25 APRIL 2016
ECCC sure does like to bounce its dates around. We're back to March for 2017 and it's early March: specifically the 2nd - 5th. If you're curious how that stacks up against other Cons, WonderCon is 31 March - 2 April (back in Anaheim) and Silicon Valley Comic Con is TBA.
Oh and if you're curious about the Comic Con shuffle that seems to be going on in California, the official reason that WonderCon is headed back to Anaheim is just a scheduling thing, nothing more. And LA is still hungrily eyeing both WonderCon for the future AND San Diego Comic-Con for when its contract expires after 2018: Mayor Garcetti says that certain changes are afoot that will make LA especially appealing to CCI - and us.
What changes? "Redoing the entire convention center" for one (which presumably won't involve a city-wide battle involving feisty DAs, calculating developers, football teams and hotel taxes) and "new hotels, new attractions" like Harry Potter. I think LA already has plenty to offer, but his point is probably that LA will be able to accommodate our incessant demands for restaurants, transportation, ginormous auditoriums, overnight lines and hotel rooms that aren't $1000 a night.
The future: it's happening. And hopefully it won't be as brutal as our present when it comes to online sales and the general limitations of SDCC.
Showing posts with label wondercon. Show all posts
Showing posts with label wondercon. Show all posts
WonderCon registration is open
14 DECEMBER 2015
So who else is headed to WonderCon? Both regular and volunteer registration are now open.
If you're a typical SDCC attendee, your enthusiasm for WonderCon may fluctuate depending on its location. After bouncing around California a bit, it will be making its debut at the LA Convention Center in March 2016. So depending on your feelings about LA (and whether or not you're hitting up Silicon Valley Comic Con a week earlier and ECCC 2 weeks later) this Con may or may not be up your alley.
Here's why I think you should go, if you're still on the fence. While WonderCon has always been in SDCC's shadow, it can offer similar Exhibit Hall treasures and plenty of high-caliber celebrity guests. Those of you who gripe about SDCC getting away from its comic book roots will find plenty of comic book fandom and talent here. (The Hernandez Brothers, Francesco Francavilla and Terry Moore are just a few of the guests already announced.)
And because it's run by CCI, it has the same organization and feel as SDCC, but without as much chaos. I know a lot of people who prefer WonderCon to SDCC. But I predict 2016 will draw in a lot of first-timers as well, partly because they anticipate a gruesome SDCC Open Registration and partly because it's in LA, which is like a sprawling fan playground. And then there's the fact that many people are curious about a possible future where the SD part of SDCC is replaced with LA. (Emphasis on "possible" - don't get nervous and nostalgic yet.)
3-day badges are a whopping $65, so consider taking a long weekend 25-27 March and kicking off Comic Con season in LA. You might be surprised at how much like you like it.
ETA: Worth noting that while this badge sale is downright relaxing compared to SDCC, I had some trouble buying a badge. I kept getting a "your cart is empty" message. That could just be my semi-cursed Member ID but if it happens to you, try going in through a different session. I did that and it somehow combined my credit card info from 1 session with the badge cart from the other and went through.
So who else is headed to WonderCon? Both regular and volunteer registration are now open.
If you're a typical SDCC attendee, your enthusiasm for WonderCon may fluctuate depending on its location. After bouncing around California a bit, it will be making its debut at the LA Convention Center in March 2016. So depending on your feelings about LA (and whether or not you're hitting up Silicon Valley Comic Con a week earlier and ECCC 2 weeks later) this Con may or may not be up your alley.
Here's why I think you should go, if you're still on the fence. While WonderCon has always been in SDCC's shadow, it can offer similar Exhibit Hall treasures and plenty of high-caliber celebrity guests. Those of you who gripe about SDCC getting away from its comic book roots will find plenty of comic book fandom and talent here. (The Hernandez Brothers, Francesco Francavilla and Terry Moore are just a few of the guests already announced.)
