Manifest 2008 - FAQ

Do you have a question? Well before you e-mail us have a look if the answer is here and if you still cannot find the answers e-mail us here.

About Manifest

General Questions

Registration Questions

 

What is Manifest?
Manifest (Melbourne Anime Festival) is an anime convention held over a weekend that incorporates such events as anime screenings, cosplay, Japanese culture and more.

When is Manifest?
It will from Friday the 26th until Sunday the 28th of September 2008. The Amaranth Anime Ball will also be happening on the night of the 25th of September. For more information, click this page.

Where is Manifest held?
Manifest is held in the University of Melbourne, just north of the Melbourne CBD. It will be in the Economics and Commerce Building, Old Arts Building and in Union House. The registration desk information will be released soon, which will be your first point of contact when coming to Manifest. For more information on the location and how to get there, click here.

What can I expect from Manifest this year?
Each year we have certain events that are almost guaranteed to happen like cosplay, screenings and traders, however along with what the fans have come to love, we also hope to bring you fresh and entertaining events every year.  The anime we screen typically range from the latest out of Japan to some more rare or interesting titles, but these are typically decided almost near the convention date itself so keep a look out at our schedule page then.

Who are and what is MOC?
For more information on the Manifest Organising Committee, click here.  Basically we are a group of people who endeavor to bring to you Manifest each year.  Melbourne Anime Festival Incorporated is a not for profit organisation.  All our proceeds go to creating bigger and better conventions year after year and the members of MOC are all volunteers.  If you want to become part of the MOC, please email manifest@manifest.org.au to inquire when our next meeting is.  We typically hold them every fortnight and we welcome anyone who is interested.

 

What is anime and manga?
Anime is the Japanese word for animation, but it has come to refer to animation that comes strictly out of Japan. For more information click here for the Wikipedia page.
Manga is the Japanese word for comic books, but it has also come to refer to comic books that come from Japan. For more information click here for the Wikipedia page.
Many anime are derived from Manga, and the two are generally entwined in their history and art styles.

I'm a parent and I'm not entirely sure what anime is.  What exactly will my child/children be exposed to while at Manifest?
Manifest tries to give as much information as possible for attendees to make informed decisions. Most screenings generally at the bare minimum require parental guidance and many anime screened at Manifest have mature content.

In general, the events within Manifest are for general audiences though some may require parental guidance pending content. These will be advised in advance of the event taking place if this is the case.

Panels range for all audiences from general audience to restricted material. These will be advised as the date moves closer to Manifest and this information becomes available.

I'm coming with my child/children but will not participate. Do I still need to pay for a membership?
Yes, all attendees need to agree to the code of conduct and must pay for a membership.

Do you have a Lost and Found?
If during the convention you lose an item then you can either contact one of the MOC members or proceed to the Information Desk. After the event, you could email us with a description of your lost item and we'll see how we can help.

 

Will I be able to purchase membership to the festival on the day?
Our registration department will be selling all available and unreserved memberships on the day at Manifest until we sell out. Because of the popularity of the festival we encourage people to turn up early to ensure they get in, but even this does not mean we won’t sell out before you get to the door.

If Manifest sells out of any type of membership – we will be posting it on our website as soon as humanly possible – to let you all know those memberships are not longer available (and also to spread news of our success).

Do I get free entry to Manifest if I volunteer?
No, however volunteers get a bunch of other rewards for volunteering. Some of these include an exclusive free volunteers t-shirt, free entry to Minifest the following year, as well as others. Please check out the volunteer’s page for more information.

Do I have to wear my membership badge while at Manifest?
Yes. This helps us identify our attendees as well as help with security at the convention.  It allows you entry to all the events and screenings as well as the trader's hall. Without it, you will be denied entry. You must ensure that it is clearly visible at all times. We try every year to make it an awesome collectible item, so wear it proudly.

