What to make for artist alley

The other day, a relative of mine asked for advice about what to make for Anime Expo artist alley.  Normally, he only attends comic conventions and is only familiar with the tastes of those crowds.  But he wanted to try Anime Expo, and since I've been attending for a while, he asked what series he should make art for.

 Essentially, he asked which anime series are popular at the moment.  A little ironic that he asked me, since I myself am quite behind in terms of current anime series.  (Personally, I find a series I like, and cling to it, and only it, for a long time.  I can't even watch Go-Busters because I still haven't gotten over Gokaiger.  ~.~; )  But regardless of my personal knowledge of the latest trends, there are some very simple ways to know what is popular enough to ensure good sales at an anime artist alley:

-  Look up the convention's Guests of Honor.  They drive the fans of those particular series to flock to the con.  For example, AX2014 has lots of guests from Kill La Kill.  Last year, AX2013 had a guest and lots of signing events regarding Natsume Yuujinchou; that drove the Natsume Yuujinchou fandom to come to AX2013 and even form cosplay gatherings.  So look up the convention's guest list and special events. 

-  Figurine producer websites, particularly Good Smile Company (http://www.goodsmile.info/en).  They'll only make figures of whatever is really popular (in Japan), and GSC in particular releases figures regularly enough to mark all the different trends.  Check their figure release announcements. 
-  Watch which cosplay gatherings form for the convention.  Cosplay.com forums plan very far in advance, so it's easy to see ahead of time which series' fans are coming to the convention.  That's the series/audience to aim for. 

-  Videogames.  Videogame series continue for long time so their fanbases are always around.  For anime cons, make fan-art for Japanese videogames, in particular.  Like Final Fantasy, Kingdom Hearts, Guilty Gear, Devil May Cry, Sengoku Basara, Persona, Zelda, and visual novels. 

-  Vocaloid.  Hatsune Miku will always sell at an anime convention.  Don't forget Crypton Media Future's other characters, plus Megapoid Gumi, but anything with Miku will sell. 

-  When in doubt, make cute things. 

-  Try using a unique art style.  There's no need to emulate the official art style of a series.  A big group of artist alley customers, besides fangirls, are the people who just want to see a different art style.  Try a different interpretation of a series's canon art style.  Draw a Shonen genre character in the Shoujo genre style.  Try your own unique art style.  Pick an art movement from art history or a style made common by a specific art medium, like Art Nouveau or ancient Hellenistic pottery.  One year, I bought a very bishonen drawing of Inuyasha, just because it was so different from Rumiko Takahashi's official artwork. 

-  "In jokes" and fandom memes from within a series' fandom is also something that people come to artist alley for, because it usually cannot be found in the exhibit hall.  Catering so specifically to the fandom will get attention and be that unique thing that's not in the official merchandise.

-  Whatever fandom you are into.  When you make fan-art for a fandom you personally love, you know all those "in jokes" and fandom memes; you know what art styles give an interesting contrast to the official cannon.  And most of all, there is instinctively more pride to be taken in your work, when it's a series you love and merchandise you would like to see for that series.  That's why even though it's been a while since Hetalia was HUGE, I'm still doing it. 


But there's one more important thing to remember for making fan-art for artist alley:  There will always be _someone_ who will love it.  Especially at the big conventions, like Anime Expo, there are too many people and tastes for your work to not appeal to someone.  As I used to say to fellow fanfic writers, "Just write and publish your work; it will be just the thing that someone out there has been searching desperately for."  So have confidence in your self/work and just make what you want.  ^__^

a small thought about why cosplay harassment is taken VERY seriously

This recent Daily Show segment
http://thedailyshow.cc.com/videos/z2b627/the-fault-in-our-schools
reminded me of this: 
http://pilgrim--soul.tumblr.com/post/37148809218/okay-so-heres-why-girls-dont-get-flattered-when

I feel like the fact that most women have been taught everyday, since we were very young, to be always vigilant, always afraid, is something we've become so accustomed to that we forget it underlines all our thoughts.  It's hard to articulate, because it's become so natural, it's our blind spot, that now rules our subconscious.  So when we cosplay and get indignant about harassment, it isn't just that our moms have imbued us with paranoia, because, considering all the violent news reports and shame heaped on us if we do become victimized, it can actually become very real for us at any time.  We walk around in cosplay to be a character we love, not to be treated as something not a real human being.  Crossing that boundary isn't just a joke, when it can turn very serious at any moment we let our guards down. Cosplay isn't an invitation to make us feel threatened.  Someone may say our boundaries are too sensitive when a "joke" is taken this seriously, but considering all the news and personal accounts from friends, an escalation of danger is always very real for us.  Such caution should be regarded similarly to how political correctness is a consideration we always respect for others, regardless of whether we understand or agree that something is offensive; just knowing the other person is not okay with such a thing is enough reason to refrain.  It is especially serious, when we go to a convention to have fun, be friendly and polite to people who want photos, or in other words, drop our guards.  We hesitate to suddenly turn defensive against possible threats, and even doubt and disbelieve our perception that someone is being threatening.  I mean, aren't we all at the con to be friendly?  Male friends, when we tell you about a creeper, we may not need you to tell him off for us, so much as we need affirmation that we have a right to be angry and are permitted to shout back at them ourselves.  Many people cosplay to cons to make friends.  But when it becomes a magnet for harassment, is cosplay just supposed to stop?  No.  No one should give up cosplay, fun, or making friends.  This is why we laser-in on solving the harassment problem.  So we can preserve cosplay and keep the open, all-accepting, geek atmosphere of a convention. 