And because it's run by CCI, it has the same organization and feel as SDCC, but without as much chaos. I know a lot of people who prefer WonderCon to SDCC. But I predict 2016 will draw in a lot of first-timers as well, partly because they anticipate a gruesome SDCC Open Registration and partly because it's in LA, which is like a sprawling fan playground. And then there's the fact that many people are curious about a possible future where the SD part of SDCC is replaced with LA. (Emphasis on "possible" - don't get nervous and nostalgic yet.)
3-day badges are a whopping $65, so consider taking a long weekend 25-27 March and kicking off Comic Con season in LA. You might be surprised at how much like you like it.
ETA: Worth noting that while this badge sale is downright relaxing compared to SDCC, I had some trouble buying a badge. I kept getting a "your cart is empty" message. That could just be my semi-cursed Member ID but if it happens to you, try going in through a different session. I did that and it somehow combined my credit card info from 1 session with the badge cart from the other and went through.
Is New York Super Week a model for SDCC?
24 AUGUST 2015
New York Super Week details have been announced; it's all very tantalizing, with X-Files trivia games, a special Body Worlds event, film fests, Star Wars Rebels previews, karaoke, speed dating, comedy shows, DJ sets and so on. The crown jewel is still The Walking Dead premiering in Madison Square Garden, but the range of events should mean that most everyone finds something like they like.
I was in NY this morning when the announcement dropped, and immediately got an email and a text asking essentially, Why can't SDCC do this? Translated as: Super Week and NYCC involve separate tickets/badges - and that's a model that appeals to people who think that if they can't get a SDCC badge, they can still buy into a citywide experience of pop culture events.
Here's why I don't see that working for SDCC. Obviously everyone wants to "fix" San Diego Comic-Con; they want a magical solution so that everyone who wants a badge can get one, can stay in a downtown hotel, only waits an hour or two in line. And indeed some attendees have come up with creative ideas like on the Friends of Comic Con forum. But there are some physical limitations that no ingenuity is going to alter.
New York, for instance, is huge. It can absorb a much larger number of people than San Diego can while still offering a navigable experience within a defined area. CCI creating a larger free-range event like ReedPOP created Super Week simply won't work the same way. We already have a glut of unbadged visitors who come down just to experience the area, and they take up parking and hotels that badged attendees are fighting for. Creating a Super Week-type event would just draw even more visitors into an area that is bursting at the seams, even if it was limited to the days before or after the Con. That doesn't even broach the question of venue space.
While SDCC is indeed spreading into the city, it's still officially one event with the same number of badges. Gam3rCon and Nerd HQ are separate from SDCC - and Nerd HQ Conversation tickets are as competitive as anything SDCC offers. Even if CCI could organize a looser umbrella of events (which I don't see them doing, given their existing change management challenges) we'd still have to grapple with space limitations.
So no, I don't think the Super Week model would work that well in SDCC. What I might see working is a second San Diego event if marketed properly. Phoenix and Salt Lake have already gone to twice-a-year models, and SDCC could bank on its own branding to make a smaller winter event popular. They could market it as old-school SDCC, with a heavy focus on comic books and quintessential nerdiness, or they could go full-on Hollywood, given that many summer blockbusters start releasing in May. Yes, we have WonderCon but it doesn't have the glittering reputation that could attract SDCC badge sale washouts, who tend to stubbornly insist on San Diego or nothing. Branding is powerful. True, CCI has trademarked Los Angeles Comic-Con and some people are theorizing that WonderCon 2016 will be a way of testing the LA waters. But if we know anything, it's that attendees love San Diego. Maybe it's nostalgia, maybe it's the Gaslamp, maybe it's the overcast mornings that turn into sunny days that turn into perfect nights. For whatever reason, most attendees see San Diego as where the magic happens, which is why a second CCI event there, even a smaller one, could be a draw.
Let me be clear, I don't think any of this will happen. I just think it would be a more suitable option than trying to create a San Diego Super Week during SDCC, which so many attendees seem to view as a possibility.
