Con News: Full Wizard World Philadelphia Comic Con Schedule

Stan Lee, William Shatner, 'Charmed' and 'Firefly' Reunion Q&As, Comics Panels, Evening Parties, Movies Fuel Largest Programming Schedule At Wizard World Philadelphia Comic Con, May 30 – June 2

Henry Winkler, Manu Bennett, James Marsters, Ray Park Among Stars Conducting Q&As; Marvel Sessions Lead Four Days Packed With Comic-Themed Programming At Pennsylvania Convention Center

NEW YORK and PHILADELPHIA, May 21, 2013 – Interactive Q&A sessions featuring celebrities Stan Lee, William Shatner, Henry Winkler, John Barrowman, Manu Bennett and stars of “Charmed” and “Firefly,” a full slate of comics-themed panels, evening parties and movie screenings are some of the highlights of a comprehensive schedule of programming at Wizard World Philadelphia Comic Con, May 30 – June 2 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center.

Standout programming at the event includes:
· Q&As with Lee, Shatner, Winkler, Barrowman, Bennett, James Marsters, Ray Park, Michael Rooker and other stars
· Reunions of “Firefly” headliners Adam Baldwin, Summer Glau, Jewel Staite and Gina Torres; the “Charmed” trio of Shannen Doherty, Holly Marie Combs and Brian Krause; and the pairing of two “Supermans” in Dean Cain and Brandon Routh; and the tag-team of WWE® Superstar Daniel Bryan® and WWE® Hall Of Famer Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat™
· Two Marvel Comics panels, “Breaking Into Comics The Marvel Way” and “From Now! To Infinity”
· Evening parties on Thursday, May 30 (Con Bro Chill concert for VIP badgeholders, Trocadero Theatre), Friday, May 31 (Super Art Fight, Tavern on Broad) and Saturday, June 1 (After Party, Field House)
· Screenings of Weekend at Bernie's with Andrew McCarthy (Friday 7 p.m., Terrace Ballroom) and Police Academy with Steve Guttenberg (Saturday 7 p.m., Room 108) sponsored by The Awesome Fest, and Skull World (Thursday, 6 p.m., Room 111)
· Dozens of comics-themed panels with industry leaders with advice on how to break into the field, get work seen, etc., plus portfolio reviews by Marvel and Zenescope
· Costume contests for adults (Saturday) and Kids (Sunday)
· Kids Day (Sunday) with an array of panels and events designed especially for children

Thursday, May 30
4:00 – 4:45pm One Small Step For Fans: Browncoats In Space (Room 109)
4:00 – 4:45pm Creating A Web-Series In Today’s Market Place: Simply, Crest (Room 111)
5:00 – 5:45pm Getting Your Comic Books Signed And Protecting Your Investment (Room 109)
5:00 – 5:45pm Drawing Cult-Classics To Fairytales To Old School Comic Books (Room 111)
6:00 – 6:45pm Creativity That Lasts (Room 109)
6:00 – 8:00pm Skull World Screening (Room 111)
7:00 – 7:45pm The Return Of Audio Drama (Room 109)
8:00 – 10:30pm Con Bro Chill VIP Concert – VIP Badge Holders Only – All Ages (Trocadero Theatre, 1003 Arch St.)

