by Eric Huber | Jul 28, 2008 | Comic Con 2008
Well, the adventure draws to a close. Our plan was to take Chris to the airport around 9 and head back to browse for a couple of hours. But we didn’t schedule quite right and traffic was still bad the closer you got to the convention center.
By the time we got close, we only had about 45 minutes. I really needed to drop in to buy a gift for my nephew, so I asked to be dropped off and meet him back in the alloted time.
3 blocks away and still a huge crowd, it took 15 minutes to get into the building. I stopped long enough to snap a picture of an army of ceramic warriors set up for the new Mummy movie. Oh…and a very cool “Black Cat” costume. I had seen several, and I’m sure some may reflect an older version of Black Cat, but this one was very current (see sample).
Anyway…the last picture was me and Troy on the way back to drop off the car. My camera was out of batteries.
Comic Con! I highly recommend it.
Upon returning, I’ve been sent photos and video of the weekend and have found over 24,000 photos, 80+ YouTube videos, and several independent ‘professional’ blogs and news blogs with videos on their site as well. Not to mention all the ones that pop up from previous years.
Next time I go….I have to figure out a way to pace myself. There is SO much going on there at ALL times of the day and night that it is nearly impossible to get through a fraction of what is going on. Films at nearby hotels, after parties at hotels, bars and restaurants, not to mention at the Comic Con they had film festival, anime festival, gaming, costume competitions, autograph signings and if you were an exhibitor or professional there, networking opportunities.
HUGE! I tell ya!
Well…I’ll blog more when I have something new to say. Give me a few days.
Namesté ya’ll!
Eric
by Eric Huber | Jul 28, 2008 | Comic Con 2008
I got interrupted loading pics and lost several. Here are the missing….
by Eric Huber | Jul 28, 2008 | Comic Con 2008
This was GOING to be the last day, so we were prepared to get the most out of it. And there were panels we all wanted to see on our own, so we did.
Troy headed off to see Heroes panel, Chris went off to see Futurama and Simpsons and I…well… I wanted to shop and browse and zig zag through the exhibit hall untethered. I bought some shirts, took photos of people in costume, got some freebies and ran SMACK DAB into Felicia Day who wrote The Guild, an online webisode series that was hilarious! I’m sure I looked like a weird fan hovering, but she was on the phone and I was waiting until she was done. After she got off the phone, I spoke briefly to her and snapped a photo. I was going to try to catch up with her and her cast again, but the line was long at her booth and I had some panel sessions to attend.
Felicia Day, creator of "The Guild' and Eric
ALSO, I managed to connect with a group I read about on the web months ago. They are producing their own movie by funding from the masses online. I met the lead actor and the woman who started the project, Jessica Mae Stover. I hope to connect with them further. I also met the author of badastronomy.com, Phil. He had just taught at Governor’s School in Conway, Arkansas (which I attended WAY back in 1983…as did Troy!)
I also snapped a picture of Jamie Bamber (from Battlestar) who was at a booth for autographs and promoting a new movie.
Now…my MAIN event I wanted to attend was the Battlestar Galactica panel moderated by KEVIN SMITH! To GET to that, I ended up going to two OTHER sessions before it. The first was Dean Koontz just speaking about his work and life and answering questions. This was followed by Joss Whedon, Eliza Dushku and Tahmoh Penikett, Helo from Battlestar. They were promoting and discussing their new series “Dollhouse.”
Now, this WAS the room we were unable to get into the day before. As I said, I learned my lesson. PLUS it was easier for one person to find a seat than four finding seats together. Luck would have it that Chris was already IN the room so I ended up joining him after Koontz.
The Battlestar Panel was great. Lots of inside-behind the scenes stuff. Not so much spoilers or giving anything away, but thoughts about their experiences during the show. Plus, Kevin Smith asking the questions was VERY entertaining. The cast that appeared were the director and producer, Ronald Moore and David Eick, as well as James Callis (Balter), Tricia Helfer (Six), Katee Sackhoff (Starbuck), Michael Trucco (Anders/Cylon), and two others who weren’t scheduled, but were there: Jamie Bamber (Apollo) and Tahmoh Penikett (Helo).