New York Super Week details have been announced; it's all very tantalizing, with X-Files trivia games, a special Body Worlds event, film fests, Star Wars Rebels previews, karaoke, speed dating, comedy shows, DJ sets and so on. The crown jewel is still The Walking Dead premiering in Madison Square Garden, but the range of events should mean that most everyone finds something like they like.
I was in NY this morning when the announcement dropped, and immediately got an email and a text asking essentially, Why can't SDCC do this? Translated as: Super Week and NYCC involve separate tickets/badges - and that's a model that appeals to people who think that if they can't get a SDCC badge, they can still buy into a citywide experience of pop culture events.
Here's why I don't see that working for SDCC. Obviously everyone wants to "fix" San Diego Comic-Con; they want a magical solution so that everyone who wants a badge can get one, can stay in a downtown hotel, only waits an hour or two in line. And indeed some attendees have come up with creative ideas like on the Friends of Comic Con forum. But there are some physical limitations that no ingenuity is going to alter.
New York, for instance, is huge. It can absorb a much larger number of people than San Diego can while still offering a navigable experience within a defined area. CCI creating a larger free-range event like ReedPOP created Super Week simply won't work the same way. We already have a glut of unbadged visitors who come down just to experience the area, and they take up parking and hotels that badged attendees are fighting for. Creating a Super Week-type event would just draw even more visitors into an area that is bursting at the seams, even if it was limited to the days before or after the Con. That doesn't even broach the question of venue space.
While SDCC is indeed spreading into the city, it's still officially one event with the same number of badges. Gam3rCon and Nerd HQ are separate from SDCC - and Nerd HQ Conversation tickets are as competitive as anything SDCC offers. Even if CCI could organize a looser umbrella of events (which I don't see them doing, given their existing change management challenges) we'd still have to grapple with space limitations.
So no, I don't think the Super Week model would work that well in SDCC. What I might see working is a second San Diego event if marketed properly. Phoenix and Salt Lake have already gone to twice-a-year models, and SDCC could bank on its own branding to make a smaller winter event popular. They could market it as old-school SDCC, with a heavy focus on comic books and quintessential nerdiness, or they could go full-on Hollywood, given that many summer blockbusters start releasing in May. Yes, we have WonderCon but it doesn't have the glittering reputation that could attract SDCC badge sale washouts, who tend to stubbornly insist on San Diego or nothing. Branding is powerful. True, CCI has trademarked Los Angeles Comic-Con and some people are theorizing that WonderCon 2016 will be a way of testing the LA waters. But if we know anything, it's that attendees love San Diego. Maybe it's nostalgia, maybe it's the Gaslamp, maybe it's the overcast mornings that turn into sunny days that turn into perfect nights. For whatever reason, most attendees see San Diego as where the magic happens, which is why a second CCI event there, even a smaller one, could be a draw.
Let me be clear, I don't think any of this will happen. I just think it would be a more suitable option than trying to create a San Diego Super Week during SDCC, which so many attendees seem to view as a possibility.
Ominous SDCC news from WonderCon
6 APRIL 2015
If you were at WonderCon this past weekend, you might have heard some interesting and somewhat disturbing news about SDCC hotels.
I wasn't there - but veteran attendee and Con expert Transmute Jun was and she attended the Talkback panel that dropped the bombshell that WonderCon would be moving to LA. (Yes, WonderCon, the most peripatetic Con ever, is moving once again, though only temporarily.)
But the really interesting information came from David Glanzer, who mentioned the hotels as the biggest problem with staying in San Diego. That's right, not the size of the convention center (although I think many would-be attendees would say it's a significant issue.) Glanzer specifically said that if SDCC leaves San Diego, "you can thank the hotels." Yikes.
During the hotel aftermath, I speculated that some of the hotels might be offering fewer rooms at discounted attendee rates. Unfortunately, that seems to be happening. Apparently some hotels are still being quite generous with event space and room blocks, but others are "starting to push back." CCI's fear is that one or more hotels will opt out altogether and charge sky-high market rates - and of course they'll still get booked up, whereupon the neighboring hotels will think, "Why are we stuck with these low Travel Planners rates?" and then they'll opt out and the next hotel opts out and suddenly we're living a nightmare.
