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dragoncon_lj_archiveA lot of people (myself included) are already planning gatherings/photoshoots for D*C 2010, and I'll be happy to keep a compiled list like I've done since 2008. However, there is a big issue that needs to be addressed before too many gatherings get too deep in planning: the Atrium Level of the Marriott. The Atrium Level is the floor right above (i.e. one flight up from) the main lobby. This is where the skywalk connecting the Marriott to the Peachtree Center food court/the Hyatt begins/ends. This is also home to Pulse (better known as the "sailboat bar"), Sear (a restaurant and sports bar), and the Atrium Ballroom (home to many of the really big panels). It is also where far too many groups decide to hold their gatherings/photoshoots. Regardless of how big the group itself is, this adds to the already-present crowding issues.
Getting through the Atrium Level was a nightmare. One couldn't even get to the bar itself! Last year I tried (mostly unsuccessfully) to discourage gatherings there after too many decided to use that location. I say "mostly unsuccessfully" because the only group that heeded my advice was the combined Bleach/Death Note/Naruto group- more power to them, I say. There is a reason I tried to discourage so many gatherings/photoshoots from using that area, and why I don't host any gatherings/photoshoots there myself. No, the new direct (i.e. not going through the food court) walkway will not alleviate this problem- it's to begin/end "on first floor of the Marriott Marquis, above lobby level", which is the Atrium Level. Even if it didn't people will still want to get cheap food, and it doesn't solve the issue of the big panels and people actually wanting to patronize the bar(s).
Please, for the love of any and all deities, DO NOT HOST ANY GATHERINGS ON THE ATRIUM LEVEL OF THE MARRIOTT! Instead, please consider the 10th floor of the Marriott or the Hilton patio/back porch for your photoshoots/gatherings. Both of those places are easy enough to get to, are on host hotel property, and there's enough room for large gatherings and even two gatherings at the same time can easily work something out in either location. There is also Hardy Ivy Park, a public park not on SunTrust property that has become a somewhat popular location in recent years. There are also the many (other) locations![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
sparr0 went through the trouble of scouting out for us- not much if anything would have changed between now and then (and if so, if anyone can provide an updated list with pics, be my guest). Yes, I know about the SunTrust's restrictions and the paranoid security guards at the Peachtree Center courtyard, but those aren't the only alternatives. If you submit a gathering to the list with "Sear bar" "sailboat bar", "Marriott Atrium" "Marriott bar", or anything else along those lines as a location, you will be asked both on the list thread and your gathering thread to reconsider locations, otherwise your gathering WILL NOT BE ADDED.
"But I don't want my group to be away from everybody!" "Nobody will know we're there!" "We won't get as many photographers and/or cosplayers!" Face it, folks: only a very small percentage of D*C attendees are represented here and/or the D*C subforum on Cosplay.com (where this has been cross-posted). At least 90% of the con-going populace as a whole is not interested in your photoshoot, and is unlikely to suddenly take an interest when you're causing/exacerbating a human traffic jam. Well, other than getting angry/frustrated with your group and the photographers, and do you really want that kind of interest?
"We're not that big a group!" "Only the initial meetup will be there; we'll move once we've all assembled, we promise!" Doesn't matter; you're still blocking traffic and still annoying pretty much anybody who didn't cheerfully respond to your planning thread(s)- again, that's like 90% of D*C attendees (and everyone else in the hotel whether they're there for D*C or not).
Look at this way: some diners have this thing where people can bring in their old cars to show off in the diner parking lot. Suppose someone decided to hold the event in the middle of a busy interstate highway in the thick of rush hour, "justifying" this with the excuse that not that many people come to the diner to check out the classic cars/few otherwise would know about the event. In the end, the majority of people on the road are not going to take interest. In fact, most would get angry and frustrated- even if they otherwise do have an interest in old cars.
If you're that worried, I have every intention of seeing what I can negotiate with D*C publications or whoever else within the D*C hierarchy I may need to contact and see about getting the list into the Daily Dragon or something. Atlanta's other big con, Anime Weekend Atlanta (AWA), actually gave out a flier with the list of gatherings/photoshoots at the con last year (or so I've heard)- maybe something like that to be given out at registration/all information booths. This will likely mean that I will have to move the cut-off date and time for new submissions and changes to the list to much sooner than in previous years (which I'd have to do anyway because I'm road-tripping it this year), but small price to pay.
Thank you for your cooperation.
P.S.: the Hyatt bar is not a viable location for gatherings either- that's where the new skywalk will begin/end, and the crowding there (with or without the photography restrictions imposed by the Hyatt) was always pretty bad, too. Speaking of hotel-imposed restrictions, I would not blame the Marriott in the least if they banned photography on the Atrium Level altogether.
