Fan Art Forum Revival? How to ressurect this forum?

[ComicChick]

Hey all,

As many of the vets around here know, this was Excelsior's stomping ground pretty much since the beginning and I'll always consider this forum his baby.
I've been a moderator of this forum for a few years now and in my early days, particularly before the purge, it's where I spent most of my time on the Hype.

Sadly, traffic has dwindled down here in recent years. We have had some amazingly talented people in the past and we have talented people now. Not all post their works in this forum or even visit it, so how can we bring people back and get it hopping in here again?

I've thought of some possible ideas, and would love to hear all of your feedbacks and suggestions as well.

* Fan Art Contests
These were a staple for quite some time and in the early days, actual prizes were given out. I've been toying with the idea of bringing these back as bi-monthly contests, and I would give out actual prizes. Is there interest in these? They're mostly for fun, the prizes would just help up the competitive edge and maybe bring more traffic and make it more interesting. i'm definitely up for suggestions for themes.

* The Coloring Thread(s)
These were fairly successful as well. Line Art was posted as timely intervals and users would work on the photos and color them in various mediums. Different skill levels were shown and it was great to see how everyone interpreted the same pieces in their own way. Creativity flowed and best of all, people shared tips and tools and helped each other get better.

would love to get some feedback on this from you all. Thanks - CC

 

[Spider-Who?]

Ha, I haven't visited this sub in AGES and the only reason I did today was because I wondered if you guys were still doing contests.

 

[ComicChick]

i thought about putting up an unofficial Halloween one if there is interest

 

[Mee]

Yeah I miss when this part of the boards was all hustle and bustle.


Contests will only work to bring traffic if it's one of those sticky announcements that you see wherever you are on the Hype. I don't think Excelsior did it that way, just a sticky thread in this section, but people actually went to the Fan Art section back then so he didn't have to.


SHH might be too big a deal for this, but there used to be sites like Comics2Film that would put select fan arts on the main page of their site. It would just be a couple thumnails on the side of the main page that when you clicked would link you to the fan art forum or to that person's thread? I dunno. The logistics of picking who/what goes on the front page would be tricky if SHH brass even went for it, but it would get the SHH art community a lot more exposure. Maybe don't even use thumbnails, maybe just a tab that's something like "check out our fan art forum featuring bi-monthly art contests with prizes!"

 

[ComicChick]

i tried a few contests a while back and offered to sticky the winner's art thread to the top of the forum for the duration of the next contest until a new winner was selected. i could def offer that up again and talk to admins and techs about if there are ways to sticky it site-wide for exposure

 

[Spider-Who?]

That's not a bad idea.

 

[keith_v]

I love the idea of bringing back fan art contests, and having prizes will definitely bring in a lot of traffic back. I like the idea of featuring the winner's art somewhere prominently on the site. Other cool things could be collectibles or even dvd's. It doesn't have to be anything crazy, but a tangible prize is always a nice incentive. Also, just for organization, I'd have a thread for the submissions for the monthly contest, and then a thread with a gallery of all the submissions. I can't remember if that's how SHH did it in the past, but I know that's how conceptart.org lays out their art contests, and it works really nicely.

One last thing; I think the art contests need strict themes. I know this month is a free-for-all, but I think doing that doesn't hype up people the same way a theme like "Walking Dead vs. your favorite hero" or "Universal Monsters meets the Justice League" would. Themes get people to think creatively, and tends to stir up more discussion and more competition. They keep people focused and while are already supplying people with an idea, can actually help people think even more abstract and creatively.

 

[ComicChick]

thank you for your input Keith_v. it's so nice to see that you are still around.

October from years past always seemed to be a Halloween themed free-for-all and I was hoping that the broad topic would help bring some interest back.
I actually went back through the entire fan art forum to find and look through all old contests that I could find, for ideas on how to run them, what topics had been done, feedback etc.

I intend to start off with bi-monthly contests with the intent of giving out prizes to the winners. i have quite a few items of varying nature that I intend to offer up. There will be a contest thread, a voting thread where all the entries will be viewable, and a thread for the winner.

