I was ready to rip that box off her head.
Yeah, I don't know about that either. I kind of did notice this a lot more this year, but I just feel like with the huge influx of people just amounts to more stress to each individual attendee. o:

Hopefully regardless of these things, Fanime was still majorly fun for you guys and we do hope to see all of you next year as well. :3

I think maybe my one concern might be: water service around the SJCC? I didn't see any this year except for right outside the dance, I think? I just remember walking around being SUPER thirsty the entire con.

(My opinions do not reflect anyone else's but mine~)
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Zerocide on May 31, 2011, 02:29:53 PM
One small suggestion about dealing with crowd control that I haven't seen suggested yet. Either get rid of or move Stage Zero. Reason being is that it is placed in the middle of the area that gets the most foot traffic of the convention; and especially when a big event is going on, it tends to really limit the movement of the crowd even with those lanes near the back. Won't fix all of the crowd issues, but it'll help where it counts.

Other than that, the fact that they didn't make schedules, especially after having the godly pocket schedules last year kinda makes me wonder.

Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: eHash on May 31, 2011, 02:37:34 PM
- Removed and sent directly to division/dept heads as requested -
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: SquallLHeart on May 31, 2011, 02:49:12 PM
volunteers.. unfortunately.. receive the least amount of training out of anyone that helps with the convention.. most don't show up for meetings.. and when being assigned to a station.. they barely get any training, and get inadequate instruction...

that always happens.. and needs to be addressed more on the volunteers side... but hopefully fixed or at least implemented better in the future.
water stations, i agree were kinda lacking.. i really don't know what happened there.

the biggest thing i remember was the MASSIVE crowd control issues in front of Stage Zero... but last year, someone was smart enough to tape down that "roadway" and attendees used it properly and kept traffic moving as it should've. Before that was implemented.. IT WAS HORRIBLE.. many Rovers had to be stationed in that area to instruct people to keep moving.. and that took away manpower that would've otherwise be better elsewhere.

this year, the roadway was taped down again... but it seems a lot more attendees didn't care.. and as such.. some stopped in the middle of the roadway.. causing traffic issues. as a staff member, in my opinion... i would not mind another attendee to help self-police the crowd and tell people to keep moving when they should. if other attendees become rude to you, then you can go and seek help. we love attendees that help us find and fix problems.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: HakureiSandwih on May 31, 2011, 02:56:38 PM
I had a great time, no real complaints except for no mini schedule book.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: aarondirebear on May 31, 2011, 02:58:46 PM
Quote from: Jelly Soup on May 30, 2011, 02:02:47 AM
What a lot of people don't realize about the dealers room is that the dealers have to pay a more than just the space fees and transportation costs. SJCC has a union and if a given dealer is bringing in more than he/she can carry themselves, he/she has to pay the union to do all the moving, both in and out (this is actually listed in the dealers paper work). As you can imagine, this is pretty expensive, so it makes sense that we'd see some gouging of some kind.

Then we need to move this con to a non-union place. Or stop those proprietary mafia thugs from messing with the dealers. 
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Jelly Soup on May 31, 2011, 03:01:14 PM
Quote from: aarondirebear on May 31, 2011, 02:58:46 PM
Quote from: Jelly Soup on May 30, 2011, 02:02:47 AM
What a lot of people don't realize about the dealers room is that the dealers have to pay a more than just the space fees and transportation costs. SJCC has a union and if a given dealer is bringing in more than he/she can carry themselves, he/she has to pay the union to do all the moving, both in and out (this is actually listed in the dealers paper work). As you can imagine, this is pretty expensive, so it makes sense that we'd see some gouging of some kind.

Then we need to move this con to a non-union place. Or stop those proprietary mafia thugs from messing with the dealers. 

Good luck with that. Any convention center (specifically convention centers, not sure of other lodgings) of equal or greater size will have union workers on staff and require patrons to use them.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: LordKefka on May 31, 2011, 03:02:48 PM
Seems a lot of people are being whiny for nothing. I'll be addressing some of the "complaints" myself as well thoroughly and in details. People don't realize that this is one of the best conventions out there and I can attest to it from personal experiences from other major and minors conventions I've attended. All the little complaints people have made you see in EVERY con. The prices of the dealers will be the same at EVERY anime con. "Bad" attendees will be at EVERY anime convention. Confusion will happen with EVERY anime convention. Hell, some of the complaints don't even have anything to do with the actual convention. Either way I'm not just defending this convention for nothing because I've bashed other conventions before. From my personal experience, this is one of the most diverse and interesting conventions in the nation and I've traveled across the country to speak for this. It's just my personal opinion of course but I can't seem to wrap my mind around some of the complaints made here. At all.

Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: eHash on May 31, 2011, 03:04:14 PM
i probably shouldn't post this as me since I kind of know the answer...but I'll post it since it's how I feel.

I was let down by the lack of industry participation in the dealer hall again.

-removed and sent directly to dept head-
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: CockOnLock on May 31, 2011, 03:07:50 PM
My friend's and I brought hella water with us. People should just be prepared. In addition, there were water fountains so you could use those.
If you don't like that the sodas are .50 cents more at the concession then go get them from the machine. It's not that complicated.
That's just some of the things that I've found problems with in these complaints.
A lot of you people are just complaining to complain. Everything can't be perfect just for you. You should just accept what you can get and have fun with it. A lot of people worked really hard to put this huge event together and we should appreciate the dedication they all have year after year instead of just complaining about what we didn't like.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: aarondirebear on May 31, 2011, 03:09:10 PM
Quote from: gsp113 on May 30, 2011, 02:20:05 PM
Quote from: SukebeStudios on May 30, 2011, 11:43:38 AM
QuoteI noticed a lot of rovers who either didn't know what they were doing or were 'drunk' on 'power'. I think better training and/or screening of rovers would be a good idea.

I dunno if they're willing to train their staff much, since it'd be taking time out of changing their rules at the last minute, not printing schedules, losing pre-reg badges, and telling people to not wear costumes based on a non-existent rule. (SJPD told my friend they had nothing to do with the rule about  "no military or law enforcement" costume rule, and that it was stupid.) Oh well, I think it's fair to say that Fanime staff has lost control and it's going to spiral down.

They're trying to be PC...they don't want anything right wing at the convention, period.

You're kidding me SJPD told u that!? The more I think about it the more silly it sounded to me along with the threatening in todays political climate rule.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: PyronIkari on May 31, 2011, 03:15:41 PM
Quote from: bebop on May 30, 2011, 09:38:11 PM
Words

You do not have a single legitimate point in anything you posted at all. Every single thing you complained about either, didn't apply, or was you basically stating how you don't like people. "I don't like crossplayers" "I don't like the music they played at the dance"... etc. Seriously? Then you go off on a rant like Fanime is terrible because of things like this? Are you serious?

But here's the fun one, not because it's my department because it makes absolutely no sense.

Ok... service. What do you mean by service? You don't even explain anything in this, you just complain about the food and say you don't get anything from it. Again, what kind of service did you expect? Do you even know what a maid cafe is? Seriously... first off, it's a cafe... not a restaurant. So if you're going to whine that it's not a 4/4.5 star restaurant you really need to get your head out of your ass. It's not about being blunt, it's about knowing what you're talking about and making an appropriate comparison. It's fine if you don't like the cafe, I honestly and truly do not care if it's not your kind of thing. What I do care about is how you're attacking it totally off base. Just so you know, one of the staff members of the cafe is a cook in a high class restaurant. So please give me legitimate complaints instead of just "It sucked". And this goes for pretty much everything you said.

While I appreciate reasonings of opinion, opinions are just opinions. For every opinion of "I don't like crossplayers" there is one of "I love crossplayers". So stating that as a reason is quite pointless and accomplishes nothing. Give me some legitimate weight in things that were actually problematic that are imrpovable.


ZeroElement: Please stop replying like you have any idea what you're talking about in concerns to a lot of these things. You're kind of replying back like you're staff and you have good knowledge of what is going on, when it's clear you do not, as a good amount of what you said has been completely false.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: NerdyBirdAsh on May 31, 2011, 03:25:06 PM
Lots of things to be said, though most of it has been touched upon.

I've been attending for 8 years now, and I've gone through the personal transformation of annoying squealing fangirl to something a little more mature. That being said, I've also seen the con morph to what it is today. It went from space - artist alley in the hallway, anyone? - to almost no space to get around. I agree with the sentiment that Fanime may be getting too big for itself, but that just means that changes need to be made and it's a matter of trial and error.

For me, on a scale of 1-10, I give it a 5. It wasn't horrible. It wasn't the best either.

2011 Positives:

Maturity Level of Attendees I'm not saying it's perfect, but I'm seeing a lot more maturity from the attendees. In years passed ('04-'07ish) I noticed a lot more annoying squealing/glomping/general discord. I remember seeing people do stupid and dangerous things (back in the days of Der Cosplay, on my way out, I saw 2 guys having a battle with the swords they bought from a booth) and reflecting back on that, it seems it's gotten 100x better.

Table Top Gaming I loved the selection of games - board, video, and arcade. I stayed up until all hours playing jenga with random people and it was some of the most fun I'd had all con! Needs more tables and chairs, though the floor sufficed.

2011 Negatives

Staff Issues I know that Fanime is severely understaffed, and so I try to be understanding, however, I think that if you're working the info desk you should actually have the information I need, or at least be able to lead me somewhere else that does have it. More than once I went to an info desk to be told they had no idea where I was talking about. The most important of this was the blood drive. I had an appointment at 10, and I needed to find Parkside A (later changed to Parkside B). I was under the impression it was at the con center, so I tried looking for it myself. After wandering about and noticing 10 o'clock approaching quickly, I decided to ask an info desk. I went up to the staff member there, and they shrugged their shoulders and told me they didn't know. They looked at a map, and said he just couldn't help me, sorry. ..Ok, I'll try a new one. I went downstairs and asked that desk. They were a little more helpful, though they were wrong - they told me it was outside, I just needed to go outside, take a right, and walk until I saw the blood drive bus. They said not to worry though, the blood mobile hadn't come in yet. One guy there kept talking into his headset to get more information for me, and said he might have more info if I came back later - and it was already 10 by this time. I went back upstairs to the main one, and they said the same as the one below (Go outside, keep walking til I see the blood mobile). I kept wandering back and forth until I made it over to the info desk near the Hilton where I finally got the correct lead - it was connected to the tech museum, about a 10 minute walk. I was already 10 minutes late so I skidaddled my butt over, and ended up being 20 minutes late to my appointment, and I ended up missing the Pokemon gathering. It wasn't such a huge deal, I'm not terribly upset by it now (though I was at the time), but I just think that people at info desk should maybe have A. Updated Maps and B. Basic knowledge of where events are happening.

Another thing I noticed was attitude by some rovers. I didn't get their names, and I was so tired that I can't really give a description - nor do I really want to, as maybe they were just having a bad day - but I didn't really appreciate being talked to in the manner they did. The first incident was as I was walking down the designated walkway by stage zero. I was quite angrily snapped at to keep moving I was blocking traffic. While I understand that blocking traffic is not a good idea, there was a small child who tripped in front of me. I most certainly was not going to just stomp over this kid, I stopped to give him the space to stand up and brush himself off.

The second incident was as the gaming room was closing on Monday. I was sitting in a back corner, packing up my stuff (the announcement had been made about a minute before) when a rover comes up yelling that we needed to get out NOW. Now, I know you're tired, overworked, and just want to be done with it, I understand. But did you really need to be so mean about it? I was actively packing when you came up, how about worrying about the people putting coins in the games even though the announcement was made instead of the 2 girls who are obviously packing their things? The rovers in both of these cases were indeed doing their job, and I don't hold a grudge against them for the actions themselves, but it was in the way things were said. Attitude can be the difference between "This con was the best one yet!" and "THIS CON SUCKS, I'M NEVER GOING AGAIN." However, all in all, staff are awesome and kind folk who are super helpful. Tons of my friends staff/rove/etc and I hold tons of respect for those who do it.

Scheduling This has been touched on enough by everyone else, but those mini books should definitely reappear next year.

Pre-Reg lines/Times I was going to show up on Thursday to pick up my badge, only to get stuck in traffic. It passed the 8 o'clock time limit, so I went back home. I was later told that the line wasn't cut off until 9:30. It would have been nice to know that before I wasted a lot of gas. I expect times to be more or less honored. The line on Friday was crazy too, I've never dealt with lines like that to pick up my PreReg badge, I had to wait for an hour or so maybe while a friend registered at-con and it took 5 minutes. This isn't some major gripe, it's better than the 3 hour wait I experienced my first con in '04. But still, it sucked.






Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: LordKefka on May 31, 2011, 03:25:22 PM
You know the problem is. People don't realize how much work is actually out into the maid cafe not only just the time dedicated during the actual cafe but practicing and training for the Fanimaid Stage Zero performance and such.

