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What It Takes To Be Hybrid
After the move to online conventions in 2020 and 2021, some conventions tried to keep the best parts of the online experience and combine them with the return to in-person events. While hybrid events have great potential, most conventions that attempted them have now returned to only in-person activities.
A post at the blog PK1048 helps to explain why, as a conrunner goes behind the scenes to look at the tech and personnel requirements for hybrid events. Those requirements are substantial. For instance, here is the recommended equipment for one simple program item, an author reading:
Sound system, local mic to Zoom, Zoom to room
Video switcher (ATEM) with multi-view monitor
Camera to cover reader
Camera to cover audience
Confidence monitor for reader to see online audience
Laptop to originate Zoom: video feed, audio feed (Co-Host) this is a Zoom Meeting
Laptop / Tablet for Program Ops to handle Chat / Q&A (Co-Host)
Similarly a raft of new people are needed to handle the interface between the online and physical worlds.
The combined effort and budget, in fact, is more than what one online event and one in-person event done separately would require. For as long as that is true, expect hybrid conventions to remain rare.
In Brief
Gaslight Steampunk Expo has put its main event on hiatus to focus on local meetups.
GameStorm 24 (Portland, Oregon, March 21-24) has announced Connor Alexander, Alex Hart, and Jonathan Liu as its Guests of Honor.
Kawacon (San Antonio, Texas, March 2-3) has announced Johnny Yong Bosch as its first guest.
Cincinnati Comic Expo (Cincinnati, Ohio, September 22-24) has added Julie Benz, Darren Stein, Tony Harris, Franco, and Craig Boldman as guests.
Event Calendar
Weekend of July 21-23
Pemmi-Con (2023 NASFiC), Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
Celsius 232, Avilés, Spain
Confluence 2023, Coraopolis, Pennsylvania, USA
Fur Out West: Candyland 2023 (anthropomorphic), Scarborough, Western Australia, AustraliaBoard Game Days, Knoxville, Tennessee, USA
Venger Con II: Electric Boogaloo (gaming), Madison, Wisconsin, USA
Festival Ludique International de Parthenay (gaming), Parthenay, France
Fling.con (gaming), New Braunfels, Texas, USA
Twisted Lords Con 2023 (gaming), Midwest City, Oklahoma, USA
24 Hour Board Game Marathon 2023, Ilminster, UK
World Boardgaming Championships, Seven Springs, Pennsylvania, USA
Historicon 2023: America: Expansion and Civil War (miniatures gaming), Lancaster, Pennsylvania, USA
Classic Game Fest (retro video games), Austin, Texas, USA
Tosho-con (anime), Cranford, New Jersey, USA
Anime Messe Babelsberg, Berlin, Germany
Kitsune Kon (anime), Green Bay, Wisconsin, USA
ExpOtaku Tarragona (anime), Tarragona, Spain
Tekko 2023 (anime), Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
AkaiCon 2023 (anime), Lebanon, Tennsesse, USA
Kogan Con 2023 (anime), Grand Haven, Michigan, USA
AFA Creators Super Fest Singapore 2023 (anime), Singapore
Comic-Con International, San Diego, California, USA
ConnectiCon XX (media), Hartford, Connecticut, USA
Saggeek 2023 (media), Saguenay, Québec, Canada
MAPLD Fan Fest (media), Matteson, Illinois, USA
The Urban Nerd Con (Black media), Atlanta, Georgia, USA
Weekend of July 28-30
NärCon 2023, Linköping, Sweden
Mythcon 52: The Mythic, the Fantastic, and the Alien (symposium), Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA
OzCon International (Oz series), Pomona, California, USA
Costume College 2023: Cosplay: Fairytales, Fiction, and Fantasy, Los Angeles, California, USA
Ropecon: Menneisyys ja Tulevaisuus (gaming), Helsinki, Finland
World Boardgaming Championships, Seven Springs, Pennsylvania, USA
Continuum (gaming), Oadby, UK
PretzCon 2023 (gaming), Omaha, Nebraska, USA
Southern-Fried Gaming Expo (video games), Atlanta, Georgia, USA
Epic.LAN (LAN gaming), Wolverhampton, UK
Maple Gel Con (Tales video game series), Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Dream Convention (anime), Austin, Texas, USA
Otakon (anime), Washington, DC, USA
AnimeFest, Dallas, Texas, USA
Tokyo in Tulsa: Worlds Collide (anime), Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA
Anime Com Fest, Kingston, Jamaica
Wasabicon PDX (anime), Portland, Oregon, USA
Dream Con (anime), Arlington, Texas, USA
Dokidokon (anime), Kalamazoo, Michigan, USA
AnimeIowa, Coralville, Iowa, USA
Anime Impulse Bay Area, San Mateo, California, USA
New World Comic Con 8, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA
Alias Entertainment Expo: Rise of the Dragon (media), Tunapuna, Trinidad & Tobago
