Tag Archives: convention

AETHERFEST, CONS, JUST SAYING, RANDOM REVIEW, RANDOMIZER9.COM, STEAMPUNK, WHATS GOING ON

RANDOMIZER’S REACTION: AetherFest 2012

For more info on Steampunk and Aetherfest, visit the San Antonio Neo-Victorian Association’s website!

The best compliment I can give to AetherFest is that I should have set aside more time for it.  Unfortunately, I ended up being a very busy nerd that weekend (to say nothing of stupid work on Friday) and thus, could I only make it out on Saturday.  I had a good time, though.  Like last year, (actually, like most of these things) I spent a significant time hanging out at my friend Chris Holm’s table, shooting the breeze and watching the festivities unfold before us.

Unlike last year, I did not try to dress the part.  I really should put an outfit together, or at least jazz up the half-baked one I currently have.  The opportunity was certainly there at Aetherfest, because there were a good number of vendors and dealers there selling all sorts of clothing and accessories.  The spirit was there, but alas, the funds were not.  Indeed, I felt just a slight twinge of guilt over besmirching the proceedings with my uncouth presence.

Aetherfest was greatly improved over last year, not that there was too much wrong with the event itself.  There were more vendors, some of which were put in the main area, and the panels were held in bigger rooms that were located on the first floor, so they were easy to find and could accommodate more attendees.  I attended a panel on the history of burlesque and learned some interesting things in addition to being entertained by the presenters and their tales.  While I did not attend any of the main events, I heard lots of good things about them.

In conclusion, Aetherfest appears to have fixed the little issues that I had with it the first time around and ended up being a really good event, at least from my limited perspective.  I really need to just go ‘whole hog’ next year; take some time off from work, get a proper outfit together and take in all that Aetherfest has to offer.

Now to find some glue and some gears.  😉

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AETHERFEST, CONS, RANDOMIZER9.COM, STEAMPUNK, WHATS GOING ON

Aetherfest: The Unconventional Convention

Aetherfest attendees

Come one, come all!

While there are lots of things to like about fan conventions like the upcoming Texas ComicCon and San Japan, there are a lot of things not to like about them, too: crowded hallways, long lines, overexcited sugar-and-energy-drink-fueled teens running around everywhere and the eventual feeling of ‘been there, done that.’

If you’re tired of the same old convention scene and want to check out something different, I strongly suggest dropping by Aetherfest in San Antonio this weekend.  “Texas’ First Steampunk Convention” is taking place at the St. Anthony Hotel and will feature a host of activities, vendors and guests for all to enjoy.  For the uninitiated, “steampunk” is an odd mash-up of speculative fiction, science fiction, alternate history, and fantasy…set in Victorian times.  That’s the best way I can put it, you just have to see it.

Based on my experience attending last year, Aetherfest is very different than your typical fan convention.  The Steampunk audience slants a bit older, so there aren’t as many hyperactive kids running around, the con organizers are capping attendance at 500 in order to prevent overcrowding, and as there is no truly ‘definitive’ Steampunk work of fiction, just about everything that will be presented there will be original.  In fact, I can say with confidence that you will see many things that you have not seen before at Aetherfest.

In addition, the St. Anthony Hotel fits the aesthetic perfectly, you will feel as if you have stepped into another place and time at Aetherfest.  A more civilized time where lords and ladies spoke proper English, paraded around in elaborate outfits, and exotic devices bought to life by the not-quite-understood power of aether were in abundance.

One-day passes can be purchased for $30 or a weekend pass is $60.  For more details go to http://facebook.com/aetherfest or http://www.sanvaonline.com/aetherfest

I look forward to making your acquaintance there!

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CONS, CREATIVE, FURRY FIESTA, JUST SAYING, MY LITTLE PONY, WHATS GOING ON

9 Questions and Observations from Furry Fiesta 2012

Some of the observations and questions that bounced around in my head during Furry Fiesta:

“If someone were to be tarred and feathered at a furry con, would it really be punishment?”

“You don’t bring a knife to a gunfight, and you don’t bring human art to a furry con.”

“I think some of these characters were born in a paint store, because THE COLORS, MAN!”

