Fantasy and role-play convention
| General information | |
| place | Landsweiler-Reden , Germany |
| genre | Fantasy , sci-fi |
| organizer | Fit4Charity |
| Period | since 2013 |
| Website | www.fark-messe.de |
| Visitor numbers | |
|---|---|
| 2013 | 6,000 |
| 2014 | 20,000 |
| 2015 | 30,000 |
| 2017 | 42,000 |
| 2019 | 55,500 |
| Previous venues | |
| 2013 | Illingen |
The Fantasy and Role Play Convention ( FaRK for short ) has been a non-commercial charitable event in Saarland that has been taking place since 2013 with a wide range of topics ranging from cosplay , role-playing games to science fiction . Because of the designation as the convention or as the fair, the short form is often referred to as the FaRK.
history
The first event took place in 2013 in the multi-purpose hall "Illipse" in Illingen . The event should also take place every two years as a counterbalance to the biennial medieval market . Due to the strong popularity of the participants, one of the employees made a bet with the organizer Benjamin Kiehn that the FaRK would take place every year if more than 1,000 votes were in favor within a week on a Facebook group. As this goal was achieved, the organizer decided to plan another fair for 2014.
Because of the great interest, the site of the former Reden coal mine in the Landsweiler-Reden district of Schiffweiler was selected for the 2014 event . Since no entry tickets were issued and counted, the exact number of visitors cannot be precisely determined. According to the police, there were over 20,000 visitors during FaRK 2014. The total amount of donations was 22,070.91 euros.
Due to the organizational effort, which is still done by volunteers in their free time, it was decided in 2015 to only let the event take place every two years. The fair has been extended by one day and has been taking place on the last weekend in August since 2014. From year to year the attractions and offers have been added and the area used has increased, which has increased both the number of visitors and the amount of donations. In 2019 the number of visitors was around 55,000 and the total donation was 107,579 euros.
Special features and program
The FaRK is a meeting whose main goal is to collect donations for charitable purposes. The specialty is that all speakers and all employees are volunteers . Admission to the event is free, but visitors are free to make a donation.
The themes of the exhibition and the visitors include all areas that affect cladding and role play. These include end-of-time and science fiction series such as Alien , Star Trek , Star Wars , Stargate , as well as fantasy series such as Harry Potter , The Lord of the Rings , Game of Thrones and other series, movies and computer games , steampunk or Japanese mangas and animes. The dealers include both merchandise stalls and sellers of costume accessories. There are free play areas for exhibitors and the public. There will also be stage programs, workshops and readings.
Many visitors also appear in costumes as figures from the genres mentioned above and use the environment for self-portrayal and presentation as well as for exchanging ideas.
The FaRK 2019 was opened by the Prime Minister of Saarland Tobias Hans .
Guest speaker
In addition to the exhibitors and associations, various authors and genre experts performed, including Tommy Krappweis , author Markus Heitz , criminal biologist Mark Benecke , Star Trek expert Hubert Zitt and Klingon teacher Lieven Litaer .
Trade fair statistics
| year | Period | Visitors | Donation amount | place |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | April 12-14 | 6,000 | Illingen | |
| 2014 | August 30th to 31st | 20,000 | € 22,070.91 | Landsweiler speeches |
| 2015 | August 28th to 30th | 30,000 | € 38,615.06 | Landsweiler speeches |
| 2017 | August 25-27 | 42,000 | € 54,816.00 | Landsweiler speeches |
| 2019 | August 23rd to 25th | 55,000 | € 107,579.00 | Landsweiler speeches |
FaRK 2019 - participant as a manga figure
FaRK 2019 - Participant in the uniform of the fictional Umbrella Corporation from the Resident Evil series
FaRK 2019 - participants as manga characters
FaRK 2019 - participant as Grinch
FaRK 2019 - Participant in Fallout 76 Cosplay
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Fantasy fans are on the move , Saarbrücker Zeitung , June 13, 2013
- ^ It was Fark - and everyone came , Saarbrücker Zeitung, September 1, 2014
- ↑ Wochenspiegel online from August 20, 2014
Remarks
- ↑ The amount on the check mentioned in the article is 21,870.91 euros, but the mayor of Schiffweiler donated an additional 200 euros on the same day.
Coordinates: 49 ° 21 '0 " N , 7 ° 6' 50.4" E