This is highly useful information. Whenever the oft-trod subject of SDCC moving to Anaheim, LA or Vegas comes up, the hotel room issue is one of the theoretical stumbling blocks cited. (Yes, it could be an issue even in Vegas - they might not have a clear incentive to discount rooms, given that attendees spend most money internally at the Con and probably wouldn't hit up casinos in significant numbers.) But if San Diego hotel rooms start ranking around 800 a night or more, the whole conversation gets reframed.
There's been a lot of talk today about WonderCon going to LA. The enterprising minds at Friends of Comic Con have a theory that WonderCon's move could be a way of testing the LA waters. I like that theory and it's more than plausible. Remember - CCI did trademark "Los Angeles Comic-Con" a few years back.
At any rate, we have a bit of insight into our hotel struggles. I'm so pleased CCI and David Glanzer in particular communicated openly about the challenges they're facing; let's hope they continue the dialogue. Glanzer has also cast a new light on attendee feelings about a potential move. The sentimental attachment to San Diego is fierce, and the exhortions to pick up and move often comes from people who've been shut out of a badge sale.
This year, however, we had badged attendees experiencing firsthand the mounting drawbacks of San Diego's hotel limitations. A future full of the same (or much worse) could be the final straw that convinces even die-hard San Diego lovers that it's time to pack up and go.
If you were at WonderCon this past weekend, you might have heard some interesting and somewhat disturbing news about SDCC hotels.
I wasn't there - but veteran attendee and Con expert Transmute Jun was and she attended the Talkback panel that dropped the bombshell that WonderCon would be moving to LA. (Yes, WonderCon, the most peripatetic Con ever, is moving once again, though only temporarily.)
But the really interesting information came from David Glanzer, who mentioned the hotels as the biggest problem with staying in San Diego. That's right, not the size of the convention center (although I think many would-be attendees would say it's a significant issue.) Glanzer specifically said that if SDCC leaves San Diego, "you can thank the hotels." Yikes.
During the hotel aftermath, I speculated that some of the hotels might be offering fewer rooms at discounted attendee rates. Unfortunately, that seems to be happening. Apparently some hotels are still being quite generous with event space and room blocks, but others are "starting to push back." CCI's fear is that one or more hotels will opt out altogether and charge sky-high market rates - and of course they'll still get booked up, whereupon the neighboring hotels will think, "Why are we stuck with these low Travel Planners rates?" and then they'll opt out and the next hotel opts out and suddenly we're living a nightmare.
This is highly useful information. Whenever the oft-trod subject of SDCC moving to Anaheim, LA or Vegas comes up, the hotel room issue is one of the theoretical stumbling blocks cited. (Yes, it could be an issue even in Vegas - they might not have a clear incentive to discount rooms, given that attendees spend most money internally at the Con and probably wouldn't hit up casinos in significant numbers.) But if San Diego hotel rooms start ranking around 800 a night or more, the whole conversation gets reframed.
There's been a lot of talk today about WonderCon going to LA. The enterprising minds at Friends of Comic Con have a theory that WonderCon's move could be a way of testing the LA waters. I like that theory and it's more than plausible. Remember - CCI did trademark "Los Angeles Comic-Con" a few years back.
At any rate, we have a bit of insight into our hotel struggles. I'm so pleased CCI and David Glanzer in particular communicated openly about the challenges they're facing; let's hope they continue the dialogue. Glanzer has also cast a new light on attendee feelings about a potential move. The sentimental attachment to San Diego is fierce, and the exhortions to pick up and move often comes from people who've been shut out of a badge sale.
This year, however, we had badged attendees experiencing firsthand the mounting drawbacks of San Diego's hotel limitations. A future full of the same (or much worse) could be the final straw that convinces even die-hard San Diego lovers that it's time to pack up and go.
WonderCon 3-day badges are sold out
3 MARCH 2015
Don't say you weren't warned. However, Friday and Sunday badges are still available so there's that.
