Bristol Anime & Gaming Con Stories, Photos & Feedback Topic

[Ferefire]

We'd like to thank all of you for attending Bristol Anime & Gaming Con!

We look forward to seeing you all at the next Bristol Anime & Gaming Con this 5-6 August 2023! You can get your ticket for that now at this link.

Got any stories, photos or feedback? Put them in this topic

[Anki]

This has to be the worst organised event I have ever attended.
The people organising this have no idea of heath and safety or laws on fire exits (the staff were made aware of these issues)
Fire exits blocked so not useable if anything were to happen, people sat in hallways (blocking them) and in the ‘main stage’ area people sat blocking all isles making it impossible to get to the very little seating there was.
So if there was a fire people would be trampled as they’re sitting and blocking the isles (which legally need to be kept open for this reason).
Staff had no idea what they were doing, even the so called security (of which there was only one) had no idea.
The so called ‘quiet’ area was full of screaming teens and right next to the main stage, so people on the spectrum had nowhere quiet to calm down if they got overwhelmed.
I had to help someone having a panic attack as the staff had no idea what to do (they were told it was happening and asked for help, they just shrugged and turned back to the conversation they were having with other staff about the young, clearly underage girls, how good they looked and what they would love to do to them)
The so called ‘one way’ system was not enforced and the hand written signs that were put up could no be read.
There were to many people crammed into the venue than it can handle.
They cannot enforce their own rules, people were just walking in without wristbands, entering with outside food/drink ect.
Events didn’t run on time, some were an hour early, some were late, the con book and app were wrong on their timings so a lot of people missed what they wanted to attend.
Please do not take or let your kids attend these events.
Not until they sort out the health and safety issues, get rid of the adults who clearly like to abuse and stare inappropriately at clearly underage girls.
DO NOT GIVE THESE PEOPLE YOUR MONEY.

[djwiltsh]

This was the first convention I have attended, and for full transparency I'm not into anime or gaming, but needed to be there so that my daughter could attend  :) I do however know a bit about events from my day job. We attended on the Saturday.

First the good points:
- Good range of stalls, my daughter spent many hours browsing through them
- I enjoyed the music acts
- People seemed friendly and accepting. I didn't dress up in costume, and I didn't feel like I was being frowned upon for that.

On the not so good points, I would echo the post above, although I probably wouldn't put it quite that way...
- The venue seemed too small for the number of people there. This was surely predictable based on the number of tickets sold relative to the claimed capacity of the venue? I had no idea it would have been so popular, but given it is, a much larger venue is needed to ensure safety and comfort. The morning was OK, it seemed to get waaayyy busier in the afternoon.
- With the exception of the people in the room with the stage, the staff seemed pretty clueless about how to manage crowds, where things were, what was happening when etc. There was no one to actively manage the crowds, I didn't see any specific "security" people. It felt like a bunch of people who care about anime and gaming and wanted to put on a friendly event, but on the day, the number of attendees required a more professional approach. Perhaps it was a smaller event in the past and was more like a group of friends getting together? I don't know, but either way, it wasn't that this time round, so it needs to be planned and executed with that in mind.
- The one way system was a good idea in theory, but it was badly done on the day. Basic handwritten signs didn't even get put up until later in the day. It needed clear signage, and some kind of barriers to enforce people only going in the direction indicated.
- The anime "theatre" was poor - with a wonky screen, no speakers, and a pile of chairs with the projector on blocking the view. Similarly, there was a TV showing some anime in the bar area, but it was very hard to see or hear
- The sound quality for the musical acts (Nattoheads in particular) was really bad. It didn't appear that there was anyone there who knew how to operate the sound desk for a live band, which was a pity as they were pretty talented

Having said all that, my daughter (11) really enjoyed it and wants to go again. But as an adult, I would want the event to be much better organised and run on the day before I sign up for another one (preferably at a bigger venue...)
 

