Convention Policies

Here are our convention policies. Please review and abide by them.

If you have any questions about your cosplay, prop, or the policies in general, please do not hesitate to ask us at kamiconstaff@gmail.com.

COVID-19 Policies

Photograpy

  • By entering Kami-Con, all attendees agree to have their photos taken by Kami-Con staff for promotional purposes. Kami-Con agrees not to use the photos in any other manner besides promotion and not to sell the photos to any third party.

  • Photography is allowed and encouraged at the convention. However, if someone does not wish to have their picture taken, please respect their wishes and refrain from photographing them. Also, if you want to take a picture, please be quick about it and do not block hallways or entrances.

  • Any photography equipment (screens, lights, etc) that you set up must be able to be immediately removed or taken down. Kami-Con reserves the right to ask you to disassemble or remove any set ups at any time.

Behavior

  • Disruptive behavior will not be tolerated, such as fighting (fake or real), heckling, impeding traffic flow, offensive behavior, failure to observe basic hygiene, public inebriation (or similar intoxication), or any other failure to follow the rules.

  • Kami-Con can and will take action against any type of disruptive behavior, even beyond the behaviors mentioned. Attendees that cause these types of problems may be warned, asked to leave, or even face inquiries from the police (depending on severity).

  • Kami-Con congoers attend at their own risk. Kami-Con takes no responsibility for any damages incurred to property or person of guests, artists, dealers, or attendees. Smoking is not permitted in the BJCC. Offensive or excessively revealing attire is not permitted.

  • Kami-Con takes no responsibility for lost items. If you lose a bag or personal effect, please check with the Kami-Con Information Desk.

  • No pets are allowed.

  • Vaporizers, Electronic Cigarettes, and any other smoking devices that emit smoke or vapor, are not permitted at the convention site.

Advertising / Sales

  • No sales are permitted on the premises outside of the Vendor Room, Artist Alley, or Kami-Shop. In these areas, only paid vendors or artists who have a copy of their respective contracts on file with Kami-Con will be allowed to sell their wares or art.

  • Kami-Con reserves the right to eject anyone from convention grounds at any time.

Cosplay Policies

  • For safety purposes, all attendees must wear some form of protective footwear. This our fancy way of saying, “You have to wear shoes.”

  • We at Kami-Con are generally very lax about our cosplay policies (as long as they meet the guidelines posed in the Weapons Policy), but we are trying to maintain a family friendly environment. As such, we ask that you refrain from excessively revealing cosplays. If you have to ask yourself, “Is my cosplay too revealing?” the answer is possibly yes. We have to ask that you use your best judgement on this one, or ask us by sending an e-mail to kamiconstaff@gmail.com.

  • Men and women require Full Coverage shorts. Women require Full Coverage top. (Full Coverage refers to a specific style and size of coverage.)

  • Underwear is not accepted attire, but swimsuits are okay as long as they are Full Coverage.

  • If you are uncertain about your cosplay, please feel free to e-mail us and ask us about it at kamiconstaff@gmail.com. Alternatively, please feel free to ask a staff member at the convention, but you may wish to bring a change of clothes just in case.

  • Kami-Con reserves the right to ask you to change or cover up.

  • For safety purposes, we do not allow leashes/handcuffs/or other types of leads and/or connectors to be worn and used to lead around other cosplayers.

Weapons Policies

  • Prop weapons that are part of a costume are permitted at Kami-Con with the following provisions:

    1. Absolutely no live steel is allowed. This refers to bladed metal weapons, but is extended to any metal guns, bullets, baseball bats, props, etc.

    2. All props may be inspected by convention staff at any time.

    3. Prop firearms must have a bright orange tip. Prop firearms must not be able to fire any kind of projectile. This includes tethered and liquid projectiles.

    4. Actual bladed weapons are not allowed at the con. “Peace bound” bladed weapons are not allowed.

    5. Actual firearms are not allowed on the premises.

    6. Actual bludgeoning weapons are not allowed.

    7. Any and all explosives are not allowed at the con (including firecrackers/fireworks). Offenders will be turned over to the police and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.

    8. Objects that can generate excessive noise, light, smoke, or confetti are prohibited on convention grounds.

    9. Props and any object designed to be swung should be kept under control at all times and not used in any manner that would endanger others. This includes, but is not limited to: bokken, shinai, whips, chains, nunchaku, training and foam “LARP” weaponry. Kept under control means held but not used. You can hold your bokken but you can not swing it at someone.

    10. Objects designed or representing objects designed to be thrown should under NO circumstances be thrown. They may be held and shown but not used in any other manner.

    11. All oversized props and costumes should be handled in a manner as to not endanger the safety of others, pose a fire hazard, block medical/security staff, or appear threatening.

  • Good Weapon Behavior:

    1. Do not brandish your weapon threateningly to any one.

    2. Do not swing your weapon. This includes training, bokken, shinai, and foam “LARP” weaponry.

    3. Do not throw any objects, not just weapons.

    4. Secure objects to your costume so they will not be hazardous as you move about the convention. Be aware that the convention may become quite crowded and take precautions that your costume and/or props do not endanger others in such a situation.

  • It is acceptable to assume threatening poses only under the following conditions:

    1. When asked to by others for a photograph if you can do so without endangering anyone in the immediate vicinity.

    2. If the judges of the costume contest ask you to do so.

    3. Poses are allowed, but anything that can be portrayed as fighting or sparring, friendly or otherwise, is explicitly forbidden.

  • Always move in a controlled manner so that your props and costume do not harm others or the property of the BJCC.

  • If at such a time the convention staff receives one or more complaints about a person’s behavior, said person may face penalties such as removal from the convention grounds, removal of the person’s props from the premises, and/or face inquiry from the authorities.

  • Kami-Con reserves the right to inspect any and all weapons and props and ask that such weapons or equipment be removed from the premises or stored away from the general public.

  • If any action is illegal outside of the BJCC, it is still illegal inside the BJCC. This includes reckless endangerment, theft, concealed weapons, assault, and other clearly illegal activities.

Strobe Light Policies

General policy

Strobe lights are not permitted outside of the rave and main event room concerts. Outside of these events, flashing lights must be kept to under two flashes per second, with the flashing lights placed at a distance from each other and set to flash together at the same time. Lights that flash less than once per second may alternate.

Vendor/artist alley/fan table policy

Strobe lights are not permitted outside of the rave and main event room concerts. Outside of these events, flashing lights must be kept to under two flashes per second, with the flashing lights placed at a distance from each other and set to flash together at the same time. Lights that flash less than once per second may alternate.

Anyone wishing to sell/distribute items with strobe lights may only demonstrate the strobe lights in a way that unaware passersby will not see the flashing lights, such as in a box (with appropriate warnings to those with photosensitive epilepsy if the box is accessible to the public). At the time of sale/distribution, the new owner must be reminded that strobe lights are not permitted outside of the rave and main event room concerts.

This policy is based on

The American Epilepsy Foundation’s professional advisory board recommends that:

  1. The flash rate be kept to under 2 hertz with breaks every so often between flashes

  2. Flashing lights should be placed at a distance from each other and set to flash together at the same time to avoid an increase in the number of individual flashes

The word hertz refers to something that happens in a second. For example, it can mean the number of times something flashes or flickers in 1 second.