HHN '19 - Game Plan

[Brian G.]

Different coasts. Different folks. This is Hollywood. It's Instagram or die. Look at the recently closed pop-up exhibit at Downtown Disney.

I'm aware. My point still stands. No one is going to stop going because they can't take a pic inside a maze anymore - and even if there is that chance that someone does, the impact would be extremely nominal.

How do they enforce it? Is it like, a hard and fast rule where they won’t even let you in if you have something that can take photos or video, or if they see people doing it, they just ask them to stop? I imagine that it would be hard to enforce in the actual mazes without having to disrupt the experience. The mazes are where the majority of people are taking photos, at least in LA, which I think takes the Instagram stuff way, way more seriously than Orlando. If Hollywood outright banned phones, people would riot lol

They make sure you know phones are away before you enter the house. If anyone takes it out during the maze, scare actors or ops are pretty on top of it and they are stopped quickly.

 

[viking_wizard_eyes]

They make sure you know phones are away before you enter the house. If anyone takes it out during the maze, scare actors or ops are pretty on top of it and they are stopped quickly.

I mean, each maze has that placard out front that lists the rules, and I think there are probably multiple mentions of “no photos/videos,” but nobody pays attention to those. Even if there was a person at the front of the maze who looked you dead in the eye and said “You can’t take your phones out in here, keep them in your pocket,” people would not listen. It’s hard to express just how phone-obsessed people are in this city. I mean, people are obviously phone-obsessed everywhere, but it’s different in LA, people think about their Instagrams constantly. In a scenario where Hollywood outright banned phones, I honestly think you would see a pretty decent drop in attendance, or at the very least people would complain like CRAZY and the optics would be terrible for HHN. The impact would definitely not be nominal lol

 

[Clive]

To both points:

One, operations is being handled differently this year, arguably to the detriment of the event. You aren't imagining it: there are more conga lines because more people are being crammed in to meet loftier hourly counts.

Two, and this is a related point, there are fewer actual ops in the maze itself versus prior years. This is contributing to the backups. It's also why a no photos/videos rule would be hard to execute in the current environment: not enough ops to enforce, and those that exist are not trained to be especially aggressive.

 

[rageofthegods]

To both points:

One, operations is being handled differently this year, arguably to the detriment of the event. You aren't imagining it: there are more conga lines because more people are being crammed in to meet loftier hourly counts.

Two, and this is a related point, there are fewer actual ops in the maze itself versus prior years. This is contributing to the backups. It's also why a no photos/videos rule would be hard to execute in the current environment: not enough ops to enforce, and those that exist are not trained to be especially aggressive.

They really did spend all the money on the mazes huh.

 

[Brian G.]

I mean, each maze has that placard out front that lists the rules, and I think there are probably multiple mentions of “no photos/videos,” but nobody pays attention to those. Even if there was a person at the front of the maze who looked you dead in the eye and said “You can’t take your phones out in here, keep them in your pocket,” people would not listen. It’s hard to express just how phone-obsessed people are in this city. I mean, people are obviously phone-obsessed everywhere, but it’s different in LA, people think about their Instagrams constantly. In a scenario where Hollywood outright banned phones, I honestly think you would see a pretty decent drop in attendance, or at the very least people would complain like CRAZY and the optics would be terrible for HHN. The impact would definitely not be nominal lol

We can debate how Hollywood can enforce the rule all day; but the "pretty decent drop in attendance" take is incredibly dense.

 

[viking_wizard_eyes]

We can debate how Hollywood can enforce the rule all day; but the "pretty decent drop in attendance" take is incredibly dense.

I’m not saying they’d cancel the event due to lack of interest or anything wild like that, but there’s a big chunk of the GP that would skip out, and then be very vocal about it online. I’m telling you. Spend a couple years living in Los Angeles and get back to me haha

 

[Brian G.]

I’m not saying they’d cancel the event due to lack of interest or anything wild like that, but there’s a big chunk of the GP that would skip out, and then be very vocal about it online. I’m telling you. Spend a couple years living in Los Angeles and get back to me haha

I understand what you're getting at. I'm saying that the "big chunk" you think will skip out, won't.

1. It's not like they would be banning photos event-wide, so they can still get their "clout" out in the streets and other places.
2. Anyone big enough will still get their photos taken inside a house most likely, so they'll be happy and promote away.
3. Anyone not big enough will get over it.
4. I asked several Cali people regarding this take since I'm a "Florida Boy" and they agreed - this ain't it, chief.

 

[foodstampsFTW]

If Hollywood banned photos or video in the houses, no one would care.

 

[viking_wizard_eyes]

We'll just have to agree to disagree because there's no way to quantify this, and on top of that, it wouldn't happen in the first place. But to be fair, you're acknowledging that phones aren't an issue in Orlando, while me and Stryker are confirming that, while perhaps not an issue in the literal sense, it's at the very least an annoying inconvenience in LA, despite both events seemingly having the same policy. That alone should give you at least a little bit of a clue that people in Hollywood really, really want to have phones out in the mazes, and if there was something in place that straight up prevented them from doing so, there would most definitely be an issue.