[LikkleMel]

This has to be the worst organised event I have ever attended.
The people organising this have no idea of heath and safety or laws on fire exits (the staff were made aware of these issues)
Fire exits blocked so not useable if anything were to happen, people sat in hallways (blocking them) and in the ‘main stage’ area people sat blocking all isles making it impossible to get to the very little seating there was.
So if there was a fire people would be trampled as they’re sitting and blocking the isles (which legally need to be kept open for this reason).
Staff had no idea what they were doing, even the so called security (of which there was only one) had no idea.
The so called ‘quiet’ area was full of screaming teens and right next to the main stage, so people on the spectrum had nowhere quiet to calm down if they got overwhelmed.
I had to help someone having a panic attack as the staff had no idea what to do (they were told it was happening and asked for help, they just shrugged and turned back to the conversation they were having with other staff about the young, clearly underage girls, how good they looked and what they would love to do to them)
The so called ‘one way’ system was not enforced and the hand written signs that were put up could no be read.
There were to many people crammed into the venue than it can handle.
They cannot enforce their own rules, people were just walking in without wristbands, entering with outside food/drink ect.
Events didn’t run on time, some were an hour early, some were late, the con book and app were wrong on their timings so a lot of people missed what they wanted to attend.
Please do not take or let your kids attend these events.
Not until they sort out the health and safety issues, get rid of the adults who clearly like to abuse and stare inappropriately at clearly underage girls.
DO NOT GIVE THESE PEOPLE YOUR MONEY.

Hi there! Thanks for your feedback we do take some of these points on board, however I few you are properly assuming so I will go over these for you.

Security:
We had 4 security on site, one at the main door and the others roaming as well as the venue providing security itself.

Fire Exits:
If we were blocking ANY fire exits at all whether it be for tables or other things the venue would've told us immediately and considering we speak alot with the venue I'm sure they would've told us if any fire exits were blocked on our ends. Now that doesn't mean maybe some people were sat down by a door, there were crew members telling people not to sit there as I was one of them, however you'll still get people sadly trying to do that. We will next time keep an eye on this and be more ontop of it.

Quiet Area:
We have never advertised a quiet area. This event can be overstimulating for people and sadly we can't provide a room just for quiet. Usually Anime Screenings is the "quiet area", however not all the time.

One-Way System:
This is enforced at the start of the day and then is fine later in the day about 2pm once the main crowd has gone. Again we can put out more signage for next time to really enforce it for people just ignoring it or not seeing the signs.

Please keep in mind that most crew members are volenteers, however I haven't heard of the incident of someone having a panic attack and I am first trained myself, so would've been on that. However, I wasn't informed so I never knew about this.

Events:
As I manage the stage, I can tell you that stage events did run on time. I'm unsure about other areas, however, things can change on the day.

If you could describe the staff members who you claim were "staring" at underage girls I would love to know full details either in a pm or to an email of events@animeleague.com because I'll be honest none of my staff members are like this so this is a big accusation for you to make.

Many thanks!

[LikkleMel]

This was the first convention I have attended, and for full transparency I'm not into anime or gaming, but needed to be there so that my daughter could attend I do however know a bit about events from my day job. We attended on the Saturday.

First the good points:
- Good range of stalls, my daughter spent many hours browsing through them
- I enjoyed the music acts
- People seemed friendly and accepting. I didn't dress up in costume, and I didn't feel like I was being frowned upon for that.

On the not so good points, I would echo the post above, although I probably wouldn't put it quite that way...
- The venue seemed too small for the number of people there. This was surely predictable based on the number of tickets sold relative to the claimed capacity of the venue? I had no idea it would have been so popular, but given it is, a much larger venue is needed to ensure safety and comfort. The morning was OK, it seemed to get waaayyy busier in the afternoon.
- With the exception of the people in the room with the stage, the staff seemed pretty clueless about how to manage crowds, where things were, what was happening when etc. There was no one to actively manage the crowds, I didn't see any specific "security" people. It felt like a bunch of people who care about anime and gaming and wanted to put on a friendly event, but on the day, the number of attendees required a more professional approach. Perhaps it was a smaller event in the past and was more like a group of friends getting together? I don't know, but either way, it wasn't that this time round, so it needs to be planned and executed with that in mind.
- The one way system was a good idea in theory, but it was badly done on the day. Basic handwritten signs didn't even get put up until later in the day. It needed clear signage, and some kind of barriers to enforce people only going in the direction indicated.
- The anime "theatre" was poor - with a wonky screen, no speakers, and a pile of chairs with the projector on blocking the view. Similarly, there was a TV showing some anime in the bar area, but it was very hard to see or hear
- The sound quality for the musical acts (Nattoheads in particular) was really bad. It didn't appear that there was anyone there who knew how to operate the sound desk for a live band, which was a pity as they were pretty talented