reminiscing on 18 years of Anime Expo

I was watching this: 
"Cosplay in America" @ AX 2014 (The Road to Anime Expo) 
by Cosplay in America 
http://youtu.be/pzGlgnH3NDo
There's something comforting about watching other people, just as busy preparing for Anime Expo as I am.  ^-^

 But when did I trade in rushing to make cosplay, for rushing to make artist alley stock?  I feel like I've lost something nostalgic.  ;-; 

 I remember when I first started attending Anime Expo in 1996, it was all about the shopping.  But that was because I only attended for 1 day.  My big collection fetishes back then were limited to anime and manga.  So in successive years, my main focus at Anime Expo was to watch anime.  There was no reliable internet and you couldn't just watch AMVs on YouTube, so I always printed out the schedule before the con and highlighted all the new series I wanted to check out in the video rooms.  Sometimes, I'd watch anime at the con that I had already seen, just to get the experience of watching it with an audience.  There's something about watching everyone, especially people new to a show, laugh and gasp at all the show's beats, to revive that initial impact from when I first watched it myself.

I always made sure to get tickets for the AMV contest, no matter how often it delayed and made us wait for 2+ hours.  But then YouTube happened and I didn't have to expend all my time at the AMV contests anymore.  Eventually, not at the video rooms either. 

Which was fine, because now I had time for panels and my manga obsession was in full swing.  Just as I had pre-planned and highlighted every hour of the schedule before for video rooms, now I was doing it for panels.  And I had an equally regimented plan for tackling the exhibit hall.  Since so many exhibitor booths had sales on the last day of the con, I'd spend the first 2 days of the con (back then, AX was only 3 days), scouting out all the booths' stock, asking for prices, making notes, comparing prices, and systematically walking through every ailse of the exhibit hall.  Back then, exhibit hall was small enough, that I could even post-pone my shopping until the last day (in order to spend the other days in the panels and video rooms).  It used to be you could go through every booth, in every ailse, in one day, and do your shopping during the last few hours of the con, when everyone was dropping their prices...or at least much more open to haggling.  But now exhibit hall is just too big.  It was a shock, the first time I realized I could no longer go through every ailse in just one day, and trying would leave me no time to shop.  Then I started buying my manga online, and so significantly dropped the amount of necessary shopping---and the weight on my hands from holding shopping bags. 

But still, that hunting was a big part of my fun at Anime Expo, especially with the video rooms being replaced by the internet.  So I focused on other things in my collection to shop for:  artbooks and plushies.  I even started collections I didn't really need, like pins for my backpack or rubber die-cut keychain charms I could sew to my messenger bag.  Then I slowly got into figurines.  I told myself that I just needed models to draw, since I draw so much worse without references.  And I kept running into the same booth with $4 gachapon, so why not?  Little did I know that figure collecting would turn into a huge part of my otaku life, years later, after joining the Figure Photography community on Google+ (https://plus.google.com/communities/102424536798369424860 ).  ^_~ 

Meanwhile, my brother and I started exploring cosplay.  He was primarily a photographer and did not even attend video rooms or panels.  He spent all his time on the con floor, asking for photos.  I started researching cosplay gathering schedules from Cosplay.com, immersing myself into costumes, and striving to provide video documentation of my favorite gatherings.  (Behind the camera is a great place to hide.  ^.^! )  My focus for cons was now cosplay gatherings and panels in between.  Soon, my brother was organizing cosplay gatherings himself, using all his experience as a photographer at gatherings.  The gatherings he moderated were very well run.  So well, that when series I loved were not getting gatherings at AX, I could feel less timid about starting a gathering myself, because I could lean on my brother for moderation advice.  It was very nice.  ^_^  So for a few years, I was focused on cosplay and gatherings, to the extent that my exhibit hall time began to regularly include wig shopping. 

I had dropped video rooms, the AMV contest, and even the masquerade.  Because there is a lot of video coverage of masquerades on YouTube now anyway, and sometimes, there are just some really interesting panels going on at the same time.  (But maybe that's just the opinion of a documentary junkie like me.  I'm sure other people would never give up masquerade...no matter how strange it is for AX to suddenly be charging for it in recent years.) 

