As like my format last year,i shall list down the pros,the cons then the suggestions
Pros
Bigger hall space
an additional extra hall which cosplayers can go there and take a break without being too far from the main hall,allow photographers to take pictures of them without holding up the traffic in the main hall
Much nicer toilets
Really really good lighting (white light is still the best for taking pictures)
A park nearby so that photographers can take really nice pictures of cosplayers with a nice background
Awesome committee members and volunteers (shoutout to Choo & Clow)
Better crowd control (only on day 2)
Love the way the sponsors booth and doujin booths were positioned
PA system was so much better compared to 2010,I can at least hear what is going on this time even though i'm not near the stage.
The air con was just nice,neither too warm or cold
Pricing of items at booths were reasonable
Food & drinks were nearby enough without having to go out of the main hall
There were enough place to rest this time compared to 2010.At least i don't have to camp in the hallway this time.
Here comes the cons
Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre's security personnel.Seriously enforcing a lockdown without consulting the Comic Fiesta committee?! (that is what i heard).I heard ugly stories of them insulting my cosplayer friends and they were rude to me as well.One of the security personnel purposely shouted "this is not entrance" after i left the area when i couldn't get in from that way but as far as i know,media is granted access from any way and because of them,i got caught up in the lockdown with WH and nearly miss Shimokawa Mikuni & Ceui's performance altogether.WH also nearly missed his competition if Choo & Clow hadn't helped us out to get into the main hall.
The weird entrances and exits.The entrances and exits were weird.Its like you have to walk one big round before you can get in and yet the exit is so close by the main hall entrance.
No food and drinks in the holding hall.I had some friends who were stuck in the holding hall for at least 4 hours without any food or water.In the end,they left even before they managed to get into the main hall as they couldn't stand it anymore.
Lack of crowd control on day 1.As most are aware by now,because of this issue, the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre management issued a lockdown without checking with the Comic Fiesta committee and it caused quite a chaos.People were selling off their ticket bands because they couldn't even get in even if they had a band and apparently a cosplayer even fainted while waiting outside in the heat.
Lack of communication between the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre Security Personnel & the Comic Fiesta Committee.I had a cosplayer friend who is apparently the judge for the cosplay competition.As there were no committee members at the entrance,he was refused entry and he got stuck in the lockdown for about an hour until he typed message on his blackberry explaining the situation and showing it to the security personnel that they only called the committee member to come to the entrance and verify the story.It seems that there is a serious lack of communication between both parties here.
Parking fees was way too expensive.Over two days,me and WH parked in Suria KLCC and it cost us about close to RM40 for both days.
Here are some of my suggestions
The venue is good enough and it's big enough however better crowd control and better security personnel is needed.
Communication is vital between both parties as this will help to facilitate crowd control better and also help in unforeseen situations such as the crowd being bigger than anticipated.
Having food and drinks in the holding hall if there is a holding hall in the future in case of an event that the crowd will have to held in the hall a little bit longer,they will not be hungry or dehydrated.
Having better exits and entrances will be good.Maybe having two entrances and two exits will help with the crowd control so that there will be easy flow of traffic.
As parking fees are really expensive these days and not everyone may be able to take public transport with some cosplayers having really big props,maybe some sort of parking verification/cheaper fees for people who go to the event would help.
That's all for my review of Comic Fiesta 2011.Hopefully Comic Fiesta 2012 will be even better and greater,after all,it will be the 10th year anniversary :D
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