Feedback

[DavidB]

It's just the 'grouping up to one side of the hotel' thing I didn't really agree with. If there are special rooms available etc then fair enough, that'd be nice for comfort - however I wouldn't want to see people segregated so to speak.

[cills77]

Too Tall yeah a room with hardly any chairs would be fine or could be incorporated into a restuarant/chillax/lounge area for us. Thanks Jane Doe.

 

Not grouping anyone as that would be discrimination but for our comfort, also the queues to check out or pay car park where huge with a group booking checking in on Sunday, this again would make more sense and less of a H&S issue.

[Pooks]

I didn't go to ET5, but a complaint I have heard from others is that the photoshoot photographs should be emailed out as JPEG's incase the photo is lost or people do not have scanners. Also I know I would want to get my photos blown up and put on display XD

Although this is not completely out of the question, and I know ME are looking at prehaps selling the jpegs.

 

I have to remind people that the copyright (and therefore the jpegs) of any photo taken by a professional photographer remains their property. And if you go by the letter of the law you should be paying the ME photographers royalties if you reproduce them in anyway, including scanning. It's no different to copying a DVD or CD, people do it all of the time, but it is illegal.

 

Anyone that's had a professional photographer at their wedding can tell you this. You can pay £600+ just for them to be there, then maybe another £400+ to have a number of the photos printed. But the photographer ALWAYS keeps the copyright and therefore if your family members want a copy of that lovely picture of you in your wedding gown they HAVE to get it from the photographer and something like an 8x10 will cost you £25. Some photographers do sell the copyright to the photos but that can get into the £4000+ area.

 

 

Well said Too Tall xxxxxxxx

Edited February 22, 2011 by Pooks

[gillianre]

The talks get on my nerves EVERY time - same questions, shouting out, blah blah blah. So this time me and Nina spent hours writing questions that made sense and wouldn't offend or be rude etc - where they asked? NOPE!!!

 

Pointless asking for us to fill in question slips if they just go in the bin.

 

X

[Holly]

Where do the question slips even get handed in? I couldn't find the box from last time

[Myself205]

I had a good weekend was lovely to see Michael (you could see that he was enjoying the weekend and made everybody feel special), great to see Dan again.

 

As always, great staff; everything is running smoothly.

 

Pet zoo: original and good.

 

The queue system for talks was good: 2 groups in different places so not only single line for silver etc...

 

- it's not really a bad critic for TooTall as it must be very very difficult to do the schedule but had all my photoshoots on Saturday (which I like) and 4 autographs. Sunday was too light with 2 autographs. As people mentionned, it would be nice to have a room, videos or some other activities.

 

 

things I enjoyed less:

- questions at talks. Some questions like fan fiction: not everybody is aware of them.

Saturday talk: the same questions were asked to each panel, bit boring. Why not ask these questions to all guests on Sunday?

- guests seemed a bit annoyed with the bright light on stage

- microphone: maybe have a few crew members with microphones spread in the romm

- auction: throwing stuff is not such a good idea...

[JaneDoe]

If it was just a room, with not many chairs, would that be OK?

 

 

Too Tall yeah a room with hardly any chairs would be fine or could be incorporated into a restuarant/chillax/lounge area for us. Thanks Jane Doe.

 

Not grouping anyone as that would be discrimination but for our comfort, also the queues to check out or pay car park where huge with a group booking checking in on Sunday, this again would make more sense and less of a H&S issue.

 

That would be brilliant!

 

Nicola, I brought up the issue about sorting the parking validation up with the Hilton and they are going to look into it as they agree the current system isn't working!

[Holly]

The two autograph thing on Sunday actually helped me out a lot, I wasn't really happy with my photoshoots so it gave me a good opportunity to get them done again Sunday :)

[Sci-fi Jules]

I loved the whole thing...absolutely no complaints whatsoever!

