EOY 2009: The Idol M@ster’s day

And so all of you should already know, along with 5 other fabulous ladies, I cosplayed as Makoto Kikuchi from Idol M@ster during EOY 2009. This entry shall document the tedious day we had and my opinions of the event.

As yours truly is a lousy costumer and procrastinator, I only managed to finished the costume around 4am plus. After that, I bathed, packed my stuffs and slept at around 6am=_=. And I’m sure I wasn’t the only one. Ringo darling was on MSN with me too lol. We are such pathetic “Idols”  LOL

I knew I wasn’t going to get anything to fill my tummy the rest of the day so on my way over I bought an Old Chang kee Spring Roll and a Grande Mocha frappe with whipped cream and caramel drizzle from Starbucks :D. Need all the sugar for the rest of the day man!

So we reached the event hall at around 11+am. Squeezed out way through the crowd and got in to our dressing room. Idols have to look gorgeous right? So we spent the next 2 hours preeming ourselves up. The dressing room had fabulous mirror and lighting but the professional lights around the mirror also made the dressing room uncomfortably hot!

And 2hours before our allocated performance time we were told that we have to go on stage in 5 mins. Read my rant here.

Cutting back to the chronicles of that day. We were basically stuffed/trapped inside the dressing room all the way from the time we reached till the end of our performance.  We tried to practise our dance inside the dressing room and it was a pretty funny trial because it was just sooooo crammed! We kept banging into the walls or kicking our luggage.

Anyway, here’s a videos of us before we went on stage !

 

If you missed our performance, here’s an upload by Valefor !!

 

Our blood and sweat for near 2 months, over in 5minutes.  And blahhhh I screwed up so much on stage!!! Oh wells… the stage nerves always gets to me =(

The dance took us quite some time to prepare and get used to. We had originally wanted to only dance one song but since we had a bit more time, we decided to up the challenge and do a short medley. Kami Sama no Birthday (the first song) ahd some really weird footsteps and it took us forever to get it right.

We started off pretty hilariously and it took quite some effort to get to the stage we were. But thankfully for us, the dance steps this time round were much easier as compared to our Cosfest full team dancing to a full and compact 6 minute medley.

Our cosfest performance.

After our performance we finally got the chance to GET OUT !!!!!! But being in a group of red & white combination meant we stood out quite a fair bit. And after we went out, the photo request kept coming…

But we met a real Idol M@ster fan though! He cosplayed as P-San and even had the profiles of each girls print out on a file! How cool xD!

 
Sorry i don’t remember who took this photo =X

 

And yes, if you were wondering, that IS the original music playing at the event hall. I did not add any additional music. So this is the music the people outside the auditorium were listening to while watching the competition projected on the screen=_=. How…… epic.

Then it was time for some photo shooting session! We went back into the dressing room and had our shoot there.

 

Yuanie as Chihaya and Kaika as Makoto

The idols getting ready before they go on stage!

Bleh… I look fat.

Jia-er as Haruka and Ringo as Ritsuko

Hoshi as the 200% genki Yayoi!

Naughty Yayoi decides to try on Ritsuko’s glasses while she borrows Makoto’s comb.

  

Yayoi got ready faster than everyone else and is bored to death waiting. Chihaya the ever kind soul decides to help the hopeless Makoto with her makeup. Can’t have an idol who isn’t flawless yeah? But where is Yukiho??

Ah there she is. The terrible crybaby is smiling this time =)

Noshuu as Yukiho

To be honest, shooting inside the dressing was tiring and HOT! As I’ve mentioned before, those professional mirror lights were emitting too much heat. And even with the air conditioning it was hard to bear! But lovely lights are lovely….for lovely photos we will persevere TT_TT !!!!!

Got bored and whipped my camera out when I’m not in front of the camera.

 

We then decided we would like to go to level one and maybe find a suitable spot to re-dance our dance and film it proper down.  But time was up and we got called back again, apparently it was time for the results to be announced.

Luckily for us, Yui Makino’s session was just before the results announcement so when we were on our way to the stage we met her and got a picture xD!

