[ENNIES] Post Production Notes

[spacecrime.com]

Michael: I think you did a great job. I was amazed by how smooth and professional and fun the award ceremony was. There were a few glitches, but this is one of the best all-volunteer events I've ever attended, and it was better than many of the professional events I've gone to.

I also took the FFG folks comments as lighthearted -- they know very well that mistakes happen and I think they wanted to make it clear that they weren't mad about it. (I also know that I'd feel just as embarrassed in your shoes, so I can understand how it may not have felt that way in the time.)

I think it's great that you're already working on improving the event, and I'll be the first to buy those stickers if you do them up (I wouldn't mind if you did them for this year, actually).

congratulations and well-done,

 

[DonAdam]

I didn't think the FFG guys' comments were meant to be hurtful, but I can see how you took it that way.

The acceptance speeches being a bit shorter would have been nice. Other than that, I thought the whole thing was awesome; the slides and awards looked professional, but it wasn't turned into a stuffy formal event.

 

[Buttercup]

I understand all about being one's own harshest critic, but perhaps it will help to know that to those of us sitting in the audience, who were not privy to the behind-the-scenes work, it looked darn good. So there were a few gaffes. It happens. The fact is, the show was a good time for everyone. (Except you and Russ, I suppose.)

Thanks for all your hard work.

 

[Cthulhu's Librarian]

I have to say that I thought the presentation was very well done, and am looking forward to seeing what you come up with next year. As for the FFG comments, I found them funny, and thought they were very good natured about the error. I think that if they had truly been rude, someone would have said something to them while they were on stage.

Nice job, and thanks for the work you put into it!

 

[Ashy]

Well, Michael, I think that the show was excellent - don't sweat the small stuff - it happens. Look on what you did well and build on that.

Publishers will be publishers and you are GOOD at what you do - let the rest roll....

Sorry I did not get to meet you, but I will correct that error next year.

 

[d20Dwarf]

The slide show was awesome, and I think it boosts the awards to the next level...I really felt like we were a part of something special there, and I think good things are in store for the ENnies. Great job Michael!

I like the idea of catering the event and then letting everyone mingle in that hall for a while. The only glitch I see in that is the alcies that just can't wait another minute to start getting drunk.

As far as Greg's comments about the cover go, I know they weren't meant to be critical, just funny, and as far as I could tell the entire audience was laughing at his comments.

My main criticism of the awards is the length and the start time. I would prefer an earlier start time, 8pm would give exhibitors plenty of time to eat and shower before the awards (you guys did shower, right? ), and things would end early enough for us to game or party afterward. The show was a little long as well, I would suggest cutting Silver winners speeches, as that would speed things along quite nicely.

Oh, and I humbly submit the idea to create the Joseph Miller Award and the Random Fan Award, just so those guys don't get left out in future ceremonies.

 

[Psion]

Heh - that one isn't my fault. I put the nominees in the order they were first announced on the site. It isn't my fault that more than a few last nominees got the silver. I didn't juggle the list because that was likely to confuse everyone.

If the nominees list was derived from mine (I tabulated the judge's votes), my list was entirely in alphabetical order. It's a little hard to read broadcasting into that.

 

[Kid Charlemagne]

In terms of show length, I thought it was just about perfect. It ran about 1:15-1:30, I believe. You don't want it too short, either.

Catering would be a wonderful idea. Either there at the awards or afterwards. We might want to consider getting a small banquet room with catering and a cash bar, try and get the community to subsidize part of the cost, and charge to cover the remainder. I'd certainly pay 20$ for some chow at the Ram and buy my own drinks.

 

[FFG Greg]

The third thing was the low light of my con, and one of the most embarrassing parts of my life. I got the slide for Midnight wrong - using the cover of the one of the modules instead of the core book by mistake. Well, the staff of FFG that accepted the Best Cover Art award went out of their way to berate and mock me on the stage. If they were trying to make a joke, no one present found it funny, the room was more quiet at that moment then at any other.

Hi Michael,

I'm really, really sorry you interpreted my comments as directed at you. They certainly weren't meant to be. I didn't mention you by name -- hell, I was worried that *we* were responsible for the screw-up. I tried to send you a .png of the cover before the con, but it bounced. I emailed you about it but didn't hear back. Figured you already had it covered and just didn't have time to email -- not surprising given what you were up against.

Anyway, I was just trying to make light of what could otherwise have been an awkward situation, particularly since the artist was actually present to accept the award. I just wanted to ease the tension, get a few laughs, and make sure that Thomas got all the recognition he deserved. No hard feelings at all on our end -- we were very pleased with the ceremony and honored to receive our awards. Great job!

Greg
FFG

 

[Morrus]

Michael, I think you did a fantastic job. I was really, really impressed with what you put together, and I'm really frateful for the effort you meant to.

There were glitches, sure - but I think they had a positive effect, not a negative one. I enjoyed the show, and I think the glitches actually helped with that (they gave me a few things to joke about.

Well done!