Though I have no idea what goes on behind the scenes, I can for a fact say I've been there since the Maid Cafe started and I've seen how much it has grown up to now. Every second of time they put in they do it for the fans so to bash that and the people who work there, maid or staff, there better be a damn good reason and not just " the food is pricey and sucked so the maid cafe and maids SUCK" type of stuff. People want proof of how awesome the cafe was this year? I have a picture for almost every table and a number of pictures overlooking the entire cafe inside and out to show that.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: LordKefka on May 31, 2011, 03:28:10 PM
Quote from: ash_chan on May 31, 2011, 03:25:06 PM

Maturity Level of Attendees I'm not saying it's perfect, but I'm seeing a lot more maturity from the attendees. In years passed ('04-'07ish) I noticed a lot more annoying squealing/glomping/general discord. I remember seeing people do stupid and dangerous things (back in the days of Der Cosplay, on my way out, I saw 2 guys having a battle with the swords they bought from a booth) and reflecting back on that, it seems it's gotten 100x better.


Wow.. I thought I was the only person who thought this year the fans were extremely well behaved compared to the previous years. I didn't hear people randomly screaming or running or glomping or any retarded hug line forming out of the blues. I'm actually proud of how well behaved the fans were this year.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: monotone on May 31, 2011, 03:49:30 PM
I've been a little scared to post here because there is a LOT of Rover hate flying around, even though most of the bad experiences seem to be directed at one or two staff members that had a bad attitude or were stressed out and allowed the stress to show.

I'd like to point out: There are 120 or so Rovers on the stafflist this year (for 16,000+ attendees at con), as well as a handful of "dedicated volunteers" that joined Rovers on-site due to the department being short handed. If you had a bad experience with ONE Rover, please don't let that speak to the entire department. It is literally one or two in a hundred.

Quote from: ash_chan on May 31, 2011, 03:25:06 PM
2011 Positives:

Maturity Level of Attendees I'm not saying it's perfect, but I'm seeing a lot more maturity from the attendees. In years passed ('04-'07ish) I noticed a lot more annoying squealing/glomping/general discord. I remember seeing people do stupid and dangerous things (back in the days of Der Cosplay, on my way out, I saw 2 guys having a battle with the swords they bought from a booth) and reflecting back on that, it seems it's gotten 100x better.

In response to this:

TRUST ME, having worked Graveyard shift the past three years, the attendees have NOT gotten more mature, and there is still a LOT of stupidity going on at con. This year we especially had a problem with hotel room parties and individuals carrying alcohol ON THE CONCOURSE despite Fanime being a DRY CON. [ Really, guys? lol ] There have been multiple other incidents during con that Rovers have responded to that just make me wonder...

[ But those incidents involve individual attendees and I don't want to post them here. It'd be rude. Just as it is rude to lodge complaints on a public forum about individual staff members. ]

But Rovers HAVE gotten better at handling situations such as hug lines, people swinging swords around, catching weapon policy violations faster, etc. so that the situations are handled BEFORE they become a large problem for other attendees. So if you saw an improvement in the overall behavior of attendees, THANK A ROVER.

[ It should be obvious, but everything posted here is my opinion and does not speak for the department. ]
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: aarondirebear on May 31, 2011, 03:55:30 PM
Quote from: Jelly Soup on May 31, 2011, 03:01:14 PM
Quote from: aarondirebear on May 31, 2011, 02:58:46 PM
Quote from: Jelly Soup on May 30, 2011, 02:02:47 AM
What a lot of people don't realize about the dealers room is that the dealers have to pay a more than just the space fees and transportation costs. SJCC has a union and if a given dealer is bringing in more than he/she can carry themselves, he/she has to pay the union to do all the moving, both in and out (this is actually listed in the dealers paper work). As you can imagine, this is pretty expensive, so it makes sense that we'd see some gouging of some kind.

Then we need to move this con to a non-union place. Or stop those proprietary mafia thugs from messing with the dealers. 

Good luck with that. Any convention center (specifically convention centers, not sure of other lodgings) of equal or greater size will have union workers on staff and require patrons to use them.

Well, that's a rotten state of affairs that needs to change.  What a bunch of bullies.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: eHash on May 31, 2011, 04:06:41 PM
My perspective about the maid cafe:

I think the maid cafe is great.
The amount of effort and time that the maids put in should be commended.  As people gripe about it
don't forget they have to practice for performances, pay for their own uniforms, go to many (many many)
meetings and practices.  Many are younger, most don't do it for the service-aspect and MOST patrons know this.

My gripe however:

and this might be what others gripe about, but the point is perhaps lost here or misunderstood.
The food isn't great (not what the maid cafe is about) however since it is STILL a Service oriented event the feedback should be noted.  I thought the food was better than in years past, and the prices were also better.  I just wish the con could negotiate a better deal with SJCC <- Those are the real people to bitch to.  If the food is that crappy, point the finger at the Concession, not the Con (Maid Cafe).

My thoughts on attendees:
I thought the amount of cosplayers was down, the maturity level was up during the day (simply due to increased numbers of attendees), but the number of hotel parties seem to have risen.  

I don't know for sure, but the con seemed safer this year...and this is partly due to "overbearing" rovers.  If you are a minor and complaining, consider that your parents have entrusted the con to be providing an event that has your well-being in mind. Rovers, peace-bonding, lines... no matter what criticisms exist (founded or not-founded) exist for your safety.

I want to say I deeply appreciated their presence.  

To me, this was not the best year I've been to (my own fault for what i chose to participate in or attend).  The "by fans for fans" really should be considered when you make complaints.  Working with limited to no budgets, departments have to execute and provide attendees with the best they are able or willing to do as non-paid volunteers (by fans).

I.E.: you don't like the djs, as the head I'll pick different ones (but give me some constructive criticism)
       but if you wanted someone specifically? write me a check, i'll go book them for you.  
       you think you can do a better job? apply...
       didn't like the lighting? give me yours and write a check (so i can pay the union guy to hang it and take it down).

Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: LordKefka on May 31, 2011, 04:09:44 PM
Quote from: aarondirebear on May 31, 2011, 03:59:30 PM
Quote from: LordKefka on May 31, 2011, 03:25:22 PM
You know the problem is. People don't realize how much work is actually out into the maid cafe not only just the time dedicated during the actual cafe but practicing and training for the Fanimaid Stage Zero performance and such.

Though I have no idea what goes on behind the scenes, I can for a fact say I've been there since the Maid Cafe started and I've seen how much it has grown up to now. Every second of time they put in they do it for the fans so to bash that and the people who work there, maid or staff, there better be a damn good reason and not just " the food is pricey and sucked so the maid cafe and maids SUCK" type of stuff. People want proof of how awesome the cafe was this year? I have a picture for almost every table and a number of pictures overlooking the entire cafe inside and out to show that.

Spoken like a true sycophant.  it is "the complainer is always wrong" types like this person that ensure that nothing ever improves at this convention.

You obviously can't read correctly or didn't attempt to read my previous posts. Do you even know what a maid cafe is like? Sycophant? Why don't you show me something someone has said that was a valid complaint of the maid cafe. You can't. Does that mean there won't be? No.

There is a difference between bashing and flaming an event showcase and providing legit suggestions and changes that can be suggested in the future. Learn the difference.

It is not the complainer is always wrong that I'm trying advocate. If you think that's where I'm leaning towards, you obviously aren't smart enough or cared enough to read my previous posts.

I'm not a staff of the maid cafe and thus I won't and haven't spoken on behalf of a staff but only mentioned what I saw and experienced this year compared to the previous years as being both a passive participant, active participant and speaking with maids who worked at the maid cafe.

Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Junon on May 31, 2011, 04:21:36 PM
The lack of printed schedule is what made this one of the worst FanimeCon's (for me) in a long time. I pretty much missed EVERYTHING. Had no idea what was even going on. Whoever made this decision should get chewed up.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Aelia on May 31, 2011, 04:22:49 PM
I'm not attempting to speak to, or for everything. I'm not attempting to speak for all staff, and these opinions are my own.

Quote from: PyronIkari on May 31, 2011, 10:20:02 AM
Something to learn about rovers, crowd control etc. There are always bad and good staff members on the lower level(or any level). If you get a bad staff member, get their name and description and report them. Upper management does care about this stuff. They do not want bad staff members, but they don't know they're bad unless people report them.
This is something I'd like to reiterate. Had a bad experience with a staffer? Well, we can't fix it unless we know who it is. Contact their Department Head ASAP and get it taken care of at con rather than just complaining after the fact.

Quote from: SquallLHeart on May 31, 2011, 01:56:36 PM
Such "rudeness" from the staff that you may have experienced, I would have to say from observation, can be blamed from to the rudeness of the ATTENDEES. As conventions of any sort, or of any genre grow.. you get more and more individuals who are nothing more than belligerent folks who make the job of the staff much more difficult. Each attendee needs to be treated the same way from all the staff.. and as such.. they need to make judgement to do what they need to to keep order. If that requires enforcing rules they were told to enforce in a stern manner.. then why would you be complaining about them just doing their job?! I witnessed behind the scenes of how many intoxicated people they had to deal with. Not to be a killjoy, but it is very much emphasized that Fanime is a DRY CON. I have no sympathy for those that fail to abide that rule.. and you can blame them for ruining your fun.

Now... continuing on with "proper training" of the staff.. I don't know what other departments do.. but with Rovers in particular.. they were given PLENTY of training.. and to the point where they have implemented proficiency tests to filter out people. There's ALWAYS an understaffing issue.. and as the con grows.. and as more and more people who want to join staff increases as well... it makes it more difficult to make the balance between filtering out people vs. making sure we have enough.. I'm sure a few slithered their way in.. having that knowledge.. but perhaps poor application was witnessed. There is absolutely NO WAY you can be trained for that... that only comes from on-hand experience.

To give you an idea, we (Rovers) attempted to help well over 15,000 people with a little over 120 volunteers, many of whom worked well over 48 hours over the course of the convention. Things happened, and people may have been rude, or abrupt. We will be working to address this (as we do every year), but as stated, the best way to "fix" things is to participate. Every department at Fanime could use an extra pair of hands (or fifty) and we are almost always accepting volunteers.

Quote from: ash_chan on May 31, 2011, 03:25:06 PM
Another thing I noticed was attitude by some rovers. I didn't get their names, and I was so tired that I can't really give a description - nor do I really want to, as maybe they were just having a bad day - but I didn't really appreciate being talked to in the manner they did. The first incident was as I was walking down the designated walkway by stage zero. I was quite angrily snapped at to keep moving I was blocking traffic. While I understand that blocking traffic is not a good idea, there was a small child who tripped in front of me. I most certainly was not going to just stomp over this kid, I stopped to give him the space to stand up and brush himself off.

The second incident was as the gaming room was closing on Monday. I was sitting in a back corner, packing up my stuff (the announcement had been made about a minute before) when a rover comes up yelling that we needed to get out NOW. Now, I know you're tired, overworked, and just want to be done with it, I understand. But did you really need to be so mean about it? I was actively packing when you came up, how about worrying about the people putting coins in the games even though the announcement was made instead of the 2 girls who are obviously packing their things? The rovers in both of these cases were indeed doing their job, and I don't hold a grudge against them for the actions themselves, but it was in the way things were said. Attitude can be the difference between "This con was the best one yet!" and "THIS CON SUCKS, I'M NEVER GOING AGAIN." However, all in all, staff are awesome and kind folk who are super helpful. Tons of my friends staff/rove/etc and I hold tons of respect for those who do it.
We will continue attempting to address these issues, because to some degree it is training, and to some degree it is an individual's personality, rather than anything "fixable." 

As far as the shouting as Gaming was closing-- was that shouting at you specifically, or just shouting in general? A lot of the time, we're attempting to make ourselves heard, rather than trying to be mean.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: SquallLHeart on May 31, 2011, 04:23:12 PM
Quote from: ash_chan on May 31, 2011, 03:25:06 PM
Another thing I noticed was attitude by some rovers. I didn't get their names, and I was so tired that I can't really give a description - nor do I really want to, as maybe they were just having a bad day - but I didn't really appreciate being talked to in the manner they did. The first incident was as I was walking down the designated walkway by stage zero. I was quite angrily snapped at to keep moving I was blocking traffic. While I understand that blocking traffic is not a good idea, there was a small child who tripped in front of me. I most certainly was not going to just stomp over this kid, I stopped to give him the space to stand up and brush himself off.

Pre-Reg lines/Times I was going to show up on Thursday to pick up my badge, only to get stuck in traffic. It passed the 8 o'clock time limit, so I went back home. I was later told that the line wasn't cut off until 9:30. It would have been nice to know that before I wasted a lot of gas. I expect times to be more or less honored.
^^ two things i want to clarifiy and make sure you understand..

