Escapade 2013 Con Report
Feb. 27th, 2013 09:58 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
tartysuzYesterday, I returned from my second Escapade, a con that celebrated its 23rd anniversary this year. That is some impressive longevity for a 100% fan-run con with a very specialized focus.
First, the biggest hugs fordevilc, who enticed me to my first Escapade a couple of years ago. Once again, she generously put me up at her home from where we (i.e., she) drove to and from the con. We also roomed in an ocean view suite, which, sure, was a little small and had an old TV, but, hey, OCEAN VIEW.
The weekend started auspiciously enough. When we arrived, we were greeted in the hotel bar with good wine, good food and good conversation dispensed by Killa, Mr. Killa,kerithwyn and several others. I was still learning people's names, so I apologize for not including everyone who was there.
The lobby was quite busy with a watercolour show and a fundraiser for a medical cause. They were giving out the most obnoxious rings to anyone with $20 to donate, so my roomie and I each got one:
Bling!
I'm quite happy with the hotel, but there was no decent coffee in sight until we went to the farmers' market on Saturday morning. The same fellow I saw two years ago was there (I gather it's his stall). He offered to help install our coffee lids since he's a coffee professional.
Now on to the escapades!
In the meta track:
I went to the sessions about AO3 and Calibre, knowing they would be dealing with advanced topics, while I'm a newbie. I took copious notes for when the time comes to tap into this info.
I also attended a discussion about the generation gap in fandom. Ironically, we had voted to reprise this panel from the Escapade program of 10 years ago. There have been a couple of big shifts involving the technology by which fans write and distribute their work, namely from paper zines to LiveJournal, and now the diaspora from LJ. The two popular destinations are Tumblr and Archive of Our Own. Interestingly, they represent two extremes: one is focused on images while the other is archival, as the name suggests. AO3 may continue to present LJ-type texts, but the social element is missing. Tumblr is highly sociable (it is incredibly easy to re-blog), but it is really not designed for long-form reading or for locating past entries. We also pondered whether services like Netflix will bring different generations of viewers together, since series can be accessible forever.
In the fandom track:
Teen Wolf: First panel of Escapade 2013!lovesrain44 and amothea led a small but growing group (people kept coming in!) on a discussion about Teen Wolf: what we liked about the show, what fannish engagement we have. Personally, I love how the show is the latest and most pronounced step away from the horror movie concept of the lone werewolf (in retrospect, it makes little anthropological sense, unless it's backfilled with the idea that the werewolf is a monster among wolves for being a loner). Setting the problem of how to build, maintain and lead a pack in high school is perfect, given the social negotiations teens undergo to sort themselves into cliques.
Some ideas about the show that were discussed:
As far as the fic goes:
Person of Interest This discussion was inspired by the tagline for Person of Interest: The One Person Who Connects You to the World. Exploring each main characters through identifying who is the one person who can determine his or her future allowed us to pinpoint different motivations for each character, and different tropes they may fall into. For example, Reese sees himself as being irredeemably damaged, leading him to accept the role of sin eater. Meanwhile, Finch was protected from the realities of the world, working directly with the machine. But he sees how it's enabled evil. As someone in the session said, "Finch and Reese are taking their damage and trying to do good with it." There was quite a lot of discussion about the episode in which Finch goes missing and Reese must talk to the Machine. It demonstrated Reese's personal attachment to Finch (in contrast to John's initial suspicion of Harold), but it also marked the moment that the Machine "came out" as a member of the three-entity partnership. I was reminded of Isaac Asimov's Three Laws of Robotics:
All hail todorinda, who led the discussion and posted links to resources for the show and the slash here: http://escapade-con.dreamwidth.org/54701.html
The Hobbit: Despite the slashiness of the preceding Lord of the Rings movies, the consensus was that The Hobbit was much less so. One reason: the dwarves aren't all that appealing, particularly those under a lot of latex make-up with macrame beards. Another reason: the dwarvish characters are undifferentiated in the source material, and scarcely more characterized in the movie.
Arrow: The theme of this panel was "unwilling relationships." Panel leader bren/glacis pointed out that every relationship in this show is entered into involuntarily. In some cases, such as within the Queen family biological unit, there was no choice in the relationship, but since they are all adults now, they have the choice of how to deal with each other. Antagonists become assistive when enough interests are pooled. For example, Ollie could have made Diggle a permanent thorn in his own side, but instead, he turns it around when he realizes he could use Dig's helps, and when Dig realizes that he makes a more positive contribution in society by supporting Oliver instead of hindering him. Consensus was that the main characters in the show do what they think is required in order to protect a society. Unfortunately, a few people, Ollie and Malcolm among them, are tunnel-visioned, ends-justify-the-means types who must constantly be reminded of the bigger picture. For those who enjoy comparing the show to the source material, bren/glacis recommended this webpage: http://www.screenrant.com/arrow-cw-dc-comics-characters-cameos-guest-stars/
In other programming:
This year, the con opened a separate room for the rowdier, drinkier members of the audience for the vid show. It was a blast! As raucous as the group got, everyone melted for heresluck's video based on Shelter, a sweet gay romance movie.