 

Thank you so much to Yvie and co. for letting me upgrade to a gold - it made my first con experience absolutely amazing It would've been amazing sticking with silver but getting to meet the guests at the drinks reception was awesome and I have gold again for ET6

 

(The only complaint I have is nothing to do with Showmasters, it's with myself for not booking soon enough and missing getting a room at the Hilton...I haven't made that mistake for ET6 )

[Holly]

I loved the whole thing...absolutely no complaints whatsoever!

 

Thank you so much to Yvie and co. for letting me upgrade to a gold - it made my first con experience absolutely amazing It would've been amazing sticking with silver but getting to meet the guests at the drinks reception was awesome and I have gold again for ET6

 

(The only complaint I have is nothing to do with Showmasters, it's with myself for not booking soon enough and missing getting a room at the Hilton...I haven't made that mistake for ET6 )

 

You'll enjoy it so much more staying at the Hilton! Makes life sooo much easier

[jennmcc@live.co.uk]

Showmasters the weekend was "Absolutly Amazing "as ever the only thing that i didnt like was the air con in the talks but that wasnt down to you. I like the fact that at ET4 we got all our autographs done on the Friday freeing up the Sat for talks and the Sunday for photoshoots ,it was so exhausing this year bouncing from photoshoot to autograph session then to attend the talks, I am literally still recovering and my photos with guest look awefull cos i was soooooooo tired and not in the mood for having my piccy taken LOL! I just love the fact that the guests mingle and that you can get close to chat to them and well just get to know them on a more personal level. Its good for the actors cos they get to increase their fanbase and also it gives the attendees their very own little individual memories of their time at the event. I feel us English are all respectful and relaxed with the guests anyway and we are not mad crazy Fans. Some of the questions at the talks where a little repetative so maybe a few back up questions could be prepared for the quiet spells lol *Alex Meraz's cricket sounds * Other than that couldnt fault it as for mixing up cons I personally wouldnt like I mean ,I realise Twilight wont last for ever but for as long as it does last it NEEDS to be 100% twilight for me. After Breaking dawn unless Steph Meyer does some spin offs I guess mixing it with other Vampire shows would work in the future.

 

Once Again Thankyou so much for an Awesome weekend SM and Bring on ET6 Wooooooo!

[hermyrules7]

The weekend was great, thanks again for making it so.

 

I loved staying at the Hilton for the first time. The staff were really nice and the room was clean and comfortable.

 

The breakfast was great too!!

 

The guests were awsome and generous. The crew were as great as all ways.

 

Roll on ET6!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[HohoCullen]

ET5 has been my favourite con so far!!

 

All the guests were lovely, and Jodelle was my favourite - she was so sweet (and she recognised me from twitter which shocked me!)

 

I've fallen in love with Alex, Justin and Mike so that's made my list of Twi guys I love a bit longer

 

The parties were awesome and it was great to see the guests there Me and my friend had a quick chat to Jodelle but we couldn't think of anything to say so it ended up with me and Jodelle occasionally looking at each other and laughing awkwardly

 

The talks were so funny And what I thought was good was that not as many people were shouting out, like at ET4 :)

 

I think the food got better, there was more choice and it was nice

 

Again the Hilton was great too

 

Thanks for an amazing weekend!

[cills77]

Ok I have been thinkin of a way of being able to respect the guests when they come to the parties and adhere to the rules of the con, but give attendees the chance to get some of their own personal memories and not have it as an official photoshoot.

 

Still rough round the edges but maybe we could try this one:

 

Gold passes get to have unofficial photos taken with the guests at the drinks reception one per guest.

 

I noticed Alex sloping off into a dark corner on Satursday night to have a break from mingling BUT still enjoy the party, which sort of gave me an idea. We could have either a quiet corner or a photo corner so for example if the guest was in the photo area then that would mean he/she is willing to have the photos taken but of they are in the quiet area then we should respect their wishes and leave them alone. There is always going to be some who swamp them but this may possibly work. It would give everyone the chance over a period of 3 nights to get a more personal memory and give the guests the right to decide what they want. Thus stopping those who dont take any notice getting more then those who do?

