Japan meeting of Furries (JMoF) 2016 at Toyohashi, Japan
The SG furs and Malaysia fuzzies are at JMoF this year, Kudos to Kriske (JMoF Chairman) and Ham (JMoF Vice-president) for organising the convention and allowing us to be a part of it. For us SGFurs, it is the first time we got to meet our Japanese counter-parts right on their own soil. JMoF as a furcon is uniquely Japanese with its own style and culture different from western furry conventions like those in the United States and Europe.
The convention is typical of a small convention- a self-contained convention with all attendees housed within the convention hotel, with small hotel lobby and courtyard where everyone can meet, network with each other as well as attend panels within the convention space. There is extensive emphasis on namecard networking, a culture the convention Chairman shared is one lifted from the feom cosplayers. You will be surprised how many namecards and social networks you can be part of after the con!
The Thai and Taiwanese furs attended the convention as well. With the help of our Thai fur friends we participated in a panel introducing the Japanese group to the furry fandom in south east asia. Covering key conventions in the region such as Infurnity (Taiwan), Thai tails (Thailand), Furum (Malaysia) and last but not least Singapore’s very own Furry Lah!
The convention was a 3 day event, running Friday to Sunday, starting on Friday evening with opening ceremony. The convention dealers den runs only on a single day (Sunday) which is a very good idea for a small con- it does not lock up dealers in the den throughout the convention, allows them to enjoy the con for most number of days, and condensing all sales on the last day. This allowed dealers to build up interest and publicise their goods for sale on the days leading up to the convention.
The deaddog party on the last convention day (Sunday) was the closure of the convention after the closing ceremony, where everyone gets together for a good hearty meal with free flow of drinks with con attendees and the organising committee.
The convention ended with a free daytrip to Honnoi botanical gardens and zoo, the convention’s charity organisation for this year. The park is a zoo, botanical garden and themepark all in one. Various fursuiters got to mingle with the park guests, they were also a big hit with the children!
Overall the convention was very enjoyable, The Japanese are extremely hospitable as hosts, not to mention extremely polite as well. JMoF is a convention well recommended in the East Asian region. We will be there again for sure.
JMoF 2016 Photo Gallery
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