[Soy Sauce]

SoyCon 4: The Largest Cosplay Gathering of The Midwest
July 9-10, 2011
Chicago and Rolling Meadows, IL
***Updated On: Monday June 6, 2011***

http://www.soycon.com

Opening Words: Hello everyone! Myself and supporters of SoyCon would proudly like to announce that SoyCon 4 plans and preparations are under way! We hope to see everyone again for those who came in the previous years and also hope to see many new faces who are interested coming for the first time. There are lots of things to do in order to put together another great year. Last year was probably the best SoyCon thus far, and for that we want to keep the momentum up and kick it up a notch for this year. We are reviewing what things went right and what things did not work. We are always welcome for any constructive feedback for those who came in the previous years. You are welcome to post here or message me if there's some things that may need some work. Suggestions are welcome as well. Other than that, lets work on making another successful year!

Summary: SoyCon is a large social cosplay gathering dedicated to the cosplayers, anime fans, video gamers, manga readers, and more. Enjoy a full weekend where you can hang out with many fans alike, take photos in cosplay around the beautiful scenary of Chicago, and relax at a picnic grove full of food and fun. We have events that you are welcome to participate in or you are welcome to create your own and run it during the weekend. Bring out your cosplays, bring out your cameras, and lets enjoy another year of fun times.

Dates & Location
Friday July 8, 2011 - Northerly Island Beach in Chicago, IL
Saturday July 9, 2011 - Buckingham Fountain in Chicago, IL
Sunday July 10, 2011 - Ned's Brown Meadow - Grove #29 in Rolling Meadows, IL

Price: How does FREE sound to you?

Information:
About
Location
Directions
Cosplay Guidelines
Event Rules
Schedules
Places To Go
FAQ
Volunteer

Registration - Register Here
Register For...
> General Registration - Standard Registration
> Panel/Events Submission - You Can Run Your Own Panel/Event At SoyCon
> Event Registration - Want To Join One or More Of Our Contests?

Events
Group Photoshoot
Cosplay RP Weddings
Interpretive Dance Central
The Battlefield
SoyCon Idol
Improv Masquerade
Cosplay Showcase
Talent Show

Gallery - View The Past 3 Years of SoyCon

Contact/Connect
SoyCon Forums
SoyCon Twitter
SoyCon Foursquare (Photoshoot Day)
SoyCon Foursquare (Picnic Day)
SoyCon Facebook Event
SoyCon Facebook "Like" Page
ACen Forums > Meetup Section - Other Cons Section
Cosplay.com

More Updates and Announcements To Come.

This post has been edited by Soy Sauce: 06 June 2011 - 02:45 PM

[Kasin]

I normally have fun, even though i'm late, but this time I know exactly where it's at, and I will come with money.

[GITS SAC Motoko]

Sounds cool. I would probably go too--sounds super awesome. How do we register on the site? I'm not able to click on it.... I'm guessing it will happen eventually?

[Kasin]

YES, THAT'S WHAT THE SOYCON FACEBOOK SAID.

oops, caps, sorry.

[sweetbeanpaste]

I really wanted to go last year, but unfortunately, it conflicted with a youth conference I was going to.

Even more unfortunately, it conflicts this year too.

[GITS SAC Motoko]

Kasin, on 28 January 2011 - 03:15 PM, said:

YES, THAT'S WHAT THE SOYCON FACEBOOK SAID.

oops, caps, sorry.

Oh I havent been on fb all day hahaha. I see grazie lol

[Soy Sauce]

Registration is still being worked on. I'm reworking them to see if there's an easier system for everyone to process them.

[Soy Sauce]

Here's a few updates on what's been happening:

Registration For Events
- Event registration for Interpretive Dance Central, SoyCon Idol, Improv Masquerade, and Variety Show are now online. Please print and fill out the information listed on those forms.
- Group Photoshoot is not needed for registration since it's an open event. The Battlefield registration will be held on site.
- Roleplay Weddings and Cosplay Showcase are still under construction. We'll keep you updated.
- All forms are available on the "Register" section and the details of each event is located under the "Events" section.

