Is it possible to set up hotel reservations for Anime Expo yet? I allegedly got put on a waiting list back in August, but I haven't heard anything from them since. I don't even know which hotel(s) are attached to/within walking distance of the convention center.
The hotel block doesn't seem open yet anon. But keep in mind if you're going with friends that the hotels will apparently now be doing wristbands. http://www.anime-expo.org/hotel-booking-policies/
None of the hotels are connected or really even super close to the con, but it shouldn't really matter because AX provides a shuttle service you can take back and forth from the con as long as you have a badge.
>>8836986
Will I just have to walk and/or take a taxi to go to the con to actually get my badge and stuff the day before it starts? That sucks, but I guess it can't be helped.
>>8836999
I'm honestly not 100% sure, the shuttle may run on day 0. (It did a few years ago and was a life saver) But otherwise, yeah.
>>8837007
I'm pretty sure it ran on day 0 last year.
>>8836999
I've used it on day 0 to get from the hotel to the con without even having bought a ticket at that point.
Has anyone ever done press at Anime Expo before? I might be going but I'd like to get an idea of how it's run before I commit.
>>8836977
The Double Tree that's like twenty minutes away (walking) is taking revervations* but I do not know about the main hotels.
*I'm doing a family rate/employee discount with them for a friend but I'm assuming non-employees can still book rooms until they do the con rate deal.
>>8837695
Is that the Double Tree that's on the shuttle route? The one in Little Tokyo?
>>8837980
I believe so.
So we aren't allowed to book two rooms at the same time anymore? What kind of bullshit is this?
>>8837324
they're a little more selective now and you can't just waltz up and get a pass at-con. have to apply online. you can get rejected if they decide you're not "legit" enough. if you are approved you have a separate pickup line (not like it matters since the AX reg line got fixed last year).
there's a press room and some interview rooms. you apply for interviews which may or may not be approved depending on the press reps for companies and how many people apply for interviews for that person. they did them all on wednesday last year which kind of sucked. anyone with press can show up to the press junkets which is group q&a. for things like panels you can shoot pretty much the whole time even if the general attendees cannot. for things like special events you might be able to get a ticket or two, depending on availability, and will be able to shoot/record for usually the first three songs of the show. occasionally you get to shoot the whole thing (ie momoclo for photos. video was only a couple of songs). you may be near the stage or may be stuck somewhere in the press zone (usually the sound board area or somewhere in the back).
interviews are pretty much whatever you want to do but at the end of the day it's you asking questions. they can provide a translator. if there's time you can ask for an autograph or two but if there isn't you get denied. sometimes selfies if that's your thing.
Does anyone know what its like to volenteer?
Is the room i get enough for my plus 1 as well?
>>8842015
you only get a room if you are staff and that means a lot of work so your plus one isn't going to see you much unless they are hanging out with you during your shifts
you're also probably going to be roomed with a few other staffers so it's up to them if your plus one is cool (also your plus one has to be okay with rooming with random others)
if you're grunt volunteer you have much less power, responsibility, and freedom to think
if you're staff you have much more responsibility and work and slightly more power and freedom to think
>>8836986
So will parties be dead now because of the wristband thing?
>>8842031
only if they actually enforce it which they didn't last year except for day 1. aren't there stairs too? take stairs to first floor of rooms, take elevator rest of the way? i'm sure there's ways around it if you take the time much like everything else at AX
>>8842031
I can't imagine they'll actually enforce it. Especially late at night.
The JW tried it last year and gave up within the first day.
I wouldn't be surprised if the whole wristband thing is just to scare people out of over-crowding rooms.
>>8842027
Thank you. Im well aware of the amount of work. Do you know how easy/hard it is to land the staffing postion?
I was also wondering about the buttler cafe. How hard is it get chosen for it? What criteria do they look for? I'm aware that you have to be there for some training and meetings.
>>8842060
if you show up to all of the various meetings/training they have in the months leading up to the con, have useful skills, experience, and/or interview well, you should have no problem getting staff.
what are you aiming for and do you have experience? or just trying to get your foot in the door?
>>8842066
and in general treat it like a job app because, well, it is. try to figure out what the jobs actually entail, see if they'd be willing to put you in contact with ex/current staff who might be okay with telling you about the position, etc.
Anime Expo Meeting and Open House Saturday – Feb 6 1 – 2PM SPJA Office
Interview Class Saturday – Feb 6 2:30 – 3:30 PM SPJA Office
Anime Expo Meeting and Open House Saturday – Mar 5 1 – 2PM SPJA Office
Anime Expo Meeting and Open House Saturday – Apr 2 1 – 2PM SPJA Office
suppose those might be of interest to you. if you're serious about being staff then showing up to those would show it
>>8842072
Thank you again for the reply!