“At a furry con, the dogs have seeing eye people.”

“It is apparently possible to play the tuba while marching in a fursuit…wow.”

“If human fighter pilots say ‘Fox-2” when launching missiles, do fox pilots say “Man-2?”

“Geez, the bronies can’t even catch a break here.”

“I think this is that ‘world of pure imagination’ that Wonka guy sang about.”

And of course, last but not least:

“Its the same, but different!”

Finally, for no particular reason, Saturday’s Fursuit Parade:

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CONS, FURRY FIESTA, MY LITTLE PONY, Podcasting, PODCASTS, RANDOMIZER9.COM, WHATS GOING ON, Writing

RANDOM REACTION: Furry Fiesta 2012 Final Thoughts

D'awww

D’awww

I didn’t really have much planned for the last day of Furry Fiesta; just one panel late in the afternoon having to do with podcasting.  My partner in crime had to go to work (I wisely took Monday off) and so we couldn’t hang around, or go to In-N-Out, but such is life.

One thing that surprised me as I walked about the hotel early Sunday was how clean the hallways were.  The hallways of a con hotel on Sunday morning are usually pretty messy: people sleep underneath Artist Alley tables and flyers, and empty cups and bottles are lying everywhere as the con slowly lurches back to life while the hotel staff does what it can to clean up before it does.  In contrast, early Sunday morning the hallways of Furry Fiesta were almost as clean as they were on Friday.

Overall, I’d say that is a pretty good analogy for how Furry Fiesta 2012 went as a whole.  Except for one panelist running late, everything appeared to have gone smoothly as far as I could see.  The attendees were a bit more well behaved than I was accustomed to, probably because they appeared to be older than the usual con crowd. I had to get used to not overhearing security staff barking and yelling at attendees. If I had to guess, I’d say the average age has to be somewhere in the mid-late 20s, because there were a significant number of folks (including myself) that were over thirty years old at the event. Folks also appeared to be better behaved and even downright friendly at Furry Fiesta; it was easy to keep a smile on my face the whole weekend.

I had a fun time at Furry Fiesta 2012. As my friend Chris Holm surmised beforehand, it was the same, but different. It had many of the same things comic book and anime conventions have: special guests, a video room where folks could watch movies and series, a video game room, a dealer’s area, artist’s area, panels and big events.

Unlike other cons, the emphasis at Furry Fiesta appeared to be on originality. Except for My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic (which is EVERYWHERE, for better or for worse) I saw very little, if any, fanart or even cosplayers dressed up as characters from TV, movies, or video games, for that matter.  Instead, people made up their own characters and dressed up as them. A significant number of the panels also focused on the creative arts: there were panels on writing, drawing, and even voiceover. I easily doubled the number of panels that I usually attend at a con and learned some good information.

The issues I had with the hotel and the people that were staying above me were the only negatives that I took away from Furry Fiesta.  I had a great time and will definitely be back next year for another fantastic furry weekend!

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ANIME, CONS, CREATIVE, FURRY FIESTA, JUST SAYING, PODCASTS, RANDOMIZER9.COM, WHATS GOING ON, WORDS, Writing

RANDOM REACTION: Furry Fiesta Day 1

When in Rome...

When in Rome…

I wasn’t quite sure what to expect from my first day at Furry Fiesta 2012.  As mentioned during my pre-game podcast with artist Chris Holm, we really didn’t expect it to be that much different from other cons that we have been to before.  So far, that has held up.  Sure, the “Dealer Room” is called a ‘Dealer’s Den’ and fursuiters play the role that cosplayers would play at an anime con, but for the most part it’s the same song, it only goes to a furry beat.

The first thing that really impressed me about Furry Fiesta were the freebies that I received upon registering: a hard plastic badge that was of much better quality than the laminated ones one usualy gets at these things, and a 8.5 x 11-sized con book with a nice glossy cover, which made me even more happy to have my short story included in it.  The inclusion of a bar of soap felt a bit like a tongue-in-cheek joke, but it is honestly something that more cons should probably do.  There was also a furry survey that is apparently taken every year as part of a study on the fandom, I’ll need to fill that out and return it.

