Silicon Valley Comic Con 2017 | Coverage

Returning for another weekend of fun last month was Silicon Valley Comic Con. This is one of my most anticipated comic cons this year, so being prepared was a top priority in terms of having all the gear necessary. Cameras were packed. Film was packed. Microphone and mini tripod for vlogging packed. Everything packed except a wind shield for windy audio.

Attending as press means I did not get to wear a wristband. This means I didn't really get to experience the scanning process. Basically I flashed a badge and walked through. However, it seems a bit more thought was devoted to making sure a steady flow of traffic entering and exiting. There was never really a gridlock jam like last year. Another thing to note is all wristband scanning happened outside of the convention center, so there was no one allowed inside to ghost, even in the spacious lobby inside.

The artist alley contained a wide variety of content. Some I recognized, even local favorite artist Riri Mon had a table. Since this is a comic con, there was a big presence of independent comics that took on all sorts of topics and art styles. It's one of the reasons why I enjoy walking around the SVCC artist alley. The creativity in this artist alley is incredible, and the familiar artists I see at other events always bring new things that are relative to the event content.

Notable exhibitors this year include NASA, Wordpress, Acura, Warner Brothers, Joby and Lowepro. These were the booths that grabbed my attention each day, making sure I didn't get stuck too long in one particular spot. However, rest stops at the Wordpress tables was extra convenient since they had charging stations for phones. Not an exhibitor, but the couches and tables with chairs offered plenty of spots for people to take a break. This helped prevent people from sitting against walls and crowding up space in the exhibit hall.

Special guests were somewhat spread across the exhibit hall. There wasn't one particular area where the event guests could be found together. You kind of had to walk around, but Celebrity Row contained most of the celebrities. The likes of Steve Yeun, John Cusak, Grant Gustin and Tom Felton had another area for autographs and photo-ops. Lines for them were considerably long and there was no space in the exhibit hall to accomodate large crowds standing in a line.

Food was readily available in the exhibit hall and in the lobby area. Local spots like Psycho Donuts had a little pop-up shop serving up donuts and a selection of bottled soft drinks. There was another local food spot that set up, and they served a small assortment of Asian foods; the name is slipping my mind right now. However, just outside the convention center were the ice cream and hot dog vendors. That is something to take advantage of. Hot dogs were $5, but they were loaded with bacon, onions, jalapenos, mayo, mustard and ketchup.

There was so much going on the two days I went. Schedules were quite busy, but I made sure to check out one panel on Saturday. Finding Your Path to Greatness as an Actor of the Future with Anjali Bhimani was such a great panel to be at, but I'll be writing up a bit more on this in another article pretty soon. It was that good!

Anjali Bhimani (Fallout 4, Overwatch)

I am already looking forward to the next SVCC. Dates for next year will be April 6-8, 2018. Coverage this year spanned over 2 of the 3 days, but I'll be pushing to cover SVCC from beginning to end next year. This event has expanded so much that I think it is worthy of drawing in out-of-state crowds. It brought up some southern California folks, so it's obviously catching the attention of people outside the bay area. The special guests line-up next year has a tall order to fill after having an amazing line-up last month. Tickets for next year can already be ordered online with a 25% discount, making the 3-day adult pass $74.25.

The video below is a little vlog that I made. Not really little, it's 40 minutes long, but includes clips during Saturday and Sunday. There are some audio issues in a few parts, mostly due the not bringing a wind shield for the microphone. Check out the video since it shows off the exhibit hall and other random happenings at SVCC.

Links to more SVCC 2017 coverage
Photo Gallery | Facebook
A Panel with Anjali Bhimani -- coming soon
Instax Snaps -- coming soon

SacAnime Winter 2017 | Vlog

This is our first full-length vlog episode together. We were quite amazed at how much footage we shot throughout the whole weekend at SacAnime Winter 2017. Video has always been a priority for Nerd Gazette, but something would always hold us back from creating. I feel like the new year with a refreshed motivation pushed us to make this happen, and it's a good thing we did.

Not only did we capture the essence of our weekend together, but the vlog episode ended up being over 14 minutes long. A sliver of footage was left out of the final version for the sake of keeping things flowing steadily. This was also our chance to realize the iPhone 6s is good enough for making these videos. Eventually we would like to upgrade to nicer gear, but this will do for now. The iPhone gives us 4k video, slow motion recording, and time-lapse – basically the necessities for us to record. One thing we want to add soon is an external mic attachment to improve the audio.

