Danielle Solzman
Comic Con At Home, the virtual edition of the long-runnning San Diego Comic Con wrapped up on Sunday as the four-day convention ended.
There were a number of panels worthy of Hall H over the weekend–most notably An Evening With Kevin Smith, A Conversation with Nathan Fillion, and Bill and Ted Face the Music to name a few. A number of TV networks and streaming providers also brought their content to the four-day virtual convention. This was in addition to the usual panels with a focus on comics, movies, or television. In other words, there was something being offered for everyone during Comic Con at Home.
While I personally have never been to San Diego, I loved that they went virtual this year. It enables a fan like me to watch the panels from the comfort of my own home. Yes, you have the downside of not chatting with other people in line or hanging out in Artist Alley. I’ve made great memories alone at C2E2 and Wizard World Chicago. Thankfully, C2E2 was one of my final events of the year prior to the lockdown. A virtual convention isn’t the same but in doing so, we get the news on whatever device we’re watching. One would hope that things get back to normal next year but who knows. If anything, maybe they keep a digital component.
I’ve been in a pandemic funk lately so I didn’t take advantage of the Thursday offerings until Friday. Throw in being offline for Shabbat and I didn’t really watch much of the Saturday content. In due time, my friends. That being said, there were a few panels taking place on Thursday and Friday that I wasn’t going to miss. Among them was Legion M. I’ve been a fan of the fan-owned company for some time now and I absolutely love their model. Legion M got on the nap a few years ago when they backed a small Neon film, Colossal, starring Anne Hathaway and Jason Sudeikis. Legion M is currently backing Bleecker Street’s Save Yourselves!
A trio of directors–Robert Rodriguez, Colin Trevorrow, and Joseph Kosinski–shared some fascinating insight about their careers during the Directors on Directing panel. Hosted by Collider’s Steven Weintraub, the trio spoke about the highs and lows, including the films that got away from them. Joseph Kosinski mentioned how he was attached to direct Ford V Ferrari but ultimately, they were unable to get the budget. Rather than Christian Bale, his version would have starred Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt. Kosinski would have used 6K cameras at multiple angles from inside the car. All isn’t lost because he’s using the same techniques in next year’s Top Gun: Maverick. What could have been!
You can never go wrong with a Kevin Smith panel. Smith brought his brand of humor to the panel, which shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone. Updates were also given on recent and upcoming projects. Check out my live-tweet of the panel here.
The first Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie celebrated its 30th anniversary in March. They might not have given the film a Hall H treatment but close enough. The Old Turtle Den‘s Chris Castaneda was joined by producer Kim Dawson and screenwriter Bobby Herbeck. I live-tweeted the panel but let’s just say that a reboot is in Viacom’s court.
Check out the Comic-Con YouTube page for all the panels. If you’re like me, you won’t be disappointed.