Friday, May 31
1:00 – 1:45pm Gam3r: Be As Famous As The Games You Play (Room 108)
1:00 – 1:45pm Writing Captivating Sci-Fi/Fantasy/Horror Comics & Novels (Room 109)
1:00 – 1:45pm Teen Manga: New Era G (Room 111)
1:00 – 3:00pm Sci-Fi Speed Dating (Room 112)
1:00 – 1:45pm Linda Blair Q&A (Room 113)
1:00 – 1:30pm Alliance Larp Combat Demo (Cosplay Stage)
1:00 – 2:45pm Zenescope Portfolio Review (Booth 417)
2:00 – 2:45pm Hollywood And Comics (Room 108)
2:00 – 2:45pm How We Got Here (Room 109)
2:00 – 2:45pm Wanna Make Your Own Toy? (Room 111)
2:00 – 2:45pm Wibbly Wobbly Time: A Doctor Who Panel (Room 113)
2:00 – 2:30pm Imperial Klingon Forces Photo Ops (Cosplay Stage)
2:30 – 3:00pm Spawn Photo Ops (Cosplay Stage)
3:00 – 3:45pm Kevin Sorbo Q&A (Room 108)
3:00 – 3:45pm Pen And Ink: Making An Old Style New Again (Room 109)
3:00 – 3:45pm Stan Lee Meet And Greet – Paid Event (Room 110)
3:00 – 3:45pm Creating Characters That Readers Love To Hate (Room 111)
3:00 – 3:45pm Basic Costuming, Fx Makeup & Armor-Like Creation (Room 113)
3:00 – 3:30pm Rob Prior: Two Handed Art Demo (Cosplay Stage)
4:00 – 4:45pm The Fun Side Of Comics And Graphic Novels (Room 108)
4:00 – 4:45pm Jason David Frank Meet And Greet – Paid Event (Room 110)
4:00 – 4:45pm Topps In 2013: The Year Of Sci-Fi (Room 111)
4:00 – 4:45pm Ray Park Q&A (Room 113)
4:00 – 5:00pm Superhero Photoshoot (Cosplay Stage)
5:00 – 6:00pm Marvel: Breaking Into Comics The Marvel Way (Room 108)
5:00 – 6:30pm Webcomics Bootcamp (Room 109)
5:00 – 5:45pm Animation In Today’s Industry (Room 111)
5:00 – 7:00pm Sci-Fi Speed Dating (Room 112)
5:00 – 5:45pm James Marsters Q&A (Room 113)
5:00 – 5:45pm Michael Rooker Q&A (Terrace Ballroom)
6:00 – 6:45pm Movie And Puppet Improv With Deleted Scenes! (Room 108)
6:00 – 6:45pm Flashfall/The Joe Files Cosplay And Fanfilms Panel (Room 111)
6:00 – 6:45pm Stan “the Man” Lee Q&A (Terrace Ballroom)
6:00 – 7:00pm Barbizon Models Fashion Show (Cosplay Stage)
7:00 – 9:00pm 80’s Night With Andrew McCarthy: Presented By Awesomefest (Terrace Ballroom)
8:30 –11:00pm Wizard World Presents Super Art Fight – 21 And Over (Tavern On Broad, 200 S Broad St)