Aside from badges, the main way to identify someone is an attendee is by the wearing of a tail. Sometimes ears (the headband kind, not the ‘hat’ kind like I’m wearing in the picture) and fuzzy gloves are worn as well, but tails are pretty common.

While the panels I have been to have not all been as good as I initially had hoped for, I was still pleased that there are more panels that I was actually interested in. The five panels I attended on Friday easily equaled the number of panels I might attend during the three days of an anime or comic book convention.

There seems to be more of an emphasis at Furry Fiesta on the creation of art rather than the consumption of it. Instead of attending a panel where a voice actor answers questions from fans about the shows he or she has worked on, I. can attend a panel where I can learn about voice acting, writing, and art.

There are quite a few things to do here at Furry Fiesta for someone who is interested in creating. The vast majority of the costumes are of original characters; instead of pretending to be something that is the product of another person’s imagination, attendees create their own ‘fursonas.’  Oftentimes, they only exist on paper or in artwork, but a few take the extra step of bringing their creation to life in the real world.  They are known as ‘fursuiters’ and there are some REALLY good costumes out there.

The only horsefly (ba-doom, tissh) in the ointment has been the jerkasses that are staying in the room above the one I am in.  I have been hearing nothing but stomping around and horseplaying last night and into the morning. Two calls to the front desk and a chat with the Furry Fiesta security guy have proven to be pretty fruitless in getting anything accomplished.  To be fair, though, that is something that one experiences at all of these things, so I can’t really hold it against them.  That said, I think the fact that something hasn’t been done about this reflects poorly on both the hotel and the convention.  I will speak with the folks at the front desk again (and maybe even FF security) today and see if anything can be done.  I got a five-hour drive tomorrow back home and I need more sleep.

But yeah, that’s a problem one comes across at any convention.  Its only been the first day, but I have already had a lot of fun and even learned a new thing or two at Furry Fiesta 2012. I look forward to the remainder of the con.  At this rate, I will be attending Furry Fiesta 2013 without any hesitation.  If that isn’t the best compliment I can give, I don’t know what is.

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ANIME, CONS, IKKICON, JUST SAYING, MUSIC, MY LITTLE PONY, NeRiMa, RANDOMIZER9.COM, STEAMPUNK, WHATS GOING ON

20 Things I Noticed During Ikkicon VI

Since the last Ikkicon, I actually have helped run an event (two even, the Mezasu mini-cons) so my checklist of “things I have done at a con” is pretty darn close to complete.  This time, the band I drum for, named NeRiMa ねりま, was scheduled to play Saturday night, so Friday was pretty much a ‘free day.’  Because of my involvement with the event, I don’t feel right ‘reviewing’ it so without further ado, here’s another list of things I noticed:

