Masako Nozawa's $3000 USD Autographs

[Jord]

Listen, I don't care if you're the Queen of England, paying thousands just for your presence alone is a waste of time, money and self-respect. Masako Nozawa is just another regular-ass human being. True, she impacted our childhoods, but we don't know her as a person, we don't know her beliefs and values, or how she uses her wealth and influence. For all we know, she could be another J.K. Rowling or Tōru Furuya. I highly encourage y'all not to put people on pedestals.

At least J.K. Rowling has created a complete creative world for her extremely successful Harry Potter books, filled with amazing characters. I feel that meeting her could be very inspiring if you could ask her something about her creative process. Notwithstanding her very line of more adult-focused Strike novels.
Nozawa is a voice actress that comes with a language barrier for some, making it harder to get anything "more" from the signing, providing you get the chance to talk to her.

But those prices seem very, very greedy. Autograph prices are getting more and more expensive, but I thought Mark Hamill was the "worst" with his prices but Nozawa takes it to the next level.

[Jord]

So I did some math.

https://speedycomics.ae/products/wave-1 ... ce-of-goku
Wave 1: $4,000 x 50 customers = $200,000
https://speedycomics.ae/products/wave-2 ... -goku-copy
Wave 2: $5,000 x 50 customers = $250,000
https://speedycomics.ae/products/wave-3 ... ce-of-goku
Wave 3: $10,000 x 50 customers = $500,000

So in total, that's $950,000. Of course, she won't get all off it, but it seems obvious she's getting a nice chunk of change. Whether that's exploiting the fanbase, overcharging or a fair price is up for debate.

[Kenji]

At least J.K. Rowling has created a complete creative world for her extremely successful Harry Potter books, filled with amazing characters. I feel that meeting her could be very inspiring if you could ask her something about her creative process. Notwithstanding her very line of more adult-focused Strike novels.

And she's also a terrible, transphobic person.
Any and whatever little respect anyone could have for her should die right here, but doesn't for some reason.

Autographs should cost exactly $0, someone's signature does not impact your life whatsoever other than giving you some useless bragging points to impress other equally useless shallow people, nor will it mean the person in question ever even had an ounce of respect for you other than just another fan in a sea of millions. The mere fact someone has the gall to charge for them is a red flag that the person is arrogant and considers themselves more important than others.

But capitalism gonna capitalist.

[JulieYBM]

Rowlings books are racist, homophobic and transphobic as hell lol

Ignore Jord, he's a piece of shit for the hell of it. Trying to launder Rowling is just one more part of that.

[SHINOBI-03]

So I did some math.

https://speedycomics.ae/products/wave-1 ... ce-of-goku
Wave 1: $4,000 x 50 customers = $200,000
https://speedycomics.ae/products/wave-2 ... -goku-copy
Wave 2: $5,000 x 50 customers = $250,000
https://speedycomics.ae/products/wave-3 ... ce-of-goku
Wave 3: $10,000 x 50 customers = $500,000

So in total, that's $950,000. Of course, she won't get all off it, but it seems obvious she's getting a nice chunk of change. Whether that's exploiting the fanbase, overcharging or a fair price is up for debate.

Is her agency different from the likes of Horikawa or Nakao? Her colleagues and other veteran voice actors who shared projects and work experience with her didn't charge astronomical figures the way they did here.

[Jord]

Heck, I can't even think of any actor worldwide that charges those kinds of prices, perhaps with the exception of some charity auctions that usually get higher prices. That being said, this doesn't seem like a charity thing. Even huge stars like Chris Evans generally stay below the $500 dollar mark.

[UpFromTheSkies]

I didn't know they charge you to get autographs at conventions, that's crazy. I thought they did it for free as a way for them to promote their work and connect with their fans.

[SHINOBI-03]

I didn't know they charge you to get autographs at conventions, that's crazy. I thought they did it for free as a way for them to promote their work and connect with their fans.

I don't think handing them for free is efficient as they need to get their time and travel costs back for staying long hours at conventions meeting hundreds or people a day.

I don't know how it used to in American conventions but even smaller ones here would charge a fee, used to be around $30 per sign.

[Kenji]

I didn't know they charge you to get autographs at conventions, that's crazy. I thought they did it for free as a way for them to promote their work and connect with their fans.

I don't think handing them for free is efficient as they need to get their time and travel costs back for staying long hours at conventions meeting hundreds or people a day.

I don't know how it used to in American conventions but even smaller ones here would charge a fee, used to be around $30 per sign.