"angrily snapped" at you? are you sure it wasn't just a stern loud voice to make sure you got the message.. vs... "i'm in a pissed off mood.. GTFO!" type of manner? rovers can't fix a problem you're addressing if you can't tell us who it actually was. i wasn't there to witness the incident.. but nonetheless that walkway needs to have continuous traffic flow..

funny how in this very same topic, you have other attendees complaining about just that. one of those, "sorry, but we can't please everyone" situations i guess.. sorry.

the maturity level as addressed, no way... if anything.. the attendees were very much LESS mature than previous years... it is most apparent during the late hours.. especially during dance. if anything... the maturity levels you witnessed were because of Rovers keeping things in order.. and made sure those immature folks were taken care of so you could enjoy the con.

pre-reg on Thursday.. the lines were capped off at 8pm... which means anyone who came after 8pm.. could not get in line.. of course Registration still needed to be open until much later to finish off everyone else.. and i believe you heard wrong.. the line wasn't cut at 8pm.. and the lines finished at 9:30pm
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: LordKefka on May 31, 2011, 04:32:47 PM
Quote from: monotone on May 31, 2011, 03:49:30 PM

But Rovers HAVE gotten better at handling situations such as hug lines, people swinging swords around, catching weapon policy violations faster, etc. so that the situations are handled BEFORE they become a large problem for other attendees. So if you saw an improvement in the overall behavior of attendees, THANK A ROVER.

[ It should be obvious, but everything posted here is my opinion and does not speak for the department. ]

It's funny and I'm not sure if it's the convention and the long flight back to the East Coast that made me not think about this.. which is almost stupid of me to do so since it didn't even cross my mind till you mentioned it -_-; . The case I mentioned about that one Rover was a specific case but in no way was I trying to put down the Rovers. Sounded like it but I had a little talk and I just wanted to clarify that my words and intentions behind the words sounded too general when it shouldn't have been. If it was the case of the change in attendee behavior I saw because of an improved job done by the Rovers then I'm impressed. Either way whoever it was, fans or Rovers, I saw a change for good.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: SquallLHeart on May 31, 2011, 04:39:37 PM
^^ i'm not gonna re-quote the whole thing.. but i agree with you completely.

there's always a big curtain that regular attendees don't see behind.. and behind them were great staff ensuring the safety of everyone and making sure the majority were able to have fun... i myself was monitoring things behind the curtains (since i can see behind them).. and I loved how they were organized.

i myself am grateful on the wonderful work this year's staff did to make this con run as smoothly as it did... it certainly made it fly by way too fast though..
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: LordKefka on May 31, 2011, 04:41:12 PM
Quote from: SquallLHeart on May 31, 2011, 04:23:12 PM

the maturity level as addressed, no way... if anything.. the attendees were very much LESS mature than previous years... it is most apparent during the late hours.. especially during dance. if anything... the maturity levels you witnessed were because of Rovers keeping things in order.. and made sure those immature folks were taken care of so you could enjoy the con.

I'm actually really glad Rovers are speaking out in here to clarify things. As someone who didn't attend the late night dance(s) as mentioned, I had no idea those things were going on. Points noted.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: SquallLHeart on May 31, 2011, 04:50:02 PM
i stopped counting how many people had to be removed from the dance due to their behavior.. there were A LOT..
not to mention the non-dance events... (i.e. shoplifters, perverts that were harassing others, ugh.. the list goes on) :-X

most came with a story as well... so.. there's a large collection of war stories that Rovers accumulated this year.  ::)
then dealing with minors wandering off on their own and getting continuous missing persons reports... oh joy.

like i said.. TONS of stuff behind the curtains.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: zeroelement on May 31, 2011, 04:57:44 PM
Just a heads up only the negative stuff and people who are complaning here. The rest of the people are no saying bad stuff so dont take all complaints at face battle. Also this is advice to everyone i missed

(https://forums.fanime.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fimages.cheezburger.com%2Fcompletestore%2F2009%2F10%2F30%2F129014128103951189.jpg&hash=080e7cc43a5bb153526d00a7c8ff653a63d11ea7)
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Kupo on May 31, 2011, 05:10:10 PM
Fanime was fun for me as always. Only gripe is someone stole my bag of stuff I bought after Fanime ended. Fun is what you make of it and other than the lack of schedules, I made the best of it.

Pretty much all the downs that happened at Fanime for me was out of the FanimeCon staff's control like someone pulling the fire alarm at Mariott, somewhat, Bad roommate, theft, and stinky people.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Sen on May 31, 2011, 05:35:58 PM
Quote from: ash_chan on May 31, 2011, 03:25:06 PM
pre-reg on Thursday.. the lines were capped off at 8pm... which means anyone who came after 8pm.. could not get in line.. of course Registration still needed to be open until much later to finish off everyone else.. and i believe you heard wrong.. the line wasn't cut at 8pm.. and the lines finished at 9:30pm

No. The lines were cut at 8pm. Registration staff informed the Rovers that were present that they had not choice but to cut the lines. The reason the lines finished around 9:30pm was because the line was cut off at 8pm (Reg hours were 5-8pm that day). The decision to cut off the line was made because it the line was never going to end unless they did so. Plus I personally did not want to see Reg staff work themselves into the ground on Day Zero.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: sysadmin on May 31, 2011, 06:00:17 PM
Feedback of all types are welcome and necessary.

However, there are a lot of things that can't be changed.  Period.  Don't ask.
* Union rules, pricing of certain elements
* Whether certain prohibited items will suddenly become allowed.

There are also a lot of things that might change, but it will take a complete miracle:
* People get stressed; Stressful people get curt.
* There will be idiots who pull fire alarms/have elevator parties/carry open alcohol containers/steal stuff.
This is not the ideal state of affairs, but there's no way to solve this with a few forum threads.

In any event, if you feel that it would be cathartic to mention anything in these four bullet points, go ahead I suppose.
But don't be pissed if you feel that it will fall on deaf ears.


There are plenty of things that -CAN- be changed and improved.
Feedback of those things will probably go a lot further, just so you know.



Quote
If the food is that crappy, point the finger at the ConCenter, not the Con
Actually, the food is not from the Convention Center either.  Things get complicated.

Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Steve.Young on May 31, 2011, 06:09:42 PM
If you have specific concerns about staff behavior, please send me a private message. I am interested in all staffing complaints (regardless of department) and will inform the relevant people.

For general staff feedback: http://forums.fanime.com/index.php/topic,16392.0.html

Thank you

-Steve
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Piccahoe on May 31, 2011, 06:17:36 PM
Quote from: bebop on May 30, 2011, 10:14:27 PM
What was I expecting? Not much. I am not expecting a 5 star restaurant service. In fact, maybe I was being a little too critical, since I work at a 4/4.5 star restaurant, and since I do great customer service on the ordinary. So if I sounded too blunt, I apologize. but what do you want me to say? Should I have worded it alternatively?

Try wearing high heels for even a few mins without complaining. Add the harassment that they get and how busy it was, put it together, and I think you're 4/4.5 restaurant would turn into a -1.  

Btw, do they even get paid?
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Melly on May 31, 2011, 06:18:56 PM
about the rain on Saturday and the blockage in the entrance,

the Code Geass gathering was being held RIGHT when the rain started, so we moved it to the middle of the entrance since we weren't totally sure where else to move where people -might- be able to see us.

so sorry on behalf of Code Geass gathering attendees :c
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: DJSaito on May 31, 2011, 06:20:27 PM
Was anyone else slightly disappointed in the panel selection this year, or is it just me not seeing some of the more fun panels?

Also, anyone else a little disappointed in the the game selection they had this year in the gaming hall?
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: SquallLHeart on May 31, 2011, 06:31:40 PM
Quote from: Sen on May 31, 2011, 05:35:58 PM
Quote from: ash_chan on May 31, 2011, 03:25:06 PM
pre-reg on Thursday.. the lines were capped off at 8pm... which means anyone who came after 8pm.. could not get in line.. of course Registration still needed to be open until much later to finish off everyone else.. and i believe you heard wrong.. the line wasn't cut at 8pm.. and the lines finished at 9:30pm

No. The lines were cut at 8pm. Registration staff informed the Rovers that were present that they had not choice but to cut the lines. The reason the lines finished around 9:30pm was because the line was cut off at 8pm (Reg hours were 5-8pm that day). The decision to cut off the line was made because it the line was never going to end unless they did so. Plus I personally did not want to see Reg staff work themselves into the ground on Day Zero.
sorry.. i should've made myself clear.. with regards to lines.. i used the term "cap" and "cut" as two different definitions in my response.. cutting the line what i meant.. was at 8pm.. they stopped accepting anyone else completely (meaning shutting down registration.. so no one got in after 8pm)... thus when i said capping at 8pm.. it was what you mentioned as what you defined as cut.... and i called it capping off the line.

i was there helping to manage the lines.. so yes.. we turned away people (cut/cap.. however we want to call it) that showed up after 8pm... which then we finished that remaining line at 9:30pm... which i thought i did well enough in expressing if you read through the rest of that paragraph.

the complaint i was addressing was the person thought we were accepting people to get into lines until 9:30pm.. which was entirely incorrect.
yea.. bunch of odd definitions i guess at that point.. but yea.. sorry for the incorrect wording.

i think it's mostly because when most people say "cut".. they think of "cut off"... cutting off a line.. vs. cutting a line.. imo, are two different things.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Sen on May 31, 2011, 06:37:18 PM
Quote from: SquallLHeart on May 31, 2011, 06:31:40 PM
Quote from: Sen on May 31, 2011, 05:35:58 PM
Quote from: ash_chan on May 31, 2011, 03:25:06 PM
pre-reg on Thursday.. the lines were capped off at 8pm... which means anyone who came after 8pm.. could not get in line.. of course Registration still needed to be open until much later to finish off everyone else.. and i believe you heard wrong.. the line wasn't cut at 8pm.. and the lines finished at 9:30pm

No. The lines were cut at 8pm. Registration staff informed the Rovers that were present that they had not choice but to cut the lines. The reason the lines finished around 9:30pm was because the line was cut off at 8pm (Reg hours were 5-8pm that day). The decision to cut off the line was made because it the line was never going to end unless they did so. Plus I personally did not want to see Reg staff work themselves into the ground on Day Zero.
sorry.. i should've made myself clear.. with regards to lines.. i used the term "cap" and "cut" as two different definitions in my response.. cutting the line what i meant.. was at 8pm.. they stopped accepting anyone else completely (meaning shutting down registration.. so no one got in after 8pm)... thus when i said capping at 8pm.. it was what you mentioned as what you defined as cut.... and i called it capping off the line.

i was there helping to manage the lines.. so yes.. we turned away people (cut/cap.. however we want to call it) that showed up after 8pm... which then we finished that remaining line at 9:30pm... which i thought i did well enough in expressing if you read through the rest of that paragraph.

the complaint i was addressing was the person thought we were accepting people to get into lines until 9:30pm.. which was entirely incorrect.
yea.. bunch of odd definitions i guess at that point.. but yea.. sorry for the incorrect wording.

No worries.  :)
BTW, I felt Rovers did an excellent job with the line on Day Zero. Shifting such a large number of people around as the line grew out the door while fielding questions is not easy.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: SquallLHeart on May 31, 2011, 06:39:20 PM
Yup! Rovers did a wonderful job.

