In early July, Moscow hosted one of the largest events of the year dedicated to science fiction in all its manifestations - the Epic Con Russia 2023 festival. The event, which was eagerly awaited by thousands of fans and participants, could have become a real holiday, but in the end, too much went wrong: and this is in conditions of almost monopoly. Recent years have not been the most rosy for the entertainment industry - the COVID-19 pandemic and the NWO have actually put an end to the largest competitor of Epic Con - the Comic Con Russia exhibition, with which Epic has long-standing difficulties (the organizers of the Moscow Comic Con won the court against their St. Petersburg "colleagues", after which the latter lost the right to the name and were forced to rename themselves Epic Con). The nearest metropolitan festival comparable in scale and theme, Bubble Comics Con, was held in the winter of 2023, no larger events were announced until the end of the year, so Epic was awaited with great impatience - especially cosplayers, for whom such an event is an opportunity not only to communicate with colleagues, but also to demonstrate their work to a wide audience live, and not in a photo.
However, already at the stage of forming the clip of speakers, difficulties arose. According to Anna, a participant of the festival, the selection system of the organizing committee is imperfect: applications are considered and approved as they become available, and not as a result.
"Roughly speaking, those who submitted their application three months before the deadline have more chances to enter the program than those who submitted their application closer to the end of the selection. This is the wrong policy, because, as a rule, people who make their costumes specifically for this festival, who work hard, they make their costumes right to the end, and the vast majority of applications come in the last couple of days of the deadline, and at this point the organizers already have few places left in the program. This is the first time I've seen this," Anna told RT.
- Shot from the Epic Con Russia festival
- vk.com
- © epicconrussia
In addition, this year the participants of the festival faced several more oddities: the cost of tickets for performing cosplayers was first made higher than for visitors, and the prize fund turned out to be very small. The event was boycotted, as a result of which the organizers of Epic Con were forced to back down and reconsider their policies.
"They started boycotting, and the festival immediately reacted. And he changed his shoes very sharply, said that "it is very important for us that you think of us, we respect our participants. We value your opinion, so we return the prices to the previous level," said Anna.
The participant also added that not only cosplayers, but also masters and participants of the fair found themselves in a similar situation - they tried to increase the cost of renting sites for stands and traded and abandoned this decision only under pressure.
The prize fund for cosplayers in the main program (including such iconic figures for the domestic cosplay movement as Anya iChios, Zhenya Grayson, Anna Weber and others) amounted to 20 thousand rubles, which is very modest even by the standards of small regional festivals, not to mention such a giant event as Epic Con Russia.
"Everyone I talked to didn't want to make it to the final today (July 1). Because if you made it to the final today, then you need to plow in a suit and one more day. And you won't get anything for it, that is, nothing at all, even if you take some kind of super-prize nomination, you will get... Well, a mug with a bag, I don't know, or 5 thousand rubles. And absolutely none of these guys see the point in this. This is the first time I see that all people really say that, what's the point of us going to the finals and ploughing for these comrades for free for another day? And it's not even a question of money, there would be at least a human attitude, "another participant of the festival, who wished to remain anonymous, shared her opinion.
It is worth clarifying here that many costumes, which are often created by cosplayers themselves, can be very bulky and uncomfortable (to comply with the canon), which makes a long stay in the image not the easiest task, and their cost can reach tens and even hundreds of thousands of rubles.
- Shot from the Epic Con Russia festival
- vk.com
- © epicconrussia
At the same time, the price of tickets for guests was not the most affordable (on the day of the event, you had to pay 3 thousand rubles for a regular pass, for VIP and SuperVIP - 3.9 and 7 thousand rubles, respectively), and the organization was rather weak - in the morning huge queues lined up at the entrance, the average waiting time in which was about an hour and a half. The event itself started strictly on schedule, as a result of which the first contestants performed in front of a half-empty hall. It became possible to get into the festival area more or less freely only after lunch.
"Kilometer-long queues at the entrance, people stand for one and a half, two hours, given that tickets cost a lot of money, the organizers could at least offer water or some minimal gifts to people in line, because, excuse me, a person buys a ticket, comes to the time the doors of the festival open, but misses the first block due to the fact that there is a huge queue. The person has already missed one fourth of the program. And what does Epic Con give for this huge amount of money that a ticket costs? Just the same program, "said another participant of the festival under the pseudonym Mrs. Oladyshka.
At the same time, the participants noted the good level of work of the volunteers, who readily came to the aid of the speakers and tried in every possible way to improve the conditions for them. The change in the street area of the festival was also a plus, but the main thing, of course, was communication with like-minded people.
"Since last year, the festival has finalized the street area - street stands have appeared, more food trucks have been brought, a large dance area has appeared. For me personally, this event was "made" by acquaintances: the main entertainment was just to walk and chat with cosplayer friends. So, perhaps, the main advantage of the convention is that it brought together in one place a large number of wonderful people who were interesting and pleasant to see, "said Alice Mighty Raccoon.
For visitors outside the world of cosplay, Epic Con was once again a magical event, where, walking through the pavilion or street area, you could meet and cuddle with your favorite characters from movies, games and comics - stormtroopers and officers from Star Wars or characters from the Marvel universe, take a picture with the Fairy Godmother from Shrek or try authentic Naruto Ramen. Collectors were waiting for hundreds of exhibits - from jewelry to figurines for every taste and budget. Those wishing to try themselves in unusual activities were invited to complete quests, participate in contests or even fight in a cage with video game characters. It remains to be hoped that the organizers of the event will take this experience into account when starting work on Epic Con Russia 2024, and will be able to hold a festival that will really become comparable to its more eminent competitor.