Ill show up for sure to at least one of those. My biggest problem is i work weekends. I can get the occasinal day off of course.
I plan to email them regarding the dates for the training/ reherseal. Hopefully they arent mostly during the weekends.
And i really hope i have some chance at getting the buttler postion. It sounds like a blast. Id settle for any staff postion of course.
>>8841953
Thanks for all the info! It's weird that they did the interviews on Wednesday. Were you at least told way ahead of time so you could prepare?
>>8842161
if you want butler you'll apply separate to the maid cafe and not through the normal volunteer/staff route.
http://www.anime-expo.org/maid-cafe-butler-cafe-accepting-applications-2016/
i guess you'll have to decide on whether you want fun public interaction stuff or if you want to get into the nuts and bolts of a convention. that's not to say you can't have fun in the background of a convention too. depends on the kind of person you are.
>>8842177
we knew they were all on wednesday ahead of time. you submit your requests in advance and eventually the press liason tells you what you actually ended up with and when. it sucks because you have to stack all your interviews back to back basically and pray none of them are late. i prefer having them spread amongst the convention days like on other years but maybe the guests like it more being on the first day and then they can have fun the rest of time/not have to juggle on the convention days. if you can talk separately with the guest's management you may be able to arrange other things though.
half of the interviews on wednesday it felt like they just wanted to get out of there. so rushed.
>>8842185
Yeah it's annoying when cons stack them one after the other like that. You feel drained afterwards. It also sucks that it's on Wednesday because if I end up getting approved I'll have to travel quite a distance and I don't like the idea of spending more money on the hotel room because the interviews happen two days before the con. If that's the case I might do as you suggested and see if I can arrange something with guest management.
>>8842215
wednesday was day 0 last year (con started thursday) so if they do it again with all the interviews on day 0 it'll be thursday. to clarify, by guest management i mean the japanese management (or whoever they have playing handler)
>>8841795
You can use the same card to book more than 1 room. You just can't use the same name when you book.
>purchasing hotel room for first time
>make plans with someone 7 months ago
>They bail 2 days ago
>have 14 days to find a roommate
this is gonna be terrible
>>8842057
that's probably what it is, i doubt it'll work though i went in and out of that hotel the first day several times and wasn't asked at all for a wristband.
>>8842624
why do you need roomates? con isnt until july. They don't charge your card until you check out
>>8842624
I'm right here bby
>>8844105
I saw a woman checking for wristbands once my entire stay last year, and it caused a huge line for the elevators.
I thought they learned their lesson.
Anyone have good ideas for summer cosplay?
I normally do fall/winter cons, I was thinking about doing Kamina if that isn't overdone.
>>8846856
He's not overdone anymore. It's been long enough that I bet some of the newer crop won't even know what you're cosplaying
>>8846856
I have something planned, but will need helmet fans to not pass out in the heat
>>8836977
Just booked a room at the JW. Was hoping to get a 2 queen bedroom so could share with an anon but looks like out.
This will be my first con out of state, not expecting much but it should be fun.
>>8847459
Are you a premier fan? Or are you not doing it through the AX hotel block? I'm worried that once the hotels are released to the general public all the good ones will be sold out.
geez prices jacked...hope cuz it's still months away, same place I've been to is up an extra $100+ per night wtf...gonna wait a few more weeks..if not next year
>>8847574
lol, sounds like SDCC effects are happening all over again but to AX isntead
>>8847510
Yes I did get a premiere have and yes I'm afriad it's looking to be that way.
Hope you can get a decent room anon.
>>8847618
See, this is why I love Anaheim. Disneyland Hotel undercuts all the other hotel prices in the area to ensure people can afford to show up and spend money in their parks, so even in high tourist visit or convention times, the prices of rooms never goes up very much.
I'm going to AX for the first time this year, how different is it from a regular, large-sized convention? The biggest con I'm used to going to is A-Kon in Texas.
>>8848112
Did you attend A-Kon the last year it was in the Sheraton? It's about that crowded at AX, only the venue is 20x larger as a whole.
>>8836977
Never traveled for a con before, which hotels are the best?
>>8848112
Crowded as fuck and hot as shit
Lots of distinct odors from people, but plenty of, imo, good panels
>>8848126
This, although if you're used to Texas heat you should be fine.
If I recall correctly the lines for admission got way better after they outsourced it to Ticketmaster. But, waiting in line for panels is fucking miserable and terrible. There's also weird screwups where the staff has no goddamn clue what they're doing and will make you wait in the wrong line, lead you into the wrong room, etc.
