What is CONfabulation?
Who runs CONfabulation?
Where is CONfabulation held?
What is CONfabulation’s refund policy?
What is CONfabulation’s policy on COVID-19?
Will any celebrities be at CONfabulation?
What are CONfabulation’s policies on diversity?
What is CONfabulation’s harassment policy?
Is CONfabulation accessible?
How old do I have to be to attend CONfabulation?
Why is your logo an infinity symbol?
Who will see my registration information?
What kind of programming does CONfabulation offer?
What is Badfic Idol?
What is the Saturday Night Dance all about?
How do I participate in the Vid Show?
What off-site activities do you have planned?
Will there be vendors?
What is the Fandom Lounge?
What’s the Charity Raffle about?
How many vids can I submit?
What formats can I submit? What are their specs?
What does Aspect Ratio (16:9 or 4:3) mean?
Are het/slash/incest vids welcome in the show? What about vids that use outside or photomanipulated footage?
Can I submit vids that have been shown elsewhere, or that I’ve distributed online?
How will the vids be shown?
I have a question that isn’t listed here, who do I ask?
General Questions
What is CONfabulation?
In the simplest of terms, CONfabulation is a long-weekend where people from fandom come together to talk about the things they love best. CONfabulation is a celebration of fandom with panels and structured events. We are the internet in all its glory, come to life. We are a place to get together with old friends, discover new ones, and talk about everything that makes us squee. For more information, check out our About Us page.
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Where is CONfabulation held?
In 2021 we will be gathering together in a virtual space via zoom and discord. In 2022 we look to be back at the Springhill Suites in Chicago.
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What is CONfabulation’s refund policy?
Refunds for convention registration can be requested until two weeks before the event.
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Will any celebrities be at CONfabulation?
No official personnel from any fandom is affiliated with this convention, nor will there be any appearances by any show actors, celebrities, writers, or other personnel. It’s all about us, the fans, and the way we express ourselves and our love for fandom.
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What are CONfabulation’s policies on diversity?
Diversity is a great strength of fandom, and to that end we take proactive measures to ensure all attendees of every race, gender, sexuality, nationality, disability, culture, age and religion are comfortable and welcomed. While we admit we may make mistakes, we strive to always do better.
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What is CONfabulation’s harassment policy?
CONfabulation is dedicated to providing a harassment-free conference experience for everyone, regardless of gender, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, body size, race, age, or religion. We do not tolerate harassment of conference participants in any form. Conference participants violating these rules may be sanctioned or expelled from the conference without a refund at the discretion of the conference organizers. Full details on our harassment policy can be found here.
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Is CONfabulation accessible?
CONfabulation strives to be accessible to all fans. Our event facilities are always provided by an ADA-accessible hotel, which houses our Panels, Roundtables, Fandom Lounge, and Friday Night Masquerade. We are happy to work with our attendees to the best of our abilities on this matter and encourage you to email us with your requests, questions or concerns related to any special needs or accessibility issues: info@confabcon.com.
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How old do I have to be to attend CONfabulation?
You must be 18 on or before the first day of the con in order to attend.
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Why is your logo an infinity symbol?
We had a contest in 2016 to see who could create CONfabulation’s new logo! Mikaela (technicolorstarburst) won, and provided this explanation as to her design:
I chose an infinity symbol as the focus because I believe it is synonymous with fandom. Fandom can be viewed as taking something finite, such as a television show or book, and making it infinite through endless interpretations and remixes. This is not to mention the people associated with fandom that come from an infinite number of backgrounds, personality types, gender identities, etc.
Who will see my registration information?
Only authorized personnel on staff will ever see the personal information you enter when you register. The only information shared publicly at the con are the names submitted for the front/back of your badge. However, you must provide a government-issued ID during check-in to verify your name and age. For further information, please see our Privacy Policy.
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Programming Questions
What kind of programming does CONfabulation offer?
We offer a wide variety of programming tracks, including panels, roundtables, workshops and other events. Most of our programming is suggested, voted for and run by attendees, to ensure that CONfabulation is about what our attendees want it to be about. In addition to that, we also have regular features such as our Meet & Greet, the Vid Show, Badfic Idol, and the Dance Party. For current information or to submit an idea, check out the Programming page.
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What is Badfic Idol?
Badfic Idol is a dramatic reading of deliberately terrible short fanfic written by attendees and submitted specifically to be read aloud in the most embarrassing way possible. Warning for second- and first-hand embarrassment squick, very thorough descriptions of animal genitals and usually at least one instance of egg-laying.
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What is the Saturday Night Dance all about?