I think she'd be fine if she did the autographs for free...
This goes without saying: Don't baby b/millionaires, they don't give a crap about you.

[Jord]

I didn't know they charge you to get autographs at conventions, that's crazy. I thought they did it for free as a way for them to promote their work and connect with their fans.

It depends on the booking. In the old days, the convention gave the guest a fee to appear, which was used a long time ago. The convention paid for it and the guest would sell his or her stuff and sometimes charge for autographs.
Nowadays the talent and his or her management decides the price and a lot of higher-end guests ask higher prices, which also depend on the event. Prices at NYCC and SDCC are about as high as you can get.

Part of the reason for some of the talent, like Western voice actors, is streaming as well. Earlier they would get residuals from DVD sales and such, but with DVD sales being far less and streaming residuals being very low, a part of their income is hopping from con to con. I specifically singled out Western voice actors, since home media is still doing pretty well in Japan.
The big question is whether an autograph is worth a few hundred (or thousand in Masako Nozawa's case) to you. That's different for everybody. Same goes for pictures with the talent, which also cost a lot.

Meeting someone you admire can be worth a lot and I would pay to meet certain actors and writers, but to me the moment, the interactivity, is where it's at. I don't see the emotional value in getting a pre-signed picture from those people. I people do enjoy those, more power to them. I could see people doing it as an investment. I don't know what the options were at the signing , but I can imagine that having a DB#1 manga signed by her will have a significant value, which will even increase after she passes.

Thus far I haven't paid for any autographs yet, but if you do get that moment, I wouldn't count out paying for them as picking their brain could help me grow as a creative and a person.
Regarding DB "celebs" I did manage to meet Hironobu Kageyama and get his autograph, which was pretty amazing. He was very friendly. That encounter was entirely free though.

I didn't know they charge you to get autographs at conventions, that's crazy. I thought they did it for free as a way for them to promote their work and connect with their fans.

I don't think handing them for free is efficient as they need to get their time and travel costs back for staying long hours at conventions meeting hundreds or people a day.

I don't know how it used to in American conventions but even smaller ones here would charge a fee, used to be around $30 per sign.

I think she'd be fine if she did the autographs for free...
This goes without saying: Don't baby b/millionaires, they don't give a crap about you.

I find it hard to believe she's "only" worth 20 million, considering all the voice work she did for anime, games and other stuff like commercials and such, probably getting residuals on a lot of stuff as well.

[BootyCheeksJohnson]

I didn't think I'd ever update this forum but she'll be back at another convention in September, and it'll be $3,000 for an autograph again. Only upside to last time is that it's 3 items per person as opposed to 1, and this con isn't using coded language surrounding her age to induce F.O.M.O.
https://www.instagram.com/p/Dbn-GmyxD8R ... BiNWFlZA==

I wouldn't personally pay someone $30 for their signature let alone $3,000.

[Jord]

I didn't think I'd ever update this forum but she'll be back at another convention in September, and it'll be $3,000 for an autograph again. Only upside to last time is that it's 3 items per person as opposed to 1, and this con isn't using coded language surrounding her age to induce F.O.M.O.
https://www.instagram.com/p/Dbn-GmyxD8R ... BiNWFlZA==

I wouldn't personally pay someone $30 for their signature let alone $3,000.

At least you get to meet her this time, which wasn't the case with the previous ones. That being said. $3,000 is crazy talk. And people were complaining about Mark Hamill's prices at $500.
This is just greed, exploiting nostalgia. Puts Nozawa in a different light.

[Kid Buu]

So I'm a bit ignorant on these things so I was wondering who decides the price - Nozawa, her agent, the convention themself, or a hybrid?

I can't think of anyone else who could go for that much money. I would have thought Mark Hamill, being the poster boy of one of the biggest nerd series ever, would be the ceiling for these prices.

[Dragon Ball Ireland]

So I'm a bit ignorant on these things so I was wondering who decides the price - Nozawa, her agent, the convention themself, or a hybrid?

I can't think of anyone else who could go for that much money. I would have thought Mark Hamill, being the poster boy of one of the biggest nerd series ever, would be the ceiling for these prices.

Her agent I bet. Can't imagine a sweetheart like Nozawa would want her autograph to be sold for that much money.

[Kid Buu]

So I'm a bit ignorant on these things so I was wondering who decides the price - Nozawa, her agent, the convention themself, or a hybrid?

I can't think of anyone else who could go for that much money. I would have thought Mark Hamill, being the poster boy of one of the biggest nerd series ever, would be the ceiling for these prices.

