Fanime for Dummies

This past Memorial Day weekend I had the pleasure of attending the largest anime convention in Northern California: Fanime. Placing in the top 10 largest anime conventions in all of North America, the tens of thousands of fans who come out each year and participate are nothing to scoff at.

Held at the San Jose McEnery Convention Center in sunny San Jose, California, FanimeCon concluded their 20th consecutive year as a place for fans of not only anime, but video games and general Japanese culture to convene and hang out for the weekend. In this article, I will attempt to spell out an overview of what the convention holds. I use the word “attempt” because the four-day convention is truly massive, especially considering they have activities going on 24/7. Nonetheless, I’ll try my best.

Registration 

Look at the size of this thing!
Credits: Diana Chan

Registration for the Con continues all weekend long. Those lucky enough to have pre-registered for the convention may come on Thursday afternoon to pick up their badge. Otherwise, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and Monday are all available days to stand in line and grab a badge.

Day badges range from $30* – $40* and weekend badges run for $65*. My opinion? Go for the whole weekend. There are so many different things going on at every hour of every day that you’ll feel like you’re missing out!

Oh did I mention the size of the line? Get there early or plan on spending a couple of hours meeting new people!

* Note: prices listed are accurate as of 2013.

Events

Once you finally get your badge, there are a number of different “areas” that Fanime sets up to keep the fans interested: Panels, Video Rooms, the Dojo, Gaming Hall, Dealer’s Hall, Artist’s Alley, and Clockwork Alchemy, located nearby at the Doubletree Hotel (there is shuttle service provided, so there’s no reason not to check it out).

Panels

One of the breads and butter of any convention, Panels are a chance for Industry members, Guests of Honor, and fans alike to come together and share basically anything they take an interest to in a small auditorium room. The variety of panels will truly amaze you, especially considering Fanime runs four different panel rooms for 15 hours a day all weekend long.

From titles like “How to Pose Like a Pro” to “Demons!”, “Figure Collecting for Noobs”, “Awesomely Bad J-Music Videos”, “Magikarp: A History”, and “Sex Trade in Anime/Manga”, you will be able to find something you’ll enjoy attending. Some of these talks are considered 16+ or 18+, so make sure to bring your ID and definitely attend some of kinkier sounding ones – these tend to be a little more, how should we put this, entertaining.

Video Rooms

Another glorious part of Fanime is the seven movie theater rooms running 24 hours a day. They literally play anything you can think of, from top AMVs to hilarious movies straight from Japan. They’ve even got a Marathon Room which marathons series all day. You’ll find anime galore, funny fan-subs, shows both old and new, and even hentai (18+)! Strangely enough (or maybe not), the hentai room is well attended, so be sure to check it out and groan in disgust (or glee) with the rest of the audience.

The Dojo

Self defense (and offense) practice.
Credits: Diana Chan

The Dojo is another cool little touch Fanime provides for its fans. Here you’ll find lessons that will teach you how to use a number of different weapons, including spears and rapiers, archery demonstrations, panels on how to make armor, and even a live action RPG!

They suggest flexible clothes when you attend because it can get pretty active, and they’re right.

Gaming Hall

This is a huge room with a variety of video games, ranging from old NES games to Super Smash Bros. Brawl on the Wii. People can come in and borrow controllers and test their skills at some of the 40ish televisions hooked up to all sorts of games for all types of game players. You’ll also find a variety of card game tournaments, such as Pokemon, Yu-Gi-Oh, and Magic the Gathering.

Included in this room is also an area with tables and board games, so you can hang out and relax with some friends. In the back they have a variety of stand-up arcade games (imagine Time Crisis, House of the Dead, etc.) along with some purikura machines (photo booths that allow tons of post-editing).

Did I mention that this room is open 24/7? Yes, getting your video game fix at 5am is not a problem, and you’ll find others there to play with too!