Escapade set up some times for one-on-one "genius" sessions, so that delegates could see a volunteer expert in specific technical matters.amothea was a champ, as .css issues forced us to take about 90 minutes to set up Calibre on my computer. Her help was much appreciated!
I also spent a bit more time in the con suite than last time. I caught up with some folks I met two years earlier and spoke with others whom I hadn't met, or hadn't had a chance to speak with. Not only did I get to know people better,burnishedvictory and I began to conspire to do a project in our hometown.
Food:
The hotel restaurant is acceptable, particularly their bacon. I love bacon. Everybody loves bacon! But they really know how to do bacon. I tried to get some at every meal. Except the desert. Chocolate-covered bacon either hasn't reached this corner of North America, or it's already passed through.
In town,lovesrain44 introduced us to a good Italian restaurant called Fiore. The menu had some varied stuff, including lamb on risotto. I'm a prairie girl, so I took advantage of one of the seafood dishes.
On the last day, we went to Anacapa Brewery a brewery restaurant thatdevilc suggested because she really craved red meat. I can't appreciate beer (allergies), but I can certainly appreciate a good steak, and that's exactly what I got.
The restaurant is very close to the hotel, so we got to walk by some of the local shops. I was sad that this one was closed, so I'll end this post with warm feelings about Escapade and a thought about what might have been. Had the shop been open, I would probably have gone home with a school of mermen!
First, the biggest hugs for
devilc, who enticed me to my first Escapade a couple of years ago. Once again, she generously put me up at her home from where we (i.e., she) drove to and from the con. We also roomed in an ocean view suite, which, sure, was a little small and had an old TV, but, hey, OCEAN VIEW.The weekend started auspiciously enough. When we arrived, we were greeted in the hotel bar with good wine, good food and good conversation dispensed by Killa, Mr. Killa,
kerithwyn and several others. I was still learning people's names, so I apologize for not including everyone who was there. The lobby was quite busy with a watercolour show and a fundraiser for a medical cause. They were giving out the most obnoxious rings to anyone with $20 to donate, so my roomie and I each got one:
Bling!
I'm quite happy with the hotel, but there was no decent coffee in sight until we went to the farmers' market on Saturday morning. The same fellow I saw two years ago was there (I gather it's his stall). He offered to help install our coffee lids since he's a coffee professional.
Now on to the escapades!
In the meta track:
I went to the sessions about AO3 and Calibre, knowing they would be dealing with advanced topics, while I'm a newbie. I took copious notes for when the time comes to tap into this info.
I also attended a discussion about the generation gap in fandom. Ironically, we had voted to reprise this panel from the Escapade program of 10 years ago. There have been a couple of big shifts involving the technology by which fans write and distribute their work, namely from paper zines to LiveJournal, and now the diaspora from LJ. The two popular destinations are Tumblr and Archive of Our Own. Interestingly, they represent two extremes: one is focused on images while the other is archival, as the name suggests. AO3 may continue to present LJ-type texts, but the social element is missing. Tumblr is highly sociable (it is incredibly easy to re-blog), but it is really not designed for long-form reading or for locating past entries. We also pondered whether services like Netflix will bring different generations of viewers together, since series can be accessible forever.
In the fandom track:
Teen Wolf: First panel of Escapade 2013!
lovesrain44 and amothea led a small but growing group (people kept coming in!) on a discussion about Teen Wolf: what we liked about the show, what fannish engagement we have. Personally, I love how the show is the latest and most pronounced step away from the horror movie concept of the lone werewolf (in retrospect, it makes little anthropological sense, unless it's backfilled with the idea that the werewolf is a monster among wolves for being a loner). Setting the problem of how to build, maintain and lead a pack in high school is perfect, given the social negotiations teens undergo to sort themselves into cliques. Some ideas about the show that were discussed:
- There is an unspoken truce between Derek and Chris Argent because of what Kate did to Derek.
- There is a difference between the effects that mountain ash and mountain ash wood have on werewolves: a werewolf cannot cross a path or pass a door made of mountain ash wood if it intends evil.
- Allison suffers from low self-esteem and pursues only what is important to her family.
- Derek is still emotionally 16 because that's the age he was when Kate scarred him.
As far as the fic goes:
- Teen Wolf fic is plentiful on AO3 and artwork and gifs are ubiquitous on Tumblr, suggesting a generational change that we would later discuss in the generation gap meta panel, described above.