They recived a very very long standing ovation, took pictures of the audience and graciously stood to recieve the applause.
I was really glad to see them in person as this has probably been one of my favorite shows.
Afterwards, me and Chris headed back to the exhibit hall to wander seperately and waited on Troy to get out of his session, Kim, her husband and daughter to show.
We headed for food before the big Masquerade Ball and ended up at a nifty restaurant that was a mexican/western/coastal fusion thingie. It was hella good! Kim and Tom’s little girl is C.U.T.E.!
Only Troy, Kim and I headed to the con. The place was packed, but spread out with screens in all the major rooms, since the ballroom was full. 46 entries, and they all did little shows. Unfortunately, we didn’t get back until contestant #34. Only a couple were really good. We didn’t stick around to see who won. However, they WERE serving up some snacks, and a cash bar. A D.J. busted out some music and soon the Joker and Catwoman were cuttin’ a rug and robbin’ the attendees. HAD I KNOWN there would be dancing and late night activities….
As it was, I was SLEEPY and thinkin’ we had to get up early to get Chris to the airport. Obviously I’ve been wiped out at night since I haven’t been updating regularly.
Here are some pics…and I made sure to take some for my women friends!
More in next posting…
by Eric Huber | Jul 28, 2008 | Comic Con 2008
They warned us about crowds and lines. They weren’t kidding. But nothing any different than Disney World. And instead of a 3 minute ride, we generally got an hour of entertaining and informative information. Not to mention all the tv and movie stars. Granted, having to watch on a screen wasn’t TONS different then just watching online. However, it was LIVE and in person.
We started out the day trying to get there earlier for the Stormtrooper parade. Never saw it. Lines were long to get in the convention center, but moments after opening them, the crowds flooded in. We had waited outside for a bit as one of us had forgotten our wallet. The wait proved educational so we didn’t rush to get there early on Saturday.
Once there, we got in line at Starbucks which took forEVER! Nearly 45 minutes. WHAT WERE WE THINKING???
We met up with our high school alum Kim H. and headed to see the panel for the upcoming Watchmen movie (due out next year). The room was filled to 6,400 capacity! And it was AWESOME. The lead cast was there along with the director. Additionally, the artist of the comic from 1986 was there. He had a great comment during the Q&A. After years of languishing in development hell, seeing his artwork come to life in real sets, with real actors, all come to life was surreal.
Can you imagine? Doing artwork and later in life it’s all real? Very cool.
From there we RUSHED to the Joss Whedon panel and ended up staying in line for nearly 45 minutes. Only to reach the end of the line and we were 8 people away from fitting in the room. (see pics from last post outside…the line wrapped up and down a hallway and outside back and forth…capacity was around 4,500 people).
You see, the trick was (we learned), to arrive to a panel happening BEFORE the one you wanted to see. Or even one before THAT! (which worked very well on Saturday…more on that later).
With time to kill before the next thing we wanted to attend (Kevin Smith’s panel), we wandered the floor (see crowd pictures from last post and additional ones here).
Grabbing some lunch, we sat down for a bit. While reading over schedules for the day, I looked up at a man and his red headed kid who sat down to eat their cheeseburgers. I did a double take, but thought better of it. But curosity got the better of me as I glanced at his name badge. However, it was just below the table and I couldn’t read it. Still curious, I popped open my laptop and pulled up IMDB.com and confirmed my suspicions…
There, sitting at our table, was none other than Bill S. Preston, Esquire, of the Wyld Stallions!!! (for you NON-geeks out there, that’s Bill from “Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure!”) (cue air guitar)
I didn’t get a picture, but did strike up a short conversation with him and his son. They were on the prowl for a Joker action figure. I told him I was a big fan of the movie and he graciously accepted the compliment. His kid was cool too.
