The detailed schedule for this weekend’s Immortal ConFusion is now up, so I can give some descriptions and get wide-eyed at the awesome co-panelists on my programming. The panelists are a mix of people I’ve already met and hung out with at cons previously and others where this will be my first change to make their acquaintance.
I’m very jazzed about the topics, since they hit right in the center of several of my geekdoms (Star Wars, Fan Studies, Re-mix Culture/Transformative Works, Subcultural Studies)
Let’s Remake Star Wars
2:00p Saturday
Ontario
Star Wars stands as one of the most influential science fiction franchises in the world, but the titular movie is now 35 years old. In an era when a movie half that age is ripe for a remake, why would Star Wars be immune? What would a post 9/11, technologically more advanced original trilogy look like? How would characters change, as an audience would know who were twins, who gets the girl, and who is the father? Does the sale of Lucasfilm to Disney in 2012 make this more likely, or less?
(Dick Smith, Dr. Phil Kaldon (M), Josh Parker, Michael Underwood, Saladin Ahmed)
(Dick Smith, Dr. Phil Kaldon (M), Josh Parker, Michael Underwood, Saladin Ahmed)
Fandom vs. Social Media
4:00p Saturday
Southfield
Geek culture has become somewhat ubiquitous these days, and with its ascent, some of our pastimes and obsessions have really gone mainstream. With that comes criticism – some valid, some less – and with critique an almost inevitable fandom backlash. Is it good that some of our favorite things have become too big to easily evaluate in a critical way? Does the legitimacy gained by the popularity of a Game of Thrones come at the price of being able to point out some of its flaws, and is this a worthwhile trade when considering the vitality of the genre?
(Holly McDowell, Leah Zeldes Smith (M), Michael Underwood, Patrick Rothfuss, Peter V. Brett)
(Holly McDowell, Leah Zeldes Smith (M), Michael Underwood, Patrick Rothfuss, Peter V. Brett)
W00t!
You can see the full schedule for yourself here: http://confusion.stilyagi.org/cf2013/schedule-events