Taking the London Film and Comic Con forward in 2015 and beyond

[showmasters]

Hi everyone

 

Its so good to be able to catch up with you all now that our offices have now been relocated and we are fully up and running again

 

This years event was a massive step forward for us and the show. The demand for The Film and Comic Con has grown so much that we are going to have to change things so everyone has a great chance to enjoy the event with much less fuss and lots more fun! This is how we are going to do it!

 

Tickets for Summer London Film and Comic Con 2015 will go on sale on 1st September 2014 on a first come first served basis.

 

Friday preview is to be extended, opening at 12 noon and closing at 8pm, giving everyone a full day to see the show and buy any last minute photo-ops and talk tickets.

 

This will give everyone more time on the Friday to get photo shoots and autographs out the way, as the more time we can give you for these activities, the easier it will be for you over the busy weekend.

 

 

Now to the important points :

All Saturday tickets will ONLY be available to pre-buy before the show and NO entrance tickets will be for sale from the door on the Saturday.

 

3 day weekend tickets will ONLY be available to pre-buy before the show. These tickets will also NOT be for sale on the door at all on any day.

 

Sunday tickets will be pre-sold in advance and then around a month before the show we will advise if there are going to be any available to be sold on the day at the show for the Sunday. We can not guarantee there will be any available but we will know around 1 month out from the show.

 

Now down to why Saturday & Weekend tickets are being pre-sold only

 

This year was a game-changer for London Film and Comic Con! As such we have had to limit our Saturday tickets to pre-sales only. We cannot keep offering tickets to enter the show in the same way as we have been able to in previous years as the amount of fans wanting to attend LFCC this year was enormous.

 

This is something we have been very reluctant to do as it will limit your chance to buy tickets. If you see a guest you want to meet or we announce an activity that some of you may want to see, up until now you have always been able to just turn up on the day and buy entry. This year was the first year we had to turn people away on the Saturday and we have to find a way forward that is fair and manageable and this is the best way forward for everyone.

 

It took San Diego Comic Con 25 years to get to a point that they only offered pre-sold tickets. It has only taken London Film and Comic Con 10 years to get to the same place. It's a mile-stone, and in a way, knowing we will have a sell out show means we have the budget to get the bigger named guests that the UK fans have been asking for.

 

The Venue

 

We will also be taking more venue space at Olympia so that we can service everyone in a nicer way over the weekend. This year we could not book Earls Court 1 and we needed it, so going forward we will have a bigger venue to hold the show and all its activities. Olympia is a much bigger venue than most of you have seen and we will be taking more space than before as we all know we will need it.

 

 

The future of the normal Gold Passes

 

For next years LFCC we will be offering a limited amount of "LFCC normal Gold Passes “. The number will be capped and what you will get will be different from this years pass. Some things will be replaced and some things will remain the same; we have been listening to your feedback and we plan to make the passes of more use in the way you want them. We will have full details on these new improved Gold Passes before the 1st of September 2014 and we strongly believe that all these Gold passes will sell out so do remember the date that these will be going on sale or you may miss out. Once they are gone they will be gone!

 

 

New limited dedicated Guest Diamond Passes

 

This is going to be something new that we are going to offer Showmasters' attendees.

 

This pass will Guarantee the holder things like the following :

This is only an example as each pass offered will include different things.

 

1 x photo-op with the specific guest over the weekend

2 x signed items from the specific guest. (signed in person over the weekend)

1 x meet and greet with the specific guest, along with the other dedicated guest Diamond Pass holders for that guest.

1 x access to the show over the 3 days of the event.

1 x seat at all talks that the specific guest will take part in over the weekend.

And some other unique aspects which will be specific to each dedicated guest Diamond Pass, depending on the guest.

 

 

Pricing

 

These passes will be priced differently according to each A-list guest and some will be more limited than others. These passes will be for the really big guests that we are starting to be offered and really want to be able to bring to you!