I certainly did not expect those lines to be that long for... Day Zero!!.. wait.. day zero!? and the line went outside?!
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: otaku_duckie on May 31, 2011, 06:44:35 PM
I thought the rovers in charge of the autograph signings did an awesome job D: some loli chick and her friend did manage to cut in front of me for the FLOW autographs but i guess that was my fault for not reporting it.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: SquallLHeart on May 31, 2011, 06:57:36 PM
oh no!
yes!! please report if you see someone cutting.. we don't have superpowers where we can see everything that happens!

a special shout out to the Rovers that helped me with the lines at autographs.. esp. Bolin Chen (who was the guy in the green button up shirt that helped direct people), Quynh Chen, that was inside helping collecting donations from the Pray for Japan posters.. Also a shout out to a volunteer named David that went far beyond what he needed to.. and with only a crash course in line control.. he did very well.

the only thing that i really felt bad for.. was the FLOW line got so long to where we did have to cap off the line and turn people away.. and even in the end.. had to even have the last section of the line turned away after they had waited the whole time hoping they would still get a signing :'(

it was just... we capped off the line too late. :(

omg.. that line was soooooo long!!!! :o
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: otaku_duckie on May 31, 2011, 07:02:03 PM
Who was the awesome rover in the purple shirt on saturday for the yuya signing? she did an awesome job keeping everyone in check :DD
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: lonemeditater on May 31, 2011, 07:09:38 PM
The Con itself was awesome. The only thing that let me down that was run by con speed dating. I never received an e-mail afterwards that told me my matches (or that I had no matches), but most other people did, so I was really upset about that... I still kinda am...
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: SquallLHeart on May 31, 2011, 07:13:39 PM
Quote from: otaku_duckie on May 31, 2011, 07:02:03 PM
Who was the awesome rover in the purple shirt on saturday for the yuya signing? she did an awesome job keeping everyone in check :DD
oh.. i know her! yes.. she's awesome. :P
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: otaku_duckie on May 31, 2011, 07:14:46 PM
Quote from: SquallLHeart on May 31, 2011, 07:13:39 PM
Quote from: otaku_duckie on May 31, 2011, 07:02:03 PM
Who was the awesome rover in the purple shirt on saturday for the yuya signing? she did an awesome job keeping everyone in check :DD
oh.. i know her! yes.. she's awesome. :P

please tell her i said thank you and that she did an awesome job :DDD
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: SquallLHeart on May 31, 2011, 07:36:10 PM
okie dokies!!  :D
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: MikeTSA on May 31, 2011, 07:57:19 PM
Has eGaming always banned the use of your own console for free play? I can understand the reasoning to an extent - somebody has an explicit game or modified game with explicit content not suitable for all audiences - but I was told only your own controllers could be used, not even your own games. Rules on website only say don't bring your own console, but then it also says "For Free Play times, we will allow some use of personal equipment". That's why I thought I was able to bring some stuff this time, just not the console. I'd gladly sign something in advance to waive liability of damage/theft OR submit all contents in advance for screening if it meant being able to play our own stuff. A few of us wanted to play the custom version of Brawl I spent a lot of time on finalizing for Fanime, and it was all PG-13 or milder content, but when I asked about setting up at the info desk, they said it wasn't allowed. We hoped others would see it and want to join in and have some fun.

My friend also pointed out two people set up their own systems earlier in the day in the free play area (walked up with backpacks and just hooked up and played). The only saving grace is the Marriott actually allowed composite cables to be connected to the HDTVs, so we were at least able to play in our room.

Listen, this didn't ruin my Fanime or any nonsense like this, and this is a really petty issue in the grand scheme of stuff. I did still have a lot of fun at Fanime.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Mango Bunny on May 31, 2011, 08:13:36 PM
Add: I liked that rover guy walking around the masquerade line and yelling us the rules. He was cool, and while obviously tired was still good-humored about it.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: jacktchance on May 31, 2011, 08:18:01 PM
The things that bothered me such as rain, mediocre merchandise and high prices for sale in the dealer's hall, the sheer number of attendees, etc are unavoidable and are not the faults of anyone on staff.  I wont complain about them, but just wanted to point that out because of all the complaining going on.  I had no problems with rovers either.  The only time something happened, it only took about less than a minute of explaining before it was all sorted out.

However, please bring back the mini schedules.  I can't count the number of times I went to the help desks because I didn't know when and where certain gatherings and panels were.

Not the greatest Fanime, but I still had a great deal of fun and I appreciate all the hard work that goes into the con.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: otaku_duckie on May 31, 2011, 08:19:52 PM
I liked the rover at the concert line who was screaming "WE WONT LET THIS RAIN GET US DOWN!"

there was another rover who i had an issue with, he was smoking while walking up and down the line for the concert. I seriously didnt appreciate that since i do have a medical condition and my doctor says to stay away from smokers.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Shi_Musouka on May 31, 2011, 08:21:34 PM
I may have missed this, but my suggestion for future Fanimes regarding schedules is to make a note to attendees on the website that schedules are not guaranteed to be printed out at con so that the people traveling from "far away" will be able to print one from home before heading out, if necessary. If you guys wanted to go green and encourage other people to print them out, it really helps to make a note of it on the website section where the schedules are/will be posted. Overall, not having schedules were frustrating. I liked that there were mobile apps for it and I hope you guys continue to have mobile apps with schedules in the future, though it doesn't change the fact that not everyone has access to a smart phone or mobile internet(Sadly, I won't get my smartphone until after Fanime 2012 ;___;).

Staff-wise, it really helps to avoid con stress. Not only is it unhealthy, but you may end up taking your anger out on people who don't deserve it. Take a breather if you need to. It does you no good to perform your duties with your mental processing center(aka your brain) impaired. You can't stop stress entirely, but I personally think it helps out a lot in the long run if you take steps to minimalize it.

My two cents(this is just my own opinion and does not reflect those of our staff)
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: eHash on May 31, 2011, 08:39:17 PM
Nice catch Scott:After I posted that comment I thought about it and realized it's actually the con that picks concessions from a concenter approved list of vendors.  at least, that's what i've dealt with doing tradeshows there.

I'm not sure if i mentioned it here or not, but the rovers did a f_cking awesome job!
There just weren't enough...they need more people to volunteer *hint to people to volunteer

actually I think most staff did an awesome job...I think the lack of schedules, the rain, and the lack of staff knowledge about con events that they aren't associated with. 

i know schedules weren't guaranteed, There's no reason to assume an app would be available...I gues for the most part i'm not going to slam print since they put my page right on the centerfold (THANK YOU PRINT!!!), I think it's just a testament to how godly the mini/pocket-schedules were in 2010.  I think people don't really appreciate what they Had until it's gone or missing.

The weather we can't do anything about.

I would suggest that even though we can't do much about volunteer education, a larger portion of the last 2 mandatory meetings needs to be dedicated to presenting what the con is offering (you can't ask someone to sell what they don't know). 

Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: tifachan101 on May 31, 2011, 09:11:38 PM
Quote from: otaku_duckie on May 31, 2011, 07:14:46 PM
Quote from: SquallLHeart on May 31, 2011, 07:13:39 PM
Quote from: otaku_duckie on May 31, 2011, 07:02:03 PM
Who was the awesome rover in the purple shirt on saturday for the yuya signing? she did an awesome job keeping everyone in check :DD
oh.. i know her! yes.. she's awesome. :P

please tell her i said thank you and that she did an awesome job :DDD

I was wondering was it saturday or do you mean sunday because saturday there was a girl in a dress. was that her?
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Rhornez on May 31, 2011, 09:23:14 PM
Quote from: Aelia on May 31, 2011, 04:22:49 PM
I'm not attempting to speak to, or for everything. I'm not attempting to speak for all staff, and these opinions are my own.

Quote from: PyronIkari on May 31, 2011, 10:20:02 AM
Something to learn about rovers, crowd control etc. There are always bad and good staff members on the lower level(or any level). If you get a bad staff member, get their name and description and report them. Upper management does care about this stuff. They do not want bad staff members, but they don't know they're bad unless people report them.
This is something I'd like to reiterate. Had a bad experience with a staffer? Well, we can't fix it unless we know who it is. Contact their Department Head ASAP and get it taken care of at con rather than just complaining after the fact.

Quote from: SquallLHeart on May 31, 2011, 01:56:36 PM
Such "rudeness" from the staff that you may have experienced, I would have to say from observation, can be blamed from to the rudeness of the ATTENDEES. As conventions of any sort, or of any genre grow.. you get more and more individuals who are nothing more than belligerent folks who make the job of the staff much more difficult. Each attendee needs to be treated the same way from all the staff.. and as such.. they need to make judgement to do what they need to to keep order. If that requires enforcing rules they were told to enforce in a stern manner.. then why would you be complaining about them just doing their job?! I witnessed behind the scenes of how many intoxicated people they had to deal with. Not to be a killjoy, but it is very much emphasized that Fanime is a DRY CON. I have no sympathy for those that fail to abide that rule.. and you can blame them for ruining your fun.

Now... continuing on with "proper training" of the staff.. I don't know what other departments do.. but with Rovers in particular.. they were given PLENTY of training.. and to the point where they have implemented proficiency tests to filter out people. There's ALWAYS an understaffing issue.. and as the con grows.. and as more and more people who want to join staff increases as well... it makes it more difficult to make the balance between filtering out people vs. making sure we have enough.. I'm sure a few slithered their way in.. having that knowledge.. but perhaps poor application was witnessed. There is absolutely NO WAY you can be trained for that... that only comes from on-hand experience.

To give you an idea, we (Rovers) attempted to help well over 15,000 people with a little over 120 volunteers, many of whom worked well over 48 hours over the course of the convention. Things happened, and people may have been rude, or abrupt. We will be working to address this (as we do every year), but as stated, the best way to "fix" things is to participate. Every department at Fanime could use an extra pair of hands (or fifty) and we are almost always accepting volunteers.

Quote from: ash_chan on May 31, 2011, 03:25:06 PM
Another thing I noticed was attitude by some rovers. I didn't get their names, and I was so tired that I can't really give a description - nor do I really want to, as maybe they were just having a bad day - but I didn't really appreciate being talked to in the manner they did. The first incident was as I was walking down the designated walkway by stage zero. I was quite angrily snapped at to keep moving I was blocking traffic. While I understand that blocking traffic is not a good idea, there was a small child who tripped in front of me. I most certainly was not going to just stomp over this kid, I stopped to give him the space to stand up and brush himself off.

The second incident was as the gaming room was closing on Monday. I was sitting in a back corner, packing up my stuff (the announcement had been made about a minute before) when a rover comes up yelling that we needed to get out NOW. Now, I know you're tired, overworked, and just want to be done with it, I understand. But did you really need to be so mean about it? I was actively packing when you came up, how about worrying about the people putting coins in the games even though the announcement was made instead of the 2 girls who are obviously packing their things? The rovers in both of these cases were indeed doing their job, and I don't hold a grudge against them for the actions themselves, but it was in the way things were said. Attitude can be the difference between "This con was the best one yet!" and "THIS CON SUCKS, I'M NEVER GOING AGAIN." However, all in all, staff are awesome and kind folk who are super helpful. Tons of my friends staff/rove/etc and I hold tons of respect for those who do it.
We will continue attempting to address these issues, because to some degree it is training, and to some degree it is an individual's personality, rather than anything "fixable." 

As far as the shouting as Gaming was closing-- was that shouting at you specifically, or just shouting in general? A lot of the time, we're attempting to make ourselves heard, rather than trying to be mean.
its decided then,I am volunteering next year
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: bebop on May 31, 2011, 10:32:57 PM
Quote from: PyronIkari on May 31, 2011, 03:15:41 PM

You do not have a single legitimate point in anything you posted at all. Every single thing you complained about either, didn't apply, or was you basically stating how you don't like people. "I don't like crossplayers" "I don't like the music they played at the dance"... etc. Seriously? Then you go off on a rant like Fanime is terrible because of things like this? Are you serious?

Why must I even go into specifics or provide hardcore proof that it wasn't good? I'm not here to convince you that Fanime 2011 sucks, I'm here to Re:Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime? (http://forums.fanime.com/index.php/topic,16326.0.html) Lmao, suck it up. Can't handle handle the way I feel about things or what? I'm sorry but I don't feel like being optimistic about it since last year when it actually started getting bad.

edit: However I did learn one thing, it is not the DJ to entirely blame for, it is the Con Management and their lame restrictions on limiting what people want to actually play.

The music sucks, my friends hated it, random people said they hated it, and other people on the forum said they don't like to dance to "techno" (Lol, it's not even techno). I personally don't hate it, but it just wasn't innovating, captivating, melodic, euphoric, dreamy, hard, or progressive. You think I'm the only one complaining about this? Wow, you'd be surprised bro!

Quote from: PyronIkari on May 31, 2011, 03:15:41 PM
But here's the fun one, not because it's my department because it makes absolutely no sense.

Uhuh, ok!

Quote from: PyronIkari on May 31, 2011, 03:15:41 PM
Ok... service. What do you mean by service? You don't even explain anything in this, you just complain about the food and say you don't get anything from it. Again, what kind of service did you expect? Do you even know what a maid cafe is? Seriously... first off, it's a cafe... not a restaurant. So if you're going to whine that it's not a 4/4.5 star restaurant you really need to get your head out of your ass. blah blah blah....

No I actually don't know what a Maid Cafe is. You didn't know that I didn't know? I went probably since it started, as I recall it was in its early awakening in 2009-present. (Not sure if it was there 2008-before though.)

I don't need to explain to you. If you don't agree with me then get off my nuts. If I don't like it, I'll say I don't like it. Just because it was good for you horny maid defending otakus in shining armor, doesn't mean that it's gonna be good for everybody. Some people just enjoy mediocrity, and some expect higher.

Quote from: PyronIkari on May 31, 2011, 03:15:41 PM
blah blah blah continued.... What I do care about is how you're attacking it totally off base. Just so you know, one of the staff members of the cafe is a cook in a high class restaurant. So please give me legitimate complaints instead of just "It sucked". And this goes for pretty much everything you said.

When I went to the Maid Cafe, they didn't really smile, and the Maids looked rather pissed off and annoyed because of who-knows-why. Maybe it's because otakus like you keep trying to hit on them. I understand because they are in dresses, heels, being stalked/checked out by creeps, and are under pressure and stress from many other responsibilities. But who told the maids they had to be that busy? If they can't pull it off then perhaps they should tone it down.

