Over the past 41 years, the annual San Diego Comic Con has grown from a small gathering of comic book fans into a global event that sells out in hours. The show has literally grown so large that the organizers are currently exploring other California cities to keep up with the demand.
John Gaudiosi of Gamerlive.tv, allowed 3DHollywood.net to publish his interview with David Glanzer, director of marketing, Comic Con International, about how Hollywood has literally changed the game.
Gamerlive.tv: Can you give us an estimate of how many people you expect to attend the show this year and how that compares to last year?
Glanzer: A few years ago we had to cap attendance, so this year we expect around 125,000 to 126,000 attendees. Four-day passes to the event sold out in September of 2009, single day passes sold out in February of this year.
Gamerlive.tv: How many press attend Comic-Con?
Glanzer: We welcome over 2,500 members of the press from all over the country and world. This year we will have press visiting us from Peru, Malaysia, China, Denmark, Australia and Russia, to name a few.
Gamerlive.tv: How have you seen Hollywood’s interest in Comic-Con expand over the years?
Glanzer: In 1976 the people at Lucasfilm purchased a booth and sold posters promoting Star Wars a full year before its release. Since that time, Lucasfilm has had a presence in one manner or another at Comic-Con for each of the films they produced. One of the larger booths on the floor today is the Lucasfilm pavilion, which features the company and some of their licensees. The rest of Hollywood took notice about 10 years ago and since that time interest has also expanded to include television networks.
Gamerlive.tv: This year I noticed a lot more 3D movies, can you talk about the role the Comic-Con audience plays when it comes to 3D?
Glanzer: Comic-Con attendees are typically early adopters. We know that our attendee base is among the first to hear about new technology and, in many instances, purchase that new technology. With the advances of the 3D format, it isn’t surprising that studios would choose Comic-Con as a place to feature some of their new 3D properties.
Gamerlive.tv: This year a diverse line-up of TV shows, including “Glee” and “White Collar,” are at the Con. I How has your audience evolved over the years and how do TV networks capitalize on this?
Glanzer: We have always enjoyed contributions from a variety of popular arts at Comic-Con. Back in 1973 Frank Capra was a guest and one of the first films we screened was Orson Wells’ Othello. No one would claim that Capra or Othello were necessarily comics oriented, but as we’ve had film fans attending for years, it only seemed to make sense. I think that holds true today, as well. With cable television expanding the boundaries of programming, we are beginning to notice an increased interest in shows that appear on non-network stations. So they too are welcome at Comic-Con.
Gamerlive.tv: Can you address what role videogames play with Comic Con today?
Glanzer: Videogames, like toys, television and movies, play an important part at Comic Con. While the main focus remains comics with every major comics publisher at the show, we have seen an enthusiastic reception by our attendees of videogame companies, and some choose to debut properties at Comic Con.
Gamerlive.tv: This year’s movie, Paul, marks the first time a feature film has incorporated Comic Con into its plotline. Can you address what that says about this show’s popularity?
Glanzer: Well, the people with Paul were very kind in asking us permission to feature the show and allowing us to read the script. It speaks to a Comic Con type sensibility that the filmmakers certainly seemed to get. One of the interesting things that I’ve notice more and more each year is that people who are in the decision-making level of any number of companies at one time or another may have attended Comic Con. Or if they didn’t attend Comic Con, they were aware of it. So I think it’s much easier for a writer, director, producer or executive to pitch Comic Con as a place to meet fans because they may have been fans at one time themselves. It’s nice that our little show has caught on with a larger audience. We’ve always known we were a fun event, and while it may have taken the rest of the world a little longer to figure that out, better late than never.
Gamerlive.tv: With no Avatar or Twilight or Iron Man 2 this year, what do you personally think will be the big drivers of this year’s show from Hollywood?
Glanzer: That’s so difficult to say. There is so much to see and do at the show that it really depends upon your interest. I know this year we have amazing comics creators on panels that are must-sees. I know that Danny Elfman will have a panel on his contribution to musical scores, and as an old fan of Oingo Boingo, I think that’s pretty cool. I have no doubt there will be any number of exciting panels that will leaves attendees very happy!
Gamerlive.tv: This is Comic Con, so can you give us a sense of how big actual comics are with this show?
Glanzer: Comic Con has more comics publishers than any other convention in the United States. We have more comics professionals, as well. And comics panels continue to make up a majority of our programming. So it’s still pretty darned big!
Gamerlive.tv: How committed are you to keeping Comic-Con in San Diego versus Las Vegas, where a lot of people say there are more hotel rooms?
Glanzer: We have reviewed proposals from the City of San Diego, Los Angeles and Anaheim. Currently those are the only cities in contention.