Panel/Event Submissions
- This year we are opening registration for those who are interested running their own panel or event during SoyCon.
- Please read over the details in the "Register" section on the site.

General Registration
- Forms are now available to download on under the "Register" page.
- Please refrain from sending any e-mails. There are no pre-registration for this gathering.


Please contact me if you have any problems downloading your forms or if you have any questions.

[Soy Sauce]

I would like to get some feedback on how to make SoyCon a better gathering. I know a couple of you or probably more had some issues for this year. I'm all forth for any constructive comments.

[Sir Viver]

Quote

Registering for a non-convention

WHY.jpg

This post has been edited by Sir Viver: 28 February 2011 - 07:51 AM

[Soy Sauce]

What's so bad about keeping track of attendance numbers, emergency contact, and where people are coming from?

[Ping Pong]

Soy Sauce, on 28 February 2011 - 09:40 AM, said:

What's so bad about keeping track of attendance numbers, emergency contact, and where people are coming from?

ya! cuz we all know that soy is gonna sell our info to FUNimation for marketing purposes!

[Sir Viver]

Quote

attendance numbers

I don't know of any other meet-ups which keep track of how many people attend.

This post has been edited by Sir Viver: 01 March 2011 - 05:29 AM

[Chocobofan4]

Ahh I really hope I can go this year! As long as I'm in town...

I have the perfect cosplay in mind too!

[FOFdanny]

Sir Viver, on 28 February 2011 - 04:47 PM, said:

I don't know of any other meet-ups which keep track of how many people attend.

I think showing people that more and more people are attending each year could make it more appealing to con-goers who haven't gone in the past or are on the bubble. This year will be my first soycon and I'm excited to go

[Mimiur]

I really want to go But i need to find a place to stay during that time.

Ping Pong, on 28 February 2011 - 10:02 AM, said:

ya! cuz we all know that soy is gonna sell our info to FUNimation for marketing purposes!

[UndercoverXEnvy]

I plan to go to this! ^^

[Teebs]

I'll be coming now since I'll be living in Chicagoland starting in June!

[Soy Sauce]

ACen 2011 is finally over and now it's time to focus on the 4th annual SoyCon cosplay gathering event.

I'm still working on details on some of the events that will be hosted there as well as coming up with ideas to run the gathering more smoothly than the previous years. I'll be posting here a bit more often on updates so keep an eye here or on the website.

SoyCon 4 Website

I am open for anyone who wants to run their own event/panel during the weekend. If you are interested, please submit a panel/event registration form which is located right here. (Under Panel/Event Registration)

If there's anyone out there who wants to help out with the event, please stay tuned as I will release information on how you can help out this wonderful event.

We got until the beginning of July to nail all of this so hopefully everyone will be prepared by then!

Stay tuned!

[keitaro-849]

yay! i'd love to come join you guys again i'll be shippo like usual

[Soy Sauce]

For those who are interested volunteering for SoyCon, please contact me via e-mail at either DgtlDrmStation@comcast.net or soycon@soycon.com. (Or send me a PM.) Positions such as Registration, Event Judging, Photoshoot & Picnic Operations, and Medical Team are available. I will send you information on each of these departments. Let me know if you have any questions.

SoyCon Volunteer Info.
- Possible changes and updates as time goes on.

This post has been edited by Soy Sauce: 30 May 2011 - 02:23 PM

[Keans]

Im might start working on a Hetalia Grandpa Rome costume. It would be so epic to bring it on beach day. xD

[Soy Sauce]

Speaking of Hetalia cosplay.

I would not recommend wearing the long sleeve or heavy layered costume since we are going to be in the hot summer sun. Every year, SoyCon has faced pretty humid weather. Normally around the mid 80s.

This goes for every cosplay series out there. (I'm looking at you Org. XIII members).

Lets keep it summer friendly. Avoid costumes that are double layered, leather, sweater-like, full armor, and/or anything that would feel "hot" in.