No smiles, no friendly vibe, and they didn't even check my table after they seated me. I don't want to go more into details, so shut up.

Restaurant and Cafe is nearly the same thing. Actually, it is even easier to do a Cafe than it is to do a restaurant. So really, it shouldn't be that hard at all for them. You still have to have customer service skills, social skills, common sense, friendliness, and lots of patience. How many tables are at the Maid Cafe anyway? How many Maids were even working?

Quote from: PyronIkari on May 31, 2011, 03:15:41 PM
blah blah blah continued.... Just so you know, one of the staff members of the cafe is a cook in a high class restaurant.

LMAO is this guy serious? I'M A COOK IN A HIGH CLASS RESTAURANT, I MAKE FROZEN MEDIOCRE FOOD AND OVERCHARGE BECAUSE I GOT CUTE LITTLE MAIDS WHO WILL MAKE UP FOR MY MEDIOCRITY! THOSE IDIOTS WILL NEVER KNOW!

please, you're a sick joke. get out of here

-----------------------------

Quote from: PicahoeTry wearing high heels for even a few mins without complaining. Add the harassment that they get and how busy it was, put it together, and I think you're 4/4.5 restaurant would turn into a -1.  

Btw, do they even get paid?

Lol, how hard is it to just check up on tables 2-3 times, talk to the customers nicely with a smile, show a passion for the work, walk back and forth and bring frozen sandwiches and cold drinks out of a fridge, ignore annoying creeps that harass, or better yet, take the harassment lightly and just joke around with them casually. I get harassed or hit on by girl customers at work, and I just take it lightly and play along or make jokes with it. It really isn't that hard. Either the maids are shy, or they just don't have those kinds of social skills. What I do notice about the Maid Service at the Cafe is they give me a vibe that they just want to do their work, finish us off, and get us the hell out of here so they could finish. I get a vibe that they just want it to be over with, so they could leave.

If you don't wanna accept feedback, and you like to face the wall of ignorance, then just ignore what I have to say. I wasn't directing toward you anyway in the first place anyway.

But, it's ok, I understand, if I complain and make feedback, it is my fault, not theirs.  ::) ::) ::) Kinda ironic,  ::) because at restaurants/cafes if something is going bad, it is usually the workers that should take the blame. (Even if it wasn't the worker's fault. The customer will feel better that they are not responsible.)

Anyways.... just for the record, I'm an otaku too... kind of, not as much as before, so no need to call me a hypocritical person. (Look at my sig yo!)
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: monotone on May 31, 2011, 10:46:29 PM
Quote from: tifachan101 on May 31, 2011, 09:11:38 PM
Quote from: otaku_duckie on May 31, 2011, 07:14:46 PM
Quote from: SquallLHeart on May 31, 2011, 07:13:39 PM
Quote from: otaku_duckie on May 31, 2011, 07:02:03 PM
Who was the awesome rover in the purple shirt on saturday for the yuya signing? she did an awesome job keeping everyone in check :DD
oh.. i know her! yes.. she's awesome. :P

please tell her i said thank you and that she did an awesome job :DDD

I was wondering was it saturday or do you mean sunday because saturday there was a girl in a dress. was that her?

I was wearing a purple dress on Saturday, but I worked the Yokota signing C:

[ P.S. Dood, add me on facebook! ]
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: PyronIkari on May 31, 2011, 11:38:57 PM
Quote from: bebop on May 31, 2011, 10:32:57 PM
Why must I even go into specifics or provide hardcore proof that it wasn't good? I'm not here to convince you that Fanime 2011 sucks, I'm here to Re:Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime? (http://forums.fanime.com/index.php/topic,16326.0.html) Lmao, suck it up. Can't handle handle the way I feel about things or what? I'm sorry but I don't feel like being optimistic about it since last year when it actually started getting bad.
Ok, so you're just complaining baselessly, offering no feedback and just whining like a child then. How does that help anyone? If you have complaints, then explain them so people can improve on them.

Quoteedit: However I did learn one thing, it is not the DJ to entirely blame for, it is the Con Management and their lame restrictions on limiting what people want to actually play.

The music sucks, my friends hated it, random people said they hated it, and other people on the forum said they don't like to dance to "techno" (Lol, it's not even techno). I personally don't hate it, but it just wasn't innovating, captivating, melodic, euphoric, dreamy, hard, or progressive. You think I'm the only one complaining about this? Wow, you'd be surprised bro!
Uh... the con management restricted them on what they can play? Says who? Oh, you of the all knowing obviously know better than the staff members of the con apparently... and the djs...

QuoteNo I actually don't know what a Maid Cafe is. You didn't know that I didn't know? I went probably since it started, as I recall it was in its early awakening in 2009-present. (Not sure if it was there 2008-before though.)

I don't need to explain to you. If you don't agree with me then get off my nuts. If I don't like it, I'll say I don't like it. Just because it was good for you horny maid defending otakus in shining armor, doesn't mean that it's gonna be good for everybody. Some people just enjoy mediocrity, and some expect higher.
Actually you do need to explain it to me... because I'm co-head of the maid cafe. And how my girls act with patrons is important to me. So I will request some information. Who was your maid. Because I was in the cafe for a good majority of the time, and my staff was in there a good majority of the time.

QuoteWhen I went to the Maid Cafe, they didn't really smile, and the Maids looked rather pissed off and annoyed because of who-knows-why. Maybe it's because otakus like you keep trying to hit on them. I understand because they are in dresses, heels, being stalked/checked out by creeps, and are under pressure and stress from many other responsibilities. But who told the maids they had to be that busy? If they can't pull it off then perhaps they should tone it down.

No smiles, no friendly vibe, and they didn't even check my table after they seated me. I don't want to go more into details, so shut up.
OH PLEASE DO GO INTO MORE DETAILS. Because this is my cafe and I need to know what's going on it. Again, please tell me who your maid was. She tells you her name when you enter the cafe and almost all of them wore name tags. Also, I'd like to know what time you were in the cafe and what day. I need to take these complaints seriously as I absolutely do strive for perfection.

QuoteRestaurant and Cafe is nearly the same thing. Actually, it is even easier to do a Cafe than it is to do a restaurant. So really, it shouldn't be that hard at all for them. You still have to have customer service skills, social skills, common sense, friendliness, and lots of patience. How many tables are at the Maid Cafe anyway? How many Maids were even working?
There were 12 tables with the capability of seating 10 people each. There were a total of 59 maids including the staff maids, not all at the cafe all the time of course. What time were you asking about and I can tell you how many maids were working. Almost all of my girls were rather competent, all of them are sociable and friendly.

QuoteLMAO is this guy serious? I'M A COOK IN A HIGH CLASS RESTAURANT, I MAKE FROZEN MEDIOCRE FOOD AND OVERCHARGE BECAUSE I GOT CUTE LITTLE MAIDS WHO WILL MAKE UP FOR MY MEDIOCRITY! THOSE IDIOTS WILL NEVER KNOW!

please, you're a sick joke. get out of here
And you seriously need to learn to read. You're comparing a restaurant with a small catering stand in a convention center. CURIOUS... where do you work? You don't have to answer this of course, but if you have any balls at all you will.

QuoteLol, how hard is it to just check up on tables 2-3 times, talk to the customers nicely with a smile, show a passion for the work, walk back and forth and bring frozen sandwiches and cold drinks out of a fridge, ignore annoying creeps that harass, or better yet, take the harassment lightly and just joke around with them casually. I get harassed or hit on by girl customers at work, and I just take it lightly and play along or make jokes with it. It really isn't that hard. Either the maids are shy, or they just don't have those kinds of social skills. What I do notice about the Maid Service at the Cafe is they give me a vibe that they just want to do their work, finish us off, and get us the hell out of here so they could finish. I get a vibe that they just want it to be over with, so they could leave.
If you knew anything, and actually were at the cafe (yes at this point I'm calling you out straight forwardly now) you would know that girls don't "check up on tables" at the maid cafe. It was absolutely more than obvious that the maids sat down with patrons. WAIT WAIT WAIT... you work at a 4-4.5 star restaurant and are saying that harassment of the wait staff is common? This doesn't happen in high class restaurants sir. And now you're just making crap up that they want you to get out of there. But hey, you're obviously the expert despite almost everything you saying not adding up.

QuoteIf you don't wanna accept feedback, and you like to face the wall of ignorance, then just ignore what I have to say. I wasn't directing toward you anyway in the first place anyway.
No, I love feedback. Did you not notice how I put up a thread for feedback? What I want is GOOD FEEDBACK legitimate feedback about what went wrong and what went right. What you wrote doesn't make sense. You state things happened and that the cafe was a certain way, when it wasn't, and just observing the cafe for 10 minutes you would know those things. So please explain what happened in detail. And strangely you were directing everything towards me, because again... I'm co-head of the maid cafe. Everything you said was DIRECTLY TOWARDS ME.

QuoteBut, it's ok, I understand, if I complain and make feedback, it is my fault, not theirs.  ::) ::) ::) Kinda ironic,  ::) because at restaurants/cafes if something is going bad, it is usually the workers that should take the blame. (Even if it wasn't the worker's fault. The customer will feel better that they are not responsible.)

Anyways.... just for the record, I'm an otaku too... kind of, not as much as before, so no need to call me a hypocritical person. (Look at my sig yo!)

Yes, it is the workers fault usually, but sometimes it's not. And quite frankly, I have a few guesses as to who you may be, and with some slight digging, I can probably figure it out, but again, if you have any integrity, you'll answer the questions I asked so I can get to the bottom of what happened during your visit to the cafe and fix this problem for next year. I have a good memory, but i'm terrible with names. So I'll make it easy and list out the information I would like and you don't even need to tell me who you are \o/

What time you came into the cafe.
Which table you sat at.
Who your maid was.

Thank you.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: eHash on May 31, 2011, 11:50:52 PM
>edit: However I did learn one thing, it is not the DJ to entirely blame for, it is the Con Management and their lame restrictions on limiting what people want to actually play.

you misunderstood my personal message to you...but it is somewhat true, that the djs aren't entirely to blame.  it's also the mixed crowd atmosphere not necessarily the con-management.  for as many people you find that hated the music or say it sucks there's tons who liked it.  one thing that is consistent, you'll always piss off someone.

"I personally don't hate it, but it just wasn't innovating, captivating, melodic, euphoric, dreamy, hard, or progressive. You think I'm the only one complaining about this? Wow, you'd be surprised bro!"

never surprised bro.

Being in the service industry YOU (Bebop) know very well there are times when the loudest customer is the one that's heard and that it's sometimes unfair that a single person can represent the many...Please rethink your comments about the dance, from your post on the the forums it sounds like you spent a lot of time there, however in your personal message you admitted, you may not have spent as much time as you represent. Just as an example, take 2 similar food places like C_y and B_ C_, you'd find people who love and those who hate things about each...However, if I only eat 2 pieces of shrimp from one and it's not good i won't yelp that it "sucked ass".  

I can't blast other Fanime Dept's in the forums, but I will agree with one of Bebop's points around customer service.  This is problematic for the maid cafe.  On one hand they are volunteers, they don't get paid, they pay for their outfits, and are not professional waitresses, but on the other hand...since food is paid for, it's a featured concession on the concourse, and they serve food, the Maid Cafe needs to keeps little customer service in mind. Those in the customer service industry get extremely irritated when they get bad service because they may take it personally.  But, Bebop, I've gone to YOUR resteraunt and gotten bad service (when I even know the owner)...do I yelp that? (a) you could have emailed me your comments personally, (b) the way you phrased it on here I have to admit is one of the least productive ways to complain. (c) I played 14 songs on your list of requests (more than 1/2) and you're still bitching about the music? o, but you weren't there...that's like yelping that C_'s food sucks because you didn't get to eat it because they ran out while you waited 2 hours to get a seat.


Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: jes.panda on June 01, 2011, 12:20:17 AM
Quote from: otaku_duckie on May 31, 2011, 07:14:46 PM
Quote from: SquallLHeart on May 31, 2011, 07:13:39 PM
Quote from: otaku_duckie on May 31, 2011, 07:02:03 PM
Who was the awesome rover in the purple shirt on saturday for the yuya signing? she did an awesome job keeping everyone in check :DD
oh.. i know her! yes.. she's awesome. :P

please tell her i said thank you and that she did an awesome job :DDD
lol, I think it was me.  BTW thanks, it feels nice to be recognized.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: dealerJason on June 01, 2011, 12:22:57 AM
As always after I read a, "What went wrong this year" thread, my first thought is, please join staff!  Especially if you think you could fix what everyone is griping about!

Congestion-We hear you on this.  But folks, we had 10,000 on the first day!  Are we talking about spreading things out?  To be sure, but will you enjoy the extra walking to have more space?

