More so than the past couple of years, Atlanta’s own Dragon*Con, the annual sci-fi/horror/fantasy convention that takes place of Labor Day weekend each year, seemed to go by way too fast. Before I knew it, it was Sunday night, and I was in my last block of short films, and on Monday, the feeling of going back to real life, with all the mundane ritual and responsibility, kicked in and made me realize that shit, there’s a long year ahead of me before next year’s Con. The rain that fell Monday didn’t help matters any.
This year, I was originally going to do a single blog encompassing my entire Con weekend, but I’ve decided to continue with the blog-a-day format I did last year. It’s just much more fun, and a little more freeing. I hope you enjoy!
Thursday, September 1
This year, I did things just a little bit different. Unfortunately, my mother was unable to join me downtown for physical reasons, so I would largely be on my own in Atlanta this year. My work schedule prior to D*C was such that I was able to drive downtown on Thursday to pick up my badge for this year for pre-registration. The process was streamlined to where people were able to get their badges quicker than in previous years. Personally, I didn’t see it, as the lines were still ridiculously long, although the hour, twenty minute wait did seem to go by quickly. But the trip was well worth it, so that I could leave later Friday, and my Con could start earlier.
Friday, September 2
Another Con, another year without a hotel room. Next year, that’s absolutely changing. While it was unfortunate that my mother wasn’t able to make it on the count of her knees giving out shortly after she started back at work, being on my own provided a level of freedom that I tried to take advantage of this year, as I will illustrate below.
Shit My Captain Says
First up on my agenda was a 10am panel with the original Captain Kirk himself, William Shatner. When I arrived downtown at around 9am, I decided to go ahead and go to the Hyatt and get in line for the always-popular guest. Would you believe the line was already out the door? If you’re a Trekkie, I’m sure that doesn’t come as a surprise. What surprised me about the panel was how engaged this non-Trekkie was as Shatner answered the audience’s questions. Whether it was discussing his friendship with Leonard Nimoy, who cancelled shortly before Con, or the documentaries he has directed in the past couple of years (the first with all of the captains of the “Trek” Universe, the second about fandom along the lines of which is evident every year at D*C) to his thoughts on the philosophical idea of the “Singularity,” Shatner remains a wonderful storyteller and personality. His ability to punctuate a joke is still spot-on, and he has a genuine passion for interacting with fans that made me wish I had more time to try and meet him this year. Maybe in the future. What a great way to begin, wait for it, Cccccooooooonnnnnnnnn!!!!
Independent Filmmaking for Geeks
My next two panels were hours apart, but part of a larger desire to get involved in a track that had eluded me the past couple of years at Dragon*Con: the Independent Filmmaking track, including going to some of the film blocks associated with the Dragon*Con Independent Film Festival. First up was an 11:30am panel entitled, “Basics of Directing,” which took place in the Cairo Room of the Hyatt. As someone who has tried his hand at directing with projects such as “Unwinnable Hand” and “Baron Wasteland” over the years, as well as smaller-scale works, this was a highly informative look at what it entails being an independent filmmaker. All of the panelists have had experience in the industry in many different ways over the years, and listening to them speak not only inspired me, but illuminated some truths to accept, namely that more often than not, your first few times directing are NOT going to be good. Notes were taken, panelists were met (and cards were swapped), as I left feeling better about the prospects of filmmaking, and more aware of the realities facing myself and others moving forward.
After a few hours of walking around, going to the now-open dealer rooms and Walk of Fame– where I met the likes of “Star Wars” producer Gary Kurtz, “Back to the Future” star Christopher Lloyd, “WKRP” icons Howard Hesseman and Loni Anderson, as well as “Eureka” star and producer Colin Ferguson –I headed back to the Cairo Room for a 4pm panel on the “Basics of Producing.” Here, the business end of filmmaking was discussed in further detail, as well as how the director-producer dynamic should work. Another informative and enlightening hour for this hopeful filmmaker. Don’t worry; I took notes here as well.
“As God as my witness, I thought turkeys could fly.”
After learning the “Basics of Producing,” it was time to take a trip back to the late ’70s and early ’80s, and catch up with one of my all-time favorite sitcoms. I was very fortunate, when I was growing up, to have a mother who not only watched a lot of TV, but also allowed me to watch it as well, and fall in love with shows that someone in their early years would not necessarily be watching. Some of the jokes went over my head at the time, but as I became more aware over time, my appreciation for the shows increased. “WKRP in Cincinnati” was one of those shows, partially because we came from Ohio (although we were closer to Cleveland), but partially because over the years, it became something of an early music appreciation class for me in the area of rock n’ roll.
This year, two of the show’s biggest stars came to Dragon*Con, and just as they did on the show as the weathered Dr. Johnny Fever and the gorgeous Jennifer Marlowe, Howard Hesseman and Loni Anderson continue to have a wonderful chemistry and great rapport. And they had some great stories about the actors on the show, as well as some interesting insight into creator Hugh Wilson’s method in not just writing the madness on screen, but also in warming up the live audience during tapings. I even got up to ask a question about one of my favorite scenes in the show’s history, which received an interesting answer. These two, both in meeting them earlier in the day, as well as the panel a few hours later, were definitely a highlight of the Con for me, although my phone failed me (literally) in trying to get a picture with the lovely Ms. Anderson. It also annoyed me in not just taking the damn picture the first time around with Howard Hesseman; I assure you, Dr. Fever, you weren’t the only one annoyed by that process…
Dragon*Con…After Dark
After the “WKRP” panel, I went to put my video camera and such in the car, and recharge my batteries (both physically and my phone) before taking in some of the Dragon*Con nightlife I mentioned wanting to enjoy after last year’s Con. It was fun times. A lot of mingling around in the hotels, conversing and taking pics, getting bites to eat, and after a certain time, not really having much in the way of panels to go to.
But the Con isn’t without activities for late-night Conners. At 10pm I took in my first block of short films as part of Dragon*Con’s Independent Short Film Festival, which is something I’ve wanted to do for the past couple of years (and last year, I submitted a couple of my own shorts to the festival, to no avail). This block was devoted to horror films, and the offerings ranged from the pretty damn good (“Enter the Dark” and “Making Friends” made the strongest impacts) to the half-way decent (“Suffer,” “Bad Moon Rising,” and “Insomniac”) to some that, well, just didn’t really strike a chord, either with me or the audience as a whole (“Savasana” and “Incubator”– WTF?!). Programmed by Festival director Matthew Foster, the block was indicative of the variety both in quality and story and execution that made even the less-successful entries entertaining to sit through.
After the block, which included a brief Q&A with the filmmakers in attendance of the screening, was finished, I headed over to a different part of the Hyatt, and found a line waiting to get into the late-night screening hall for “World of Hentai,” a 2 1/2 hour block devoted to the strangest (and funniest) in Japanese anime pornography. Honestly, I was NOT expecting a line waiting to get in, but it took several minutes of waiting for people in the packed hall to leave so I could go in and see for myself what depravity the organizers of the event had in mind. Let me just say…wow. I mean, WOW. If you haven’t watched Hentai, it’s not erotic so much as just, bizarre, and painfully bad creatively, although whoever came up with the bit with the singing vaginas should be commended for something so…surreal. It was an entertaining way to end my first evening at this Con, and after a quick stop back at the Marriott for a few more pics, I called it a night. After all, I had a trek back home to make, and another full day ahead of me on Saturday…
Thanks for listening,
Brian Skutle
www.sonic-cinema.com
Dragon*Con 2010
Day 4
Day 3
Day 2
Day 1
Dragon*Con 2009
Days 1-4