Whether that's an attendance thing or an optics thing where people complain like crazy and it makes HHN look bad, I have no clue and it ultimately doesn't matter, I just know a lot of people—seriously, a lot of people—wouldn't stand for it. To say "no one would care" is completely insane.

 

[Brian G.]

We'll just have to agree to disagree because there's no way to quantify this, and on top of that, it wouldn't happen in the first place. But to be fair, you're acknowledging that phones aren't an issue in Orlando, while me and Stryker are confirming that, while perhaps not an issue in the literal sense, it's at the very least an annoying inconvenience in LA, despite both events seemingly having the same policy. That alone should give you at least a little bit of a clue that people in Hollywood really, really want to have phones out in the mazes, and if there was something in place that straight up prevented them from doing so, there would most definitely be an issue.

Whether that's an attendance thing or an optics thing where people complain like crazy and it makes HHN look bad, I have no clue and it ultimately doesn't matter, I just know a lot of people—seriously, a lot of people—wouldn't stand for it. To say "no one would care" is completely insane.

Except there is a way to quantify. The event was a lot more stricter regarding the rule and the event grew. People only want to have their phones out cause they can. For years you weren’t allowed and guess what? The event still did well.

 

[Spookies n' Stuff]

Except there is a way to quantify. The event was a lot more stricter regarding the rule and the event grew. People only want to have their phones out cause they can. For years you weren’t allowed and guess what? The event still did well.

I guess its a question of which will hold up the lines more, people with their phones out, or maze hosts having to convince people to put their phones away.

 

[viking_wizard_eyes]

Except there is a way to quantify. The event was a lot more stricter regarding the rule and the event grew. People only want to have their phones out cause they can. For years you weren’t allowed and guess what? The event still did well.

For years they weren’t allowed to do what? Take pictures? I think that rule was in place well before we all had HD cameras in our pockets at all times. The “no cameras” rule is 100% not the same as a “no phones rule.”

And you really think people have their phones out just “because they can?” I dunno about that. People in LA have their phones out because they want to take selfies with the Us scare actors or the Slimer effect in GB, and they’re willing to hold up the line for however long it takes them to do so. These are things I have witnessed with my own eyes, and they’re just two examples of probably at least a dozen over the last few years, maybe a couple dozen. The worst was this person who literally wouldn’t move during the Invisible Man section of last year’s UCM maze because she was, and I quote verbatim, “trying to get a Boomerang.”

I will concede that attendance would not crater significantly if they banned phones (and they never will, so it’s all beside the point anyway), but it wouldn’t be some benign thing, either. It would be an issue to some degree, and I would argue a pretty big one.

Again, move to LA, spend some time observing how people behave at immersive events like this (keep in mind, this is a town full of “museums” where the whole point is to take IG photos) and get back to me. It’s a way different atmosphere here, I’m telling you.

 

[chris.g]

Let's be honest - even if the no camera/ video recording rule was brought up... GUESTS ARE DUMB AND WILL DO IT ANYWAYS.

Also wanted to give a shoutout to one of the line organizers in FMTWM. Every time I've gone, he's some young Hispanic dude and he manages the crowd so damn well. Allows for space between groups and waits for two rooms minimum to clear. If I asked for his name I'd compliment him since he did a bang up job when I've gone.

 

[Spookies n' Stuff]

On the topic of line management, I really have to wonder what is going on with the pulsing for KKFOS, since every night it bloats up to at least 60 minutes in under 20 minutes of it being open, and only continues to grow throughout the night, with the line itself moving at a snails pace. The Mummy location has never demanded such consistently high wait times before, and the express line never looks that long, so I really have to wonder what could possibly be making the line move so oddly.

 

[SailwiththeTide]

To bring this back on topic the game plan is move along and don't take pictures.

On the topic of line management, I really have to wonder what is going on with the pulsing for KKFOS, since every night it bloats up to at least 60 minutes in under 20 minutes of it being open, and only continues to grow throughout the night, with the line itself moving at a snails pace. The Mummy location has never demanded such consistently high wait times before, and the express line never looks that long, so I really have to wonder what could possibly be making the line move so oddly.

part of it is the timing of opening. Everyone for early entry hits up ST and then the metro. All those people wait for KK to open and the line swells. It seems as popular as ST.

 

[Spookies n' Stuff]

To bring this back on topic the game plan is move along and don't take pictures.

part of it is the timing of opening. Everyone for early entry hits up ST and then the metro. All those people wait for KK to open and the line swells. It seems as popular as ST.

its just odd that it stays so high, instead of fluctuating up and down like all the other mazes tend to

 

[rageofthegods]

its just odd that it stays so high, instead of fluctuating up and down like all the other mazes tend to

Perhaps an enterprising Forum member thought that if they mucked up the operations of Killer Klowns enough, then Upper would see the sky-high wait-times and greenlight more weird cult mazes in the future. /s