 

Is this making sense

[chimmykins]

If it was just a room, with not many chairs, would that be OK?

 

 

Too Tall yeah a room with hardly any chairs would be fine or could be incorporated into a restuarant/chillax/lounge area for us. Thanks Jane Doe.

 

Not grouping anyone as that would be discrimination but for our comfort, also the queues to check out or pay car park where huge with a group booking checking in on Sunday, this again would make more sense and less of a H&S issue.

 

That would be brilliant!

 

Nicola, I brought up the issue about sorting the parking validation up with the Hilton and they are going to look into it as they agree the current system isn't working!

 

Also like the idea, mum and I were hanging around waiting for the Sunday party as well, maybe a room like ET1's meadow room?

[cills77]

If it was just a room, with not many chairs, would that be OK?

 

 

Too Tall yeah a room with hardly any chairs would be fine or could be incorporated into a restuarant/chillax/lounge area for us. Thanks Jane Doe.

 

Not grouping anyone as that would be discrimination but for our comfort, also the queues to check out or pay car park where huge with a group booking checking in on Sunday, this again would make more sense and less of a H&S issue.

 

That would be brilliant!

 

Nicola, I brought up the issue about sorting the parking validation up with the Hilton and they are going to look into it as they agree the current system isn't working!

 

Also like the idea, mum and I were hanging around waiting for the Sunday party as well, maybe a room like ET1's meadow room?

 

 

OOOH well done JaneDoe, hope they resolve it took me an hour to pay my ticket on Sunday

Meadow room sounds amazing but I think TooTall is thinking of the extra setting up and dismantling of another room. Thats why I mentioned the twilight restaurant and the room being a mix, sort of kills two birds if you like. Restaurant doesnt have to be open to serve hot food permanently the little snack bar was sufficient outside the talks room. We could maybe look at just having a bigger room tables and chairs set up for the hot food and a bigger area where we can all just plonk our bums on the floor

Edited February 22, 2011 by nicola

[ryano196030]

Overall I had a brilliant weekend and dont have any specific complaints :)

 

However something I would say for future events is that if people are waiting for their group to be called for autographs then could the crew please ask them not to wait in front of the boards in the autograph room?

 

There was one point over the weekend where my friend and I were quite confused because the queue was so long it almost reached where the board was, and there was a big group of girls stood in front of the board so we couldnt see if our group had been called, and we couldnt get to the crew member to ask because they were in the way. We asked them if they were in the queue and they said yes, but in the end it turned out they were just waiting to be called. Our group had already been called, so we could have gone ahead of them rather than waiting there for an extra 10 minutes. It just would have saved a lot of confusion if they had been waiting somewhere else.

 

But thats the only minor issue I had.

[adriangill]

Ok I have been thinkin of a way of being able to respect the guests when they come to the parties and adhere to the rules of the con, but give attendees the chance to get some of their own personal memories and not have it as an official photoshoot.

 

Still rough round the edges but maybe we could try this one:

 

Gold passes get to have unofficial photos taken with the guests at the drinks reception one per guest.

 

I noticed Alex sloping off into a dark corner on Satursday night to have a break from mingling BUT still enjoy the party, which sort of gave me an idea. We could have either a quiet corner or a photo corner so for example if the guest was in the photo area then that would mean he/she is willing to have the photos taken but of they are in the quiet area then we should respect their wishes and leave them alone. There is always going to be some who swamp them but this may possibly work. It would give everyone the chance over a period of 3 nights to get a more personal memory and give the guests the right to decide what they want. Thus stopping those who dont take any notice getting more then those who do?

 

Is this making sense

Apologies in advance as this may come across as 'trying to shoot you down in flames' and that is not the intent. Hopefully you will have a reply to my concerns

 

I quite like the idea of a photo area in the party. My concern would be as soon as a guest enters that area then every attendee will charge across leaving the rest of the hall empty. I have visions of it turning into a scrum (no offence to anyone!)