Don't say you weren't warned. However, Friday and Sunday badges are still available so there's that.
WonderCon 3-day badges are about to sell out
2 MARCH 2015
Just a warning if you're planning on going. Saturday badges are already gone, so this is your last shot to attend the whole thing.
And if you're wondering if this is "as good" as SDCC, I can't tell you because I have never attended WonderCon - not once - but obviously it's a popular event and worth attending if you got shut out of SDCC and don't think you'll attend Comikaze.
Buy your badges here.
Just a warning if you're planning on going. Saturday badges are already gone, so this is your last shot to attend the whole thing.
And if you're wondering if this is "as good" as SDCC, I can't tell you because I have never attended WonderCon - not once - but obviously it's a popular event and worth attending if you got shut out of SDCC and don't think you'll attend Comikaze.
Buy your badges here.
Do you want to go to WonderCon?
21 JANUARY 2015
Registration for WonderCon is now open. That includes badges and hotel rooms.
If you've ever wondered why WonderCon is not as big a deal as SDCC, the answer is, well, it's smaller. However, it's in Anaheim now, close to Disneyland, and it is getting bigger - and there are all the usual conventiony reasons to attend: an Exhibit Hall with toys and comics, a slight Hollywood presence, gaming, etc. In other words, there are worse ways to spend the weekend of 3-5 April.
So with that rousing endorsement, you can buy badges now (online only) and book a room through Travel Planners. And you can do it peacefully, with a nostalgic pang for the days when signing up for San Diego Comic-Con looked a little like this.
Registration for WonderCon is now open. That includes badges and hotel rooms.
If you've ever wondered why WonderCon is not as big a deal as SDCC, the answer is, well, it's smaller. However, it's in Anaheim now, close to Disneyland, and it is getting bigger - and there are all the usual conventiony reasons to attend: an Exhibit Hall with toys and comics, a slight Hollywood presence, gaming, etc. In other words, there are worse ways to spend the weekend of 3-5 April.
So with that rousing endorsement, you can buy badges now (online only) and book a room through Travel Planners. And you can do it peacefully, with a nostalgic pang for the days when signing up for San Diego Comic-Con looked a little like this.
WonderCon badges on sale now
22 JANUARY 2013
In case you didn't get the email from CCI, WonderCon badges have gone on sale. Just like San Diego Comic Con, you have to register for a Member ID; unlike SDCC, there's no hurry.
If you are unfamiliar with WonderCon, it's happening March 29-31 at the Anaheim Convention Center. It's your typical comics convention, and mirrors many SDCC features - a portfolio review, a Masquerade, anime, TV and movie panels, and so on. You get the idea.
You can buy a badge here and read more about WonderCon here.
ETA: If you didn't get the email about WonderCon today, yet are certain you have a registered MemberID with CCI, you should check to see what email address you have on file with them. It might be the wrong one. This is definitely the time to get any email mistakes straightened out, before the all-important badge sale email is sent out.
In case you didn't get the email from CCI, WonderCon badges have gone on sale. Just like San Diego Comic Con, you have to register for a Member ID; unlike SDCC, there's no hurry.
If you are unfamiliar with WonderCon, it's happening March 29-31 at the Anaheim Convention Center. It's your typical comics convention, and mirrors many SDCC features - a portfolio review, a Masquerade, anime, TV and movie panels, and so on. You get the idea.
You can buy a badge here and read more about WonderCon here.
ETA: If you didn't get the email about WonderCon today, yet are certain you have a registered MemberID with CCI, you should check to see what email address you have on file with them. It might be the wrong one. This is definitely the time to get any email mistakes straightened out, before the all-important badge sale email is sent out.
And a new Comic Con is born - maybe
31 AUGUST 2012
Whether or not this news excites you will probably depend on your location. In a nutshell: CCI may be producing a new Con, still in California, in 2013.
