I arrived at the ultimate geek fest known as Comic-Con in San Diego relatively unscathed one Wednesday mid-afternoon. Lucky enough to “win” the room lottery and stay at the Hilton Bayfront where many of my industry colleagues were staying, my “run in” factor was high. I rushed over to pick up my “professionals” pass and then I was off to Preview night which was my chance to view the exhibition floor prior to the arrival of the masses. Right–me and about 130,000 others!
The subject amongst many, what is going to be the “hot winner” of this Comic-Con? With television shows starting and ending, nostalgia flowing for shows of the past, movie trailers being premiered and games making big debuts, it’s pretty hard to guess at this stage. And of course, there’s the comics themselves. Ear hustling amongst the crowds I picked up buzz of the anticipation of “Arrow.” “What is this show ‘Revolution’?” The crazy line for Twilight, and who is doing the Zombie run. I load up the Comic-Con app noting my schedule for the Epic and Sony Panels and I am ready for my Con!
Two days of maneuvering my way around zombified cosplayers and loincloth-draped men (and women), countless meal meetings, drinks, coffees, parties and shouting on the exhibit floor, it was finally time for the infamous John Nee dinner! This year the dinner was in a large room at Buca di Beppo and had 100-plus of his closest friends, all exhausted industry colleagues trying to not let on too much that deep down we are just as much fans ourselves.
John Nee, the former sr. VP at DC Comics and the current chief executive officer of Cryptozoic, is one of the reigning elite at this show. Countless relationships and ideas have had their beginnings at his dinners.
Meanwhile my colleagues’ experiences of the show are split. Overnight lines for Twilight are expected, but who would have thought the Firefly 10-year anniversary would cause so much buzz? Zombies are in but apparently so are Vampires as the people already lined up for the True Blood panel will tell you.
Apocalyptic fantasy and Sci-Fi are mainstream and all the lines are blurred with how that media is consumed. “Defiance” is a game and a new series, simultaneously. Upcoming “Hawken” is also a game, a web series, a movie and then comic books, novels and who knows what else? And the fans love it. They very much want to consume–in all formats. They want it as a snack, a dessert and the whole meal.
But what fans are demanding is a good story, engaging characters, and better technologies to serve them all up to them. Fans want to watch, play and participate in it. Fans want the new and different and then they want the nostalgic to be done right. I agree and admit that I, too, am a fan. So look for the zombie wearing the Hawaiian dress next year and say, “Hello!”.
Cindy Airey is EP of Games at Zoic Studios. She has been working in varied roles in post and production for TV, animation, features, home entertainment and games for 25+ years. In the gaming world, She was VP of sales & marketing, Interactive and Animation, at Technicolor and later served as VP of Interactive Media at Fotokem.