And please don’t ask me about her (Yui Makino). I seriously can’t remember much about the encounter !! Probably because she got led off by her manager also immediately and we had to rush back to the backstage.

LUCKY XD !!!!!

We took a bit more pictures and filmed our dance at one of the empty rooms then half of the girls changed out because they had other commitments. What a pity! Once again, our team seemed destined to roam the event halls fragmented @_@;;

Anyway, after Ringo, jia-er and Hoshi changed out. Yuanie and I decided to go out and experience the event while Noshuu went back to her booth!  So yeap, that’s where I finally got the chance to do some paparazzi work!

*

Okay, I’m coming to my overall impression and comments on the event. I really can’t say much about the actual event on the actual day because I really haven’t had much chance to experience it. Being part of a competition and doing a performance for it really took up a lot of time.

But I do have something to say as a competitor who went through the rehearsals and auditions.

Firstly, I think the organiser did a great job getting the stage. Which is definitely wayyyy better than the stage we had at expo. The lights and sound quality were incomparable but the stage with the musical equipments were kinda crammed. If it was bad for us who had a team of 6, I can’t imagine how things had been for the Guilty Gear XX team (who had nearly 30!). Still, gotta love the “stagey” lightings and sound.

I’m sure the musicians loved it. Well, at least I liked the photos taken on it even though I didn’t enjoyed performing on it xD

Secondly, coming back to the displeasure regarding the pushing forward of our performance as I mentioned above and here. According to the organiser’s reply in one of the forum threads, we were supposed to be ready 2 hours in advance. Well, I double checked the website (basecamp) where we were all supposed to get our information from and the only indication of that was the Event Programme Plan.

At the top left hand corner, it wrote “ Call Time: 2 hours before performance”. I had to google what is “Call Time” =__= 

Just my honest feedback to the organisers, please try to remember that we are amateur cosplayers, I don’t even want to use the word ‘performers’ because even though we cosplay and attract attention, some of us are really not ‘performers’. I appreciate the organiser’s effort to carry out the event in a more professional manner but do try to understand most of us don’t have that professional performing experience and background. And, we don’t get anything back for performing, except for the competing cosplayers.

We not only have to juggle our own school/work life, we also have to rush out our costumes, plan our performance and practise for it, time is very tight. The level of concentration we are able to put in really shouldn’t be compared to the paid professional.

I understand the organisers deems everything on stage as a performance and even competing cosplays should rehearse. I can totally agree with it for the singing and dancing performance since audio tuning and stage arrangement all needed to be sorted out. But Cosplay rehearsals?

For the group cosplays this year, 3 out of 4 teams were doing some sort of dance routine (out of pure coincidence haha!) so the rehearsals seemed more appropriate. But not all Cosplays dance, get what I mean =/ ?

I appreciate the chance for us to rehearse this year because we needed it. But I suggest the organisers keep the rehearsal for the Cosplay competitors optional. If a groups feels that they needed the rehearsals, they can request to join in the rehearsals (for the singers, dancers and bands). For those who don’t, well, they can go home and rush their props/costumes/wigs/whatever. 

Adding some pictures because its getting too wordy.

Of course that said, I must also applaud the organiser for everything they have done. I really appreciate how they really tried their best to make things as comfy as possible for the performers and competitors. I don’t know about the solo competitors really, so I’m just speaking based on my own experience.

 

 

Well, the organisers catered food and drinks for us which is a first for me/us. I really appreciated it even though it was just Mac Donalds. But hey, 50 burgers and fries meant a few hundreds spent alright?  Though next year, if they still wanna cater, please prepare more food for the actual day xD. Late comers to the Green Room (the room where lunch was kept) like the Idol M@ster team had literally, nothing left to nibble. Not their fault though of course. Just commenting =X

The wife of the organiser even offered to do our make up for us. Not only is she pretty, she’s nice too =)

Isn’t she just lovely?? Erm no, she’s not Tim’s wife lah

Also, I think the instructions communicated to the performers (gonna merge all the singers, bands, cosplayers into one category) should be kept simple. Of course, that doesn’t mean essential information should be left out but yeah, keep the instructions and information given out short and sweet.