Currently CCI puts on 3 cons annually: WonderCon in San Francisco, APE (Alternative Press Expo) in the Bay Area and our favorite, San Diego Comic Con. However, this year WonderCon had to relocate to Anaheim due to construction in their SF venue, the Moscone Center. For spring 2013, that construction will still be an issue, so WonderCon will once again be held in Anaheim.
BUT the Moscone Center may be able to accommodate a Con in the fall 2013 - which could mean that CCI will create a fourth Con. However - this is where it gets confusing - if this is the case, then that autumn Con in San Francisco will become WonderCon, and the spring Con in Anaheim will become the new, as yet unnamed one.
In other words, we'll either have WonderCon in Anaheim in March 2013, or we'll have a new Con in Anaheim in March 2013 and WonderCon in San Francisco in fall 2013. When will we know for sure? October.
Now you may well be thinking, why do I care about this, all I care about is San Diego, but this is exactly the kind of juncture that may become the long-anticipated day when San Diego Comic Con cracks in half. For years now, people have been fervently wishing that San Diego could split into two separate cons, with Hollywood on one side and comic books on the other.
Is it really that simple? No, the fans intersect in all kinds of ways, and any split would leave some people dissatisfied. But it's still a very possible outcome as the Con bulges at the seams -and creating a fourth Con (and a SoCal one, no less) might be seen as an experiment and possible relief valve over these next 3 years that we are contractually stuck in San Diego.
We'll just have to wait and see if this fourth Con materializes. If it does, it is brand new territory, unshaped by expectations, and could theoretically be tipped toward any sector - sci fi, comic books, cosplay, anything. It could become an attractive option for people sick of the crowds and hassle of San Diego, or it could be seen as small potatoes and not attract many fans at all. (Feelings about WonderCon at Anaheim this year were mixed.) In any case, CCI seems to think the call is there. I don't always have much confidence in their business vision, but I'll be watching to see if they're right.
Publishers Weekly
ETA: No new Con in 2013! WonderCon will be held in Anaheim March 29-31.
Whether or not this news excites you will probably depend on your location. In a nutshell: CCI may be producing a new Con, still in California, in 2013.
Currently CCI puts on 3 cons annually: WonderCon in San Francisco, APE (Alternative Press Expo) in the Bay Area and our favorite, San Diego Comic Con. However, this year WonderCon had to relocate to Anaheim due to construction in their SF venue, the Moscone Center. For spring 2013, that construction will still be an issue, so WonderCon will once again be held in Anaheim.
BUT the Moscone Center may be able to accommodate a Con in the fall 2013 - which could mean that CCI will create a fourth Con. However - this is where it gets confusing - if this is the case, then that autumn Con in San Francisco will become WonderCon, and the spring Con in Anaheim will become the new, as yet unnamed one.
In other words, we'll either have WonderCon in Anaheim in March 2013, or we'll have a new Con in Anaheim in March 2013 and WonderCon in San Francisco in fall 2013. When will we know for sure? October.
Now you may well be thinking, why do I care about this, all I care about is San Diego, but this is exactly the kind of juncture that may become the long-anticipated day when San Diego Comic Con cracks in half. For years now, people have been fervently wishing that San Diego could split into two separate cons, with Hollywood on one side and comic books on the other.
Is it really that simple? No, the fans intersect in all kinds of ways, and any split would leave some people dissatisfied. But it's still a very possible outcome as the Con bulges at the seams -and creating a fourth Con (and a SoCal one, no less) might be seen as an experiment and possible relief valve over these next 3 years that we are contractually stuck in San Diego.
We'll just have to wait and see if this fourth Con materializes. If it does, it is brand new territory, unshaped by expectations, and could theoretically be tipped toward any sector - sci fi, comic books, cosplay, anything. It could become an attractive option for people sick of the crowds and hassle of San Diego, or it could be seen as small potatoes and not attract many fans at all. (Feelings about WonderCon at Anaheim this year were mixed.) In any case, CCI seems to think the call is there. I don't always have much confidence in their business vision, but I'll be watching to see if they're right.
Publishers Weekly
ETA: No new Con in 2013! WonderCon will be held in Anaheim March 29-31.
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