We did our best to capture the main happenings of the weekend for the video. I guess 3 days of recording really adds up. This really gives us a direction to approach future events when it comes to making videos like this. Check out the video below. Enjoy! :)

–J–

Central Valley Cosplay Gathering Spring 2016

I checked out the latest Central Valley Cosplay Gathering on Saturday. The spring time makes for great outdoorsy pictures, so I was working up a storm with my cameras. I hung out with friends throughout the day, but I came home with a fair amount of pictures. Vlog #12 below offers a glimpse at the shenanigans that happens when I'm not taking pictures.

Weather in Sacramento was pretty gnarly for my kind of shooting. I was able to take pictures in several areas to have some sort of variance in the background. This was probably my longest time spent at a CVCG since sunsets are after 7pm now. The summer CVCG should be a fun one, even if the weather has a ridiculously high temperature. I'll be there. :) 

Adventures of Justin: CVCG Winter 2016

The latest episode for Adventures of Justin is a collection of clips from Central Valley Cosplay Gathering Winter 2016. It's the usual shenanigans with my friends. I happen to capture bits of it on video -- in 4K! Gatherings like this are best enjoyed with friends. You'll get an idea why in the video below. There is a fine line between conventions and gatherings in terms of having fun. At conventions I have to actually get work done. That expectation of work at gatherings isn't really there. I just do it regardless.

The selfie collection :)

I like this space at William Land Park. It's the best spot, in my opinion, for a gathering this size. The open area with few tall trees next to an open field area is perfect. My arrival around 1pm meant I got straight into photographer mode. Quite a few friends noticed me as I got to the gathering area, so I technically didn't get to settle in like I usually do. There wasn't any extensive shoot that I did with anyone. Maybe Stephanie has more pictures than anyone else, but she brought cosplays that I wanted to photograph so badly. That was such a good time hanging out since our convention time is so crowded with scheduling. 

I also got to hang with Jeramie from An Idiot's Array -- dude is always nice to chat with. The two homies known as Trent and Sean make for another round of fun times. One of the cool things yesterday was surprising my best friend Mikayla (I kept chatting on Facebook as if I wasn't going until I found her). It was super funny seeing her reaction. I probably won't be able to pull that off anymore. Check out the video below to get a taste of what the gathering is like. You'll also get to see how not-so-serious I am, but I'm totally getting work done and having a great time. Enjoy! :)

Adventures of Justin: Grape City Con 2016

Next up is the latest Adventures of Justin episode. Decided to drop the episode number on titles since they aren't exactly adding up at an alarming rate. So the video at the very bottom features a Grape City Con tour of most spaces utilized. I hope the clips during the tour segment give a nice grasp on just how many exhibitors and guests were at this event. There was a lot of everything. Never did I feel like "oh, I've seen everything here.. let's go home" during the day. Being around friends certainly helps too.

I like to think the vibe from the video reflects the fun factor that this event has. It's that smaller scale convention that doesn't require a schedule (plan A & B), places to be, exclusives to buy, etc. This might sound silly, but the whole day was rather relaxing. On top of having a great time making the video, I do hope it at least convinces one person to come out to Lodi and experience Grape City Con next time.

Check out all the other Grape City Con 2016 coverage here. Enjoy! :)

Adventures of Justin, Episode 7: Mouse-Con 2015

I remember seeing the little banner for Mouse-Con at Big Wow Comicfest earlier this year. I was like "hm, this sounds interesting" for the bay area. Announcements for the show began to come out, and my excitement for the convention continued to skyrocket. The Mouse-Con experience still feels like a convention, but solely focused on Disney stuff, and this is something I've never seen before. My Adventure of Justin episode should give you a general look at the whole space for Mouse-Con. It is on the first floor of the Hilton Concord, taking up pretty much every available space possible. Check out my video below for more. Enjoy! :)

Adventures of Justin, Episode 6: Sac Con Fall 2015

A few clips came together that will be known as episode 6 for Adventures of Justin. Sac Con Fall 2015 continued the same atmosphere it had for the Sac Con back in March. It is loads of fun, especially in a large enough space to accommodate a crowd it commands. A location change can enhance an event so much, and the Sac Con / SacAnime events are perfect examples.

There is a quick snippet of my friends dancing to Drake's Hotline Bling. It was hilarious in person, but only a few seconds captured since I was taking pictures. Very rarely do I stay busy the whole time at a convention, but this is definitely one where I bounce around place to place. One moment I'm in the exhibitor hall, then I'm outside for pictures, and find myself back in the exhibitor hall again. It's a repetitive process, but I'm always doing something different.