Try to make a summer version if you must.

[sweetbeanpaste]

sweetbeanpaste, on 28 January 2011 - 03:28 PM, said:

I really wanted to go last year, but unfortunately, it conflicted with a youth conference I was going to.

Even more unfortunately, it conflicts this year too.

So, fortunately/unfortunately, my youth conference filled up faster than I expected to, and I got put on the waiting list. I still haven't heard back, and it looks like I won't be going this year after all, which is quite sad.

HOWEVER-the upside is I get to go to Soycon instead
Can't wait!

[Soy Sauce]

A couple of updates here.

- Location page updated. Added overview map areas for each day.
- Cosplay Showcase page now available. Interested in participating? See the events section for more details!
- Schedule has been changed. Check event pages and information to view time changes.
- Cosplay RP weddings are now online. Spaces are limited. Pre-registration now available.
- Panel/Event Submissions have now been extended to July 1st! Interested running something at SoyCon? Check the "Register" section for details.

Please see first post on this thread for all details.

This post has been edited by Soy Sauce: 06 June 2011 - 02:46 PM

[Soy Sauce]

Here's a few things to keep in mind before coming to SoyCon.

For Photoshoot:
- Try to wear costumes that are summer friendly. It's going to be pretty hot out there, normally around the high 80s.
- We would recommend bringing bottles of cold water. We recommend staying quenched. We had issues of people not staying hydrated enough due to the heat.
- Umbrellas are nice to bring to shade yourself from the hot sun. There are trees around the area, but other spots there won't be any shade.
- Either bring money to go to any nearby restaurants or bring your own lunch. We don't want anyone to be hungry throughout the event.
- Even if SoyCon has reduced the walking distance between areas, you still be walking around. Wear comfortable footwear and clothing.
- Everyone is responsible for their own possessions throughout the event. We may pickup any lost items left behind, but we can't take all of them.

For Picnic
- We recommend everyone to contribute something towards the picnic day. Provide eating utensils, food, tents, coolers, chairs, grills, etc.
- If you brought your own bowls, serving utensils, or anything else, please make sure you take them with you when the picnic is over. We will toss out anything you left behind.
- For those bringing a grill, bring your cooking utensils and items.
- If you have food that needs to be kept cool, we would recommend you or someone else to bring a cooler. (They do have dollar foam coolers that you can buy.)
- If you can make something, like pasta, muffins, salad, kabobs, etc., please bring them! We don't want to have a gazillion chips, cookies, and candy.
- Cups, eating utensils, water, burger patties, hotdog links, buns, and/or ice are good items to bring to the picnic.

[Seph]

im going to try to make this one

[Soy Sauce]

For those who were wondering about the situations in downtown Chicago involving the "crimes", we are still trying to search for an alternate location for the photoshoot. With limited time, it's possible we may proceed to go through the photoshoot day as scheduled. We highly recommend to not travel alone. We want everyone to be safe & secured for this year's SoyCon. We'll do our best to keep you updated.

This post has been edited by Soy Sauce: 22 June 2011 - 11:50 AM

[The Fujoshi]

Soy Sauce I have some questions:

What does the Volunteer work pertain?

Can you register to go to Soy con at the last minute? I had some personal issues that have to be settled so I won't know until July or a few days before if I can go or not.

My lease just went up this month so I might be moving but I still want to try to have fun since it's free.

[Soy Sauce]

The Fujoshi, on 22 June 2011 - 01:04 PM, said:

Soy Sauce I have some questions:

What does the Volunteer work pertain?

Can you register to go to Soy con at the last minute? I had some personal issues that have to be settled so I won't know until July or a few days before if I can go or not.

My lease just went up this month so I might be moving but I still want to try to have fun since it's free.

Volunteering has different sections: operations, registration, and medical team. More details can be found here. Let me know as soon as possible if you want to help out. (Before July 1st.)

Registration can be done on site. We will have forms available for those who don't have a printer or forgotten their forms.