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Originally Posted by Sam  Charging for signatures on fan's own items is a funny one for me and seems to be increasingly the norm at these sort of events, probably taking the lead from the bigger events such as Collectormania etc.
As an example, I have the signatures of John Morghen and Deodato from previous years at the Festival of Fantastic Films (I think 2007 and 2005 respectively) and wasn't charged for either, whereas I would imagine both were charging this year, although I didn't test this as I already have their autographs. I also have the signatures of the likes of Jean Rollin, John Hough and Lamberto Bava, again at no charge.
It's a shame this more cynical approach has infiltrated the smaller festivals but I suppose it's just par for the course these days. The most I have paid is £20 for George Romero, although I took this on the chin given the status of the man within the genre. I'll never forget a bloke a few ahead of me in the queue getting 10 items signed and handing over 200 notes  !!! I do like to get a signature since it's a nice memento of the day and meeting the person but, these days, I will only bother if it's someone who I really hold in high regard (eg. Lenzi at last year's festival), although it's obviously a matter of personal choice and what you can afford. For me, the best approach was Robin Askwith, who charged £3, all of which went to charity  . |
Yes, both Ruggero and Johnny Radice were charging for autographs (£15 a pop) but that didn't seem to dissuade anyone – one guy handed over six things for Radice to sign! At the Spaghetti Cinema event, none of the guests (Ruggero, Me Me and Luigi Cozzi) charged for signatures and apparently Ruggero happily signed 18 things for one person!
I understand they aren't necessarily paid for attending – if they are I don't know how much – and just do it to meet fans and people with whom they have worked in the past, or to help sell a book and guess the money will help to cover hotel rooms, airfare, taxis and food and drink for the weekend.
I personally like to have things autographed by the director/writer/actors (perhaps as many as possible) for my collection of film memorabilia, not to sell on for a profit or anything as tacky as that.