COMIC CON INTERNATIONAL - Thurs. July 20, 2006
It’s time for Comic Con. As we arrive, all we can think of is, “My God, that’s a lot of people.” It was true. Telling people is one thing, but seeing how many more people converge upon the Convention Center every July is something else. Comic Con International really is one of the largest playgrounds to be at.
We had had a long night getting ready for the upcoming weekend, so we got to the Con a bit late in the morning. For starters was the Comic Book Law School, which I had hoped to attend. I had attended the original version a couple of years back, and found it to be quite enlightening in a variety of entertainment legal areas.
Margaret Kerry held Voice Talent Tryouts for attendees to try their hand, or voice, at the art of doing voice overs for animation. Margaret had been a Little Rascal, the lips for “Clutch Cargo,” and the rotoscope model for Disney’s Tinker Bell. This was a run seminar for anyone interested in this line of talent.
At noon was “Writing For The Computer Gaming Industry” seminar. This provided insight to a line of work that is little known, but so very obvious. Games don’t just happen, and they are not just “point and shoot.” They require stories and ideas, and someone has to come up with them. This seminar covered the art of creation for the computer gaming industry.
In the early afternoon was an interesting seminar on Resin Casting & RTV Mold-Making, covering aspects of plastics and casting for models and toys. This year they covered materials and silicone, along with new casting techniques. A great seminar for anyone getting into the model world.
Universal Monsters 75th Anniversary. Who knew that it had already been 75 years since the first heyday of movie monsters. Frankenstein, Wolf Man, Dracula, and the rest. CFQ Magazine’s Jeff Bond chatted with “Famous Monsters Of Filmland”’s cover artist Basil Gogos, Forrest J. Ackerman, author John Flynn, and actor Dan Roebuck, on the trend of collecting models, posters, movies and the rest, and how these infamous creatures have become part of our folklore.
Spiritual motivator Deepak Chopra, cofounder of Virgin Comics (not associated with Richard Branson’s enterprises), along with Grant Morrison, had a panel about the spirituality and mythologies of superheroes. A rather interesting look into the depth of characterizations and morality.
Lionsgate Presents: Crank, Skinwalkers, and Saw III - It’s preview time for Lionsgate, and they showcased three new thrillers being released. On the panel were actors Amy Smart and Jason Statham (“The Transporter”), Efren Ramirez (“Pedro” of “Napoleon Dynamite”), and writers/directors Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor, for “Crank.” For “Skinwalkers,” were director Jim Isaac (“Jason X”), and creature designer Stan Winston. For “Saw III,” were director Darren Lynn Bousman, writer Leigh Whannell, producer Mark Burg, and actors Shawnee Smith and Tobin “Jigsaw” Bell.
Then it was off to wander the streets of downtown San Diego and check out the sights. However, we did finally end up at the Hyatt Hotel, next to the Convention Center. There was quite the party going on as we headed in. While there, we said Hello to a rather attractive blonde female, who turned out to be Katja Rieckermann. Katja is a major saxophone talent who has played with Rod Stewart for years, as well as Brooks & Dunn, and others. She seemed surprised that we just started talking with her, but was friendly and hung out for a bit. Check out her works and info on her site: http://www.katjarieckermann.com.
At some point, the burnout factor set in, and it was time to try to get even four hours of sleep (if lucky).
Next up - Friday, July 21
Written by Philip Anderson with contributions by Keith Denison / Perlito Godoy |
- More Stories
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- The Trip Down
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- Friday 07/21
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- Saturday 07/22
- Comic Con 2006
- Photos
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