I don't get what powers the con-in-a-box mentality nowadays. People seem to envy those of us in California because we have Anime Conventions everywhere you turn. It's a curse; if you need to call it anything else, I prefer the word plague. Before I go on, let me define "con-in-a-box". It is a convention, on a weekend, at a hotel with:
- Anime! (duh)
- Panels with guests
- A masquerade
- Hall Cosplay
- Karaoke, Concerts, "Opening Ceremonies"
- and a Music Video Contest
That's it. Fanime does this, Anime-Expo has been doing this, Ani-Magic is doing this, and these pieces have found their way into Comicon and a few others as well. "Con-in-a-box" isn't anything revolutionary, and now congratulations everyone, we have saturated the market so badly that we have exceeded the price-point of fandom. California has not 4, not 5, but no less than seven conventions this year! Anime Overdose, RECCACon, Fanime, Pacific Media Expo, Anime-Expo, San Diego Comicon, and Ani-Magic. Even if there is 15,000 fans, just how many shows do you actually think they will be attending this year? I'll even answer that one for you: they will attend about three. More than three conventions would strap anyone for cash, and convention fans are no exception. If you offer the exact same show as everyone else, people will go based on their friends and its location. Everyone and their cousin's small con has Maiyu performing, and both the California "big" conventions have Nami Tamaki performing, and everyone has the same dealer's room. The only way you could become more like each other would be to print the same badges.
Your websites are all the same. I can rattle off the "sections" in my sleep. Your designs are so alike; stick a busty anime chick somewhere, match colors to their outfit, abuse Dreamweaver to create everything. There is no depth, and there is no style. There is nothing different about your convention that makes me want to go. I, like many others who have seen your conventions and seen the same old thing again and again come not for your events, but for the people. We come to have fun, and we come to hang out. The "Bandai presents a whole viewing room of shit you already saw on Cartoon Network!" is nice, but it doesn't solve your problem. In fact, it complicates your problem when Bandai's room then shows up at every other con.
And so what am I asking of you? Quite simply, think outside of your boxes. Be different, and don't be afraid to fuck up. GakuFest didn't go well for Fanime last year, but they took the good from it and created something better. If they hadn't tried the idea, nobody would have ever given it the respect the idea truly deserves. So you have a convention, and you have anywhere from four hundred to fourteen thousand people coming. Do something different with your convention. Do something that makes everyone else look at your crazy ideas; something that makes the press pay attention; something that makes the fans pay attention. Don't be just another "con-in-a-box", we have too many of those already.
In response to "The Cons, They Just Don’t Get It":
I’d certainly like to see cons cater to the ‘hang out’ aspect more. Or even the ‘horny single otaku girl’ aspect more. Er ...
ANYWAY.
I know I don’t go to cons to see the guests anymore. I go to see my friends.