Corpus Christi Comic Con, Corpus Christi, Texas, USA
GalaxyCon Raleigh (media), Raleigh, North Carolina, USA
TERRIFICON (media), Uncasville, Connecticut, USA
Tampa Bay Comic Convention, Tampa, Florida, USA
UK Comic Con, Manchester, UK
MegaCon Live Manchester (media), Manchester, UK
GalaCon 2023 (My Little Pony), Waiblingen, Germany
Weekend of August 4-6
Sci-con2023 (60th Japanese national sf convention), Urawa, Japan
AMA-CON, Amarillo, Texas, USA
ArmadilloCon 2023, Austin, Texas, USA
PulpFest 2023, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
LeakyCon (Harry Potter), Chicago, Illinois, USA
Cosplay World, Richmond, Virginia, USA
Surrey Steampunk Convivial, Epsom, UK
Reffurence (anthropomorphic), Antwerp, Belgium
Furry Siesta 2023 (anthropomorphic), Dallas, Texas, USA
CanFURence 2023 (anthropomorphic), Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
Gen Con 2023 (gaming), Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
StarCon 2023 (gaming), Star Island, New Hampshire, USA
Pixel Expo: Level 2 (video games), Perth, Australia
Fragapalooza 2023 (LAN gaming), Leduc, Alberta
Advík (anime), Prague, Czechia
AnimagiC (anime), Mannheim, Germany
Kentokyocon (anime), Lexington, Kentucky, USA
JoMoCon (anime), Joplin, Missouri, USA
KO+Con 2023 Isekai (anime), Grand Prairie, Texas, USA
Mid City Micro-Con (comics), Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA
Really Cool Comic Con, Flint, Michigan, USA
Bell County Comic Con, Belton, Texas, USA
Fan Expo Boston (media), Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Comic Con Honolulu, Honolulu, Hawaii, USA
MonkeyCon (media), Gaithersburg, Maryland, USA
Enid Comic Con, Enid, Oklahoma, USA
Monster-Mania 55 (horror media), Cherry Hill, New Jersey, USA
STLV: 57-Year Mission (Star Trek), Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
Weekend of August 11-13
Geek Out at Staten Island, Staten Island, New York, USA
Wild Prairie Fur Con: Adventures in Furry Land (anthropomorphic), Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
Key City Steampunk Convention, Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, USA
Wild Game Roundup, Austin, Texas, USA
Game On Expo, Phoenix, Arizona, USA
GameX 5.0 (video games), Mississauga, Ontario, USA
Long Island Retro Gaming Expo (video games), Garden City, New York, USA
Grand Tribunal (Ars Magica RPG), Cheltenham, UK
AniNite 23 (anime), Vienna, Austria
Otakukon (anime), Harare, Zimbabwe
Otakuthon (anime), Montréal, Québec
AniBash (anime), Rochester, New York, USA
Abunai!: Summer Magic Academia (anime), Veldhoven, Netherlands
Tokonatsu (anime), Henlow, UK
RakuCon Manchester (anime), Manchester, UK
Queen City Anime Convention, Charlotte, North Carolina, USA
Anime-zing!, Davenport, Iowa, USA
MatsuriCon 2023 (anime), Columbus, Ohio, USA
Fan Expo Chicago (media), Rosemont, Illinois, USA
Dublin Comic Con, Dublin, Ireland
Station Unity 2023 (media), National Harbor, Maryland, USA
Flame Con (LGBT+ media), New York City, New York, USA
Starfleet International Conference 2023 (Star Trek), online
TFNation (Transformers), Birmingham, UK
Everfree NW (My Little Pony), Bellevue, Washington, USA
Mid-week event: SFRA 2023: Disruptive Imaginations (symposium), Dresden, Germany
Weekend of August 18-20
Epic Nerd Camp, Darlington, Maryland, USA
DenFur (anthropomorphic), Denver, Colorado, USA
Dragonflight Gamecon 43, Bellevue, Washington, USA
Game & Party Con, Jacksonville, Florida, USA
Coulee Con 2023 (gaming), La Crosse, Wisconsin, USA
Lone Star Game Expo, Grapevine, Texas, USA
Field of Games, Silverstone, UK
Draconicon (gaming), Tel Aviv, Israel
HistoriKC Fest (miniatures gaming), Overland Park, Kansas, USA
Nashcon 2023 (miniatures gaming), Nashville, Tennessee, USA
SDHist Con East (historical games), Newport, Rhode Island, USA
Superstar Anime, Virginia Beach, Virginia, USA
Conjutsu (anime), Fairfax, Virginia, USA
Anime Revolution, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Colossalcon Texas (anime), Round Rock, Texas, USA
Shikkaricon (anime), Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
Anime Town Louisiana 2023, Gonzales, Louisiana, USA
Soda City Comic Con, Columbia, South Carolina, USA
Kelowna ComiCon, Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada
Hub City Comic Con, Lubbock, Texas, USA
Creation Charlotte (media), Concord, North Carolina, USA
Stars of Time (media), Weston-super-Mare, UK
Coda
“If a tree falls over the road to Agatha Christie’s house and everyone visiting is trapped, will any of them escape alive?” (The Messenger, hat tip: Money Stuff)
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