 

 

Big guest availability for regular attendees

 

We plan for all these big guests to still have time to attend the show and do other activities outside of the "Dedicated Guest Diamond Pass" so that regular fans and attendees will also get the chance to meet them too! So these big guests may take part in talks or will be able to take part in say 2x 1 hour photo ops etc so they will be available to none Diamond pass holders also. However, we want to be up front and say that some of these mega-guests will only be available for one day and some will be very limited in what they will be able to take part in. Some of these guests will be the type that will not want to meet hundreds of people in one day and would never normally go to a Comic Con to sign or do photo-ops, so they should be looked at as a guest that you would not normally be able to meet. These tickets are the way forward to bring in a mega guest that would never usually do events like this and if we can make the appearance happen with the help of the sale of the Dedicated Guest Diamond Pass then that is a big step forward to bringing these amazing people to you all.

 

We feel it’s a fair way forward and a way that will make a great difference to future line-ups for LFCC.

 

So, be warned, we have big plans to bring in the big guests that you have been wanting to meet over the years. Watch this space!

 

 

One last important point on Gold passes

 

If you buy a normal gold pass and later we announce a big guest that you feel you want to buy a Dedicated Guest Diamond Pass for you will be able to swap it out and pay the difference. That way you can buy a regular Gold Pass with confidence and not worry that a big guest may come leaving you stuck with the regular pass. We are here to try and help everyone get to meet these big named guests and as you can see, we have tried to think things through so it works and is fair for all.

 

 

Improving the show and helping you find what you need at future LFCC going forward

 

This year, as you know, was the busiest event we have ever had to deal with and as such, we are looking at ways to help you all over the weekend at the show.

 

First, as the busiest part of the show, we will have an information point that will be located near the guests. The crew at this information point will have contact info on most of the heads of departments, so they will help to keep you up to date with things as they go along over the day. This will give you all another place to find out what you need to know and will be the best place to ask questions about talks, guests and photo ops updates.

 

We will also be developing an mobile phone App to help keep everyone up-to-date. We feel this needs to be more than a basic tool and if we are going to spend the time and resources needed then it needs to be a real asset and something that is essential for all event goers. We have the run in time for this and it's something we have been working on, so bear with us as we develop this helpful companion to the show. We just wanted to let you all know we are working on it!

 

 

The team that makes it happen: THE CREW

 

More crew than ever before helped to run this years LFCC. We had around 350 of them they are fans just like you and I, but they took the step from attendee to a crew member. We will be training up, and taking on, more fans to become Showmasters crew so we can stay on top of the growth we encountered at this years event.

 

The crew are a team made up of very good, decent people that are there to help everyone. We need many more of them, so if you fancy joining the team then do get in touch. The guests tell us many, many times a year just how good the Showmaters crew are . They are considered the best in the world! There is nowhere to hire a trained Comic Con crew, you have to grow one, and our team are the hardest working team you will ever find. We intend to build upon this amazing team so we can look after you when you are at our events.

 

Every year we promote many crew to become Pit Bosses, which is someone that looks after a group of crew and is there to help with informing people about how things are going and what to expect. So that the events run more smoothly in the future we will be promoting more of these essential team members than ever before.

 

 

Together we are making Comic Con happen

 

When we started Film and Comic Con many years back we wanted all the big film and TV companies to be involved; the biggest named guests and up and coming guests to be a part of the event and for it to be of interest to thousands of people! We could not do these events without you! Over the last few years we have all achieved a lot and it’s something to be very proud of. However, with the success of the con becoming so big we have had to deal with some growing pains on the way, like we experienced this year. We will fix this and we will get it right for everyone as we also had a hard weekend running the event ourselves. In Europe we always needed a big convention like they have in SAN DIEGO and this year we saw it happen fully for the first time. We need to improve aspects of the show so it works for the numbers of fans wanting to attend and we need more space to grow and bring new things to the show. Every year we will be bringing on board all that’s new and up and coming so the con stay fresh, interesting and fun! We will keep on bringing in systems to help the running of the show and when something is not working to its full potential we will update it so it does work and you get to be at an amazing fun event. We want to provide you all with a really fun weekend like no other in Europe where the fantasy world we all love becomes real, even if it is just for a weekend!

 

I hope that you see we are here working to improve the events for you all! We are looking at the future and we do care about you all. It's a very exciting time for fandom and we are all very intrigued to see what's to come.

 

We look forward to seeing you all in 2015 at Europe's Largest Comic Con .

 

Yours,

 

Jason and all the team at Showmaters

 

 

[angelbacchae]

 

Friday preview is to be extended, opening at 12 noon and closing at 8pm, giving everyone a full day to see the show and buy any last minute photo-ops and talk tickets.