Dealer’s Hall and Artist’s Alley

The Dealer’s Hall and Artist’s Alley are two separate operations, but I lumped them together since both are provided for Con-goers to purchase things. Dealers bring loot such as figurines, t-shirts, weapons, and wigs (for those completing last minute outfits) while artists bring prints, stickers, plushies, buttons, handmade jewelry, you-name-it, to display at hundreds of tables for people to purchase.

Browse around and see what catches your eye. The prices are typically pretty reasonable and the variety is out of this world. I’d suggest giving your money to a friend before walking in to make sure you don’t spend too much cash too fast – something I found out the hard way.

Dances

A bright and well-lit room, with an emphasis on elegant attire and a much bigger personal space bubble.
Credits: Diana Chan

Two rooms, midnight raves, and multiple DJs throughout the weekend from 7 at night til 4 in the morning. The first day had a long line of people waiting to get in, however I visited later and it seemed a bit more empty than I would have liked.

The Black and White Ball dance instructors offer a variety of classes throughout the week in preparation for the B&W ball (and for those who are simply interested in learning different ballroom dances). Merengue, Rumba, Salsa, Tango, and Waltz are all offered, just to name a few!

Guests of Honor

There are a number of well known individuals and groups who attend Fanime each year to make the experience for Con-goers all the better. These Guests of Honor spend time signing autographs and hosting panels of their own (which are top notch I might add). A few of the people I got to see were:

ROOKiEZ is PUNK’D – Their single, “Complication”, reached number one in downloadable tracks in Japan and is featured as the opening theme song for “Durarara!!” These guys also have a song featured in Bleach with “song for…” and the second opening theme for Blue Exorcist, “IN MY WORLD”

Seven!! (pronounced “seven oops”) – These guys are a four-person rock band. Some of their stuff includes the song “Lovers” and “Sayonara Memory”, both of which can be found in Naruto Shippuden.

Darrel Guilbeau – A voice actor who can be found in a number of notable series, including (but not limited to): Bleach, Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion, Cyborg 009, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex 2nd Gig, Kekkashi, as well as being known for Rikuo in Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clain, Mikado in Durarara!!, and Amaimon in Blue Exorcist. By the way, he’s also the voice of Viewtiful Joe in Marvel vs. Capcom 3, as well as many other character roles!

And these are just a few of the amazing GoH who showed up to Fanime this year! Interacting with the GoH is definitely a fun event. While the guests usually change from year to year, make sure to make time for them if you ever plan on attending – you won’t regret it!

Special Events

These Special Events range in size and topic like crazy. From Speed Dating (a chance for straight and LGBT fans to mingle with others who share their same love of anime) to the Swap Meet (where you can trade your loot for others’ loot) to the Fanimaid Cafe (a place to have lunch with girls dressed in maid cosplays), these events are the icing on the cake that is Fanime.

Besides the few mentioned above, you’ve got other incredible venues, such as Music Fest, where you can watch some amazing performances from Japanese music groups for FREE (well it comes with the price of the badge but you know what I mean). This year, as ROOKiEZ is PUNK’D and 7!! were guests of honor, they both performed live at the San Jose Civic Auditorium across the street from the McEnery Convention Center.

ROOKiEZ is PUNK’D, who had quite a number of screaming fangirls.
Credits: Diana Chan

Another spectacular thing that’s put on is the Black and White Ball – a formal event where Con-goers can dress up in their finest attire and dance with one another incorporating all of the moves they’ve learned in the dance classes taught throughout the weekend. Yes there is a formal dress code but it makes everyone look fantastic and sets up an amazing atmosphere, so it’s totally worth it (if your cosplay is dressy enough that will get you in too).

All of this on top of cosplay gatherings, silent auctions, and various contests hosted at the Main Stage make Fanime quite the experience. I will have another article out next week based on my personal experience throughout the weekend, so stay tuned if you’re interested at a closer look of what you can expect at ground zero!