- Fic writers familiar with Aderol have written more realistic portrayals of how the drug affects Stiles than the show has.
- Everyone loves Stiles, Lydia should be queen of everything, Peter is a minority taste in fic, and just one person doesn't like Derek. We ostracized her. But with love :)
Person of Interest This discussion was inspired by the tagline for Person of Interest: The One Person Who Connects You to the World. Exploring each main characters through identifying who is the one person who can determine his or her future allowed us to pinpoint different motivations for each character, and different tropes they may fall into. For example, Reese sees himself as being irredeemably damaged, leading him to accept the role of sin eater. Meanwhile, Finch was protected from the realities of the world, working directly with the machine. But he sees how it's enabled evil. As someone in the session said, "Finch and Reese are taking their damage and trying to do good with it." There was quite a lot of discussion about the episode in which Finch goes missing and Reese must talk to the Machine. It demonstrated Reese's personal attachment to Finch (in contrast to John's initial suspicion of Harold), but it also marked the moment that the Machine "came out" as a member of the three-entity partnership. I was reminded of Isaac Asimov's Three Laws of Robotics:
- A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.
- A robot must obey the orders given to it by human beings, except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.
- A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Laws.)
All hail to
dorinda, who led the discussion and posted links to resources for the show and the slash here: http://escapade-con.dreamwidth.org/54701.htmlThe Hobbit: Despite the slashiness of the preceding Lord of the Rings movies, the consensus was that The Hobbit was much less so. One reason: the dwarves aren't all that appealing, particularly those under a lot of latex make-up with macrame beards. Another reason: the dwarvish characters are undifferentiated in the source material, and scarcely more characterized in the movie.
Arrow: The theme of this panel was "unwilling relationships." Panel leader bren/glacis pointed out that every relationship in this show is entered into involuntarily. In some cases, such as within the Queen family biological unit, there was no choice in the relationship, but since they are all adults now, they have the choice of how to deal with each other. Antagonists become assistive when enough interests are pooled. For example, Ollie could have made Diggle a permanent thorn in his own side, but instead, he turns it around when he realizes he could use Dig's helps, and when Dig realizes that he makes a more positive contribution in society by supporting Oliver instead of hindering him. Consensus was that the main characters in the show do what they think is required in order to protect a society. Unfortunately, a few people, Ollie and Malcolm among them, are tunnel-visioned, ends-justify-the-means types who must constantly be reminded of the bigger picture. For those who enjoy comparing the show to the source material, bren/glacis recommended this webpage: http://www.screenrant.com/arrow-cw-dc-comics-characters-cameos-guest-stars/
In other programming:
This year, the con opened a separate room for the rowdier, drinkier members of the audience for the vid show. It was a blast! As raucous as the group got, everyone melted for heresluck's video based on Shelter, a sweet gay romance movie.
Escapade set up some times for one-on-one "genius" sessions, so that delegates could see a volunteer expert in specific technical matters.
amothea was a champ, as .css issues forced us to take about 90 minutes to set up Calibre on my computer. Her help was much appreciated!I also spent a bit more time in the con suite than last time. I caught up with some folks I met two years earlier and spoke with others whom I hadn't met, or hadn't had a chance to speak with. Not only did I get to know people better,
burnishedvictory and I began to conspire to do a project in our hometown.Food:
The hotel restaurant is acceptable, particularly their bacon. I love bacon. Everybody loves bacon! But they really know how to do bacon. I tried to get some at every meal. Except the desert. Chocolate-covered bacon either hasn't reached this corner of North America, or it's already passed through.
In town,
lovesrain44 introduced us to a good Italian restaurant called Fiore. The menu had some varied stuff, including lamb on risotto. I'm a prairie girl, so I took advantage of one of the seafood dishes. On the last day, we went to Anacapa Brewery a brewery restaurant that
devilc suggested because she really craved red meat. I can't appreciate beer (allergies), but I can certainly appreciate a good steak, and that's exactly what I got. The restaurant is very close to the hotel, so we got to walk by some of the local shops. I was sad that this one was closed, so I'll end this post with warm feelings about Escapade and a thought about what might have been. Had the shop been open, I would probably have gone home with a school of mermen!
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2013-03-01 02:33 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-03-03 10:06 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-03-01 04:09 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-03-03 10:09 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-03-04 03:10 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-03-04 03:41 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-03-03 09:41 pm (UTC)What a great write up. You actually remembered what people said in the panels, which is great. I just took note of the things I wanted to look up when I got home.
no subject
Date: 2013-03-03 10:10 pm (UTC)The secret to remembering: taking notes at the time so I wouldn't forget!
no subject
Date: 2013-03-03 10:13 pm (UTC)Friending you back :)