>>8848133
I learned my lesson about not going on day 0 to get my badge
>2013
>ln line from 4pm until 8pm
>2014 linecon
>Printers break a couple hours into working and delays everything by a couple of hours. Didn't leave until 9pm
>2015
>Show up at 8am on Day 1 and pick up badge in 5 minutes
>>8848136
same.
showed up at 6am to 2014 day 1, made it through the doors at 2
I usually go with my little sister but I can't make it this year because of an internship. Does anyone know which of the hotels will let under-18s check in without a parent?
>>8848525
I don't think that's a thing
>Friends who "cosplays" talk to me about booking a hotel room for AX and asks if I would want to stay with them.
>Use money being iffy as an excuse,so I can try to chill with people I met at ALA.
>Messages me a price saying they already factored me in and plan on me staying with them.
>Agreed because it is roughly the price I was hoping to spend on a room.
>Just got the name of the hotel
>America's Best Value Inn a mile away
>They''ll probably want to walk back and forth each day
Has anyone ever stayed at these shitty motels for AX? Is it even worth it? Really tempted to ditch them and get in contact with someone staying in the main hotels
>>8848797
It's early enough that ditching them is acceptable. They have plenty of time to recover.
Cheap motels are usually okay as long as you aren't spending a lot of time in them. Drop your stuff off, sleep and that's it.
>>8842072
>>8842179
Thank You Agian.
Do any of you all know what i should expect from the dance audition?
I have no idea how to dance. I'm very resourceful and i think i can learn before march, if i have a good idea what to expect for a dance audition.
I'm going to study last years dance videos and practice those over and over, but i'm not to sure what i should do for the audition.
Never forget
>>8848902
not a clue. dance is out of my jurisdiction. i'd assume they have you do a dance of your choice. try to see if you can find someone who was in maid cafe last year and ask what is needed
Anyone ever stay at the Millennium Biltmore? Would overcrowding be easier there as opposed to staying at a hotel that's on the AX block?
>>8848103
what i meant was why did you say only 15 days to find a roomate?
>>8849455
The Biltmore is my favorite hotel not within walking distance. It's chill, with pretty nice rooms. The shuttle can get nasty at night, though, so be prepared to Uber at least once a day (mornings are usually okay, especially if you're an early riser).
>>8851598
Ah well I was gonna try and get someone to confirm before I put money down for the room.
Except that I asked a few friends and long story short I have six people who want to book with me.
So, to 100% confirm, if I book at Courtyard LA Live, they won't bill me for the rooms until I check out?
>>8849032
RIP linecon
>>8849032
That was the absolute worst.
>>8853235
marriott usually has a day of cancellation policy, and they can't charge you until you check out in case the bill is wrong/you check out early/ you have to pay for damages. They do run your card through for the day when you check in so they know you have money.
Remember when Anime Expo brought in A-list tier guests from Japan, all of their main events were free, the hotel rooms were affordable, and not some giant clusterfuck? Pepperidge Farm remembers.
>MFW I actually spent American currency on that Evangelion event last year
>>8855499
>mfw I waited 2.5 hours in line at the Good Smile booth for an item that ended up not being in danger of selling out at all the entire con
>>8855499
What exactly happened? All I heard was that it was awful.
>>8856674
from what I remember it was basically a commercial that you paid for.
>>8857711
They basically shoe horned it into place last minute
http://animecons.com/articles/article.shtml/1486/Society_for_the_Promotion_of_Japanese_Animation_to_expand_beyond_anime_and_rebrand
hah
>>8859543
Good grief, they want to be like SDCC, only worst. I'm surprised they want to open an office in Tokyo, for what purpose? Just so they can be within arms length of the industry.
No one from the anime industry wants to be involved with AX unless they get paid big time. AX gets left out of all the industry parties and events.
>>8860408
Industry seems content to pay their own way to AX though. Notice how a ton of the guests were industry guests last year? That's code for "AX didn't foot our bill and we want to be featured anyway"
I think you should need a badge to enter the convention center itself. I'm sick of how overcrowded it is each year.
especially when AX can't get their shit together with scheduling panels so you're running around half the time anyways.
>>8860422
Sorry I meant guests from Japan don't want to go to AX unless everything is paid for them. Hence the quality of Japanese guests have gone down hill for the last 6 years.
>>8860617
How many guests do that for any con nowadays?
>>8853235
Marriott wil put a hold on your cc for about 75% of the tital cost, then charge you the full price olus this hold at the end. 2 biz days later they release the hold. If you are close to yoyr limit this hurts
Apparently there's rentals for like 2-4-bedroom places close to the convention center. I think I might just book that to party as hotel room parties are kind of hard to keep up
