#NerdsUnite: A Visit to Comic Con thru the eyes of @MorganSpurlock
<editorsnote> Nerds, meet my buddy Leah. She's pretty rad and has an INCREDIBLY random life. Like, no - for reals ... did you know she has an obsession with vampires, psychics, and tarot card readers ... and she had more sex as a teenager than in her 30s ... anddddd she even had two ex boyfriends die violently - one from a heroin overdose, and the other was murdered. Holy moly roli poli oli - that shit be cray cray. Either way, she's now here to write about her life, love, and all things nerd. I only have one more thing left to say ... HIT IT LEAH!!</editorsnote>
#TalkNerdyToMeLover's @Leah_Cevoli
Last month, thanks to my gal Crix Lee, I was invited to attend a press screening of Morgan Spurlock's latest Documentary, "ComicCon Episode IV: A Fan's Hope". The movie however wasn't released until TODAY, and we had to keep quiet about it, until the release date. So yay, I finally get to talk about it.
I am relatively new to the world of Comic Con, having attended my very first SDCC in 2008, at which point, I became a lifer.
Comic Con is unlike anything you have ever experienced, and even when you HAVE experienced it, there are still so many aspects and facets of this wonderful world that you don't even know exist.
And that to me, is what Spurlock's documentary did best. He captured a little snap-shot into the lives of five very different people, whom all had different reasons, and as such, different experiences attending ComicCon.
You see, throughout life, we can only experience, our own experience. By that I mean, when I go to Comic Con, it's to catch up with my friends in the movie and comics industry. I spend a lot of time in the Horror section, I attend panels of shows and people I admire, and I network. You never know what sort of magical occurence will happen at Comic Con, and it is always magical, but my experience is only a tiny portion of the event as a whole.
Spurlock showed the excitement, dedication, and creativity behind the world of CosPlayers who are so hard-core they enter the annual Masquerade party. He showed us a glimpse into the lives of two very different aspiring artists who set up appointments to have their life work reviewed at Comic Con. He showed us the love between two attendees, and the bravery and planning it takes, to pull off a surprise proposal. And lastly, and to me it was the most touching, Spurlock gave us a glimpse into the life of a Comic Book Shop owner who had been attending SDCC for decades, and is now experiencing a financial crisis in this ever changing world of digital downloads, movies, kindles, etc.
Sure, as a comic con attendee myself, I was aware that artists could set up reviews, I was aware that love blooms, I was aware of the Masquerade (I cos-played as Dazzler in 2009),
and I was aware of the importance and presence of the Comic Store Booths... but I had never stopped to think about what each of those experiences were like.
No, Comic Con movie would be complete without an array of celebrity cameos, and Spurlock did a fine job, of gathering some of SDCC's most beloved celebrities, including; Joss Whedon, Seth Green, and Kevin Smith to talk about what Comic Con means to them.
Spurlock's documentary, made me cry, it made me laugh, and it had me leaving the theatre, believing (once again), that dreams do come true, it just takes a lot of patience, persistance, faith, and a little elbow grease.