Anime convention
Anime conventions are gatherings of the community of fans (commonly called
otaku) of various forms of
anime and
manga. Between anime and manga, anime has always been the more popular medium. People in attendance at an anime convention are usually known either as
members or
attendees. Industry professionals invited at convention expens are called
guests of honor. Other professionals who attend on their own or are brought in by their production company generally are simply
guests or
industry professionals.The history of anime coventions started relatively recently and predominantly in the United States. Most first generation anime conventions had a local science fiction convention as their background. Staff members of the anime video room at the San Francisco area
BayCon in the late 1980s went on to start
AnimeCon (defunct) in 1991 and then later
Anime Expo in 1992.
Other first generation anime cons included Anime America (started in 1993, defunct),
FanimeCon (1994),
Otakon (1994),
Anime East (1994, defunct), and
Katsucon (1995).
As the some of the first generation conventions already ceased to exist, a second generation of anime conventions started up, including
Nan Desu Kan (1997),
Anime Iowa (1997),
Animazement (1998),
Anime Central (1998), and BakaCon (1998, now
Sakuracon). Some of these convention are anime convention from the upstart nd show a break from a science fiction convention background. For example, the featured
cosplay stage show is known as "cosplay," as opposed to the old cons' "masquerade."
In the wake of the 21st century, the number of anime conventions grew exponentially. There are now over 90 conventions just in the United States. These might be collectively counted as the third and fourth generation conventions.
With so many anime conventions around, the notion of what's typical has shifted, as the median has been lowered. To some older anime conventions the ability to invite a Japanese guest was a make-or-break condition. At the median level today, American voice actors are the expected norm. A con might splurge and invite a popular Canadian voice actor. As an actual anime market exists today, unlike in 1990, whether a convention registers on the radar of a major anime company has come to be another threshold acid test.
Getting Started
Although wide variations exist between different conventions, there is a general pattern that most adhere to. The typical convention is held from Friday to Sunday on a weekend. A convention on a coveted holiday weekend might choose to go for four days.
On the opening day of the convention, "Opening Ceremonies" are held, where the convention introduces the guests of honor.
Program
Panel-led discussions, or
Panels, usually fill up the daytime hours of most conventions with typically one-hour discussions of topics related to
anime,
manga,
cosplay and
fandom in general. Some conventions, including
Anime Expo and
Otakon, have had well-attended, scheduled panels starting as late as midnight.
Evening entertainment often includes a combination of official and unofficial events, including dances, formal invitational dinners, and fandom themed room parties.
Many conventions also feature an
anime music video (AMV) contest, where AMVs submitted to the contest are screened for the public and judged, usually by both a judging panel as well as the general public. Videos are usually (though not always) grouped into categories, such as "Drama," "Comedy," and "Action/Adventure," and prizes are awarded to the best video in each category, as well as an overall "Best of Show" video. These prizes typically include anime DVDs and box sets, anime soundtracks, and various other anime/manga collectibles.
A costume contest called masquerade or
cosplay contest, depending on the convention, is often held where persons go on stage and compete for nominal prizes based on their skill in assembling and presenting genre-inspired outfits. The show is to display the craftsmanship of the costumes rather than the "fancy dress ball" that "masquerade" suggests.
Specific Rooms
An
Exhibit Hall or
Dealer's Room is available, where companies exhibit their newest products and merchants sell wares of interest to fans.
These include graphic novel
manga, anime
action figures, prop replicas and t-shirts. Similarly, there is often an
Art Show where genre-inspired art is displayed and usually made available for auction or purchase. Along with an Art Show, there is sometimes an
Artist Alley or
Artist Row where amateur or semi-professional artists draw or commission art for attendees. Smaller conventions may simply have an informal
Dealer's Row, a section of hotel function space from which dealers sell goods, while larger conventions may have both an official dealer's room and an unofficial dealer's row if it stays low profile enough.
Many conventions have
video rooms in which genre-related audiovisual presentations take place, typically anime series and movies; in some cases, similar genres such as
Japanese
live-action films may be shown as well. If there are multiple media rooms, each one may have themed content.
Typically,
Game Rooms are also available for attendees to play a variety of genre
collectible card games like the
Yu-Gi-Oh! Trading Card Game or
role-playing games like
Big Eyes, Small Mouth. Anime-related
video games in the form of arcade cabinets or consoles (e.g. PlayStation, Nintendo) are also popular.
An old school anime convention may have a Convention Hospitality Suite or
Consuite. It is provided as a room reserved for light refreshments, a quiet conversation, and a place to briefly rest. The refreshments typically include coffee, tea, juice or soda, and light meals appropriate for the time of day. Depending on local liquor distribution and
liability laws, the suite may serve alcohol. At conventions in the
United Kingdom, the provision of
cask ale is generally considered essential.
Ending the event
At smaller conventions, the "Closing Ceremonies" on the last day may be dispensed with entirely. This omission is because such ceremonies would be held after scheduled events are over, and convention members would presumably be occupied with packing up and checking out of the hotel. At other conventions that do hold Closing Ceremonies, members know to stay to see guests for one last time, and the staff may bask in gratification hearing the cheers and applause if the audience approved of the con as a success.
After the general members have gone home, the staff and remaining guests traditionally hold a
dead dog party or
post-con party. This is the winding-down party. This party for the staff to have their own fun, and then the next day, it's back to routine life. Analogies can be drawn to the
decompression parties following large events such as
Burning Man.
*
List of anime conventions*
Anime physics, conventions used in anime
*
AnimeCons.com*
CosplayMemories.com: Cosplay videos for download*
A Fan's View: Anime Convention Schedule*
Science Fiction Convention Survival Kit for Newbies*
A list of convention rules / guidelines
