Anime Conventions

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Anime Conventions
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Definitions

• a. Badges - these let you get into things like
  the dealer's room, the concert, panels,
  autographs, etc. They need to be prominently
  displayed in order to provide you access into
  these places. It is possible to get around the
  convention without buying a badge, but you miss a
  lot of the cooler stuff. b. Pre-reg -
  Pre-registration. This is generally a good idea,
  because it's cheaper. Unless you only go for one
  day, in which case it's better to buy a one-day
  pass.c. Dealer's room - Big ol' giant store.
  Bring money. And lots of it. The dealer's room
  sells just about anything you can think of, from
  anime DVDs you can find at Walmart to strange
  imported things from Japan.d. Cosplay - Direct
  translation - costume play. Taken to mean the
  dressing up as characters and parading around at
  conventions. (whereas Crossplay would be man
  dressing as woman, woman dressing as man).
• e. Cosplay contest - This is when you actually
  get up on stage and perform a skit, or just show
  off your outfit in order to win an award.f. AMV
  - Anime Music Video. Fan made music videos
  typically using anime video with American
  audio.g. LARP - Live Action Role Play. If
  you've ever played a role playing game, this is
  the live version, where you pretend to be your
  character and get to dress up in costume and
  everything.
• h. Glomp a big hug. Something fangirls and
  fanboys do upon seeing their favorite characters
  and voice actors.

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Registration

• a. Pre-reg.......i. Conventions let you order
  tickets before the actual date, and most will
  have a separate, earlier pick-up time. If not,
  they at least have a separate booth where you
  pick-up your badge.b. At the door.......i.
  The at-the-door price is more expensive for the
  3-day passes, but cheaper if you can only go for
  one day. There's a little form that you fill out,
  but as far as I know, photo id is not
  required.c. Pick-up.......i. You need a
  picture id to pick up pre-reg badges, and you
  usually receive a goodie bag when you register.
  This contains important things like the con
  booklet. Inside here you will find info about the
  con, schedules, and maps. These are very handy!
  They tell you what's going on and when so you
  don't miss anything! There are also often other
  little freebies, and advertisements for some of
  the dealer's. .......ii. You CANNOT pick up
  someone else's pre-reg badge. As previously
  stated, a picture ID is REQUIRED, so you can't
  grab your friend's badge while you're in line
  yourself.

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Hotel Rooms

• a. Conventions that last for longer than one day
  will often make arrangements with local area
  hotels to negotiate a cheaper rate for people
  staying specifically for the con. You MUST deal
  directly with the hotel in that city and mention
  the con to get the cheaper rate.b. For more
  fun, it might be a good idea to get your hotel
  room the night before the con starts, then you
  can get a wake-up call the morning the con starts
  and be fresh and ready for the day!c. Sharing
  the room with people can help lower the cost but
  make sure to check the maximum capacity of people
  that the room will comfortably house.d. I DO
  NOT RECOMMEND STAYING UP ALL NIGHT. You will
  smell bad, and feel icky, and there's no great
  place to sleep, and it's EXTREMELY poor planning.
  Especially if the convention does not run all
  night.

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Food

• a. Bring separate money specifically for food.
  Otherwise, you'll spend it all in the dealer's
  room and not have anything to eat the whole
  weekend! Man cannot survive on pocky alone! DON'T
  FORGET TO EAT!!! b. Convention Food - There is
  generally a little area set up that sells food,
  either staffed by the hotel or the convention
  center. This stuff is rather expensive, and not
  always the best.C. Bring your own food if
  possible! Things like Nutrigrain Bars,
  Carrots/carrot sticks, Fruit, Chips, or if you
  have a hotel room, check for a coffee maker so
  you can RAMEN NOODLES!

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Parts of a Con

• a. Opening Ceremony Introduces you to the con,
  the rules, and the guests!
• b. Dealer's Room - The dealer's room is a giant
  store. Bring money, and lots of it. It's probably
  a good idea to have a combination of cash and
  credit (if you have credit). Most places will
  take credit/debit cards, but there are still a
  few stores who don't, and they'll only deal in
  cash. It can have nearly ANYTHING you can imagine
  that is anime-related.
• c. Artist's Alley Buy fanart drawn from local
  artists or have an artist draw you or your own
  character!
• d. Video Games A room FILLED with video games
  with free play. Tournaments are held here aswell.
• e. Video Rooms Generally there are 2-3 24-hour
  video rooms dedicated to anime for two-and-a-half
  days. The schedule will be posted in the map and
  outside the doors.
• f. Concert Generally sometime Friday or
  Saturday night the con will have one (or several)
  live Japanese band(s) performing.
• g. Dance Friday or Saturday (or both) nights
  there will be a rave where you can dance with
  your friends and bring glow sticks!