Training-We want to train everyone well, but we have lives too.  I wish I could live and breath Fanime, but I have a family, a job, and the desire to run a small con at my school.  Does that leave a lot of time for training and organizing?  We all do what we can when we can.

Schedules-Heartbreaking, especially since it had been 5 years since that SNAFU happened last.  I remember sitting on Stage Zero in 2006, telling everyone we finally had schedules, only to be out again.  Yeah, I made that schedule myself too.   That sucked because it sucked.

Yoshiki-I have to tell you guys, when someone like Yoshiki drops out of the sky for your con, you do what you can to grab him, even it it means you do not think it all through.  Yes it could have been handled better, and would have been if it had not been so last minute.  But seriously, would you want us to turn down a guest just because we don't have all the logistics planned?  I think you would shoot us.  

Folks, I do this for you, I do it to hear your cheers, to hear your squeals of laughter and joy that his con brings you.  For most of you, this past weekend is Christmas, New Year's, and your birthday all rolled up into one.  Believe me, that is in the back of my head during every planning session.  We have yet to put on the perfect con, but we do strive to every year.  Next year, it will be a new list of gripes, but I guarantee there will be many more smiles.

Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: jes.panda on June 01, 2011, 12:27:56 AM
Quote from: monotone on May 31, 2011, 10:46:29 PM
Quote from: tifachan101 on May 31, 2011, 09:11:38 PM
Quote from: otaku_duckie on May 31, 2011, 07:14:46 PM
Quote from: SquallLHeart on May 31, 2011, 07:13:39 PM
Quote from: otaku_duckie on May 31, 2011, 07:02:03 PM
Who was the awesome rover in the purple shirt on saturday for the yuya signing? she did an awesome job keeping everyone in check :DD
oh.. i know her! yes.. she's awesome. :P

please tell her i said thank you and that she did an awesome job :DDD

I was wondering was it saturday or do you mean sunday because saturday there was a girl in a dress. was that her?

I was wearing a purple dress on Saturday, but I worked the Yokota signing C:

[ P.S. Dood, add me on facebook! ]
I worked Yuya's signing and was wearing a purple scarf as a shirt.  interesting...
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: eHash on June 01, 2011, 12:35:08 AM
"Folks, I do this for you, I do it to hear your cheers, to hear your squeals of laughter and joy that his con brings you.  For most of you, this past weekend is Christmas, New Year's, and your birthday all rolled up into one.  Believe me, that is in the back of my head during every planning session.  We have yet to put on the perfect con, but we do strive to every year.  Next year, it will be a new list of gripes, but I guarantee there will be many more smiles."

I remember there were years I got the wrong toy from Santa....but people please be constructive when ranting...it's more helpful...
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: monotone on June 01, 2011, 12:41:19 AM
Quote from: jes.panda on June 01, 2011, 12:27:56 AM
Quote from: monotone on May 31, 2011, 10:46:29 PM
Quote from: tifachan101 on May 31, 2011, 09:11:38 PM
Quote from: otaku_duckie on May 31, 2011, 07:14:46 PM
Quote from: SquallLHeart on May 31, 2011, 07:13:39 PM
Quote from: otaku_duckie on May 31, 2011, 07:02:03 PM
Who was the awesome rover in the purple shirt on saturday for the yuya signing? she did an awesome job keeping everyone in check :DD
oh.. i know her! yes.. she's awesome. :P

please tell her i said thank you and that she did an awesome job :DDD

I was wondering was it saturday or do you mean sunday because saturday there was a girl in a dress. was that her?

I was wearing a purple dress on Saturday, but I worked the Yokota signing C:

[ P.S. Dood, add me on facebook! ]
I worked Yuya's signing and was wearing a purple scarf as a shirt.  interesting...

Sounds like it was you, then C: Well deserved recognition, J-pan!
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Kanzake on June 01, 2011, 12:45:49 AM
Quote from: Mango Bunny on May 31, 2011, 08:13:36 PM
Add: I liked that rover guy walking around the masquerade line and yelling us the rules. He was cool, and while obviously tired was still good-humored about it.

Im glad someone liked me and didnt hate me :)
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: jagsthepandaman on June 01, 2011, 12:59:32 AM
In regards to the complaints involving staff. I can understand that it can be rather halting and upsetting when a rover is curt with you or yelling at you for something. Please think of it this way. You can have all the training in the world by the best rovers around, but nothing will prepare you for day one when hundreds of excited fans line up to enter. Is there room for improvement? Yes. Did we do the best we can? I'd like to think so. Also to whomever complained regarding the rover that threw a high five regarding escorting out a person taking a video of the concert? Number one everyone is told the rules regarding the musicfest concert and thus feigning ignorance of rules isn't really acceptable. These rules have been consistent. Number two, there were A LOT of people at that concert, some with glow sticks, others dancing and waving their hands. The sheer fact that a person was spotted with a camera in their hands in a dark room with constant shadowy movement IS something to be proud of. We did our jobs the best of our ability.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Yuu on June 01, 2011, 01:28:53 AM
As usual I had a lot of fun. Faanime has always been my favorite con because of the friendly staff and multitude of interactive events/games. A fact i am always bragging about those stuck at Sakuracon in Seattle.

However, by the end of con I was referring to Fanime as " peace bonding 2011'

" Did you enjoy Peace Bonding this year? I think it was the best Peace Bonding ever. The staff this really made sure that everyone knew what Peace Bonding is all about; Peace bonding. Yep .I'll never forget it"

I was actually approached by staff about peace bonding no less that 7 times while I was holding my tiny little sword at my side and looking through artwork/merchandise.

While waiting for an elevator in the hotel I was harassed another three times by staffers who wee NOT even on the clock.
An angry cosplayer even asked if my sword was peace bonded because his had been taken away. I was not there so I can't say for sure, but I can guess by how much I was harassed, and the rareness of a prop actually being taken away that it wasn't deserved.

This was all nothing compared to Saturday night. I was playing a game of ninja and as I was used to having my sword, I played with  it in my hand.
Eventually I was approached by..some big guy and an actual police officer; or at least he played the part as he was obviously trying to intimidate me- who waited until I was sitting on my knees, obviously so they could look down on me and feel even bigger.

There was no 'excuse me' no 'can we speak with you' nothing to even let me know they were there. They simply stood right behind me and demanded " Is that peace bonded!?"
I showed them that it was and, rather than ask that I not play with it in my hand they got incredibly rude and accusatory insisting that I had been intentionally using it to attack people.
" No it's attached ot my hand" ( as it was due to the costume)
" So it's peace bonded TO your hand?"
After explaining to them three times it was not 'peace bonded to my hand' ( it was tied that way) they actually accused me of lying and saying I was using it as an excuse to swing it around. In teh end I just got up and left.
I know that at this point it's my word versus theirs but had the intent been to hit someone, people would have been hit.
That NEVER happened.  It was poor judgment on my part to hold onto it but there was nothing malicious about it. It merely hadn't occurred to me. I was just, you know having fun; what a con is supposed to be about.
This is not 'the street' this is an anime convention. People are there t enjoy themselves. Not to be harassed or accused of violence.
Were I there supervisor I would be incredibly ashamed of such an unprofessional and immature attitude. Had they simply asked me to stop, or reminded me of the rules, it would have simply been "Right my mistake" and I'd have put the sword away but the way they approached and immediately jumped into accusations would tell anyone that they wanted to start a fight and throw their wieght around.

I have never had any issues of this sort at any convention I have ever attended-and I have been to Sakuracon-so I don't know what the deal is; if there was a new contract or something but I will be incredibly disappointed if it's allowed to continue next year and ruin  the  name of Fanime as a fun and friendly convention.


That aside, I actually enjoyed it a lot more than last year. I do get bored very easily at conventions but I was entetrained round teh clock this year.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: apsykes on June 01, 2011, 01:37:51 AM
I was really let down by the security of the con, sure i know one of my buddies are a rover, he did a great job, but when a friend was quad-suiting in a Arcanine, some guy came out of nowhere and started to dryhump HER from behind, i did report it to a rover, Hopefully he was stopped by them or something. it was sunday night, Gaming room, late night.
secondly, this year wasn't that energetic, A total Con-killer to my friends that traveled all the way from Arizona from MY recommendation.
And i quote from my friend: "I'm thinking we should stick with SakuraCon, it was more fun there.  people there weren't all stiff"
Even got me thinking to reg for Saturday only next year.
I mean, Third time's the charm, right?

and as every year, Staff+Rovers are like this:
Thursday: Happy! happy! joy! joy!
Friday: Happy happy meh meh.
Saturday: What do you want?!
Sunday: *Censored Censored Censored AWAY FROM ME*
Monday: Finally! it's over!
I did see a few of contradictions, like a few rovers/staff that were still kind and polite to the attendees.

Also to a few of my furry friends in their suits, did get put down like "Yiff in hell Furf@%s" (Seriously? That was so 2003.)
Put downs and drunks @ Night
Mass mob of photographers @ Day (not a bad thing, except when they were dying of dehydration and gave me the Death sign to escort them quick to water and away from people)

Also, Fanime, A Dry Convention? didnt seem like it this year, i saw my fursuit friends get harassed (till i had to intervene), Three drunk guys harassing a ninja outside, And a drunk chick drinking beer in the convention center out of a ceramic coffee machine cup (Not to mention, Spilling some... vodka(?) on her 1,200$ suit.

Before anyone flames at me for anything on this or possibly banning me from the fourms, think of this as a critique, Take what you see in here that's bad, and FIX IT!

Also Peace bonding was sorta DERP, my friend brought her L4D fake gun to get it peace bonded and they said it was too realistic, but when i brought the same thing in, it was peace bonded under my badge ID (Serious? really? she was a girl too, more chillax to her!)
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: otaku_duckie on June 01, 2011, 02:11:23 AM
i had problems with drunk ppl too, not at the con itself but in my hotel lobby. two drunk guys from the con (they had their badged on) tried to follow me into my hotel room! i didnt come out of my room till my guy friends came back >.< it really scared me
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: bebop on June 01, 2011, 02:22:26 AM
Oh, just forget everything I said then.

eHash, I stayed at the dance indeed for a few good hours, yes, and on other days too such as Friday and Sunday night. However, it slipped my mind that you were closing the sets on Friday night. And totally didn't know you were closing the sets in the main dance floor upstairs on all other nights. If I would have known, I would have definitely went to check out your set. I appreciate that you played some of the songs I requested. In fact, I feel like a total idiot for missing out. I have no excuses. I missed your part and damn I shouldn't have.

I didn't indicate this earlier but when I was giving a critique for the dance scene, it was only prior to the parts when I was there. I was there on Friday from 9-11 PM, and on Sunday from 11:30-12:00AM. I wasn't there during your set. (Damn I wish I was though)

So it's my fault, and perhaps I shouldn't have been so harsh with things. I apologize, and let's just forget what's happened here and let's move on to what we can do for next year.

I know the restaurant I work at is well known for some bad customer service at times. I'm a newer worker though, and I've been doing everything I can on the customer service improvement. It's been showing, I see results on yelp, but it is nothing beyond a conceivable level yet. After all, I only started a short while ago.

Quote from: PyronIkariOH PLEASE DO GO INTO MORE DETAILS. Because this is my cafe and I need to know what's going on it. Again, please tell me who your maid was. She tells you her name when you enter the cafe and almost all of them wore name tags. Also, I'd like to know what time you were in the cafe and what day. I need to take these complaints seriously as I absolutely do strive for perfection.

Perfection my ass. You're not striving for anything. You claim that I'm talking out of my ass? Look, if you have a customer complaining, then you really need to take into consideration into what they're saying. Why do I have to answer you all these personal questions? I shouldn't. Normally, the person is supposed to accept constructive criticism, accept it, whether it may be true or not, find out if they can make improvements. If it was a lie, then the improvements were not needed to be made, but at least it is the thought that counts. If it was true, then damn, you know what the problem is, so go fix it!

Quote
No, I love feedback. Did you not notice how I put up a thread for feedback? What I want is GOOD FEEDBACK legitimate feedback about what went wrong and what went right. What you wrote doesn't make sense. You state things happened and that the cafe was a certain way, when it wasn't, and just observing the cafe for 10 minutes you would know those things. So please explain what happened in detail. And strangely you were directing everything towards me, because again... I'm co-head of the maid cafe. Everything you said was DIRECTLY TOWARDS ME.

The hell? You don't even know how long I was there for. How are you to judge that I'm just sitting there for 10 minutes acting like I know everything? First off all, I can't believe you are actually judging your own customer that invested time in money into your own organization, and has the courage to actually stand up and speak the truth, but you just blame me for being an idiot, and start interrogating me about who what where how and why. Think about it. Do you think I'm just sitting here making stuff up? Do you actually think I would enjoy hating on people for no reason? Dude, that's not fun at all. But honestly, get a reality check.