Saturday, June 1
11:00 – 11:45am Vampire Lore And Other Urban Myths And Legends With Dr. Rebecca Housel (Room 108)
11:00 – 11:45am Cheap And Dirty Cosplay: Lessons From Shewolf Cosplays (Room 109)
11:00 – 11:45am Jason David Frank Meet And Greet – Paid Event (Room 110)
11:00 – 11:45am Curtis Sliwa Q&A (Room 111)
11:00 – 11:45am Philly Geek: What To Do In Philadelphia Area Fandom The Other 363 Days Of The Year! (Room 113)
11:00 – 12:00pm Star Trek Photo Ops W/ USS Sovereign NCC-75000 And The Imperial Klingon Forces (Cosplay Stage)
12:00 – 12:45pm Grimm Fairy Tales Animated (Room 108)
12:00 – 12:45pm Storytelling With Michael Golden: Taking It To The Next Level (Room 109)
12:00 – 12:45pm The Next Evolution Of Zombie: Romper Zombie! (Room 111)
12:00 – 12:45pm Kris Holden-Ried Q&A (Room 113)
12:00 – 12:45pm Zenescope Portfolio Review (Booth 417)
12:30 – 1:15pm William Shatner Q&A (Terrace Ballroom)
1:00 – 1:45pm Costumes + Playing = Cosplay! So What Does That Actually Mean? (Room 108)
1:00 – 1:45pm Creator Spotlight: Doug Sneyd (Room 109)
1:00 – 1:45pm Stan Lee Meet And Greet – Paid Event (Room 110)
1:00 – 1:45pm Building Fantasy Worlds (Room 111)
1:00 – 3:00pm Sci-Fi Speed Dating (Room 112)
1:00 – 1:45pm Henry Winkler Q&A (Room 113)
1:30 – 2:15pm Charmed Reunion With Shannen Doherty, Holly Marie Combs & Brian Krause (Terrace Ballroom
1:00 – 2:00pm Saber Academy Lightsaber Fight Demo (Cosplay Stage)
2:00 – 2:45pm Lauren Holly Q&A (Room 108)
2:00 – 2:45pm Getting Your Comic Books Signed And Protecting Your Investment - Part Ii (Room 109)
2:00 – 3:30pm Marvel Portfolio Review
2:00 – 2:45pm Hip-Hop & Comics: Cultures Combining (Room 111)
2:00 – 2:45pm Superhero Battle Royale (Room 113)
2:00 – 3:00pm Dragonsong Forge Swordsmanship Demo (Cosplay Stage)
2:30 – 3:15pm Buffyfest! With James Marsters, Charisma Carpenter And Juliet Landau (Terrace Ballroom)
3:00 – 3:45pm Aaron & Shawn Ashmore Q&A (Room 108)
3:00 – 3:45pm Wonder Women For The 21st Century (Room 109)
3:00 – 3:45pm Head Smash, The Biggest Graphic Novel Release Of 2013! With Creator Vlad Yudin And Producer Edwin Mejia (Room 111)
3:00 – 3:45pm WWE® Superstar Daniel Bryan® And Wwe® Hall Of Famer Ricky “the Dragon” Steamboat™ Q&A (Room 113)
3:00 – 4:30pm Marvel vs DC Photoshoot (Cosplay Stage)
3:45 – 4:30pm The Walking Dead With Norman Reedus, Michael Rooker And Jon Bernthal (Terrace Ballroom)
4:00 – 5:00pm Marvel: From Now! To Infinity (Room 108)
4:00 – 5:30pm Artist Alley 101 With Interrobang Studios (Room 109)
4:00 – 4:45pm U Cre-8 Comics Presents: Character Crafters (Room 111)
4:00 – 4:45pm Giancarlo Esposito Q&A (Room 113)
4:30 – 5:00pm Rob Prior: Two Handed Art Demo (Cosplay Stage)
5:00 – 5:45pm Kickstarting Your Own Project (Room 108)
5:00 – 5:45pm Id Comics Studios - How To Be A Functioning Studio (Room 111)
5:00 – 7:00pm Sci-Fi Speed Dating (Room 112)
5:00 – 5:45pm Jason David Frank: Power Ranger Q&A (Room 113)
5:00 – 5:45pm Firefly With Adam Baldwin, Summer Glau, Jewel Staite, & Gina Torres (Terrace Ballroom)
5:00 – 5:30pm Alliance Larp Combat Demo (Cosplay Stage)
5:30 – 6:00pm Imperial Klingon Forces Photo Ops (Cosplay Stage)
6:00 – 6:45pm An Evening With Steve Guttenberg (Room 108)
6:00 – 6:45pm My Grandmother Wants To Fly Jets (Room 109)
6:00 – 6:45pm Dr. How/Torchwood Cosplay And Fanfilms Panel (Room 111)
6:00 – 6:45pm Artists United (Room 113)
6:00 – 7:00pm Barbizon Models Fashion Show (Cosplay Stage)
7:00 – 9:00pm Police Academy Screening Sponsored By Awesomefest (Room 108)
7:00 – 7:45pm How I Switched From Print To Webcomics And Why (Room 109)
7:00pm – 9:00pm Wizard World Adult Costume Contest (Terrace Ballroom)
9:00pm – 2:00am Official Wizard World Philadelphia Comic Con After Party - 21 And Over (Field House, 1150 Filbert St.)