  1. I am not going to bring up the drum thing. I am not going to bring up the drum thing. I am not going to bring up the drum thing.  I think the drum thing was our fault, anyway.
  2. Okay, the drum thing: I need to invest in an acoustic drum set…once I’m sure there is space for it in my apartment, I’m sure it’ll fit in my car, and I won’t get thrown out of my apartment from the noise…so yeah.
  3. So Band 1 plays before Band 2, but Band 2 does their sound check after Band 1 does theirs and immediately before Band 1 performs…granted, I’m fairly new to the whole “rock band” thing, but am I the only one that finds that weird?
  4. I’d heard there were three versions of the schedule floating around, which probably why nobody minded that we started playing late.
  5. I was a little distressed at seeing such a small crowd at first, but it turns out Safety was checking bags for alcohol at the door, so we waited and it slowly grew.
  6. I think I like playing on Friday better, because we can practice the night before and having the show constantly on my mind for most of the con took a little bit of the fun out of it.
  7. I had a fun time at the concert itself, it was also nice of them to remember the fog machines were there about 2/3 of the way through. :/
  8. I totally forgot to check out the game room, perhaps the memories of last year are way too fresh.
  9. I’m guessing a lot of folks got the Nintendo 3DS for Christmas.  Either that or System Settings is much more engaging than I remember.
  10. I finished 4 Streetpass panels during the event and almost finished Find Mii a second time, w00t!
  11. According to my 3DS’ pedometer, I averaged 6,000+ steps a day, and my legs feel like it today.
  12. Once again, no microwave in the room.  I guess if you can afford to stay at a place like the AT&T Executive Education and Conference Center you aren’t going to be nuking popcorn and noodles for sustenance.
  13. Luckily, the venue was near the University of Texas, so there was plenty of pizza and burger jonts within walking distance.
  14. I love how the layout was prioritized: artists and dealers in the mezzanine, panels and some artists on the first floor, and con alley in steerage, er, I mean, the basement.  They aren’t the only ones to do this, BTW.
  15. The AT&T Executive yadda yadda is split in two between the hotel and the conference center, which is probably why there weren’t too many insane elevator wait times.  That, and it only has seven floors.
  16. I was afraid of that the venue was going to be too small for the number of attendees, but it didn’t seem to get too packed.
  17. I attended the My Little Pony panel to see if I could somehow finish the blog entry I’d been working on for the last two WEEKS. Mission Accomplished.
  18. In spite of my friend Chris’ best efforts, I was not tied down to a chair and forced to watch My Little Pony like the guy in “A Clockwork Orange.”  Jerk.
  19. What is it with badges?  Guest badges, even??  Once again I got a temp badge to start off, but they found the band’s real ones halfway through.
  20. I can’t claim this one (credit goes to my friend Justin of Nine Tails) but I have to include it: while looking at the Sunday schedule, a friend wondered “How come they never have Steampunk 102?”

For me, at least, Ikkicon VI was fun: a good-sized crowd showed up, the location was better in quite a few aspects, and our concert went well.  While there were a few wrinkles here and there, the problems that did come up got taken care of and a good time was had by all.

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ANIME, CONS, FIRST STORM MANGA, RANDOMIZER9.COM, REALMSCON

RealmsCon 2011 : Can Less Be More?

As far as I know, RealmsCon is the only anime event that goes on in Corpus Christi.  I remember going to the first one way back when, and have had tables there these last two years.  With First Storm Manga done with, I was now free to just enjoy the show.  Having been underwhelmed with RealmsCon in the past, I decided to drive down and check it out for one day as opposed to the whole weekend.

I got to the American Bank Center at about one in the afternoon, and the setup was very similar to what they had last year; artists and panels were on the first floor and big events and guests were on the second.  It was different in that the number of artists and dealers had been reduced from 2010.  The same amount of space was being used, but things were a little more spread out.  They did things like use only one side of a hallway instead of both.  While it made the space looked a little more empty (particularly the dealer’s room) I think it was the right thing to do.  Here’s why:

I don’t know what the attendance numbers are for RealmsCon, but it would appear that they overdid it last year when they held their first show at the American Bank Center last year.  Back then, they packed as many artists and dealers as they could into the space, but it appears that they didn’t have the numbers to support all those attendees.  I overheard that both attendees and artists were pretty unhappy with that situation.

It looks like they found the sweet spot this year, because nearly all of the folks that I spoke with said that things were going well for them, sales-wise, at least.  Ideally, fewer artists and dealers meant more money for the ones that were there.

I really didn’t do much there beyond hang out with friends so I attend any of the events.  While they do have just a little bit of repetition in terms of their guests, it is nice to see familiar faces.  Of course, I have to mention that their big guest Tom Felton cancelled, which was unfortunate.

I didn’t attend any of the panels, so I don’t have anything to say about them except that Airship Isabella appeared to be running a significant chunk of them, according to the schedule.  That makes me wonder about the anime community in Corpus Christi, are there not enough folks down there that want to do panels?  Realms always seems to have issues getting enough panels to fill the event’s three days.  Last year, each presenter was given two hours, and this year there were 15-30 minute gaps in between events.

That minor quibble aside, I had a fun time at RealmsCon and there was a good crowd there.  While they had to take a step back in some ways, it was a step forward for the most part, and I look forward to coming back next year, maybe for the whole weekend instead.

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AETHERFEST, CONS, FIRST STORM MANGA, JUST SAYING, MIZUUMICON, RANDOMIZER9.COM, SAN JAPAN, STEAMPUNK, WHATS GOING ON

Aetherfest I

Some Aetherfest attendees in their Sunday best

Quite dashing, really!