Check out the video below. Enjoy! :)

Adventures of Justin, Episode 5: SacAnime Summer 2015

Making a return to my channel is my Adventures of Justin segment. It's been a few months since the last episode, so I really wanted to put something together for SacAnime. Taking a long break between episodes was never my intention. It just happened this way. This episode is basically a collection of happenings during SacAnime on Friday. Check out the new episode below. Enjoy! :)

Adventures of Justin, Episode 4: It Follows Review

Theater Marquee

Beautiful. That's the first word that comes to mind when I think about It Follows. Directed and written by David Robert Mitchell, this creepy horror flick gives new life to the genre. The concept of what's going on is pretty basic. It even gets explained fairly easily in one scene. You have to have it to be able to see it coming.

The town vibe works so well for It Follows, even though it ventures off to other locations throughout. It reminds me of the local area I'm in more than anything. The cinematography throughout the film really stood out to me, especially in the wide shots of landscapes. I applaud cinematographer Mike Gioulakis for making me want to visit some of these locations.

Adding to the scenery is the placement of new and old appliances/devices throughout the film. An old object, for example, is a television with an antenna. At time I would think about why are some of these things still in the house, but it was kind of neat seeing them. Maybe households like this exist. I still buy vinyl records, so I'm not one to complain.

Keeping the film beyond awesome are the cast performances. Maika Monroe is phenomenal as Jay. Her emotions keep everything flowing, along with the screaming and running away from the it that follows is incredibly entertaining. Can't forget about the rest of the cast. Lili Sepe, Keir Gilchrist, Olivia Luccardi, and Daniel Zovatto play Jay's friends that turn out to be friends I wish I had in real life. They stay by Jay's side throughout the whole film, even if they weren't convinced about it at first. The chemistry between all of them is spot-on.

Let me rave about the soundtrack. Disasterpeace created a masterpiece score that I'm already anticipating to own on vinyl (vinyl release is April 7). The "Title" track is so easy to have stuck in my head. I'll catch myself humming it if it isn't playing. I was sold on the soundtrack before seeing the movie itself. Hearing it all play within the movie made me love the score even more.

I will most likely catch It Follows in theaters one more time. The Blu-ray is a must-have on release day. I'm hoping Anchor Bay will pack in a handful of features to keep it from feeling like a barebones release. However, I'm not usually into special features, but having a more in-depth look at this film would really intrigue me.

A modern horror film has never had me talking so much beyond the day I first watched it. I feel like I can talk about It Follows forever. I'm on a few online forums that have fans of this movie, and they feel the same way about it. Some of the questions that are left unanswered leave room for conversations, so it's been fun reading various thoughts on a few topics. Go see this movie in theaters, especially if you appreciate the genre through the years -- more like decades. Pass it on.

Check out my latest Adventures of Justin episode for even more on It Follows. It's quite unique as it shows me talking before and after watching the film. Enjoy! :)

Adventures of Justin, Episode 3: Sac-Con March 2015

I went to Sac-Con with a video checklist, and ultimately did not do everything I wanted. A big chunk of the video is a tour of the vendor room with some random commentary. That was the main thing I wanted to get done. It was the first time Sac-Con was at this location, so hopefully the folks that missed out got a grasp on the size of this place. I filmed the room tour right when I got in, so what you won't see are the crowded aisles that were there for most of the day.

Check out the video below for more! :)

Adventures of Justin, Episode 2: Disney Store | Tinker Bell Blu-ray

I didn't plan on this being an episode, but that's what happened. This could be an occurring theme for episodes when I have to pick up a Disney Store pre-order. Talking at the beginning was funny. Maybe because it was my first time talking in the car for a video. I wish I picked up on this format sooner than I did. It's very fun to make, and I hope they're just as fun to watch. Check out episode 2 below! :)

Adventures of Justin, Episode 1: East Bay Comic Con 2015

My new video series, Adventures with Justin, began yesterday. I'm not sure how often these episodes will happen. It isn't strictly limited to conventions. It just happened to be the event I decided to push myself to making it. The episodes will usually take place outside of home. In this first episode I was just seeing how it all works. I obviously haven't done this before if you watch my YouTube videos. It was really fun making the clips. Feeling comfortable about it was the biggest thing for me to keep going. I did take mental notes on what I would like to do next time at a convention. All I know is that I can't wait to do it again. Hope you enjoy it! :)