Can I register multiple people at once?
No individual is permitted to register another individual for Manifest 2008, unless they are registering an attendee aged 17 and under. The reason for this is that each individual is required to read the terms and conditions of entry (known as our Code of Conduct), and is required to agree to it, either via the online registration form, or our written form.

If you wish to pay for multiple people or send registrations together, we recommend you mail in a group of forms that each individual has filled out and include your payment with this mail.

You can also pay for multiple registrations simply by including all the relevant references on your (Australia Post) Money Order, Cheque or Direct Credit/ Electronic Funds Transfer.

I am 15 years old or under and my parent/guardian will be unable to attend Manifest. Will my friend who is 18 years old or over be able to accompany me instead?
Yes, your friend must be with you when you collect your badge and you must remain with him/her while attending the convention.

If you are found without your guardian within the convention, you will be escorted to registration for your guardian to pick you up and/or a phone call to your guardian via the emergency phone number given for them to collect you.

 

How long does it take to process my mailed in registration form and payment?
Without taking into account the time it will take for your mail to reach us, Manifest will endeavour to process all mailed in forms and payment within 5 working days. If after 10 working days you have not received any confirmation (via e-mail) that we have received either your registration details or your payment, please get in contact with our registration team at registration@manifest.org.au straight away to clear up what has happened to your mail.

I just pre-registered. Where and when do I get my membership badge?
You will be able to pick up your membership badge at the registration desk on the days of Manifest. Please be aware when picking up your membership badge you will need your membership stub (the confirmation of payment e-mail first page) as well as ID that proves your age to Manifest.

What do I need to bring to Manifest to get my membership badge?
You are required to bring your confirmation stub (first page of confirmation e-mail) and correct ID.

What if I forget/don’t have my confirmation details?
If you have lost your confirmation details (your registration stub), please e-mail us at registration@manifest.org.au with your registration (personal) details, and we will attempt to re-issue you your confirmation details via e-mail, or via post (only as required, and where appropriate).

What form of ID can I use when collecting my badge (and proving my age)?
The registration process will be smoothest on each of you, our attendees, should your Identification contain these three simple things:

  • Your full name
  • A photo of you
  • Your date of birth (or identifies your age)

The following forms of Identification(s) that we will accept without complaint or issue:

  • Current Australian Drivers License (Ls, Ps or Full License)
  • International Passport
  • Proof of Age Card
  • Key Pass Card
  • Other Photo ID accompanied with a Birth Certificate

Manifest is required to check the age of our attendees to verify if attendees are aged 18 or over, as well as establishing whether they are aged 15 or under, or 16 and over. This is because Manifest has different legal and insurance obligations to each of these age groups of attendees.

Can I use my School, TAFE or University card?
If this form of identification contains your full name, a photo of yourself, and your date of birth (or age) and follows the standards of your institutions identification system, we will accept these as a proof of who you are.

Most School, TAFE and University cards do not regularly contain people’s ages and their date of birth, if this is the case, we strongly suggest you bring along your birth certificate in order to prove your age, otherwise you may be refused entry, without entitlement to a refund.

What if I don’t have any ID or a birth certificate that can verify my age?
For Attendees who are purchasing child priced membership, and are aged 0 – 15, we would prefer that you have some form of ID to verify who you are, but we will not force the requirement of proving your age (as we understand children are rarely issued with IDs), as you will be attending the event with your parent or legal guardian and be under their care.

For Attendees who are purchasing full priced membership, but are aged 16 – 17, you must have acceptable photo identification and prove your date of birth/age to us at the time of picking up your membership/registration. If you do not have any identification that supports you are aged 16 - 17 you will be regarded by us as a child, and will be required to have a parent or guardian attend the event with you and supervise you throughout the entire festival. If you cannot prove your age, or provide a guardian we will refuse you entry, and you will not be entitled to any refund.

For attendees who are purchasing full priced memberships, and are aged 18 and above, you must have acceptable photo identification and prove your date of birth/age to us at the time of picking up your membership/registration. If you do not have any identification that supports you are aged 18 and above, and we have a reasonable doubt that you are – we will refuse you entry, and you will not be entitled to any refund.

