The history of FISM, since September 1948, has evolved to become increasingly important to the magical community.
In each new congress, regulations and rules have been added or changed: the first major change was when Vermayden took the FISM convention from being an annual gathering to a triennial one in 1952. However, the real revolution came in 2003.
In 2003, FISM set out on an ambitious 6-year project to modernize and become a more professional organization, in order to meet the expectations of new generations of magicians, improving its fundamental values and the goals of the Federation, increasing the services offered to its members, and raising the level of international competitions.
Let's look at the changes that took place that year (The new Statutes, dated August 26, 2003):
- 1. The judging process at FISM WCM
Until the 2000 edition (Lisbon), the judging process was quite complex, and it assigned a different grade according to both the contest category and the aspects examined.
From 2003 on, a few innovations were applied. The new Article 7/b states that the aspects to be evaluated must be 6 and not just 4: in addition to Showmanship, Technique, Originality, and Routining… now there are Entertainment Value and Magic Atmosphere.
2. The Grand Prix" becomes "2" Grand Prix
Until 2000, there was just a single Grand Prix winner, chosen among the winners of the different specialties with the highest score. One of the great innovations of the 2003 contest rules is Art. 6c, according to which two Grand Prix titles will be awarded: one to the best artist of the Close-up category and one to the best artist of the Stage category.
3. Change of the name
In 2003, the name of the Convention changed from "FISM Convention" to "World Championship of Magic"
4. Admission to the FISM contest
Before 2003, there were no official rules limiting the number of contestants, as every candidate could participate in the contest competing in more than one category.
In 2003, a rule was added to the FISM Contest rules and Procedures limiting the number of participants to 150.
For practical reasons, the organizational committee set a limit of 100 artists for the stage contest and 50 for the close-up contest. The reasons for these measures are found in the experience of past contests (which never had more than 150 contestants per edition) and in the practical calculation of the minutes granted to each artist to perform.
Moreover every country where is a member of FISM had the right to apply at least for one participant in the contest. After the registration of the first 150 candidates, a waiting list would be compiled for the artists who would have been called in case some of the contestants decided to quit.
5. Continental Conventions
The general assembly held at the Stockholm 2006 meeting approved and validated a change in the FISM statute, allowing the creation of continental divisions: FISM Asia, FISM Africa, FISM Europe, FISM Latin America, FISM North America, and FISM Oceania.
These changes were described by Eswin in an interview published in Genii (October 2006), summarized as follows: "... The organization of the World Magic Championships is very complex and much more difficult than the organization of a sole national convention... Now we ask the member club organizing the Championship to sign a contract with the FISM organization concerning the things to be done and avoided in a FISM WCM. This is also necessary to protect the intellectual property rights of the competitors and the artists hired, as well as for creating a database at the disposal of the organization, which reports every detail regarding the World Magic Championship.
I don't know if it's just a coincidence, but since 2003, many things have changed in the world magic scene. For example, in that year, South Korea became a major player in the world of magic. Korea won its first prize only in 2003 (Lee Eun-Gyeol, 2nd in manipulation) and seems out to become a new star in the world of magic, winning 6 prizes in Blackpool 2012, among which all the manipulation prizes (Yu ho Jin 1st place, Lukas 2nd place, and Kim Hyun Joon 3rd place)."
About the Author:
Aldo Ghiurmino joined the Club Magico Italiano (CMI) in Bologna in 1989 and was recognized with the esteemed "Premio Garatti" in 2006 for his outstanding contributions to "Magia Moderna" magazine. In 2014, he was appointed as the historian and archivist of CMI, highlighting his commitment to historical research in magic.
Aldo is a founding member of Masters of Magic and co-authored a booklet on Italian magic history. He hosted a segment on the Web TV of Masters of Magic from 2008 to 2013, receiving recognition for his contributions.
His written work extends beyond articles, with translations and publications of books like "Card Fictions" and "The Art of Switching Decks" in Italian. He's authored lecture notes and two books, including "Fism, the Book" and "Moroso e Dhotel una storia di amicizia e di magia."
Aldo's presence in the magic community is not limited to writing. He's an active participant in major magic conventions in Italy, serving as a translator, lecturer.
As a speaker, he regularly engages in historical magic conventions and contributed to the blog of the Congress in FISMITALY 2015 alongside prominent figures in the magic world.