Getting through the Atrium Level was a nightmare. One couldn't even get to the bar itself! Last year I tried (mostly unsuccessfully) to discourage gatherings there after too many decided to use that location. I say "mostly unsuccessfully" because the only group that heeded my advice was the combined Bleach/Death Note/Naruto group- more power to them, I say. There is a reason I tried to discourage so many gatherings/photoshoots from using that area, and why I don't host any gatherings/photoshoots there myself. No, the new direct (i.e. not going through the food court) walkway will not alleviate this problem- it's to begin/end "on first floor of the Marriott Marquis, above lobby level", which is the Atrium Level. Even if it didn't people will still want to get cheap food, and it doesn't solve the issue of the big panels and people actually wanting to patronize the bar(s).
Please, for the love of any and all deities, DO NOT HOST ANY GATHERINGS ON THE ATRIUM LEVEL OF THE MARRIOTT! Instead, please consider the 10th floor of the Marriott or the Hilton patio/back porch for your photoshoots/gatherings. Both of those places are easy enough to get to, are on host hotel property, and there's enough room for large gatherings and even two gatherings at the same time can easily work something out in either location. There is also Hardy Ivy Park, a public park not on SunTrust property that has become a somewhat popular location in recent years. There are also the many (other) locations
sparr0 went through the trouble of scouting out for us- not much if anything would have changed between now and then (and if so, if anyone can provide an updated list with pics, be my guest). Yes, I know about the SunTrust's restrictions and the paranoid security guards at the Peachtree Center courtyard, but those aren't the only alternatives. If you submit a gathering to the list with "Sear bar" "sailboat bar", "Marriott Atrium" "Marriott bar", or anything else along those lines as a location, you will be asked both on the list thread and your gathering thread to reconsider locations, otherwise your gathering WILL NOT BE ADDED. "But I don't want my group to be away from everybody!" "Nobody will know we're there!" "We won't get as many photographers and/or cosplayers!" Face it, folks: only a very small percentage of D*C attendees are represented here and/or the D*C subforum on Cosplay.com (where this has been cross-posted). At least 90% of the con-going populace as a whole is not interested in your photoshoot, and is unlikely to suddenly take an interest when you're causing/exacerbating a human traffic jam. Well, other than getting angry/frustrated with your group and the photographers, and do you really want that kind of interest?
"We're not that big a group!" "Only the initial meetup will be there; we'll move once we've all assembled, we promise!" Doesn't matter; you're still blocking traffic and still annoying pretty much anybody who didn't cheerfully respond to your planning thread(s)- again, that's like 90% of D*C attendees (and everyone else in the hotel whether they're there for D*C or not).
Look at this way: some diners have this thing where people can bring in their old cars to show off in the diner parking lot. Suppose someone decided to hold the event in the middle of a busy interstate highway in the thick of rush hour, "justifying" this with the excuse that not that many people come to the diner to check out the classic cars/few otherwise would know about the event. In the end, the majority of people on the road are not going to take interest. In fact, most would get angry and frustrated- even if they otherwise do have an interest in old cars.
If you're that worried, I have every intention of seeing what I can negotiate with D*C publications or whoever else within the D*C hierarchy I may need to contact and see about getting the list into the Daily Dragon or something. Atlanta's other big con, Anime Weekend Atlanta (AWA), actually gave out a flier with the list of gatherings/photoshoots at the con last year (or so I've heard)- maybe something like that to be given out at registration/all information booths. This will likely mean that I will have to move the cut-off date and time for new submissions and changes to the list to much sooner than in previous years (which I'd have to do anyway because I'm road-tripping it this year), but small price to pay.
Thank you for your cooperation.
P.S.: the Hyatt bar is not a viable location for gatherings either- that's where the new skywalk will begin/end, and the crowding there (with or without the photography restrictions imposed by the Hyatt) was always pretty bad, too. Speaking of hotel-imposed restrictions, I would not blame the Marriott in the least if they banned photography on the Atrium Level altogether.
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Date: 2010-03-27 11:04 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-03-29 04:37 pm (UTC)The second pic is Tower I, accessible from that same skywalk. Again, start from the Hyatt or food court, but when you come to the first set of elevators (near the guard's desk under the hanging fixture (chandelier? sign?) that looks sort of like an upside down Mayan pyramid), go downstairs rather than continue on to the Marriott.
Do keep in mind that those are office buildings (not SunTrust, but offices nonetheless). Some have reported no difficulty there at any time throughout the duration of D*C and that they were never dark or locked during the day. Others have reported strict security and that Friday day was the only time they weren't locked. My only personal experience was accidentally wandering into Tower II on the Friday of D*C 2008 (yes, I was lost). All that said, those areas are probably best for small, maybe medium-sized groups meeting during the day (like before 5) on Friday.