Tar Film Exclusive Preview by Jared
One of the nice parts about an October convention is that there tends to be some focus on horror in one way or another. This panel was a brief look at Tar, an upcoming horror movie, with several members of the crew. The discussion was a bit scattered as topics like the food on set and their relationships with the LaBrea Tar Pits came up alongside a discussion about the writing processes and the use of practical effects. This was a nice candid look at the indie horror movie and the fact that the panel was webcast as well goes to show the confidence people have in the project.
Haunted LA by Jared
This panel was hosted by the American Paranormal Association and was both a discussion about proper paranormal investigation methods as well as a showcase of various EVP recordings. The panel was filled with personal stories and warnings for those who want to be investigators. However, very little of the panel was dedicated to paranormal events in California. It was a very interesting panel, and some of the EVP recordings were haunting, but it would have been nice if the panel had tied into the title a bit more.
Dealers Hall by Eri Kagami
LA Comic Con only encompassed one major hall in the LA Convention Center. Halloween weekend hosted different events in the large hosting space. In previous years, LA Comikaze covered both West and South Hall's exhibition spaces - this really gave more breathing room and and opportunity to spread things out a lot more. This year's dealers hall consisted of cosplayer booths, the hot topic stage, and local vendors selling collectable trades and current graphic novels. LA Comic Con, though a Stan Lee brand name now, doesn't have large industry booths like San Diego Comic Con. If you have been to a Long Beach Comic Con or Rhode Island Comic Con, it's essentially dealers that sell steampunk, graphic novels, indie graphic novels, autographs from celebrities of yesteryear, etc. I only had four hours to really look at the event on Sunday. You woud need at least half a day to really see what's there.
Artist Alley by Eri Kagami
Sharing space with the dealers hall was the artist alley. While it's not uncommon for artist alley and the dealers hall to share the same space at comic cons, what I liked about this artist alley is that it was a mix of seasoned veterans in the comic industry and indie artists selling various wares from fan made prints, soaps, scarves, kitchen ware, etc. One booth even had plushes of the Voltron mecha as cuddly cats from Neko Atsume. There is always creativity flowing in the artist alley. Most commercial artists who attend Long Beach Comic Con can also be found here. The nice thing about the growth of comic themed cons in Southern California are opportunities to meet people in the industry or continue on the conversation from the last convention.
Disney Cosplay Meet Up by Eri Kagami
One of my favorite things about being immersed into the Disney cosplay scene are meeting other Disney cosplayers at themed meet ups. I ended up wearing my original Twilight Zone Tower of Terror cast memeber inspired costume. While almost everyone thought I was a Disney's California Adventure employee, this was simply an original design I had originally intended to wear during Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party had it not been for 100 degree weather in the evening. The meet up had humble numbers. Highlights included the stepsisters from Cinderella, a carnivale themed Nightmare Before Christmas group, hitch hiking ghosts from the Haunted Mansion, etc. Everyone was super chill and easy to talk to. Many thanks to Robert Torres and Jack Keruouc for taking photos of the meet up!
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