Why are there a limited number of personalised badges this year?
Manifest has been steadily growing every year and in 2007 we had roughly 4,500 attendees attend Manifest, of which we had 2,400 opt for personalised badges, which were available free of charge. Unfortunately Manifest has experienced continuous problems with printing companies providing our membership badges to us disorganized every year, which has led to us spending time, and wasting your, our attendees, time looking for your personalised badges.

Because a number of attendees would still like to have personalised badges, as special keep-sakes we have decided to keep personalised badges, but limit the number of badges available with this feature – this way we hope to maintain a healthy balance between everyone’s wants and needs.

Why do I need to pay an extra $5 to get a personalised badge this year?
We would like to have the personalised badges become a “special item” to our attendees, and are gauging how interested our attendees are in having personalised badges. Thus we have deemed a $5 fee to be an appropriate amount for this year’s trial run.

Why can’t I get a personalised badge?
Personalised badges are only available online, so you must register via our online system to get one. This is because we have a limited number and as the mail is slow – we want to ensure an accurate tracking system of how many we have sold.

If the option to purchase a personalised badge is no longer available, this means that we have sold our total number of personalised badges.

No guarantees on re-releasing or increasing the number of personalised badge sales will be made. Although it is possible that while personalised badges may not be available at one point in time, they may become available again a few days later (this is due to cancellations and other issues.)

Why was the payment(s) for my membership rejected/returned?
We return or reject payments that are unidentifiable by us. This means that we will reject any Money Orders, Cheques, Direct Credits or Electronic Funds Transfers that do not include with them the reference numbers informing us for whom the payment is for. And where we are able – we will return the funds or Money Order/Cheque to its originating destination.

Unfortunately we are not able to return cash deposits made into our account. So should you have made a cash deposit into our account – and did not include any reference numbers, we will not count this as payment received.

If you fail to recognise, and ignore our reminder e-mails to pay the fee for your membership – you may not be able to enter at Manifest 2008, as all un-paid memberships are not reserved, and will be required to pay full price from the 8th of September. If you opted for a personalised badge but did not pay your membership in time, you may have lost your personalised membership – and will be returned the difference of a standard weekend membership either via cheque in the mail (where appropriate) or refunded the difference at the registration desk at the time of collection.

Why am I receiving e-mails reminding me to pay for my membership when I have already done so?
This is possibly due to the fact that we haven’t received your payment. There are a number of reasons for this including your payment was unidentifiable by us. In this case where we are able – we will return the funds or Money Order/Cheque to its originating destination.

If funds are sent and they are identifiable to us, chances are that if your payment was recently sent, it is in the process of being processed. We will take up to 10 working days to process payments from when we receive them.

In all cases of receiving this e-mail and you believe you have sent the payment to Manifest, please get in contact with our registration team at registration@manifest.org.au straight away to clear up what has happened to your payment.

How can I go about changing my membership type (downgrade/upgrade)?
Please contact the registration team at registration@manifest.org.au to change your membership. Be aware this could take up to 5 working days to change as well as additional payment may need to be sent to Manifest.

Excess funds from the difference of memberships will be returned either via cheque in the mail (where appropriate) or refunded the difference at the registration desk at the time of collection.

If the change of the membership type is from 8th of September until 24th of September you may be required to pay on the day prices. After this time, no changing of membership types will be accepted.

I can’t attend Manifest 2008 anymore, can I transfer my membership to my friend who can?
No, all Manifest 2008 memberships are non-transferable.

If you would like to claim a refund for being unable to attend Manifest 2008 – you should refer to our Terms and Conditions and contact us via the appropriate methods.

What are Mafia/Yakuza and family names on the registration form?
The Mafia/Yakuza boxes are the side you prefer to be on, in terms of the theme for Manifest 2008. The family name is what your group would put down, if they were a Mafia/Yakuza family. These are optional to put down on your form.