CONfabulation’s dance is about community, positive self-expression, acceptance, and celebrating everyone’s individuality and amazingness. It’s also a big dance party with complimentary hors d’oeuvres, a cash bar, and more sparkling lights than you can shake a stick at. We dance, we eat, we drink, we dance some more, and we come together in the true spirit of CONfabulation and fandom. For more info about CONfabulation’s dance, keep an eye on our Programming page.
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How do I participate in the Vid Show?
We hold a multi-fandom vid show every year. Each vidder may submit up to 3 works, and we privately inform each vidder if their work is selected as soon as possible after the deadline. For more information and news, keep an eye on the Programming page.
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What off-site activities do you have planned?
While no off-site activities are part of the official CONfabulation programming, many are planned in advance by attendees and staff and will be listed on the website and program book. They become an essential part of many people’s unofficial weekend plans. For more details or to see other off-site activities planned, check out the Off-Site Events page.
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Will there be vendors?
We will have a dedicated space for vendors in the Fandom Lounge. For details on how to become a vendor at CONfabulation, please email us at info@confabcon.com.
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What is the Fandom Lounge?
The Fandom Lounge is a place that fosters creativity and informal discussion. At any given moment, there’s at least one game of Cards Against Humanity happening, and there is always someone to admire your latest button or craft project. With complimentary wireless, DVD player, screen, projector, tables, chairs, and floor space, the Fandom Lounge is designed to accommodate creative use, meet ups and discussions, and refueling and relaxing between activities. It’s where we meet new friends, catch up with old ones, and it is where we kick off and wind down CONfabulation each year. It will be the center of the action all weekend.
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What’s the Charity Raffle about?
Every year we pick a local charity to support by way of a raffle. We’ll accept donations of fannish (or just cool!) items on-site, which will then be raffled off. Raffle tickets are $1. To find out about this year’s raffle and who we’re supporting, check out the Charity Raffle page.
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Vid Show Questions
How many vids can I submit?
Each vidder may submit up to 3 vids. Please note: This does NOT guarantee that your vids will all be shown. Barring an overwhelming number of submissions or insurmountable technical difficulties, we will show at least the first priority vid for all submitting vidders.
Also note: submissions are counted by submitting vidder, NOT by collaboration team. Any one member of a team can choose to submit a collaboration vid, but they must then decide the relative priority of that vid vs. any other solo vids they want to submit. Please discuss with your collaborators who will submit which vid.
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What formats can I submit? What are their specs?
Accepted formats:
A single audio/video file in “.avi”, “.mp4”, or “.wmv”. If your video is in another format, please try to convert it, or email us first to see if we can process your video type.
If you prefer to split the file in the format of a MPEG-2 video file plus a separate audio file, please contact vidshow@confabcon.com for instructions.
Specs for accepted formats:
AVI, MP4, or WMV audio/video file: preferred 720×480 (full screen) or 720×404 (widescreen) resolution, NTSC format, encoded at 5500-6500 kpbs bit rate*
MPEG-2 video file: MPEG-2 video, 720×480 (full screen) or 720×404 (widescreen) resolution, NTSC format, encoded at 5500-6500 kpbs bit rate*, with an “m2v” suffix.
*IMPORTANT: Do NOT encode your vid at a higher bit rate. If you do, you increase the file size without noticeably improving video quality and increase the likelihood of jerky playback. No one wants jerky playback.
Audio file: WAV or AIFF format (48 kHz). Please do NOT use AC-3 or mp3.
AVI or QuickTime MOV file (if need be): 29.97 frames per second, 720×480 (or 720×404) resolution, highest quality.
DIVX file (if need be): 29.97 frames per second, 720×480 (or 720×404) resolution, high bit rate.
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What does Aspect Ratio (16:9 or 4:3) mean?
Aspect ratio refers to the size of the picture. Older TV shows that were shot in standard definition are a square picture and are considered 4:3 or full screen. Newer TV shows and movies that are shot in high definition are a rectangular picture and are considered 16:9 or widescreen/letterbox.
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Are het/slash/incest vids welcome in the show? What about vids that use outside or photomanipulated footage?
The short version is, all genres of vids are allowed. The Con Comm doesn’t discriminate when it comes to the content of vids except in the unlikely event that a vid presents liability issues.
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Can I submit vids that have been shown elsewhere, or that I’ve distributed online?
Yes, but priority will be given to those vids that have never been shown at a con or distributed online. We want to encourage vidders to debut their vids at CONfabulation, to create the freshest and most exciting Vid Show possible. That said, if you have something you absolutely LOVED and posted earlier this year, please feel free to send it in. We’ll try to include it if we can.
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How will the vids be shown?
The show will be compiled onto a DVD, and played back on a large screen at the Con.
I have a question that isn’t listed here, who do I ask?
No worries, we’re happy to answer any questions that you have! You can email us at info@confabcon.com.
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