After shopping, it was time to go get in line for Kevin Smith. We planned on getting there TWO sessions early. Can’t recall, at the moment, what was first. The line was VERY long, but we got in without a problem.
The first panel was really great. It was Entertainment Weekly’s Visionaries panel with Frank Miller, Judd Apatow, Zack Snyder and Kevin Smith. BONUS! Hilarious and informative panel. Judd Apatow (40 Year Old Virgin) and Kevin Smith played well together.
Staying in the room, we got to listen to Kevin Smith lead the panel and show us a clip from his upcoming movie Zack and Miri Make a Porno. Stars Elizabeth Banks, Seth Rogen, Traci Lords, Justin Long, Brandon Routh and an ex porn star I don’t recall the name of. No really. I don’t know it.
The panel lasted until 8:00 and it took us a while to find food in nearby Little Italy. It was VERY tasty. However, finishing at 10:00 (or later) and being an old fogey now-a-days, we decided to call it a night.
I wanted to catch Joss Whedon’s “Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog” with Felicia Day, Nathan Fillion and Neil Patrick Harris. I found out, by bumping into Felicia Day the next day, that the room was filled to capacity and they had to open two more rooms! It’s available for download on iTunes. Joss Whedon created Buffy, by the way.
No new pics. I uploaded them already. But wait for the next posting!!!
by Eric Huber | Jul 26, 2008 | Comic Con 2008
The energy was ramped up for Friday. Crowds lned up well before the doors opened and people were decked out in costume. Still missed the Stormtrooper parade. Have NO idea where it was or if it existed. However, bands of stormtroopers wandered the exhibit hall, groups of Jedi kept the peace (including one group of amazon Jedi!). Superheros were everywhere and several villians as well.
I didn’t get pictures of those in costumes with me.
I will write up a more detailed report. I’m currently in day 4 awaiting the Battlestar panel to begin in a room filled to capacity. Did I mention they have FREE wi-fi here at the ComicCon. BTW…I believe the blog-o-verse is FILLED with bloggers reporting from ComicCon.
Here are a few pics from Day 3!
Namesté ya’ll!
by Eric Huber | Jul 25, 2008 | Comic Con 2008
Had to crash last night after we got back. Not a super late night or anything, but after all that activity being around all those people, and…well…we were all pretty wiped out. We ALMOST went to the Rocky Horror Picture Show…maybe tonight.
Today, we’re meeting up with our fellow high school classmate, Kim (pictures will appear later) today.
So it’s 7:00 a.m. and we’re getting ready to bail from the hotel room soon to see if we can’t catch the Stormtrooper parade this morning. AND get a damn closer parking place.
Rumor has it, it’s supposed to be super packed today and tomorrow. However, I’m wondering how they can sell out each day’s tickets in advance and it be MORE crowded today and tomorrow than yesterday. It WAS a crowd, but not unbearably crowded. We’ll see.
So, as for last night…and late yesterday…we got to see Kevin smith moderating “Scream Like a Girl” sponsored by the Spike TV Scream awards. The panel was to discuss strong women characters in sci-fi, fantasy and comics. Gayle Hurd (who produced Terminator, Terminator 2, Aliens…all which had strong female leads), Lucy Lawless (Xena and Battlestar), Jaime King (Sin City and The Spirit), and Pia someone (who is an amazing up and coming comic artist) were all on the panel (see yesterday’s pics).
There were a TON of people there yesterday. The crowd was bearable. There are also a TON of stars wandering around. However, what’s interesting is that the behind-the-scenes people (like Bear McCreary, composer for Battlestar) aren’t recognizeable except through their work. So you don’t know who they are unless someone points them out. I spotted Bear with his girlfriend looking at Manga art on the exhibition floor. I had already spoken to him earlier and thought about getting his photo, but I hesitated. Will try to correct that behavior today.