If I was you and someone complained to me like this, I would definitely take the blame and do everything I can to fix the problem. I would never, NEVER start to interrogate, and say stupid shit like "Imagine if you were this working in high heels with expensive dresses and had special performances to attend to." OR worse yet, mock the customer and try to make them feel like an idiot. How is a service industry going to improve, if all the comments they are getting is "You are a winner! You're the best! No one can beat you!" The business would never improve man. Bruce Lee, the wise once said, "Like everyone else you want to learn the way to win. But never to accept the way to lose." My god dude, why would you even hire people in the first place if they can't even do it correctly? I noticed that nobody else has said anything about the Maid Cafe on this thread, but among my friends and peers, all of them had a lot of negative feelings for it. Open your eyes, I'm trying to help you. A lot of people don't want to say anything bad, so they'll just lie modestly or they simply don't have the time or the courage to step up.

Just so you know, I never claimed that I work at a "high class" restaurant. I work at a decent restaurant at best, and it is rated that way on Yelp! I'm not here to boast that I am the best worker either. And yes, I do get hit on by girl customers, whether they are serious or not, I take it lightly, and I choose to play along with it or joke around. A restaurant doesn't have to be "high class" in order to have customers who don't have a physical or mental interest in the workers. I don't see any golden rule saying "You cannot hit or flirt with workers because it is blasphemy and thou shalt burn in hell." And if it is blasphemy, then damn, I feel bad for my customers.

I still can't believe you are asking me where I work, and you have the audacity that only "real men with balls" would admit where they work. Are you seriously the head of the Maid Cafe? What the hell. This is like blasphemy and corruption in the Catholic church. I feel like I'm going to get lynched because I said the Earth was round. So if another customer complains, are you gonna call them a pussy because they didn't go much into details by giving you their family name, their social security number, and their birth certificate? Do you have to REALLY know these things just to "strive for perfection?"

This is ridiculous. I don't have to give you any of my personal information at all. Not that I am an ass about it... but would you seriously interrogate a customer like that? Honestly...

Quote from: PyronIkariYes, it is the workers fault usually, but sometimes it's not. And quite frankly, I have a few guesses as to who you may be, and with some slight digging, I can probably figure it out, but again, if you have any integrity, you'll answer the questions I asked so I can get to the bottom of what happened during your visit to the cafe and fix this problem for next year. I have a good memory, but i'm terrible with names. So I'll make it easy and list out the information I would like and you don't even need to tell me who you are \o/

Wow, this is bullshit. You're threatening to find out who I actually am and where I work by "doing some slight digging" ? Dude, that's just creepy. What is this, CSI? You gonna call a lawyer, or detective on me? Forgive me, all I wanted to do was say how I felt about the Maid Cafe. I do no harm. Do you really want to actually search up my TCP/IP address? Is it really worth it?

Look, man, I'm not trying to do anything bad. In fact, I'm trying to help you. If it is too hard for you to realize it, then just forget about me. Just think of me as that dumbass who doesn't know what the hell he is talking about, and he has no balls because he doesn't wanna give his identity to anybody. Add me to your ignore filter or some shit.

Personally, I don't care if you find out who I am and where I live, work, how much I weigh, or my social security number. I just really find it unnecessary. You are always accepting the way to win, but not accepting the way to lose. You should really consider doing your work, instead of flaming a customer.

Mod edit: It's called a dance:)
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Yuu on June 01, 2011, 02:31:14 AM
Quote from: bebop on June 01, 2011, 02:22:26 AM
What is this, CSI?

No,. He is just a troll. Your better off paying him no mind at all. You'll only waste your time and energy.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: bebop on June 01, 2011, 02:51:46 AM
I'll be damned if I just successfully got trolled.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Yuu on June 01, 2011, 02:53:25 AM
Quote from: bebop on June 01, 2011, 02:51:46 AM
I'll be damned if I just successfully got trolled.

Eh, he successfully trolls quite often. You have to be here a while to learn just to ignore him/.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Piccahoe on June 01, 2011, 05:25:18 AM
Quote from: bebop on June 01, 2011, 02:22:26 AM
"Imagine if you were this working in high heels with expensive dresses and had special performances to attend to."

I said that, and I have no affiliation with the maid cafe.  I was just trying to put you in their shoes and get you to sympathized with the maids, that's all.  Again, I have no affiliation, I am not even a staff of the con. I hope this clear things up and I'm not going to post again.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: PyronIkari on June 01, 2011, 09:05:18 AM
Quote from: bebop on June 01, 2011, 02:22:26 AMLots of words
Yes I am co-head of the maid cafe. And my issues are clear. You claimed you worked at a 4star restaurant. A 4 star restaurant on yelp is not a "4 star restaurant". So excuse me for misunderstanding what you meant.

My claim was not that you were at the cafe for 10 minutes, but you made "observations" that are untrue and stated that a maid only has to check up on the table a few times. This is actually quite wrong and a maid should not do this. What they should do is sit down with the patron AFTER they have finished their food and converse/play with the patron for 20 or so minutes before they leave. I'll break down the basics. A patron takes about 8-12 minutes to eat on average if they get a full meal. This is rarely the case. Usually it's just a sandwich or a desert if they order food. In which case a desert is about 5 minutes, and a sandwich is about 7 minutes (these are estimations based on the general amount of time that I actually recorded for my own data).

After the meal is near completion the maid comes and takes their trash and throws it away and returns asking if they would like company. They then sit with the patron and talk for a good 15-20 minutes. A patron roughly stays for about 30 minutes. From the time they are seated at the table.

Your complaints don't match up with this at all. And my statement was that anyone that stayed in the cafe would have easily observed this. So while I want feedback on the negative(and trust me I do) your claims and complaints don't even sound legitimate. It sounds as if you weren't in the cafe at all, or you really did have absolutely no clue what the cafe was/is supposed to be like despite going.

So on that note, my questions are fully legitimate. On the case that you did attend the cafe, your maid sat you and never returned, I need to find out why this happened. In which case I need to know when/who your maid was/ and where you sat.

My statement about finding out who you are, is qutie simple. I know people. It's not hard for me to ask around who you are, because i'm 99% sure, I have a friend that knows who you are and will tell me who you are. This is about legitmacy.

You said that you don't just hate and aren't just trying to complain, but that's exactly what you sound like you're doing. I've gotten feedback on things that went wrong, and I know a lot that went wrong and have gone through changing up how I'm dealing with some issues.

Your feed back wasn't even criticism because it didn't address anything, it was just complaining. So I need legitimacy in complaints. If you do not want to tell me who your maid was, when you came in, and which table you sat at, that is fine, but that means nothing gets accomplished and you're no longer offering criticism. There's no way to prove legitimacy in your complaint and your words will just be ignored as trolling.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Pengin-san on June 01, 2011, 09:08:06 AM
This negativity is just killing me. I was just telling my friend how I can't imagine what kind of work goes into making a convention successful. I can't even BEGIN to imagine. Was I upset that there were no printed schedules? Sure. Did I think it had an impact on the turnout to my panel? Perhaps, since I dropped from a completely full house to about thirty. However, I really don't think Fanime was as horrible as some of you are making it out to be. I have never been on staff so I don't know all of the details, but I saw rovers getting pissed off when attendees were doing and saying some pretty egregious things, so the attendees aren't completely innocent. I would seriously flip out if I had to deal with a thousand screaming fans.

To address the maid cafe, I think it looked great and I wish I could have gotten a chance to sit at it. The maids looked cute, I saw plenty of smiles and laughter, and some seriously happy guests. I'm really inspired to be a maid now.

This year was not THE best, but really for my own personal reasons. I did think the crowd was a little lack-luster compared to previous years, but sometimes that just happens. I was sad that my panel died, but that's fine. I loved seeing FLOW again. I LOVED meeting Yoshiki. The artist alley was brilliant, and, once again, I met some great people.  I can't wait for next year, and I hope all of the people screaming about how horrible it was will just run off and make their own convention.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: PyronIkari on June 01, 2011, 09:13:53 AM
Quote from: Pengin-san on June 01, 2011, 09:08:06 AM
To address the maid cafe, I think it looked great and I wish I could have gotten a chance to sit at it. The maids looked cute, I saw plenty of smiles and laughter, and some seriously happy guests. I'm really inspired to be a maid now.

Please send an email to maidcafe at fanime dot com and you'll be put on a mailing list about tryouts when they start coming up sometime near the beginning of 2012. (UNLESS THE WORLD ENDS! In that case you may not get an email and I apologize).
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: udonoodle on June 01, 2011, 09:37:47 AM
mods, should this be merged or linked to the feedback pages?
It was a fun year! (I'm a 4-year attendie (does that make me a veteran?))

B&W: A little hectic getting in!
Schedules: I know a lot of people of said this...
Dealers>gameroom>artists alley switch: I think it caused more traffic?

mods, should this be merged or linked to the feedback pages?
Thank you!
p.s I wish people on here would stop saying "the con is dying" because thats not helping anything :(
(btw i don't believe it!)
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: SquallLHeart on June 01, 2011, 10:02:46 AM
the only con i know that's dying (*cough*.. died..) is AX..  ::)
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Jelly Soup on June 01, 2011, 10:45:28 AM
Quote from: Yuu on June 01, 2011, 02:53:25 AM
Quote from: bebop on June 01, 2011, 02:51:46 AM
I'll be damned if I just successfully got trolled.

Eh, he successfully trolls quite often. You have to be here a while to learn just to ignore him/.

Or just use the forums handy dandy ignore button. 4+ years of Pyron-less posting and counting. :)
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: sakura175206 on June 01, 2011, 12:00:14 PM
I was not let down by this year, but I did not go last year so I can't compare, but I did go like 2 or 3 years ago and I had more fun this time than when i went then. Their were some problems, like the no schedules part sucked, and black & white ball issues etc, and other various tech issues, but every Con has their problems during the convention so it's normal. I saw how some people complained about nothing to do!! There was plenty to do in fact I had several things I wanted to see that were at the same time so I had to choose! I think what makes convention's the most fun is who you know and who go and hang with! I think that really makes a difference in the experience. I had fun just taking pictures and hanging with other cosplayers and just talking etc.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: TC X0 Lt 0X on June 01, 2011, 12:56:53 PM
Quote from: PyronIkari on June 01, 2011, 09:13:53 AM
Quote from: Pengin-san on June 01, 2011, 09:08:06 AM
To address the maid cafe, I think it looked great and I wish I could have gotten a chance to sit at it. The maids looked cute, I saw plenty of smiles and laughter, and some seriously happy guests. I'm really inspired to be a maid now.

Please send an email to maidcafe at fanime dot com and you'll be put on a mailing list about tryouts when they start coming up sometime near the beginning of 2012. (UNLESS THE WORLD ENDS! In that case you may not get an email and I apologize).

Don't worry the world is supposed to end on Dec 21, 2012, so we still get are Fanimu.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Yuu on June 01, 2011, 01:52:21 PM
Quote from: Jelly Soup on June 01, 2011, 10:45:28 AM
Quote from: Yuu on June 01, 2011, 02:53:25 AM
Quote from: bebop on June 01, 2011, 02:51:46 AM
I'll be damned if I just successfully got trolled.

Eh, he successfully trolls quite often. You have to be here a while to learn just to ignore him/.

Or just use the forums handy dandy ignore button. 4+ years of Pyron-less posting and counting. :)

Yep, same here. Well, not four= however long I've been here. 2 maybe?
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Christophe on June 01, 2011, 02:08:12 PM
While personally I had fun overall at Fanime 2011 due to friends in attendance - I'd have to say this was the most problematic Fanime there ever has been - and I've been to all of them (yes, even the free one up at Cal State Hayward that used classrooms for a dealer hall).  While I went to the post-con feedback panel to give my two cents (and was hopefully heard), the management I spoke to there suggested I contribute to the forums, so here I am.

I've never seen so many people stressed out about rovers, peace bonding, and security - and it no doubt affected the "vibe" of the con.  I felt it all around me, and heard so many complaints it felt like everyone in the con got hassled, or at least knew someone who did.  I'm a cosplayer who hangs out with costumers of all types as well as non-cosplayers, con veterans, and staffers so I witnessed many cases while trying to avoid confrontations myself.

ROVERS

It seemed as though rovers were misdirected as to their purpose in many cases, and instead of acting upon imminent threats or problems, they were watching random con people until they could find a REASON to hassle them. Some examples:

- Respected, professional photographer is having a photoshoot with a subject in 1F Conv Center late night near the registration area, no other attendees within 100 feet.  2 rovers approach, with no one else around, they come to where we are, INTERRUPT the shoot and ask to see some prop which is a piece of a broom with fake blood matching the costume - obviously not a weapon in any way as its basically a plastic stump, and spend time looking it over... for no apparent reason other than to nitpick.  Nothing is being swung, there is no threat - its a photoshoot for cripes sake.  Rovers tell us its not allowed and to remove it from the premises once we're done.  This was completely unnecessary. If things like this happen I will absolutely not recommend Fanime as its simply uncomfortable for cosplayers to do their thing, and this inconvenience would not have happened at ANY other con.

