Now THAT'S a DramaCon; AX in Trouble?

ANN has clearly been working for a while on a HUGE report regarding all the drama going on at Anime Expo. I doubt many of you are aware of the massive turbulence behind North America's biggest anime convention, which even I have only been aware of out of the corner of my eye, so to speak-- and getting people in the know to talk about it has been difficult.

But a confidential source reported to ANN that at least eight division managers and assistant division managers have left AX Concom, the organization in charge of managing Anime Expo's operations, due to a dispute with the SPJA board of directors. (The SPJA is the non-profit organization that oversees the overall convention.)

The same source also offered that "over 80% of the AX staff are ready to resign in support of their division heads," and want to see the new SPJA CEO, Michael Lattanzio, and the Interim Con Chair Joyce Lim, step down from their positions.

Also unveiled in the piece is the mystery behind the removal of Chase Wang and his BAM! Marketing, Publicity , & Promotions, who had been doing PR for Expo for six years. Apparently Wang refused to hand a list of all his PR contacts over to Lattanzio; it's unclear whether Lattanzio was already hoping to remove Wang and wanted a shortcut to said contacts or whether this is conflict led to the discharging. Apparently there is also "ongoing legal arbitration" between BAM! and the SPJA, so more comments aren't forthcoming.

But wait, there's more! A letter was sent to the SPJA Membership Committee, voting membership body, Board of Directors, and AX Concom calling for a vote of no confidence to ditch most of the Board of Directors, and also claiming "slander and libel" and a breach of contract against Wang and BAM!.

Drama, drama, drama! Lattanzio issued a statement noting that last year, "the Board of Directors made a decision to transform the SPJA into a professional, results-driven company focused on serving its attendees and the industry," and that these problems are simply part of the pains of going through a transition.

I don't know how this will turn out, and there are certainly aspects of the report that are troubling to me. I certainly hope Anime Expo will pull together...although one wonders whether another con (Otakon or New York Anime Fest?) will swoop in during the confusion and try to take AX's mantle?