Rumor has it that Hugh Jackman was here promoting the Wolverine movie and Simon Pegg was here as well (yeah, okay Kristi, I missed him!). Now, you have to understand. This convention center is GINORMOUS! I mean at least 2 to 4 city blocks long. AND when it comes to these session (like Scream Like a Girl)… there were THIRTEEN OTHER sessions going on at the same time! Including one with Keanu Reeves, Jennifer Connaley, Samual Jackson, Mark Walberg, Anna Paquin, and that’s not counting the stars that may be moderating. When we came into the end of the KING tv series session, one of the stars from Hero’s was moderating (the guy who plays the mind-reader; Matt Parkman.)
There are TONS of people blogging, filming, taking photos and you can find them online on Flickr and other photo places (thanks Stephanie!!!) And all the national news agencies are covering as well.
The people are all very nice, so far. Even as crowded as it is, people apologize when they give you too much of a jostle.
We had dinner at Mary Jane’s coffee shop. Very groovy stylin place in the Hard Rock hotel building. But, sorry, I may be too low brow, but it’s weird to tip a guy in the bathroom to hand me a towel and a mint. I ordered a “TV DInner” that came with a strip steak with onion rings, arugala salad and a brownie topped with blueberries and mint. All in an aluminum tray. Very groovy.
Back to the convention center for the 2008 Star Wars Fan Film Festival sponsored by Lucasfilms and Atom Films (Remember Mr. Wong Matt! The company IS still around). One movie highlighted (besides the submitted films) was a new one called FANBOYS that has been in distribution limbo for a year. If you had been one of the first 300 people in line (of at least 2000 that were IN line), you were invited to see a screening of the film. We weren’t in the first 300 (laugh).
We were surprised to hear that Kevin Spacey was one of the producers of Fanboys and suddenly…SHOWED UP! (see pic). Additionally, giving awards out was Rene O’Conner from Xena.
As for other things of the night that we DIDN’T attend; from the director of the Saw Movies was his latest creation REPO! The Genetic Opera, staring Alexa Vega, Bill Moseley, Paris Hilton and Terranc Zdunich (don’t worry…I didn’t know most of them either). 10th Annual Kung Fu Extravaganza, Adventures in Anime, Will Esiner awards, Comedy Central TV Funhouse, Lionsgate films promotion of PUnisher: War Zone as well as the World premier of Lost Boys: the Tribe. I have NO idea if it was any good…but…I have a guess…. (laugh).
Today we’re hitting the Watchmen session at 11:55. I wanted to see the Stargate Continuum panel (the whole cast of the Stargate show), but it starts at 10:45 and lasts until 11:45. And, trust me, you can’t ditch from one session and make the other one THAT fast. I may try, though. May get Troy and Chris to hold me a seat.
ALSO wanted to see SPACED with Simon Pegg…but that starts at 12:30, and the Watchment END at 1:00. Sheesh. 2:45 has Samual Jackson, Eve Mendes and Gabriel Macht to promote Frank Millers’ The Spirit. The Sci-Fi Ghosthunters are here today. At 4:30 I’d really like to see the cast of Bones. I had also wanted to see the panel on Sanctuary produced by Amanda Tapping of Stargate…but…starts at 5:30. AND…REALLY wanted to see the panel on “Kevin Smith Makes a ‘Porno'” with the Seth Rogen and Elizabeth Banks. FULL DAY!
Tonight? Events include: Myster Science Theater 20th reunion, SCI-FI Night with premeire of Eureka and Stargate: Atlantis, Will Eisner Awards, Spaced (with Simon Pegg) screening, and Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog with Joss Whedon, Neil Patrick Harris, Nathan Fillion, and Felicia Day. 10:45 tonight. THEN Rocky Horror Picture Show? (laugh)
Later! Oh…you can click on the thumbnails below (and previous post) to see bigger picture. I just figured out how to do that. Should save on load speed.
Well…that’s all the blogging for now. We have to get out of here soon!
TODAY?!