Sunday, June 2
11:00 – 11:45am From The Microscope To The Big Screen: Creepy Crawlies In Pop Culture (Room 109)
11:00 – 11:45am Why Do They Call Them That? How Mlb Teams Got Their Names And Other Fun Facts (Room 111)
11:00 – 1:00pm LGBT Sci-Fi Speed Dating (Room 112)
11:00 – 11:45am John Barrowman Q&A (Room 113)
11:00 – 12:00pm Junior Saber Training (Cosplay Stage)
12:00 – 12:45pm Compelling Storytelling (Room 109)
12:00 – 12:45pm Jason David Frank Meet And Greet – Paid Event (Room 110)
12:00 – 12:45pm Digital Age (Room 111)
12:00 – 12:45pm Manu Bennett Q&A (Room 113)
12:00 – 12:30pm 66 Batman & Batgirl Photo Ops (Cosplay Stage)
1:00 – 1:45pm Independent Writing And Publishing (Room 109)
1:00 – 1:45pm Doodle! Scribble! Draw! (Room 111)
1:00 – 1:45pm What’s Better Then Superman? Supermen! With Dean Cain & Brandon Routh (Room 113)
1:00 – 2:00pm Whovian/Torchwood Photoshoot (Cosplay Stage)
2:00 – 2:45pm The Geek Culture: We’ve Taken Our First Step Into A Larger World (Room 109)
2:00 – 3:30pm Marvel Portfolio Review
2:00 – 4:00pm Super Art Fight (Room 111)
2:00 – 3:00pm The Green Power Ranger Power Hour (Room 113)
3:00 – 3:45pm Wizard World Kids Costume Contest (Room 113)
3:00 – 4:00pm Junior Saber Training (Cosplay Stage)

*Seating for panels is strictly limited and available on a first served basis. Wizard World does not clear all panel rooms unless attendees are seated in a section that is marked with a sign at the end of the row reading: Row will be cleared at the end of each panel.

Terrace Ballroom will cleared after each panel.

Unless noted, programming events take place in the designated General Programming Rooms at Pennsylvania Convention Center.  Most are included as part of standard Wizard World Philadelphia Comic Con admission; VIP tickets or additional costs may apply to ensure access to select activities, as noted.

A full list of Wizard World Philadelphia programming is below; further details on each at http://www.wizardworld.com/programming-pa.html (subjects, guests, times and rooms subject to change):

Wizard World Comic Con events bring together thousands of fans of all ages to celebrate the best in pop-fi, pop culture, movies, graphic novels, comics, toys, video gaming, television, sci-fi, gaming, original art, collectibles, contests and more.  Wizard World Philadelphia Comic Con show hours are Thursday, May 30, 3-8 p.m.; Friday, May 31, noon – 7 p.m.; Saturday, June 1, 10 a.m. - 7 p.m., Sunday, June 2, 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.

For more on the 2013 Wizard World Philadelphia Comic Con, visit http://www.wizardworld.com/home-pa.html.

About Wizard World:
Wizard World produces Comic Cons and pop culture conventions across North America that celebrate graphic novels, comic books, movies, TV shows, gaming, technology, toys and social networking. The events often feature celebrities from movies and TV, artists and writers, and events such as premieres, gaming tournaments, panels, and costume contests.

The full event schedule can be found at www.wizardworld.com.

***** SAVE THE 2013-14 DATES *****
May 30 - June 2 – Wizard World Philadelphia Comic Con
June 28-30 – Wizard World Comic Con NYC Experience
August 8-11 – Wizard World Chicago Comic Con
September 20-22 – Wizard World Ohio Comic Con
October 18-20 – Wizard World Nashville Comic Con
November 22-24 – Wizard World Austin Comic Con
January 24-26, 2014 – Wizard World Portland Comic Con
February 7-9, 2014 – Wizard World New Orleans Comic Con
April 4-6, 2014 – Wizard World St. Louis Comic Con

DaWaRou Posts: Spellbound-The Origin of my Magnum Opus!

Hey guys, just what I just got?! THE COMPLETE POWERPUFF GIRLS SERIES! Also, I broke my dental filling and need to get it fixed but that's completely beside the point. The point is...I'M BACK TO DOING WEEKLY POSTS! Yes, you may find it hard to believe that with school starting up for me in another week that I'll be able to find the time to do a week by week post but I assure you that I will most definitely do it! But today's a special day! Today's the day I share something very special with all of you. Ladies and Gents, I'm John Cortez and THIS is my twelfth post for...The Broken Infinite.