 

With the Gold pass/reception idea. Timing for this may be an issue unless it is extended. Most people aren't as quick as the likes of Malcolm wich could result in a huge amount of extra time required. It may result in people not seeing the guests at all which sort of defeats the meet & greet objective.

[cills77]

Ok I have been thinkin of a way of being able to respect the guests when they come to the parties and adhere to the rules of the con, but give attendees the chance to get some of their own personal memories and not have it as an official photoshoot.

 

Still rough round the edges but maybe we could try this one:

 

Gold passes get to have unofficial photos taken with the guests at the drinks reception one per guest.

 

I noticed Alex sloping off into a dark corner on Satursday night to have a break from mingling BUT still enjoy the party, which sort of gave me an idea. We could have either a quiet corner or a photo corner so for example if the guest was in the photo area then that would mean he/she is willing to have the photos taken but of they are in the quiet area then we should respect their wishes and leave them alone. There is always going to be some who swamp them but this may possibly work. It would give everyone the chance over a period of 3 nights to get a more personal memory and give the guests the right to decide what they want. Thus stopping those who dont take any notice getting more then those who do?

 

Is this making sense

Apologies in advance as this may come across as 'trying to shoot you down in flames' and that is not the intent. Hopefully you will have a reply to my concerns

 

I quite like the idea of a photo area in the party. My concern would be as soon as a guest enters that area then every attendee will charge across leaving the rest of the hall empty. I have visions of it turning into a scrum (no offence to anyone!)

 

With the Gold pass/reception idea. Timing for this may be an issue unless it is extended. Most people aren't as quick as the likes of Malcolm wich could result in a huge amount of extra time required. It may result in people not seeing the guests at all which sort of defeats the meet & greet objective.

 

 

LOL no it doesnt I completely see where you are coming from I know its rough round the edges but there could be a way of it working. Just need to figure out a way of it not being a mass exodus to the photo area. It doesnt have to be in the corner of the room could be a part of the room that is already pretty popular AND doesnt have to be limited to one area. Could be colour coded and anyone caught taking photos of the guests in a certain colour is asked to delete it straight away? I dont know thinking aloud really, but there is a way I will find one haha.

[DavidB]

I quite like that there's a general blanket ban on photos at the parties. To be honest, the guests should be allowed to go along and not worry about acting "like a guest" - they have every right to relax at the parties if they wish. And if they feel like mingling, then so be it.

 

I don't really like the idea of anything further in terms of organised photos. That puts additional pressure on the guests. I certainly wouldn't want them to be introduced at the reception because that's meant to be a more relaxed atmosphere etc. Again, if they feel like doing them then fine, but there's no pressure.

 

Everyone has the chance to meet the guests and get photo shoots over the weekend. I don't think there really needs to be anything else introduced in terms of an organised rule. That's all for daytime scheduled activities.

 

That's just my opinion. I've never been overly bothered by getting photos with guests at parties etc when I've attended. I do realise it's nice for some, but it's almost better as a spur-of-the-moment thing if they offer.

[adriangill]

To be fair I don't attend the parties so my viewpoint maybe somewhat 'clouded'. I hadn't really considered the aspect of guests relaxing.

 

Oops. Bad 1of2

 

I was thinking of it from the viewpoint of trying to elmintate people going up to the guests and asking for photos and in all honesty I don't know how frequently that happens.

[TommyT]

but just to say that it is mentioned in that topic that the music level was checked and was at a safe level of 0.9 decibals

I'm afraid that's a number I just can't credit on its own. dB measurements are quoted with reference to a base or reference measurement. The usual such reference (0 dB), the threshold of human hearing. Using that as a reference, calm breathing is about 10dB, normal conversation a meter away is about 40-60 dB. Now given that decibels are on a logarithmic scale, an increase of 3 decibels is approximately a doubling in volume. So a 6dB increase is a quadrupling in volume. So if the music was at 0.9db and average conersation 1 metre away from you was 39.9 db, that conversation would be more than 8,000 times louder than the music - i.e. the music would be completely obliterated by normal conversation. Even normal breathing would be about 8 times louder than the music.

