How to Convention: When Fans Get Competitive
Any event that attracts a bunch of fans in costume will probably have a costume contest, and any con with a lot of gaming will inevitably include game tournaments. But there are plenty of lesser-known competitive events out there in fandom, like these.
Anime music video contests
Most large anime conventions will include an anime music video contest. AMVs consist of footage from anime edited together to a musical soundtrack, usually but not always a song in one of the major commercial genres. (There is also a subgenre of AMVs which use the soundtracks from movie trailers instead.) Effects may range from nonexistent to elaborate. Sometimes multiple shows are edited together, or one is remixed to give it a tone or apparent plot significantly different from the original.
An AMV contest will take videos in several categories, based on format, mood, or theme, with the top submissions shown at the convention. Audience members may be able to vote on winners in each category or of the overall contest.
Miniatures painting contests
The miniature figures used in contexts from tabletop RPGs to mass wargaming usually come unpainted. Naturally, they need to be painted, and just as naturally, this leads to competitions to see who can get their figures looking the best. Figures are dropped off by a given deadline, and then put on display for all congoers to admire.
There are usually categories for different skill levels, so that rank novices do not have to go up against people who have been honing their awesome skills for decades.
Single-pattern contests
This is a costume contest where all entries have to make use of the same pattern. A widely available commercial pattern will be selected and announced months before the convention, to give everyone plenty of time to plan and execute their ideas. Entries can use any materials, add any accessories, and make it part of any kind of ensemble.
The single-pattern contest is most associated with Costume-Con, but is occasionally sighted at other conventions with a lot of costumers.
Iron Costumer
Inspired by the classic cooking competition show Iron Chef, this is the reverse of a typical costume contest. Competitors are given materials, a time limit, and sometimes a theme, and have to cobble something together quickly.
Table-flipping tournament
This may be unique to the gaming convention TantrumCon. Two tables at a time are set up with a game in progress, and then teams get to flip them like the proverbial frustrated gamer. TantrumCon does not make the rules available online, but it does have a page full of videos of the results.
In Brief
Con+Alt+Delete (Rosemont, Illinois, December 20-22) has added Chris McCullough and David Ankrum.
Fan Expo Portland (Portland, Oregon, January 17-19) has added Catherine Tate.
Trek Long Island (Hauppauge, New York, May 30-June 1) has added John Noble.
Event Calendar
Weekend of November 29-December 1
Loscon 50, Los Angeles, California, USA
Dragonmeet (gaming), London, UK
GobbleCon (gaming), Burlingame, California, USA
Tabletop Oahu (gaming), Oahu, Hawaii, USA
Geek Days Lille (media), Lille, France
Fan Expo San Francisco (media), San Francisco, California, USA
Stars of Time Comic Con, Weston-super-Mare, UK
Anime Dallas, Dallas, Texas, USA
Anime Festival Asia Singapore, Singapore
Comic Con Arabia, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
Comic Con Stuttgart, Stuttgart, Germany
Chicago TARDIS (Doctor Who), Lombard, Illinois, USA
Starbase Indy 2024: Exploring New Worlds (Star Trek), Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
Weekend of December 6-8
Nordcon: The Weird West, Jastrzębia Góra, Poland
XXVIII Mereth Aderthad (Tolkien), Altafulla, Spain
Dragonsteel Nexus 2024 (Brandon Sanderson), Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
Smofcon 41 (con-running), SeaTac, Washington, USA
Midwest Furfest: Heist (anthropomorphic), Rosemont, Illinois, USA
FURUM 2024: Furkini Bottom (anthropomorphic), Selangor, Malaysia
TsunamiCon (gaming), Wichita, Kansas, USA
PAX Unplugged (tabletop gaming), Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
Shorehammer (miniatures gaming), Ocean City, Maryland, USA
Emerald Con (Pathfinder & Starfinder RPGs), Bellevue, Washington, USA and online
30 Manga Barcelona (anime), Barcelona, Spain
Otaku U III: Junior Year (anime), Livonia, Michigan, USA
Yama Con (anime), Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, USA
Anime Wonder Festival, Tucson, Arizona, USA
Anime Frontier, Fort Worth, Texas, USA
Maui Comic Con, Kahului, Hawaii, USA
Tokyo Comic Con, Tokyo, Japan
Comic Con Okinawa, Camp Foster, Okinawa, Japan
GalaxyCon Columbus (media), Columbus, Ohio, USA
Creation Nashville (media), Murfreesboro, Tennessee, USA
CCXP 24 (media), São Paulo, Brazil
Weekend of December 13-15
Sac Gamers Expo (video games), Sacramento, California, USA
Anime Weekend Atlanta, Atlanta, Georgia, USA
Permian Basin Comic Con Holiday Edition X, Midland, Texas, USA
Ocean City Comic Con, Ocean City, Maryland, USA
Weekend of December 20-22
Winter Furry Fusion, Shanghai, China
CEOtaku (anime fighting games), Orlando, Florida, USA
Con+Alt+Delete (anime), Rosemont, Illinois, USA
KisuuCon (anime), Portland, Oregon, USA
Holiday Matsuri (anime), Orlando, Florida, USA
Nashville Anime Day, Murfreesboro, Tennessee, USA
Comic Fiesta, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Weekend of December 27-29
Furvester 6: Into the Cyberspace (anthropomorphic), Reutlingen, Germany
New Year’s Furry Ball, Newark, Delaware, USA
OKiCon (anime), Norman, Oklahoma, USA
Comic Market 105 (fan-made comics), Tokyo, Japan
Coda
Vampire bats on a tiny treadmill (Smithsonian Magazine)
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