 

This will give everyone more time on the Friday to get photo shoots and autographs out the way, as the more time we can give you for these activities, the easier it will be for you over the busy weekend.

Now to the important points :

All Saturday tickets will ONLY be available to pre-buy before the show and NO entrance tickets will be for sale from the door on the Saturday.

 

3 day weekend tickets will ONLY be available to pre-buy before the show. These tickets will also NOT be for sale on the door at all on any day.

 

Sunday tickets will be pre-sold in advance and then around a month before the show we will advise if there are going to be any available to be sold on the day at the show for the Sunday. We can not guarantee there will be any available but we will know around 1 month out from the show.

 

^ This I like. Thank you SM.

[Squirtchy]

In short the minute a guest you want to see is announced, buy your tickets asap. Looking forward to seeing what big guests you're coming up with, cheers Jason and the rest of the Showmasters team!

[Wrong Name]

What happens with the Diamond passes if you want to meet multiple big guests that are using them?

Edited August 1, 2014 by Wrong Name

[minchb]

I'm impressed with all of this, especially the new ticketing system and the mobile app that's in the works. My first LFCC was in 2007, and seeing what it's become has made me feel proud even as an attendee. I am hoping I get to crew this next year as it would be an honor :). Well done Showmasters!

[twinzz]

thanks for the 411! some important improvements being made to the way things are being run, we see :) We like the presale only thing as well

[JackAubrey]

Longer Friday is great.

 

The only thing with Olympia - I know that there is more space etc but it was quite 'narrow' around the dealers - Could this be taken in to consideration next year - In request terms - Please make the aisles as wide as humanly possible.

 

Cheers

JA

[Leenie1965]

Sounds great - so when will guests start to be announced?

[keithporter23]

What happens with the Diamond passes if you want to meet multiple big guests that are using them?

 

I'd also like to know more about this above....

 

Everything else looks agreeable though. I love the fact Saturday will be pre-sale only; always grinds my gears seeing those on pay at the door getting in before presales!

 

Glad SM are listening to the feedback and moving forward. Cannot wait 'til 2015!!!

[cropsy2008]

I'm a little confused over the diamond passes. lets take Carrie Fisher from this year as an example. She was £60 photo but DP are for more than that, so if say DP are £100/£150 will youi cap how many you sell or if you sell so many that Carrie could only physically do there will be no single photo shoots on sale and no autos on the day? so in effect maybe the only way to meet an A guest might be to buy a DP? thanks in advance.

Edited August 1, 2014 by cropsy2008

[Rockstar6662]

What happens with the Diamond passes if you want to meet multiple big guests that are using them?

And if you upgrade a Gold pass to one of these Diamond ones do you lose the ability to join other queues? Assuming the Gold will still have this ability.

 

And if you want more than one of these Diamond things (if there is more than one and I suspect cost will be prohibitive) you're buying entry with each one which seems a bit pointless.

 

The assumption seems to be that you'll only want to meet this one special guest but keep in mind that people will probably still want to meet plenty of other guests over the weekend so please don't restrict that for the sake of one special guest. I'd give up meet & greet type stuff if it meant still having priority access to other guests too. Sounds like this still some thought put into it.

 

Also part of the problem is that big guests are often not announced until nearer the show by which time things like Gold passes are often sold out. I can't afford to buy one blind this far in advance.

 

With something like DSTL the guests have been pretty announced before tickets go on sale so you can make a more informed choice about what you consider best value and what each ticket gives you. I'd imagine this won't be the case for LFCC so it's very much buying blind without knowing if you're really going to need that pass or not. Tough choices.

 

Lot more clarification needed from my point of view.

[cropsy2008]

Also will the money be took straightaway on sept 1st for the july 15 show or on dispatch with say no cancellation.

[jael001]

It sounds really great and I'm looking forward to it, the mobile app sounds great, as does making most of the event pre-booked only :) I'm another one who'd like to know what would happen if you wanted a Diamond Pass for more than one of these special guests.

