| 07.16.2018 – There are many events in the Philippines that caters to local artistry and fandom. The community is something worth enough growth to see that there is interest in comics, movies, and other property out there. You got yourselves a group that cater to these interests but organizing an event that stands out needs a voice.
This is where Pop Hub comes in as organized by Prime Trade Asia, the same company that host the annual Philippine International Bookfair. It’s the latest event that they came up to promoting the local self-published artist at the same time invited local communities that are into fantasy and science fiction hosted in the small venue in the second level of the SMX Convention Centre. |
A friend got me in for free as I rarely go to these types’ events more catering to a younger audience. Of course, comparison to the events I have attended in South Australia would always come up in discussion how they manage and organize will be the talk in this article. It will never go away as the way how standards has to be followed in the way it should be run and that experience at Pop Hub is something should be discussed as to give feedback in improving the event the next year.
Early in 2018 Prime Trade Asia has announced Pop Hub a Fan Fest event that features local artistry as well as fan groups from Buffy to Star Trek. The same people who has been around who used to organized those Fantasy and Sci-Fi conventions. The usual group of people who try to keep the fandom interest alive are in the same event that brought you Pop Hub over the weekend.
Genetically Modified Event
For its first year Pop Hub has to bring something different to the table. It should not make an excuse that it’s in the first year, but rather show the experience the organizers have done with “Best of Anime” or the annual Manila International Book Fair that they have been having for the last thirty nine seasons.
During this weekend conventions like Collecticon was happening in a different venue. The annual event is the same gathering that sell toys and promoting K-Pop culture. But talking about Collecticon is whole other experience, but with Pop Hub it suppose to be an event worth of your PHP 120.00 pesos ($3.00 AUD) experience, but at the presentation itself its like the usual Filipino cultured event.
You see guests’ artists having their stuff sold in their booth, you get a stage panel talks, and the usual displays related to the groups who have participated. There’s nothing different as to attending the annual Komikon. It’s the same event all over again like a manufactured processed meat out of a factory.
Finding its Immediate Identity
A month before the event happened I tried to get in touch with their media team in inquiring for media registration and access. From there when they responded they don’t have an organizational way of how media registration should be done. Even though the event is ‘new’ they should have already come up with a form in the website for media registration not to go through the hassle of messaging them in their FB page rather be ready for media to have the access to register. During the day of the event I was fortunate enough to have a friend got me inside without the need to pay PHP 120.00 pesos ($3.00 AUD) and the way the layout is set up its certainly disorganized to say the artists wasn’t fully taken care of. Based on the venue it’s really smaller than “Best of Anime” and the way the activity area was placed its confusing where what is.
It’s a run-in-the-mill let’s slapped in featured guest artists and have some groups’ parade in their costume kind of event. The usual event that would attract younger audience without proper content on what is Pop Hub for everyone and how that translate to a fan experience that only give benefit to the group themselves.
Panel of Nothingness
The on-stage panel could have been organized properly but the way they got their host to do these off left field experience is like dumbing down the intelligence of people going to this event. Don’t get me wrong the host tries to make everyone feel the event’s fan fest perspective, but making random noise loses the professionalism of what should the host do in this particular situation even though the job demands a challenging way of entertaining people.
The Filipino “bakya” culture should be retired and replaced with a more professional approach in how to handle the panels. Some major topics that should be discussed like the golden age of Filipino comic book history has to be the focus, but instead the discussion veered away to the two guest panel’s history how they started working and gradually getting known for their craft.
It gives you that whole meaning of a fan fest event that is way lower than the international standards what an event should be presented. But rather have the same usual convention experience provided by previous events that have the same manufactured content and just became a generic sort of fan experience.
Paying for Peanuts
Overall PHP 120.00 pesos ($3.00 AUD) are not worth the entrance fee to be in and see the local artists feels like they are in a zoo. The booths are well placed but the activity area needs to be properly layout in a section where everyone can interact. There’s not even a showbag souvenir that would get you to pay the entrance fee.
They could have offered pre-online payment to get at least a discount, but the way the payment structured is set up for students, adults, and kids its not worth the effort to shell out that kind of money not getting its worth of even having a souvenir of sorts. The way it was organized is like the usual event that featured guests on stage, some activities, and cosplay parade that has become too common not finding its own voice or identity what Pop Hub has to offer.
There’s fan activity for the booths like having a ‘treasure hunt’ activity for younger kids or workshops that is worth the entrance fee. It’s nothing more than another manufactured event that has the same content as the other previous events have. No major guest as their budget is limited to the same old concepts.
Pop Hub won’t get past volume 2 if they keep doing the same thing every year. No specific theme and no proper way in organizing events close enough to international standards. This event should take inspiration in other international events and incorporate what a fan festival experience should be like not just paying the entrance fee to see their local artists when they can see them again in the next few months at Komikon which have the same content minus the cosplay and fan groups.
Sadly, they where late in trying to get in touch with me, which is not an excuse for a new event that seemed nothing more of a forgetful experience sitting at one of the featured artist who had a table that day. Pop Hub should start getting its organizers head together and put a feedback form in their website so they can find ways to improve the event not the same old concepts to get a proper feedback.
This event should have been better, but falls flat with the way they handled the panels and the layout was quite not-so convention-like. I’d rather use my PHP 120.00 pesos ($3.00 AUD) for something to eat instead. There’s no showbag souvenir and the set up was not-so good for the local artists.
Pop Hub is held during the Manila International Book Fair from 15-16 September 2018 at the second level of the SMX Convention Centre!
Presentation: 4 out of 5
Entrance Fee: 2 out of 5
Overall Experience: 3 out of 5
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