At this year’s C2E2, we decided to try some things we hadn’t done during our two previous visits to the convention. For example, seeing as autographs and photos are a big part of the show that we hadn’t explored, Bekah decided to purchase a photo op this year. As for me, as someone who’s managed crowds and (much smaller) events in the past, I was curious to see “behind the scenes” a bit. That’s why I decided to close out my 2022 C2E2 experience by attending a Q&A panel put on by the staff of the event — which turned out to be incredibly insightful.
First, during what she jokingly referred to as her “tight 5,” Kristina Rogers of Reedpop (which runs C2E2 among many other conventions) took some time to address a few big topics. For one, yes, the announcement for guests this year came very late. “I promise we didn’t wake up three weeks ago and realized we had a show.” In an effort to not have to cancel, apparently many guests confirmed late, hence the delayed info to fans. Next up, the reason this year’s event took place in August instead of the typical spring was because the 2021 edition of the show got pushed until December. So, rather than have two events on the heels of each other, the team elected to do a summer edition in 2022 before shifting much closer to “normal” time in 2023 (tickets are now on sale for the event taking place March 31st through April 2nd).
The other big question was about what happened to the show floor carpet. See, in the “before times” of C2E2, that main hall was covered in red carpet. And, while this made the hall look particularly nice, it also had the benefit of being easy on the feet. Thus, when the carpeting went missing in more recent years, some con goers wondered why. Well, as the team explained, for one, the carpeting was a six-figure expense. Secondly, with all of that carpet needing to be tossed after a single show, there were environmental concerns about the practice. In other words, don’t expect a comeback any time soon. With that, we moved into the question and answer session, with Rogers’ requisition that guests share their name and how long they’ve been coming to C2E2 to preface their comments.
Many of the people that joined this session had been coming to the show for years — including a few that had been to the first event back in 2010. As a result, several of the questions wondered about past offerings that seemed to fall by the wayside. For example, one person asked about the comedy shows that used to be part of the “after hours” programming. Candidly, Rogers admitted that several of the contacts they had in that community dried up during the pandemic. However, they are trying to rebuild their connections to the Chicago comedy scene and hope to bring such offerings back.
Another question involved the Family HQ area of the convention, wondering why it was on the showfloor instead of being in a separate room. As it turns out, it actually used to be a dedicated room, but a lack of traffic was a concern. So, seeing as they had room on the showfloor, they decided to move it. that said, just as the show does offer a quiet room where attendees can go to decompress, they said they’d consider a similar chill zone for families to possibly be added in the future.
One inquiry that was especially of interest to me as it’s something I personally noticed right away about this year’s event was about the updated security procedure. As a Disney Parks fan, I was excited to see that the show had moved to the AI screening process instead of a traditional metal detector set up. While I found this to be much, much faster overall, another attendee found some flaws in the set-up that they said slowed things down. Given that this was the first year the show had used them, Rogers did state that they surely had some kinks to work out — but, as I contended, she did state that, even with the hiccups, the new system was a timesaver all around.
Overall, this Q&A panel was part post-show debriefing and part town hall. Yet, the mood in the room never felt accursitory or angry. Instead, the questions seemed to come from a place of actual concern and appreciation and the team was forthcoming with answers. Meanwhile, folks would come and go from the room during the run of the panel. In the middle of the session, one first-time guest joined the room and raised their hand to ask a question: “Why is there no carpet on the show floor.” Rogers’ response: “That’s a big complaint for a first-timer, pal.” With that, we’ll see you at C2E2 2023 — sans carpet.