SUSHIO AUTOGRAPH ANIME EXPO CRACKED

I find that the magic number is 30,000 attendees or less. What keeps the fan spirit alive is the size of the convention. I could tell stories here but I'd prefer not to make the information public. There also is a greater emphasis in sponsorship. Word has gone out that people are willing to spend a lot on artwork, and certain artists will only draw if the price is right. If the convention doesn't have an auction where they encourage you to spend big to get these sketches, the artist might have a booth in the artist alley where they will take commissions for a couple hundred each, in cash.

SUSHIO AUTOGRAPH ANIME EXPO CRACKED

Most conventions have cracked down on attendees getting sketches for free, usually claiming that it takes too much time and thus would be unfair to everyone (boo hoo). Now, though, in the name of 'fairness', conventions won't allow people to line up until 30 minutes prior to an autograph session. It also meant that, if you were willing to put in the time, you had a solid chance of walking away from the convention with a couple of really nice sketches for free. This largely meant that you could lounge around in the autograph area, start a line an hour or two in advance, and as long as it was orderly, staff would leave you alone. When I first started attending conventions in 2008, you could line up for a guest and get an autograph. It also is the only anime convention I've attended where, if you actually want to enjoy the convention, you need to spend $$$ on a premium pass because you'll otherwise spend most of your time waiting in lines just to get into the panel room, even for smaller panels.

Anime Expo is the only anime convention I've attended where your hotel room serves as nothing more than glorified luggage storage. The tickets won't be handed out until 8 am the following morning, and if you want more than one, you need to return to the back of the line and hope that that guest still has tickets available. Lines to get into just the AX Dealer Hall for limited premium items start at least 5 hours in advance of opening, and if you want an autograph (and just one), you need to start lining up for those tickets at 11pm the night before. Companies like Good Smile get kick-backs from conventions like SakuraCon and Anime Expo because they bring in attendees. The majority of guests that attend Anime Expo now are brought by the industry, controlled by the industry and, in return, Anime Expo gives them premium booth space for free. Notice how many of them are brought in by companies like Aniplex, Viz, etc. Take a look at the Anime Expo guest list for this year and in the past few years. It used to be that the head of guest relations would have a rolodex of contact information for Japanese guests. Don't kid yourself that Hollywood isn't after the nerd dollar. It now has well over 100K attendees per year. For one thing, Anime Expo is just the anime and manga version of SDCC.

No, the game has really changed since the 'glory days' of 1998.

Talking about creeps in line, or waiting to get a cel signed by a GOH, or hearing locals talk about 'that annie-may stuff,' - it's all things anyone who just stepped out of a 1998 convention would recognize. but still, by and large, most anime conventions I've attended in recent years aren't all that different from when I first started going.

Sushio autograph anime expo