Either somebody has got their numbers wrong, or they are using a different reference.

If they're using as a reference the noise in the room before the music started, and adding the music only added 0.9dB, that might make sense - it would mean the music made the room about 23% louder - which I guess might be reasonable - about a quarter louder?

[xkleex]

once again the old photos at parties debate........

 

Everytime i leave them alone and never ask for photos.....as thats what ur told to do....respect the guests....

 

EVERYTIME i log on to fb after the con.......tons of pics with guests at parties.

 

So this time on the sunday, i asked ONE guest for a photo.....and was point blank refused by crew......one rule for everyone really does need to be inforced. Sorry if some people dont like that, but i really dont think its fair at all.

[justme1]

I had a fab time. Mainly due the people I met up with, so thank you sooooo much!

 

As always sm/me pulled out all the stops and provided us with a great show.

 

I actually really enjoyed the party themes, although I didn't think I would. Although that being said, Saturdays theme was similar to the graduation party at ET3 an it would be good to try and mix it up completely. Really enjoyed the PJ party and the bed and sheep where awesome (I am still suffering!). I did also think that the bar in the party closed up really early, which I don't really mind as I do the same as most, although the price difference to the function bar and the main bar is ridiculous!!

 

Thoroughly enjoyed to chatting to some of the crew and Jason on Sunday night, it was great to understand exactly how much work you guys all do so big thumbs up to you. However, I do questions the professionalism of some crew members. Also we got told of a couple of time whilst waiting outside a photo shoot. I will admit we had a giggle and the first instance was warranted, but we listened and it didn't happen again!! The shoot rooms are on a main corridor, with attendees walking past all day, just because we had been sat outside for sometime the finger of blamed was pointed at us - we are all guilty of making a noise, I just don't think its fair to automatically assume its certain individuals.

 

Much preffered being in these particular rooms again, and admit fewer guests make it a much nicer atmosphere. Will agree with other points, that its a bit boring to have the same songs played every night, and is there really any need to rumn screaming at the dance floor everytime a song, such as super massive blackhole, comes on?

 

Photo shoot pics need to better organised. Suggestion - I notice that some one had mentioned a one way queue, which I think is a good idea. However David B mentioned that if you only wanted pics that were at one end of the table you had to wait to get along there. Why not put each guest pics on a different table, and implement the one way rule, that way you only have to go to the tables you need to?! Just a suggestion.

 

Only one other comment. I am the person that brought the Edward stand up both this time and last. I do not object to people having pics taken etc. I understand the fun etc, which is why we brought it in the first place. However I found that some attendees where extreamly rude! I know its only a piece of cardboard, but I paid for that with my own money and for people to just grab it a pull it away (and eventually tear it!) without asking I think is just plain rude. People just seem to think it's been provided by SM/ME. Sorry :)

 

Other than that weekend was fab, bring on ET6!!!

[DavidB]

Photo shoot pics need to better organised. Suggestion - I notice that some one had mentioned a one way queue, which I think is a good idea. However David B mentioned that if you only wanted pics that were at one end of the table you had to wait to get along there. Why not put each guest pics on a different table, and implement the one way rule, that way you only have to go to the tables you need to?! Just a suggestion.

I suppose this is one potential way of dealing with it, but then you'd get far less 'grouping' of peoples photos because they wouldn't know which table to look on. All these ideas seem to have good and bad points, so no wonder they have nothing else in place at the moment

 

Only one other comment. I am the person that brought the Edward stand up both this time and last. I do not object to people having pics taken etc. I understand the fun etc, which is why we brought it in the first place. However I found that some attendees where extreamly rude! I know its only a piece of cardboard, but I paid for that with my own money and for people to just grab it a pull it away (and eventually tear it!) without asking I think is just plain rude. People just seem to think it's been provided by SM/ME. Sorry :)

And of course, even if it were provided by SM/ME, it should still be respected and not ruined! Same with anything provided at the party.