Now that I've had some time to recover after an exhausting four days of running the booth for the
Horror Writers Association, I thought I'd post some comments (and photos!) from this year's
Fan Expo in Toronto. In short, for horror fans, the event was a vast improvement over last year--thanks to a conscious effort to consolidate most of the horror goodness in one area.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC5-oyuoGceE6YRAfoaN2V9O5Om0i7hvujuyq0mSZC-_gS3Q4NBGLn1zUCXZksdSw7aEYsA2XhfbwG9quC8jXIslI391y441fEKioNUAfe4mQkgYA9ZLjI3Tb3536JbE0TERS95FGL8q0/s200/IMG_3265.jpg) |
talking horror at the HWA booth |
Taking up a good chunk of the North Building of the Toronto Convention Centre,
Rue Morgue's
Festival of Fear featured all aspects of horror. This included art, clothing, movies, and writing--the lion's share of which was showcased by the
HWA, as well as the excellent Canadian publisher,
ChiZine. There were also a number of horror writers gathered in the South Building, who referred to themselves as "the people under the stairs," since the location--under the escalators--has been their typical haunt for a few years now.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8ViudWeI45TAeonwUJE18h6nTIN6wF6Z30LczO1t0_TRK78vebexg1W5Ce31cDRLiFwH1eE-URorTu8xP8S4JFUsSgrpL1EYy39jk0dHYrk1w_up3IKNCtf3aDC0rZ1Xtieh5BkmlqJs/s200/wrightson+batman+swamp+thing+fan+ex+14.jpg) |
from Bernie Wrightson |
As the saying goes,
all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. Thankfully, we had a number of authors volunteering their time at the HWA booth. So I managed to sneak away on a daily basis for a trek to the South Building, which housed the majority of artists and retailers, as well as the panel discussions.
It was here that I met artist
Bernie Wrightson, my horror hero, and he signed a number of comics for me--and I picked up a cool print of Batman vs. Swamp Thing!
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgneRlftRso6IqV4UuC85MyhqHnlbjmQGG6v6cYoDEB08VOk0cgXu52lmvHpDQFS8KGB_cjGyz88rjaKpEDcyswW9PKMATVsYTMsLO8o9o7bTheqT6L05Zy3JGgumt7ZNmTSNazztVCDKI/s320/WHY-HORROR-POSTER-NEW.jpg) |
Why Horror? |
Regarding panels, the first one I checked out was about
My Fair Zombie (2013), from Canadian filmmaker Brett Kelly. Unfortunately, he wasn't in attendance. So this turned out to just be a screening of the film, followed by a brief Q&A with one of the lead actors. I found the movie entertaining, with some good laughs and half-decent songs (I hope to write up a proper review soon).
I also checked out a sneak peek of
Why Horror?, which is an upcoming feature documentary that is due out in October. This time last year, I was interviewed about vampires in popular culture for this documentary. Since then, they've interviewed an amazing array of horror aficionados, so I was surprised to learn that I still made the cut! Looking very forward to seeing the final product. I also shot some video of the panel discussion on my crappy digital camera--another to-do is to piece together some clips, and post them on YouTube.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSRVjaYXnlW4YJonG2BkekwluSxE5F76bgm6yPyU3U20wPqnr9gnhLIvXfSJHucl-Mtn7E9N9WxeibTUg5W4t-qkcecOW6trobDCbCan3CBtDcwFnRLO7xjKnWTs_vFS7BPNcoojBI9ok/s200/IMG_3287.jpg) |
Black Christmas: post-panel signing |
The third panel turned out to be my favourite: a
Black Christmas reunion, featuring Art Hindle, Lynne Griffin, John Saxon, and Nick Mancuso (who was never on-screen, but provided the voice of Billy). Produced in 1974, this movie is considered by many to be the first slasher film, and the first to feature a killer's point of view. Although it failed at the box office when released, it's since become a cult classic. These four actors shared a number of fun anecdotes about the film, and I also hope to post some clips from this discussion over the coming months.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4izNaMHb_svD1606oSFoMBXbPdSS6RdH4Or-QiTtUp-0qJKk2L_VUcO1ZjHqW6BFvXhiOa0o0bb9Rvr0w8_F8LhZWqfQBOtF5uQyIyndQfwaUJ3t2ZyHDSAe5UzU75x6WQVtOmJ8xTSo/s200/IMG_3267.jpg) |
Here comes the fuzz! |
The final panel was a who's who in Canadian horror filmmaking, featuring
WolfCop, a new homegrown comedy/horror that is doing quite well at the box office. What stood out to me was the fact that all the panelists were men--despite featuring almost 12 filmmakers! What about Tricia Lee? Karen Lam? It would have been nice to see some diversity here.