But after several years, I think I've come to this point of cosplay burn-out.  I'm an introvert, and I'm pretty sure I have social anxiety disorder.  At some point recently, I could no longer immerse myself into my cosplay characters.  People were starting to talk to _me_, not the character.  It was breaking my fourth wall.  Cosplay was no longer this space where I could lose all my weaknesses and take on a character's strengths, until I could internalize them.  Cosplay was becoming another source of my social anxiety.  ;_______;  I never thought I would become disillusioned with something I was so dedicated to. 

But on the up side, I feel less pressure to make new costumes for every single convention.  I no longer have this delusion hanging over me, during the last 2 weeks before AX, that it will somehow not be fun at all, unless I can whip up 4 new costumes, 1 for each day.  ~_~;;;  Really delusional...  So glad I can let go of that stress. 

So what does Anime Expo hold for me now?  Well, now that they've become the established, biggest convention, Good Smile Company and lots of other official companies are regularly having booths and panels here.  I can talk directly to the producers of Guilty Gear or buy exclusive Nendoroid figures. 

But the thing that really revived my excitement for AX, was finally participating in artist alley.  Sometimes I feel like it's the natural progression as a fan.  (If you prescribe to the Joseph Campbell idea that the worth of a story is in finding your own meaning in it.)  Obsessing over a story, analyzing the hell out of it, figuring out why you like it so much, internalizing what you learn about yourself from its themes, loving characters, making fan-art, joining online fandom communities, making more fan-art, then selling it off.  Now suddenly, my pre-AX crunch is about making artist alley stock, instead of making new cosplay.  ^^;  Speaking of...I've got less than a week before AX, so I better get back to it!  ^o^ 

Nendoroid army

I think it's safe to say that I now have the little army of Nendoroids I wanted. 

A little while ago, I ran into an influx of photos, showing other people's collections and I was just so envious of the numerous Nendoroids.  At the time, I only had Date Masamune, Sanada Yukimura, and maiko Madoka Kaname (plus, my Chibi-Arts C.C.).  Even though I had finally crossed the line between gashapon figurines and higher end figures, I had resolved to not buy a figure unless I craved for it with every fiber of my being.  Though, maiko Madoka was more about convenience and cuteness, since Good Smile Company happened to be selling her at their booth, while I was also at Anime Expo.  At the time, I had barely watched any Madoka Magica, yet I bought her anyway.  I suppose she was my first step into buying figures that were not my all-consuming obsession, but did strike my fancy.  Then I bought "Nendoroid Itoshiki Nozomu 1.5 Kouji Kumeta color version", because I reeeeeeeally wanted to put my Masamune Nendoroid in a hakama and kimono.  Suddenly, it was "goodbye $45!", for another figure from a series I had barely seen any of.  But afterwards, it was such a surprise how gratifying it was to switch up outfits on my favorite Nendoroids.  That Itoshiki Nendo proved that buying figures from series I'm not obsessed with, just because of their visual aesthetic or practicality in photography, was well worth throwing money at.  ^_^ 

Before I knew it, I was hunting down online stores in California that stocked Nendoroids, Figmas, and Revoltechs.  I was clicking partner ads at My Figure Collection (http://myfigurecollection.net/) and taking advantage of Black Friday sales...then holiday sales, then New Year's sales, etc.  It was getting crazy.  Especially when I found a store I could latch onto. 

 

Plamoya (http://plamoya.com/) was the first Japan-based store I had ever ordered from.  I had heard that shipping from overseas was insanely expensive, when considering the necessity of mail insurance, so I never wanted to bother with it before.  But Plamoya spelled everything out so well in English, that I had all my questions, doubts, and insecurities answered.  They even posted shipping estimates which disproved the warnings of expensive shipping, which I had heard from figure collecting panels at conventions.  To tell the truth, sometimes I pay more to ship from northern California to southern California.  Plus, Plamoya had so many rare figurines and insanely good sales.  I found discontinued figures that I had completely given up hope on trying to find---or finding at a feasible price.  So I ended up with several packages from Plamoya, all adding to my figure collection.   

 

So now, not only do I have the Nendoroid army I had been craving, but I've also acquired some nice scaled figures too.  ^-^  Figure photography has a lot more possibilities for me now.  ^u^

 

 

return

I have to admit that I've been avoiding writing posts for this blog.  Even though so much has been happening in the otaku side of my life, I feel too self-conscious to post about it.  Maybe it's the realization that I had this blog's address on all those business cards I passed out at Artist Alley.  Or maybe it's because some job offers have come up, and I realized this blog is the closest example of a website and writing that I could refer someone to. 

 But that's not what this blog is about.  Reading through old posts, I was reminded that this is my personal blog.  The tone is personal and casual.  I'm here to post any little thing that runs through my otaku mind---Because heaven knows, I'm not going to say it out loud. 

 So, here's to single-sentence posts with photos, and long rants speculating on series.  Here's to every little re-arrangement that happens in my collection.  And thus, a return to this blog.