As I promised in my last post, today I'll be sharing with you all the inner workings and my creative process behind what I hope to be my Magnum Opus, Spellbound. Now, is this incredibly stupid of me? Giving random strangers online who I've never met private information that could literally make or break me as a writer? Well, yes, yes it is but I'm a glass half full kind of person and I'm not stupid so I won't be going into too much detail as to what's going to happen in the story. Just kind of the back story on what it is and how it came to be and how things...are set to work.

Spellbound started off as a writing exercise for me to see if I could write a weak and low powered protagonist. Up until that point, all the protagonists I'd ever written were already at a point that they'd start the story being extremely powerful and fully in tune with their powers and...while I don't want to say boring because even when I first started writing I think I realized how to at least make my readers keep turning the pages...it didn't really lend itself well to growth and development. So I tried and tried but I was never actually able to sit down and write anything for it, instead devoting myself to my other stories as well as community college and of course anime and manga. At the time, I'd just discovered the television show Charmed

the story of three sisters who discovered that they were The Charmed Ones, the most powerful Good Witches the world had or ever would know and I really enjoyed it and I still do and, maybe unsurprisingly, my very first draft of Spellbound began to form. At it's earliest stages, Spellbound was about three friends who, upon turning 13, discovered that they were Mages and had to do their magical training in secret. Each would have their own Grimorie, a textbook for their Magic and each would have their own special power apart from their regular witchcraft and wizardry. One of the big kicks about the series was when I first planned it, none of the characters would know that their best friend happens to be a Mage and the three of them would often engage in misunderstandings of epic proportions and then I changed it so that they did know or that they'd find out all on the same day. From there I also planned that the main antagonist was plotting to take over the world or something like that and so the main characters had to work at their Magic that much harder so as to prevent the world from coming to an end or falling under the thumb of some evil Magically empowered dictator. It wasn't an entirely well thought out story, but then again, as it was only meant to be an exercise, I didn't feel like it needed to be extremely well thought out but the more I thought about it the more potential I saw for an actual story

And from the little information I had down about the story I kept only a few small things those being the name of the main character, the fact that he was a Mage-in-Training, and his Grimorie. I began to tun elsewhere for ideas on a story, on a plot, on supporting characters when my eyes fell on this!

Mahou Sensei Negima! The story of a young Mage who finds himself the English teacher to a class of 31 beautiful Japanese schoolgirls, each special in her own way. This was largely the template I used for Spellbound and many of my characters are directly ripped off from the characters of this series, right down to my main characters homeroom and English class. In that respect, Spellbound became more of an...AU fanfic of Negima wherein the teacher was given an age up and placed in the same position as the students. It was always my intention to tell an epic story, I just never knew what to do with it until Spellbound came into my life. So from there I moved onto my most enjoyed process, character creation. I took the 31 girls of Negi's class, Negi himself, his friends Kotaro and Anya and his sister Nekane and began molding them to suit my needs. Genders were the first thing to change and then came origins since I fully intended to publish this and couldn't do so unless it was completely my own.

From there the story all just started coming at once. I wanted Spellbound to take place in a world that had just discovered the existence of Magic and the Supernatural so as to not have to worry about writing a big world secret story. If I want things to happen, I don't want to have to worry about things like whipping the minds of non magic people. A world where the secret had been exposed made things easier to write as well as gave me a decent reason for conflict within the story itself. And to further that, I decided to make many of the characters in the main class Supernatural. And then came writing in more characters and their origins and personalities and wants and desires and all that good stuff. I find myself not liking tragic backstories for characters so most of mine don't have one. I like giving my characters average and normal back stories and from there their lives will become interesting. And still I wasn't truly ready to really start Spellbound until I watched this again.

Kiki's Delivery Serivce, my favorite Miazaki film, which tells the story of a young Witch trying to find her way in the big city while training to become a real Witch. The idea that my Mages turn 13 and then leave home to train came largely from this movie and at that point I had everything I needed to get started.

So before we bring this to an end, what is Spellbound about? Cole Dryden is a Mage with uncontrollable Magic so he's sent to the big city to try and improve himself. That's it in a single sentence! Thanks all for joining me! DaWaRou~!