Her agent I bet. Can't imagine a sweetheart like Nozawa would want her autograph to be sold for that much money.

Oof.

Ed Sheernan is probably one of the biggest British celebrities and he came to my city centre last year and was taking photos with people for free.

I do get that Nozawa is international and isn't at the age where traveling is easy, so there's gotta be some compenstation but $3000 is extreeme.

[Dragon Ball Ireland]

Yeah, Ed Sheeran is very humble, he played Whelans, which is a pub in Dublin as a warm up for his stadium shows. Nice for the fans to be able to experience something more intimate if they were lucky enough to get tickets.

Coldplay also performed at Grafton Street like regular buskers before playing a string of dates at Croke Park, and took public transport to their shows.

Got to love artists that just see themselves as "one of us" and not a bunch of big shots.

[JulieYBM]

So I'm a bit ignorant on these things so I was wondering who decides the price - Nozawa, her agent, the convention themself, or a hybrid?

I can't think of anyone else who could go for that much money. I would have thought Mark Hamill, being the poster boy of one of the biggest nerd series ever, would be the ceiling for these prices.

Her agent I bet. Can't imagine a sweetheart like Nozawa would want her autograph to be sold for that much money.

Oof.

Ed Sheernan is probably one of the biggest British celebrities and he came to my city centre last year and was taking photos with people for free.

I do get that Nozawa is international and isn't at the age where traveling is easy, so there's gotta be some compenstation but $3000 is extreeme.

I imagine that the purpose is not to spread her signature as far as possible. They don't want to appeal to a vast market, they want to appeal to a small number of collectors.

[Kid Buu]

That's cool of Coldplay! Agree I always love when celebs "see themselves as "one of us" and not a bunch of big shots."

Her agent I bet. Can't imagine a sweetheart like Nozawa would want her autograph to be sold for that much money.

Oof.

Ed Sheernan is probably one of the biggest British celebrities and he came to my city centre last year and was taking photos with people for free.

I do get that Nozawa is international and isn't at the age where traveling is easy, so there's gotta be some compenstation but $3000 is extreeme.

I imagine that the purpose is not to spread her signature as far as possible. They don't want to appeal to a vast market, they want to appeal to a small number of collectors.

Yeah...:/

I wonder how many people even paid the full $3000.

[JulieYBM]

That's cool of Coldplay! Agree I always love when celebs "see themselves as "one of us" and not a bunch of big shots."

Oof.

Ed Sheernan is probably one of the biggest British celebrities and he came to my city centre last year and was taking photos with people for free.

I do get that Nozawa is international and isn't at the age where traveling is easy, so there's gotta be some compenstation but $3000 is extreeme.

I imagine that the purpose is not to spread her signature as far as possible. They don't want to appeal to a vast market, they want to appeal to a small number of collectors.

Yeah...:/

I wonder how many people even paid the full $3000.

Probably not triple digits lol. I imagine that's not an issue for Nozawa's team, though.

[Jord]

That's cool of Coldplay! Agree I always love when celebs "see themselves as "one of us" and not a bunch of big shots."

Oof.

Ed Sheernan is probably one of the biggest British celebrities and he came to my city centre last year and was taking photos with people for free.

I do get that Nozawa is international and isn't at the age where traveling is easy, so there's gotta be some compenstation but $3000 is extreeme.

I imagine that the purpose is not to spread her signature as far as possible. They don't want to appeal to a vast market, they want to appeal to a small number of collectors.

Yeah...:/

I wonder how many people even paid the full $3000.

The last time she did this, earlier in this topic, it was sold out. I have no doubt this will sell out as well. It's an investment. Imagine having a #1 DB manga, signed by her. That's gonna increase in price as time goes on, provided DB remains somewhat hot.

So I'm a bit ignorant on these things so I was wondering who decides the price - Nozawa, her agent, the convention themself, or a hybrid?

I can't think of anyone else who could go for that much money. I would have thought Mark Hamill, being the poster boy of one of the biggest nerd series ever, would be the ceiling for these prices.

Her agent I bet. Can't imagine a sweetheart like Nozawa would want her autograph to be sold for that much money.

Why do you think that? And why do you think she's a sweetheart that would not ask for a lot of money, not based on PR events at which she speaks or appears? We don't know the non--pr versions of a lot of celebrities, including her. It's not like its stated that the money goes to a good cause or something. It appears she's just cashing in on fans, which is her choice and if that's how she wants to make money that way, she has every right to. It's supply and demand.