Having said all that, my daughter (11) really enjoyed it and wants to go again. But as an adult, I would want the event to be much better organised and run on the day before I sign up for another one (preferably at a bigger venue...)

Hi there! Thanks for your feedback. In regards to the venue we are looking into a bigger venue as I do agree we are outgrowing it. We were meant to be in a much bigger venue before COVID, however due to that we had to go to a smaller venue.

Like I replied to the other post we did have security on site as that is one of the requirements from the venue including their own security. I believe with regards to the projector you are talking about the Panels Room the reason this is because the venue say that's how they do it as sadly they don't have a projector in that room (only a screen - weird I know!).

I will talk to the technician who did Nattoheads as he does know what he is doing in terms of sound and the band themselves were happy with how it sounded. I'm not dismissing your comment by the way, but can speak to both and see what they feel went on there. I wasn't present then sadly, so can't give my opinion on how it sounded.

I'm glad your daughter enjoyed it as that's the main thing, and I do take on your point for a bigger venue in the future. Most likely not August, but maybe 2024

[EmzieChan]

Hi there

I attend your con on Saturday with my husband and two of our friends. We’ve been to the Bristol one twice before when it was at the ibis hotel by Cabot circus. In comparison to the two, the venue this time was better and easier to access especially as I am currently pregnant so was glad that there wasn’t too many flights of stairs. Glad to see more stores and artists at this one but will say your Cardiff con is better but that is due to the venue size. The only criticisms I can give is that the artist ally was too small for the artists and popularity they had and that the gaming room attendants should be more aware of consoles and tvs not working or switching off. I think a time limit as well would help as in the past due it’s popularity we’ve never had a chance to enjoy this part of the con until this one. Another point is control of people coming back in in the afternoon. No one was really on the door and was pretty much easy to get back in. I only heard a voice asking for wristbands which we flashed after walking through the lobby to the stairs. Wouldn’t have really known who this was aimed at. I think you need to implement a stamp system for attendees wishing to come back in, like so many other events do.

This won’t stop us from attending your cons again in the future. I know you guys are always improving and doing your best to provide the best experience for everyone who attends.

[CMSakuraaa]

This was our first Anime League Con in Bristol as a family.
We had a great time, the vendors were awesome and some really lovely to talk with.

Just some general feedback:

* When we arrived at the venue, it was super unclear where we were suppose to line and where that queue was for pre-purchased tickets or those trying to buy tickets on the morning. It was only when someone shouted about pre-purchased tickets we knew to come to the front of a make shift line we joined. Lots of the volunteers also seemed really out of their depth and also didn’t know what was going on, which was clear by a few of them and their colourful language and shouting over one another. Maybe for future events, someone holding signs: “X queue here” “Y queue here” would be a helpful visual aid.

* Even though this was our first event, I think it was easy to tell that the Bristol Con has quickly out grown its venue and somewhere bigger is required.

* The raffle part of the evening just went on FAR too long, my 10yr and I ended up zoning out massively and couldn’t handle waiting for the cosplay bit (even though we really wanted to) as the standing around due to little seating just drained us at that point.

* When we entered, The main big safety red flag I witnessed was there was no bag check or weapon check. Whilst my husband’s own cosplay prop was indeed a prop, there was no one double checking this. Anyone could have walked in with anything. Drugs, alcohol, etc etc. Thankfully, of course this did not happen, but that does not mean it would not. There are unfortunately very evil people in this world.

I would absolutely attend another event and hope the negative aspects I witnessed and those that other people have brought up will be corrected and plans put in place for next time