Did you know that fan panels make up the largest part of Otakon's Programming?

That means that your panel ideas, your knowledge, talent, time and effort both before and during the con contributes in a major way and helps Otakon to fulfill our motto. "For Fans... by Fans". Subjects ranging from "How to get by in Japan on 40 yen a day" to "How to drive the giant robot you just found buried in your back yard" continue to captivate our attendees year after year.

So, you wanna be an Otakon 2012 Panelist?

Whether you're brand new to Otakon or you've been coming for years; if you have a great deal of knowledge on a subject you would like to share with your fellow Otaku, we welcome your ideas! Please watch this space for updates and instructions concerning submitting your idea to become a Panelist at Otakon 2012!

What's in it for you? Well, aside from the obvious glory of being envied by your friends and perhaps dozens of strangers who come to bask in the light of your knowledge, Otakon Panelists qualify to receive post convention membership reimbursements upon completion of a successful panel.

Returning Otakon Panelists

If you are a prior Otakon Panelist, thank you for your ideas and contributions to Otakons past! We hope you'll continue to submit your ideas to us for Otakon 2012. Some of your panels are highly anticipated year after year and we look forward to the return of some old classics as well as some new ideas from our veteran Panelists.

Keep an eye on this page and be sure to watch our Otakon RSS feed and Twitter page for more updates on Otakon 2012 Panels.

Panel Submissions

• Panels Applications for Otakon 2012 are not being accepted at this time.
• Submissions will be reviewed after the submission window closes.
• Be advised that it could be several weeks after the submission window closes before you hear anything about your panel submission.

18+ Panels:

• 18+ content is anything that contains graphic, sexual, overly violent or obscene material which would be unsuitable for minors.
• If you are unsure of whether the content of your panel is 18+, it probably is.
  Please err on the side of caution.
• Otakon is a family event. Therefore, panels containing 18+ content will be scheduled late in the evening, generally between the hours of 10PM and 2AM.
• If a panel submitted as 'not 18+' is found to contain 18+ material, Otakon Panels staff reserve the right to shut down the panel in progress. A panel shut down while in progress will not be considered successfully run and may lead to denial of membership reimbursements and future panel submissions.

Panelist Compensation:

There is a limit of 3 compensated or reimbursed panelists per panel. This would comprise the primary panelist and two assistant panelists. You are welcome to have more panelists on stage, however, only 3 will receive compensated or reimbursed memberships to Otakon 2012.

Encore Panelists

If you are a prior Otakon panelist (one who has successfully presented a panel at a previous Otakon) and you plan on submitting your panel idea, PLEASE DO NOT PRE-REGISTER! Returning Panelists will be receiving compensated memberships to Otakon 2012 if their panel submission is accepted. If you have already pre-registered for Otakon 2012, you will receive a post-convention refund of your Otakon 2012 membership fee. Instructions for receiving your post-Otakon refund will be provided after Otakon 2012.

New Panelists:

If you are a prospective Otakon panelist (one who has never successfully presented a panel at Otakon) please Pre-Register for Otakon 2012. If your idea is selected, then upon successful completion of your panel, you will become eligibile for a post-convention refund of your Otakon 2012 membership fee. Instructions for receiving your post-Otakon refund will be provided after Otakon 2012.

Otakon 2012 Panels Department

For questions not related to submitting a panel for Otakon 2012, you may contact the Panels Department via the Otakon Contact Form.