All in, Fan Expo 2014 was a huge success, and I'm already looking forward to next year. Here's a few more photos that I snapped over the four-day event:
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBeho4nx_Ip6ZrRCTKzNccaVaP1wae7lVrEdTqEsMuw_Zq0k40Jb6Nn6p_aMMObaxRaHf7N9B8-7ov3_qTic2EPLC14uhoUkLmgiB-1Mzp8tRV2nMp0iyUWKk5J4_rLR1Q5qMtBXEL55Q/s400/IMG_3223.jpg) |
the HWA booth in all its horror glory |
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq_TPNmir51J_XdGjt46iQQSSvVQOYbqc5kf7XmXNNKiww-oYwpAzOP-bDmNCiuxpxFAXdOEOBw1ruL7lA3GliN5Su0syc-fs6vyhxOPk6xK2Mvd4wCbkRV01TNfSiK8v_KIjS53y7fFI/s400/IMG_3236.jpg) |
some amazing Star Wars displays courtesy of the 501st Legion |
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-lu2SnPk82OFaCyJLsuQW82fUmJcXDOqIocEfQUPew_I9cNFgxkwVJ05Z1LgN3Tx0TqmW6RFStC3pZ2MlTh9NurXmvTVeSXXbD1LeLOMhU19wgwvD_P9l02gXB4Q_SRKyn9HM1La6U1o/s400/IMG_3245.jpg) |
creepy dolls...ugh |
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGoFdzVyxyhPwVmroc58PvW4_Nd4MFle_a6zfNmUwLfrz0taDit-1zEkGpsPQmu53f-Zn70fZmKchx_r4BJ-YtW64IAXkFVs7tqi5gy8SrxBFDqaSCPfZO1wPksHjVy8b1lTPkZBAJB-0/s400/IMG_3250.jpg) |
creepy clown |
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4aq_StWqPl_QlWIi8UPu_Pgdrb2X3kMX4jsam53zUI5Dvgr5m7ftkEBtq-2Bc5Hc-F_8zEh2twCxIZE3U1o5eGPDg3vuDx6a0SMfoUqYJNoazKIaQ5EPNJ2s26p3IzG8DMVa_tyfnqSE/s400/IMG_3253.jpg) |
another creepy clown |
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjY1DkKpL1S0OzgoLb5wpKix2dSKMMcJYWLPfrzRQ6tBJ_4LQMVAtFG7WSUx28q2AOdM6aspsoAiw5MZscVGLlIqN0SdI1ej-hzil6YGnVYvKQ9jdqRJecNMjliOuAj_QqzOXLIQdjbmng/s400/IMG_3255.jpg) |
I'd buy that for a dollar! (couldn't resist...) |
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyhCHCZlHJwt3hd0Y5MWJaT2GxCZ6pxuGjmiM7xam1_ZEQbDqWcuLv-mo4Yzs1aXuw9uJqCtV9a00ivTrzXUEe_rxqgwNldAAGGdrlFdPqx2XNUtKFnyCqBAVaA8QkdDQwxbFLuaUSh2Q/s400/IMG_3247.jpg) |
winter is coming... |
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjutgd0mOQbUJfVx31CCaOf2NgJFNzUJylBCSN_OQa4d58aUa4te9mSXBrNz2zVmgMvt-EBMYa-blGtnRC9aEiQW8QmS8YlmpG5SWAhmhjwLynTQJlsbkx7WgDsF3221DESmMbm_nnu0iQ/s400/IMG_3259.jpg) |
Lana. Lana. Lana! Lanaaaaa! |
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjRk9yenpbaTIM0KjMy07__UP7cB7sjxG86mr5UTBMk45fVFc5Udfq8Sr8-sG4kuMkJF97LRanADZY5sfWHNo-mJGGhzQFZZLm9llNSlcYeXYJcRQKSOwTZb5tC68Zs5BWlt8tjHPdaEk/s400/IMG_3178.jpg) |
some of the horror was even a little horrific for my tastes |
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