We don’t need to know when the birthday cake should come out on stage and we definitely don’t need to know the contact number of every performers (at least their team leader lah) !!!!!!

I understand the organisers want a single point of contact for dissembling of information among their working committee and the performers. But sharing information that is unnecessary , unrelated and private to non committee member is not only unprofessional and confusing. It is also a lack of respect for the individual’s privacy. I know I sound like a bit*h for harping on this but no offence meant. I really just want to bring the importance of this point forward.  

 

I had previously emailed the organiser regarding this. They had initially plastered the performer’s name and contact number on Basecamp which startled and puzzled me. I requested for them to take it down since the mobile numbers are not necessary for informing the performers of their performance timing. To which, the organiser gave me a very prompt reply and took action immediately (took the numbers down).I was thankful for that but I didn’t know the Programme plan had the numbers inside as well *palms forehead*   

Yes, the organisers very kindly explained to me that having the mobile numbers on Basecamp is for easier sharing of information to his team and that Basecamp is a secured website , password protected , invites only and almost spybots proof.

Anyone wanna be friends with the pretty emcee xD ????  Just Kiddin =X!

The spybots were the last on my list. It’s the humans I’m worried about. I don’t mean to be rude or in any way implying any of the team/performers/cosplayers etc would do something as low as disseminating the numbers. But trust should not be handled lightly.  Privacy is often negotiated because someone trusts someone but then that someone trusts someone else too and then the wall of privacy crumbles. Very easily.

And yeah, back to the point about distributing information. Many teams who came for the rehearsal on the 23rd Dec had to wait in vain on level 5 because clear information was not communicated to them. At least 2 teams were stuck waiting there for an hour before they messaged one of our team member and rushed down to level 3. 

If anyone’s wondering how the Idol M@ster team knew the rehearsal was at Level 3 that’s because we are psychic Hahaahhahahaha!!!!  No lah, one of our teammates was studying at the library that afternoon so she had the time to check things out and inform the rest of us. By her own means.

My suggestion is really, just tell the performers/participants what they need to know and nothing more. The rest, just keep it among the organising team. Of course, make sure the right information is communicated lah.

 

That said, I really do appreciate the organiser’s attempt to use the Basecamp as a single point of contact to  disseminate information to everyone. This initiative indicates a farsighted aspiration. In the long run, it will really help the team to work on this project smoother. Though at this point of time, everyone’s just really trying to get used to it.

Erm last suggestion, maybe what the organisers can do is to limit the viewing permissions of the participant’s account so they only see information related to them. That way, privacy is kept, stage surprises kept secret and participants don’t get confused by too much information.

 

 
Chihaya decides to give herself a rosier cheek with more blush while Makoto arranges her Santa hat.

 

Overall, I think the organisers did a good job with the event especially if this was their first time. It is by far, one of the most professional cosplay events I’ve attended and am proud to be part of. The location was central and had a nice ambience though it was wayyyyyyy too small.

Yes, yes, I hear all of you forumers complaining. And yes, to be honest, if they hold it at the same location again and asks for the same entrance dollar, I might really consider long and hard whether to fork the money out or not. A better and more spacious location is in dire need!

If they wanna keep it at the same location, well, it’s not impossible either, just slash the entrance tix. That should shut some mouth =)

OH YES! lasssst comment, I promise! Please, if the auditorium can’t allow everyone to go in, then at least give the projectors outside live audio feed!!!

Like what some forumers mentioned, in such events where self entertainment and Cosplay competition is the main highlight. You need to cover the logistics for the first element (space) and make sharing of the second element accessible to everyone!

I’m sure the event would have gotten more thumbs up if the live projectors had live audio feed. Singaporeans are not that picky. If we can’t get the actual thing, we don’t mind cheering in front of some flat screen either. Look at the crowd gathering around those sets!

Live feeds will also help the generic event goers feel more in sync with the entire schedule of the event. SOme forumers commented that they felt the interaction with the crowd this year was missing. I suspect this has something to do with it.

Alright this has been a long long post again. Took me so much time to get everything together, hope you guys enjoyed reading it. Leave me a comment and tell me how you felt about the event ok? Slaved over this entry long enough to bake 3 cakes.