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There’s nothing quite like volunteering at VidCon. You get to be in the best place in the world with the most wonderful group of people ever. I’ve never found a group of people I’ve felt more comfortable with so quickly, and I know that the friendships I’ve made through volunteering at VidCon are ones I will treasure for years to come. 

This year I had the honor of being a MOD for the signing hall. Essentially, this meant I had to make sure all of the volunteers working in the signing hall knew what they were doing, answer any questions from attendees or direct them to someone who could, and make sure signings were going at the right pace.

The signing hall is my absolute favorite place in all of VidCon. There’s so much energy in the room with the fans being excited to meet their featured creators. I love being able to witness that that all day and be a part of what makes it possible.

There were two very special parts about the signing hall this year. As a MOD, I got to work more directly with contracted staff, one of which was Talia, a good friend of mine I met last VidCon. I was so, so excited when I heard I would be working with her all day because of how long it had been since we last saw each other. I was worried with her being staff I wouldn’t see her as much, but boy was I wrong about that. We had a blast messing around during down time, and it literally could not have been a better experience any other way. I do have to mention, though, that the rest of the signing hall staff were amazing too. Makenna was super nice work and hang out with, and it was a pleasure to get to know Erin a bit more from last year. Teryn, though. I can’t give her enough thanks. She is the signing hall manager and just a huge role model for me. She absolutely kills it in the signing hall and is so fun to work with. I am honored to say I have her autograph on my Crew badge.

The second very special part was an adorable little girl in an Anna dress. During the last signing, she went up to Makenna, who had helped out her and her mom a couple times throughout the weekend, and asked for her autograph on her Frozen hat. It was the most precious thing I had ever seen. And then later on, she was the second to last person in the last line to meet MatPat, the last FC in the signing hall. She was just saying the darn cutest things, and with the combination of the cuteness, the relief of being done, and how ridiculously tired I was, I started laugh-crying. I felt a bit pathetic, but it was such a great way to end the weekend.

I want to give a ginormous thanks to all the seasoned SuperMODs for welcoming us newbies with open arms. I also want to give a very special thanks to Adrienne for somehow wrangling all of us together. You will be missed next year, but I wish you all the best with your new job. And of course a thanks must be sent to @edwardspoonhands for allowing VidCon to exist in the first place. It was a privilege to work with the of entirety of the volunteer leadership team and everyone who helped make this VidCon happen.

There is no doubt in my mind that I will be at VidCon next year.

In an effort to increase the security and safety of VidCon, this year the entire outdoor Festival area and Lobby of the Anaheim Convention Center will be closed off to anyone without a VidCon badge. There will be fencing and security staff posted throughout the perimeter of the Grand Plaza, where the AwesomenessTV Festival Stage and food trucks live, as well as up & around the ACC on both sides. The only way to have access to these spaces, as with the rest of VidCon, is to have a VidCon pass.

With this in mind, we are sure there are some parents, guardians, and older siblings without tickets out there thinking, “What about me? Where am I supposed to hang out?”

Good news here at VidCon!

If your child is over 13 and you are fine with them attending the event alone, they're welcome to be there without you. Nearby restaurants and hotels, including the Marriott just next door, are still open to the public, and you may hang there for the weekend.

Secondly, Chaperone Wristbands: Whereas last year you had to have a VidCon badge in order to get a chaperone wristband, this year, it is not a requirement to have a badge to receive a chaperone wristband. If you would like to stay on the convention center grounds for the weekend, you may get a chaperone wristband at registration, when your child picks up their badge. Your child MUST be present in order to get a chaperone wristband at registration!

With a chaperone wristband, but without a badge, you will be able to visit the Festival area, the Parents' Lounge in Hall D, the Signing & Photo Hall (only if/when your child has signings to attend), and the entire Lobby area of the Anaheim Convention Center.

If you'd like to go to any panels or Q&As, into the Expo Halls, or see any concerts with your child, you must purchase a ticket before June 6. A chaperone wristband alone will not allow you into any spaces with content at VidCon. Similarly, we require all children under 13 to be accompanied by someone over 18 throughout the event, so if a child in your charge plans to be there, you must stay with them, and you must purchase a ticket. Tickets are still available here if you need to get one: vidcon.com/registration. Please keep in mind that in order to get to the same spaces as your child, you'll need to purchase the same type of pass!