I almost felt obligated to attend the new Steampunk con “AetherFest” after giving them crap on this very blog a few weeks ago. Honestly, though, I would have attended regardless just to satisfy my curiosity.  When my friend Chris Holm asked me to help him out at his table and with his panel (as the “guest editor” of his new comic “Steam Pets”), it was an easy “yes.”

Unfortunately, “help out” also means “don’t get to see much of anything,” so I know there was lots of cool stuff I didn’t get to experience.  I spent most of the event at Chris’ table over in the game room along with a few other vendors.  Mutual friend Jackie Naehrig joined us on Saturday and we had a fun time hanging around and marveling at the attendees, many wearing appropriate attire and accoutrements.

Chris and Jackie dressed up, so I felt just a little bit embarrassed sitting next to them sporting a T-shirt and blue jean shorts on Saturday.  I improvised a little something on Sunday, though.  I put on some slacks, a button down shirt, dusted off a flat cap and stopped to get a set of suspenders on the way back to the St. Anthony Hotel.  I have to admit, it felt neat, like I should have also been carrying a giant wrench or an oil can or something.  I thought looked like the guy in the boiler room as opposed to all the captains, pilots and proper ladies walking about.  Upon seeing my outfit, though, Chris said I looked like “Professor Layton’s hat boy.” Jerk.

The only panel I attended was one that I was a part of.  I sat with Chris on his “Intro to Drawing and Comic-Making” panel where we talked about making “Steam Pets” and our experiences with First Storm Manga with a small spirited group.  I wandered around for a bit and checked out the other dealer area and the “museum,” where they had quite a few neat items on display and for sale.  It was all very nice and being at the historic St. Anthony Hotel (built in 1909) added greatly to the ambiance.  Judging from the pictures I’ve seen on Facebook, the events they held on the evenings of Friday and Saturday appear to have been very entertaining.  The misgivings I had previously about “steam-snobs” were unfounded, and I must say that looking the part does add to the fun of being there.

While I had fun at Aetherfest and have been hearing good things from people that were there, there are some things that they need to work on.  Let me start by acknowledging that some of these things cannot be helped (particularly where the hotel is concerned) but you have to take the bad with the good, so here we go.

Split Vendor Area Is a Bother – Having two separate areas for vendors is never a good thing (see also: MizuumiCon 2011) and it would benefit all involved if the organizers could try to have all them in one area next time.  I’m not familiar enough with the layout of the St. Anthony to know if that is possible, but if it is, it should be considered.

“Third Floor: Hosiery, Lingerie, and Panels!” – The majority of the panels were held on the third floor, which was kind of lousy, but I have to let it slide because it is a consequence of the way the St. Anthony was built.  The fact that the program sometimes said “Third Floor” and “Third Room,” however, was not.

Needs Improvement, See Me After Class – Now that I have had an opportunity to look it over a bit closer, I’d say whomever edited the program was asleep at the airship wheel.

Promotion – I think the organizers missed out on prime opportunities to promote their event at either Mizuumi-con (which may or may not have been full) or at ChimaeraCon. I did see flyers at ChimaeraCon, but they did not have a lot of information about the event.  I would strongly recommend the Aetherfest folks consider requesting a Con Alley table at San Japan 4TW in August.

Website – For the love of Tesla, lads, get a webhost or something. It’s not that expensive, and you can even get a free one from Google. Not everyone is on Facebook (yet) and while Tumblr does look nice, I shouldn’t have to go to some skeevy download site with pop-up ads just to see your schedule and program.  In addition, if you have your own host, you can put up picture galleries, forums and other things to attract interest.

Despite the quibbles I just mentioned, I thought AetherFest was a good con.  As was expected for a first-time event, the crowd was small, but those who made it out had a good time.  Those of us who are “steam-newbies” got to check out some cool stuff and learn a little something about this fascinating world called “Steampunk.”  I am confident that I will be returning next year.  Who knows, I may even sport a waist coat or a bowler hat or maybe just a really big wrench.

Good show, fellows!

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