- Watching stage zero from a concrete pillar near the tape-marked walkway.  Not IN the tape marked walkway, but near it, and I was told to move.  So I did.  No biggie, but completely unnecessary.

- Pregnant woman (who happened to be a staffer) is harassed for stopping to rest near the Hilton side balcony, and is told to get off the floor and move!

- Cosplayer spends half an hour in con ops to get peace bonded and approved, with paperwork - for a character that has a body stocking - to insure that it meets standards and there will be no problems, and is approved.  Cosplayer then goes to hang out, sits in a chair for 2 hours (basically not really visible to anyone unless they TRY to look for trouble), and is approached by rovers and told to leave, in a traumatizing way.

- Black and White Ball line; participants are waiting a LONG TIME, so some of the female participants take their high heels off because, apparently they can be painful.  Keep in mind this is now outside the venue in PUBLIC property on a sidewalk.  Rovers harass participants saying that they have to wear shoes.  Same rovers repeatedly harass participants about the length of their heels even after they had been measured.

There are many more stories I could tell, but these are the ones that happened to myself or close friends, and is enough to paint a picture that Fanime Con is no longer a pleasant place to be.  It actually felt as if it were against the rules to have fun, or even just be there without some rover finding a reason to ruin your con.

So, what is the purpose of rovers again?  Is it to look at every attendee and scan them and find something to "pull them over" for?  I don't think that is their INTENDED purpose - but I can fully see that it may be an easy mentality for new rovers to fall into depending on HOW they are trained.  I really think that an overhaul needs to be made as to what situations should be acted on.  We attendees are NOT all troublemakers, and some of us are responsible people in general.  If we are not doing anything that is imminently threatening, we should be LEFT ALONE.  Even if I didn't have any incidents as bad as those of my friends, just knowing that we are being WATCHED in such a creepy way - and that these rovers are 'given full power' to kick us out for any reason, makes for an uncomfortable environment.  The overbearing policies are NOT necessary.  I go to 15+ cons a year, of every size and type, all the way up to SDCC with 100,000+ attendees, and NONE of them have come close to having the kind of nitpicky rover/security harassment that Fanime Con 2011 was plagued with.  Size isn't an issue.  At its core, it has to do whether your management TRUSTS its attendees, and RESPECTS them as customers.  You make harsh rules because one person broke one rule or caused a problem because that *one* person was a troublemaker - and those rules cause *hundreds* of attendees to have bad experiences.  As someone who considers Fanime to be their "local" con which I grew up with, I am saddened and realize this may be the last chance to reverse the damage and rescind some of these over-reactive policies.

Not to say that all rovers are/were bad - I'm sure some of them did their job great and didn't hassle people who were just trying to enjoy the con.  But you have to start with the core principles of their function and *make sure* these same people WANT people to enjoy the con as the highest priority - and that 'hassling' should ONLY be done in case of problematic attendees clearly causing trouble.  You may not think its a big thing but one rover harassment can RUIN the con for some people - and with more out of state people attending the convention than before, there is more on the line as people pay much more than the price of their badge to experience the event.

There was a con in the past that messed up pretty bad because of overzealous badge policies and flagrant attendee harassment - Anime LA 2007.  But they took the numerous complaints SERIOUSLY and with conscious effort turned the situation around and made the con into a much friendlier event - turning their rovers into people who not only insure safety, but that attendees are having fun and not angry about issues that may have arisen during the event.  I would really hope that Fanime Can learn from this year's complaints and *proactively* turn things around for next year.  I want the good con vibe to return!


PEACE BONDING and COSTUME / PROP POLICIES

The overly strict policies have been out of control for awhile.  In the fan community we joke around about Fanime being the "prop-nazi" con and peace bonding stuff like cardboard Yuffie stars and 50 cent squirt guns.  But it's no joke.  I like following the rules and whenever I show up on site I go to peace bonding, first thing.  There is something wrong when I walk in there and the staff in there basically gives me the impression that they will disallow whatever it is I'm holding by DEFAULT, and that if I have some kind of prop, that I MUST have it for the intention of causing trouble.  This year, I had my Castlevania prop - which is a self-illuminating sequence of plastic bottles, and I had it approved every year before.  The guy in the room was giving me these looks as if there was no way in hell they'd approve it, that "policies are stricter now" and that it must be dangerous.  It wasn't until I showed them that it was electronic and had circuit boards in the segments that they believed that I wasn't going to, you know, whip it around and like.. break several hundred dollars and countless hours of work.  So my prop got approved, but only barely, and that stresses me out about the future.

When people have a prop, you would think that most times WE don't want to damage our own stuff that we worked so hard on, and that we should be given a certain amount of trust.  Now that you are linking props to *badge numbers* in peace bonding (a great idea) and requiring that it have a corresponding costume - I believe that more trust can and should be given.  If someone does something stupid, you have documentation and can pull their badge - and can already cross-reference with their reg info, etc.  I hope that for next year we can be treated as "innocent before proven guilty" and Fanime's reputation with cosplayers can be restored somewhat.

The same concept applies to the strange new rules about military themed outfits - why not treat them similar to props, for instance a modest inspection granting an approval sticker - instead of banning them outright..?  If accountability is recorded, and rules are explained, then you will have an attendee who will be wanting to abide by them, rather than someone hating your con with their experience ruined.


MASQUERADE PROP CHECK IN

This was one of the most stressful situations for me personally, as I was not allowed to bring my prop into Masquerade to watch it.  I didn't have a hotel room or car as I'm local. My prop was small and could easily be held so it would not protrude into anyone else's space - but their policy was clear that all props had to be thrown into a random pile by the entrance and was told that this was done at OUR OWN RISK, and that no one would be watching it and if someone ran off with my one of a kind prop with hundreds-of-dollars of parts and effort, that I'd be screwed.  The lady at the door heard me out and I made enough of a fuss about it to "please remember my prop" and she said she would if she could - but of course when I left she wasn't there anymore :/  But my prop was, thankfully.

This could be improved/fixed either by allowing smaller props which obviously won't cause problems in, like in years past.  Or if a check in is needed, link each prop to a BADGE NUMBER on a list, and require a badge be shown upon removal of a prop.  Just that little peace of mind will help, and discourage theft, people messing with stuff, etc.


MASQUERADE TIME MISMANAGEMENT

I'm surprised no one complained about this yet.  For masquerade there was an overly lengthy opening performance; a band trying to promote themselves, followed by Ric Myers spamming his book along with other frivolous filler, then the karaoke winner (who was great) performed 2 full length songs... But I came to see the MASQUERADE (not a band, and not karaoke!) and it was about 1hr 15 min before the actual masquerade skits started.  Normally it wouldn't be that annoying, but then after the masquerade acts there was mysteriously NO HALFTIME SHOW..?  And then to add insult to the participants, the award ceremony was rushed and incomplete, and everyone was shoved out in a huge mess due to venue time limits.  Why wasn't the band and karaoke filler done at HALFTIME..?


SCHEDULES

I'm pretty sure this will be fixed for next year, but I just wanted to say that not having schedules sucks for the people working so hard on the programming, because without proper information readily available - people don't have a way of knowing what there is to go to, even if its something they are interested in.  Also I thought of an idea too late that might have helped.  On the whiteboard, to ask "WE NEED HELP PRINTING SCHEDULES! Do you have a Xerox machine? Work at Kinkos? FREE BADGE FOR 2012 if you HELP!"  I think that would have gotten you assistance, rather than driving people away with a sign saying "NO MAPS OR SCHEDULES! go to [website]".


That's my feedback for now.  Sorry its so long-winded!  Thank you for reading.  If YOU have experienced or witnessed any problems, rover harassment, etc, PLEASE post here.  Most people I know are just too pissed or busy to deal with it, but unless you TELL THEM the problems, and how it made you or your friends feel - there's no way they will get better for next year, and you will be stuck with a con where fun is not allowed.  I didn't want to get involved but after seeing the low turnout at the feedback session, they NEED to know, and be told in a constructive way.

I still hold out that my "home con" will get better despite the problems, and won't fall victim to becoming too big to remember what made the con great in the first place.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Maskenlav on June 01, 2011, 03:30:42 PM
I feel everyone's emotions on this kind of set-back. I was the guy with the giant black and silver cross prop and I kept getting harassed by some Rovers poking fun at me for being "part of the protestors outside infiltrating the con" I mean it's not MY fault my specific anime had a main character walk around with a freaking giant cross I mean come on if your such a die-hard anime fan wouldn't you realize that it's part of a show? Just because some losers decide to waste their weekend by showing bibles down people's throats doesn't mean WE ANIME loving people are associated OR endorsing completely unrelated events such as the jesus protestors.

Scheduling- Yes! They definitely lacked there, and sooo many people were left out of gatherings and cosplay events! I'm sure about half of the attendees did NOT know that yaoi-bingo was being hosted at the same time as them sitting down and resting, that certain animes that they were cosplaying had gatherings at the same time also. So I feel deeply sympathetic to those who really wanted to attend those events!

Organization- They only had announcements pertaining to when the video game and card tournaments were going to happen. I wish they could have announced when the cosplay/gathering events were going to happen also, would have done the people left-out with some sort of knowledge that there was their type of gathering. They missed the opportunity to meet other fans and possible friends.

Black and White dance- Is it me or this year did they buckle down the dance? What I mean by that is they seem to have made the ball-room less roomy. Remember how last year they had all the chairs lined up against the wall and had several tables around the outer rims of the wooden dance floor? This year they just had several tables with chairs and it was hard to maneuver around them since they were all placed so close together, and it was VERY hard to find dancing partners since everyone was clumped together around the tables. I wish they had done it like last year and placed ALL the chairs against the walls and had separated the tables so people can maneuver between them AND find dance partners.

I hate to say this, but this year just didn't have the enthusiasm as previous years.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: otaku_duckie on June 01, 2011, 03:33:41 PM
yay i agree lol this year seemed really stressful and you could sense the stress in the air owo still fun but there were times when you could tell the staff was stressing
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: le_momo on June 01, 2011, 05:26:09 PM
Quote from: Maskenlav on June 01, 2011, 03:30:42 PM
Black and White dance- Is it me or this year did they buckle down the dance? What I mean by that is they seem to have made the ball-room less roomy. Remember how last year they had all the chairs lined up against the wall and had several tables around the outer rims of the wooden dance floor? This year they just had several tables with chairs and it was hard to maneuver around them since they were all placed so close together, and it was VERY hard to find dancing partners since everyone was clumped together around the tables. I wish they had done it like last year and placed ALL the chairs against the walls and had separated the tables so people can maneuver between them AND find dance partners.

The reason why we didn't have all of the chairs and tables was because we had a room almost half the size than what we had last year. Last year, all of the tables had chairs around them as well (I clearly remember my mother sitting at one for quite a while last year). We did what we could for decorations, but the tables and chairs were placed by hotel staff if I remember correctly. The fact that the room was smaller this year was already an obvious issue when it came to attendance, but unfortunately the hotel had booked the Imperial Ballroom (the much larger room we had from last year) without notifying us beforehand, so we as staff were in a predicament which meant less room, but did the best we could to maintain the atmosphere. The sheer size of the line and reaching capacity for the room within the first hour was proof enough that the ball is getting more recognition, not only by the convention, but also by the Fairmont in realizing that we might just need that extra floorspace. ^^;

Thanks for the input! We are definitely taking everything into consideration.

- Rebecca
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: weirderraindrop on June 01, 2011, 05:28:22 PM
Though I didn't have as much fun as I did in previous years, I will still be going in 2012. I was a bit bummed about the schedules, but it left me a lot of time to rest at a nice hotel at a discounted rate (which is a blessing in disguise since I'm not as mobile as before). I have to agree with the people who were talking about the general attitude of some con-goers. Seemed kind of 'bleh' I guess. Here's to hoping things are better in 2012!
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: Mayhem on June 01, 2011, 06:38:59 PM
Quote from: SquallLHeart on June 01, 2011, 10:02:46 AM
the only con i know that's dying (*cough*.. died..) is AX..  ::)

I get to find out. I Missed 2008 and 2010, 2009 was lame. been hitting AX since 2000 myself, I covered AX as Press in 09 and some staffers had it in for us. I get to Cover AX as press this year and possibly AM^2 so I will get to compare all the big Cons.
Title: Re: Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?
Post by: ewu on June 01, 2011, 06:49:33 PM
Mod (post-death) catching up on posts:

Please post constructive comments on the feedback thread...

http://forums.fanime.com/index.php/topic,16425.0.html

Thanks!

P.S. negative people make me sad...