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Parts of a Con (continued)

• k. Panels and workshops There will be several
  panels and workshops scheduled throughout the
  day wherein a person (famous or not) will talk
  about a certain area of interest. This will
  generally be a how to cosplay/voice act or the
  like and improvs. Be sure to check them out!
• l. Cosplay - The Cosplay Contest is held Saturday
  nights, and there is generally a long line to get
  in. If you're participating in it, you need to
  sign up before hand, and go to the rehearsal. If
  you're watching it, they can be lots of fun.
  There are some really funny people out there who
  like to get dressed up in funny costumes and make
  fools of themselves for your amusement.
• m. AMV Contest - AMV means anime music video.
  Fans make these from music they like, and footage
  they think matches. There is usually a contest
  for these at some point during the con. All
  videos are submitted well in advance, are
  screened before being slotted in the contest. At
  some point the convention will air all
  submissions and if you manage to make it, you get
  to vote on which ones you think are the best.
• n. Closing Ceremony - Much like the opening
  ceremony, this is a thank you for coming to the
  con, thanks to all the guests, it's been swell,
  we hope to see you next year. That kind of thing.
  Some questions and answers and suggestions to
  make the con better next year.

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Guests

• A con will have many guests from your favorite
  shows and manga and bands that you can meet and
  get autographs from.
• American voice actors
• American producers/artists/etc.
• Japanese voice actors/artists/producers/etc
• Japanese Musicians

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Cosplay

• a. Cosplay, as stated earlier, is the dressing up
  in costume, usually as an anime character for an
  anime convention. However, I have seen Comic book
  characters, book characters, Star Trek
  characters, the Matrix, the Ghostbusters, and
  lots of other weird things at anime cons. If you
  want to cosplay, GO FOR IT.
• b. You can make your own costume, or you can buy
  one. WARNING - You CANNOT enter a cosplay contest
  with a bought costume. YOU WILL BE DISQUALIFIED.
• d. All cons have a weapons policy now, and in the
  past few years it's become VERY strict. It would
  be a VERY good idea to check the con website on
  their weapons policy before you try to bring one.
  
• If you show up in costume, BE PREPARED TO HAVE
  YOUR PICTURE TAKEN.
• BUT show common courtesy and ask to take a
  persons picture before doing so. That way they
  can pose!

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Rules

• 1. SAFETY FIRST even though there IS security
  and youre at a con to have fun, be ALERT. Use
  the BUDDY SYSTEM. If somebody is touching you
  inappropriately or creeps you out, alert
  security.
• 2. SHOWER Somehow, some way, clean yourself.
  There will be AT LEAST a thousand people. It WILL
  be hot and crowded, so show some decency and
  bathe. If you dont have a room talk to the con
  staff and arrange something with them. They will
  be GLAD to help.
• 3. Weapons as mentioned earlier, check with
  security first.
• 4. No means no Please dont harass anyone for
  ANYTHING. If somebody is not interested in what
  you have to offer, back off.
• 6. Follow the 6-2-1 each day minimum rule 6
  hours of sleep, 2 meals, and (you guessed it)
  SHOWER.
• 7. Compliment cosplayers and thank the con staff.
  They will greatly appreciate it.
• 8. If in doubt, ask the con staff. Go to them
  with any reasonable questions or concerns. They
  are there to make sure YOU have a safe and joyful
  time at the con (and dont mind them if they seem
  frustrated, they have A LOT on their plate).

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ANIME CONVENTIONS

• IKKICON February 6-8th in Austin, Texas (for
  more information, visit www.ikkicon.com)
• Mizuumi-Con March 21st, 2009 at Our Lady of
  the Lake University in San Antonio, Texas (for
  more information, visit http//mizuumi-con.san-jap
  an.org)
• Anime Matsuri April 10-12th, 2009 in The
  Woodlands, Texas (for more information, visit
  http//animematsuri.com)
• A-kon May 29-31st, 2009 in Dallas, Texas (for
  more information, visit www.a-kon.com)
• Anime Overload July 3-5th, 2009 in Austin,
  Texas (for more information, visit
  www.animeoverload.net)
• San-Japan August 14-16th, 2009 in San Antonio,
  Texas (for more information, visit
  www.san-japan.org)