[superman01]

Sounds good guys!! Good luck!! Could b interesting times ahead :)

[twinzz]

we guess they might still be figuring out the big outlining of those diamond passes, since they didn't exactly go into detail and it's been announced that they're "gonna do them and its gonna include several things"

 

happily awaiting september to see what kind of pass would benefit us most this year

[Rockstar6662]

we guess they might still be figuring out the big outlining of those diamond passes, since they didn't exactly go into detail and it's been announced that they're "gonna do them and its gonna include several things"

 

happily awaiting september to see what kind of pass would benefit us most this year

But you won't be able to make a decision on that as it's unlikely many guests will be announced and if you wait too long things like the gold passes may sell out as a lot of people seem to just buy them as a matter of course now.

 

I hope this Diamond thing still includes the privileges of the normal gold as it does sound like you'll be giving up a lot just to guarantee meeting that one special guest. Maybe having add-ons to the Gold that don't get you all the extras that come with the DIamond package but still get you access to the guest rather than having to replace it entirely could be considered.

[twinzz]

 

we guess they might still be figuring out the big outlining of those diamond passes, since they didn't exactly go into detail and it's been announced that they're "gonna do them and its gonna include several things"

 

happily awaiting september to see what kind of pass would benefit us most this year

But you won't be able to make a decision on that as it's unlikely many guests will be announced and if you wait too long things like the gold passes may sell out as a lot of people seem to just buy them as a matter of course now.

 

I hope this Diamond thing still includes the privileges of the normal gold as it does sound like you'll be giving up a lot just to guarantee meeting that one special guest. Maybe having add-ons to the Gold that don't get you all the extras that come with the DIamond package but still get you access to the guest rather than having to replace it entirely could be considered.

 

 

they did say you could upgrade your (normal) ticket to a diamond one, so maybe they're gonna have you be able to upgrade on specific people (or more people) for diamonds too?

[Rockstar6662]

 

 

we guess they might still be figuring out the big outlining of those diamond passes, since they didn't exactly go into detail and it's been announced that they're "gonna do them and its gonna include several things"

 

happily awaiting september to see what kind of pass would benefit us most this year

But you won't be able to make a decision on that as it's unlikely many guests will be announced and if you wait too long things like the gold passes may sell out as a lot of people seem to just buy them as a matter of course now.

 

I hope this Diamond thing still includes the privileges of the normal gold as it does sound like you'll be giving up a lot just to guarantee meeting that one special guest. Maybe having add-ons to the Gold that don't get you all the extras that come with the DIamond package but still get you access to the guest rather than having to replace it entirely could be considered.

 

 

they did say you could upgrade your (normal) ticket to a diamond one, so maybe they're gonna have you be able to upgrade on specific people (or more people) for diamonds too?

 

But the implication is that the Diamond thing is just around a specific guest. If you lose the ability to join any other queue too or attend any paid talk like you currently get with the Gold then you're giving up a lot of what makes the gold worth having, if you have a lot of guests to see which of course you won't know for a while yet.

 

I look forward to full specific details of what all the options will be but can't really afford to buy any tickets for a while what with DSTL, WLFFC, HW6 and next CMMK all coming up in a short space of time.

[animefan1984]

 

What happens with the Diamond passes if you want to meet multiple big guests that are using them?

 

I'd also like to know more about this above....

 

Everything else looks agreeable though. I love the fact Saturday will be pre-sale only; always grinds my gears seeing those on pay at the door getting in before presales!

 

Glad SM are listening to the feedback and moving forward. Cannot wait 'til 2015!!!

 

I would also like to know about this and also about whether for multiple diamond options there will be a option for those who have gold to pay only the difference on the estore rather than buy the diamond and have partial refund done

[Avengers7]

I'm a bit confused. So you buy a Gold Pass - what will this get you? But if you want to meet certain guests you have to buy a diamond pass?

 

 

Will a diamond pass allow you to the front of all photoshoots and no VT for any guest?

[timelord81r]

Will there be more than 1 diamond guest at each event?

 

Will autographs be done on a limited availability for non diamond pass holders like the mentioned limited shoots?

[DavidB]

There's a month for everything to be ironed out and clarified. I am sure there's plenty more info to come.

[coro]

Should have done this sooner if you ask me, but at least it's being implemented now.

[timelord81r]

what if you buy 3 day entry and then a diamond guest is announced you buy that has 3 day entry?

[SciFiRob]

Hopefully these diamond passes have the option to be offered for sale without the 3day entry since many will have already bought their entry tickets and the entry part of these diamond then becomes redundant...