INTERMIX SHORT FILM SCREENINGS & DISCUSSION

Are you a filmmaker? Are you attending VidCon with a Creator Track pass? Have you made a short film and do want to have lots of people see it?

Intermix, a 90-minute screening and panel started by Emily Diana Ruth and Charlie McDonnell, is back for a third year at VidCon! And we need YOU to submit YOUR short films for consideration!

Intermix is a meeting of the minds of filmmakers from various backgrounds, communities and experience who all share one thing in common: they put their films online. A mix of vloggers turned filmmakers, filmmakers becoming vloggers and more traditional filmmakers who have just started to dip their toes into the world of online. Intermix aims to show a range of films found on the web, and to generate a discussion that exhibits the varied opinions, plans, interests and hopes of these creators, centered around their filmmaking in relationship to the internet.

Maximum run-time for submissions is 20 minutes. Please be aware that shorter is often better for programming, so keep that in mind when choosing what film to submit. You are welcome to submit more than one film. Your film can be screened without you actually attending VidCon, and not all filmmakers are necessarily panelists - though some may be! You'll need your own Creator Track ticket to attend.

Submissions are due April 30th!

Intermix will be held on the Friday of VidCon and is part of the Creator Track.

APPLY NOW TO PERFORM AT VIDCON’S FIRST-EVER SPOKEN WORD OPEN MIC!

We are thrilled to have Savannah Brown, poet and general-creative-person on YouTube hosting and judging the submissions with us for the first ever VidCon spoken word session!

Lately, spoken word and slam poetry have been securing themselves a spot in the mainstream, and rightfully so; they offer an incredible outlet for people of all backgrounds to express themselves and discuss the issues and ideas that matter to them in an inventive and exciting way. With that in mind, we’ve created an event aiming to highlight some of the best performers that VidCon has to offer.

10 to 15 poets will be selected to perform their best original slam or spoken word piece at the session. Your piece can be serious or light-hearted and can discuss just about anything: societal injustices, current events, love and relationships, and everything in between. The big issues, personal struggles or anecdotes—it’s all welcome. 

No matter the topic, the only guidelines to follow are that

The piece must be approximately 3-4 minutes long

A passionate performance is crucial!

To enter for the chance to perform, please upload a video of yourself performing the piece and submit it through our application. Submissions will be open until April 30th, and the selected poets will be announced on June 1st.

Ultimately, we want this to be a welcoming and laid-back gathering of creative people who enjoy spoken word and are interested in hearing works by a diverse group of great up-and-coming performers. See you there!

Spoken Word Open Mic will be held in the evening during VidCon - you must have a pass of any type (Community, Creator, or Industry) to participate and attend.

LESS THAN FAMOUS WINNERS ANNOUNCED!

VidCon is excited to announce Didda, Cassidy Quinn, Rood Vincent (Nicekid76), Steph Payano, Jess Abad (CueJessGo), and Justin Dennis as the winners of the fourth annual Less Than Famous panel contest! 

We received over 400 submissions, and it was extremely difficult to decide who would represent the panel, but we are confident we've found a well-rounded, highly passionate and knowledgable group of people. Congratulations to all the winners, and thank you to everyone who participated this year.

Be sure to come support our panelists at the Less Than Famous panel in June (part of VidCon 2016′s Creator Track).

See you at VidCon and DFTBA!

The Winners

Didda: youtube.com/DiddaProductions

Cassidy Quinn: youtube.com/CQBrett

Rood Vincent: youtube.com/nicekid76

Steph Payano: youtube.com/TheFauxHipster

Jess Abad: youtube.com/CueJessGo

APPLY FOR VIDCON’S CREATOR MENTORSHIP PROGRAM

Are you an impassioned Creator who is attending VidCon? Do you have a project or idea that could use some feedback? 

Then you might be interested in our Creator Mentorship program, now in its second year!

Creators who are selected will receive 15-20 minutes of one-on-one time to showcase their idea and receive feedback from one of our participating mentors.

Requirements: Must be registered for VidCon with a Creator Track pass What we’ll need: A link to your project & an essay on why you should be chosen for the mentorship program

Featured Creators, round TWO!