As for hype-related prizes, I totally agree that showcasing the artist is a great thing. I would definitely offer to sticky their art thread at the top of the forum until a new winner is crowned, I can talk to an admin about upping avatar sizes for those who do not already have 100x100 capabilities. I'd even be willing to advertise the winner in my own signature if they would like me to. i would even look into the possibility of doing a forum wide announcement for the winners, but of course i need to talk to the higher ups before i can promise that one

just some ideas i've been throwing around.

 

[ComicChick]

Ive spoken with Hunter Rider and one of the prizes will be 100x100 size avatar capabilities for the winner(s) AND a max file size of 300kb. however, avatars of that kb size will have to be inserted by moderators

 

[ComicChick]

the november/december fan art contest is up!
http://forums.superherohype.com/showthread.php?p=30027457

 

[The Avenger]

Maybe do a requests thread? And put links up in more popular forums? Maybe do contests where members can win a piece of art from an artist on the boards? Or maybe a charity of some sort using the art as a gift or prize?Or if a new Superhero film is out get an artist on the boards to paint something from the movie then put it up on the more popular sub forums. Try involving members from the more popular sub forums,make it a place where not just fan art is shown but superhero art in general too. There are all kinds of artists whos work is mind blowing that would attract members from other parts of the boards,after all art is a HUGE part of the superhero/comic book industry. I personally love Adi Granov. You could have sub sections or threads especially dedicated to certain art or professional artists. if it got popular with different threads,batman art,superman art,etc. You could feature different comic book artists( Adi Granov as an example) or concept art from movies and if it took off do interviews with the artists or even get a tips section for people who wanna get into art or want too develop there art and improve.

 

[ComicChick]

please drop in and vote in the Jan/Feb art contest voting thread here:
http://forums.superherohype.com/showthread.php?t=494763

The Mar/Apr Fan Art Contest Thread:
http://forums.superherohype.com/showthread.php?t=494765

 

[ComicChick]

the voting thread for the July Fan Art contest is now up, please check it out and vote for your favorite:

http://forums.superherohype.com/showthread.php?t=502709

 

[ComicChick]

looking for suggestions for future Fan Art contests. i have a small list but i'm always interested in ideas from the community here

 

[The Avenger]

looking for suggestions for future Fan Art contests. i have a small list but i'm always interested in ideas from the community here

Maybe run competitions in advance of new films coming up. Then when film is out you announce winner,and then put the winning piece in thatcspecific films section on the forum. Also showing more comic art and art from covers and concept art all from famous comic book artists,adi granov as an example,and even do interviews of them. Merge the fan art section with the pro artists section,where you have diff popular artists,articles,interviews as well as concept art of upcoming or past films. Art is a huge part of comics and films yet it doesn't seem to get much attention on the site.

 

[Bean13]

I rejoined today and was saddened to see the Colouring Threads gone! What caused them to be removed? I think they'd go a long way to boosting the forum again, they always seemed packed!

 

[ComicChick]

id be up for bringing them back

 

[Bean13]

I reckon a lot of people would be really pleased to see it back! It was a great resource and actually got me interested in digital colouring, it'd be amazing to see it all back here again!

 

[MadderMaximus]

Was that the one where a black and white piece was put up and members colored it?

 

[ComicChick]

Was that the one where a black and white piece was put up and members colored it?

yes. i would post a few pieces every week or two and people would color them and it was cool to see everyone's different interpretations and skill levels, but it was also a great was for others to get advice and encouragement to improve

 

[MadderMaximus]

yes. i would post a few pieces every week or two and people would color them and it was cool to see everyone's different interpretations and skill levels, but it was also a great was for others to get advice and encouragement to improve

Yeah, i remember, I nearly forgot all about it, lol

 

[Bean13]

So where do we vote to get that back up and running? t:

 

[ComicChick]

you don't have to vote, i'll get to work on it asap

 

[Bean13]

WOO!

 

[Bean13]

Has there been any news?