Dragon Con 2018
Atlanta, GA – August 30 through September 3, 2018

 

 

Dragon Con!

It’s an annual tradition for me, and this year will be my tenth time attending. (Tenth year? Where did the time go?) This will also be my third year as an attending professional. If you plan to be there, these are the places where you will be able to find me over Labor Day weekend.

Fourteen program events in five days? Come find me and say hi!

 

The convention app is available now – look for Dragon Con by Core-apps in the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store – and contains the current schedule of events. The list of confirmed guests, performers, artists, and attending professionals is available on the official Dragon Con site.

Dragon Con itself takes place in downtown Atlanta spanning five hotels (Sheraton Atlanta, Hilton Atlanta, Atlanta Marriott Marquis, Hyatt Regency Atlanta, and Westin Peachtree Plaza) and the AmericasMart Atlanta exhibition center. The convention draws approximately 70,000 to 80,000 attendees annually, and showcases one of the city’s most popular parades on Saturday morning at 10am.

Dragon Con prides itself on contributions to charity and the community. You can find more information about those efforts on their webpage.

If you’re new to the convention, consider stopping by the Dragon Con Newbies group on Facebook. It is run by Kevin Bachelder, Sue Kisenwether, Kim McGibony, and me, and is an in-depth community resource for information about this massive (and sometimes overwhelming) event. Memberships (tickets) for this year’s convention are also still available.

If you want a printable copy of my schedule, I have a convenient PDF.

 

Note: All Dragon Con schedules are tentative until the convention ends on Monday. Even then, things are a bit suspect. As things change before the convention, I’ll update this post.

• • 10 August 2018: Updated panelists for ESW Presents: 12th Doctor Retrospective.
  • 21 August 2018: Updated schedule based on official release.
  • 28 August 2018: Removed Saturday Roll-a-Panel due to other commitments. Added link to printable schedule.

 

Based on some personal scheduling changes, I wont be downtown until Thursday morning. I’ll probably snag the Hard Rock Dragon Con gear then.

I will be around starting Wednesday, pretty much wandering the hotels, picking up my Hard Rock Dragon Con gear, and catching up with some friends.

 

2:30p-5:00p: Dragon Con Newbies Walking and Rolling Tours (2.5 hours)
Main Programming
Marriott Marquis, Atrium Level, A601-A602
Want to learn your way around the hotels? Did you know there’s a food court? Come on a tour & meet other newbies. Tours leave every 30 minutes.
Panelists include: Kevin Bachelder, Sue Kisenwether, Kim McGibony

5:30p-6:30p: Dragon Con Newbies Q&A (1 hour)
Main Programming
Marriott Marquis, Atrium Level, A601-A602
First Dragon Con? Confused or overwhelmed? Savvy con attendees will share tips & tricks.
Panelists include: Kevin Bachelder, Sue Kisenwether, Kim McGibony

 

10:00a: Dragon Con Newbies Q&A (1 hour)
Main Programming
Regency V – Hyatt
First Dragon Con? Confused or overwhelmed? Savvy con attendees will share tips & tricks.
Panelists include: Kevin Bachelder, Sue Kisenwether, Kim McGibony

Who Framed Roger Rabbit: 30 Years of Speech Impediments and Burning Biscuits (1 hour)
Rescheduled to Saturday at 11:30a

Social Media and the Impact on MSF Media (1 hour)
Removed due to scheduling conflict

2:30p: Classic Sci-Fi Remakes: Westworld, Lost in Space, Planet of Apes (1 hour)
American Science Fiction Classics
Marriott Marquis, Marquis Level, M103-M105
Remakes of classic sci-fi can be incredible, terrible, or terribly incredible — discuss which is which when we look at recent remakes such as Westworld, Lost in Space, and more!
Panelists include: Bethany Kesler, Mark H Wandrey, Andrew E.C. Gaska, Shaun Rosado

4:00p: Admiral Holdo – A Fan Discussion (1 hour)
Star Wars
Marriott Marquis, Atrium Level, A706
Has there ever been such a polarizing character in the Saga? From her background story in Leia, Princess of Alderaan, to her battle prowess in The Last Jedi, we discuss the character and her decisions and how they may have forever altered the galaxy.
Panelists include: Sue Kisenwether, Bethany Blanton, Thomas Harper, Sarah Dempster

8:30p: The Greatest Michaels and Michelles in Classic Sci-Fi (1 hour)
American Science Fiction Classics
Marriott Marquis, Marquis Level, M103-M105
A panel consisting exclusively of people named Michael presents a tribute to Michaels and Michelles real and unreal from classic sci-fi TV and movies. All Michaels and Michelles welcome!
Panelists include:  Mike Faber, Michael R Bailey, Michael Gordon, Michael D. French, any other American Science Fiction Classics Track Irregular named Michael

 

11:30a: Who Framed Roger Rabbit: 30 Years of Speech Impediments and Burning Biscuits (1 hour)
American Science Fiction Classics
Marriott Marquis, Marquis Level, M103-M105
Guys. In this movie, Daffy Duck and Donald Duck had a piano battle. Other stuff happened too, but come on.
Panelists include: John Hudgens, Jonathan Williams

2:30p: Lost in Space: Welcome Aboard the Jupiter 2.0 (1 hour)
American Science Fiction and Fantasy Media
Marriott Marquis, Marquis Level, M301-M303
Netflix brought us a big budget upgrade to a beloved classic, with some new twists and some gender bending, and a touch of stunt casting. It set us up for a new series that will continue to be Lost on Netflix for some years to come.
Panelists include: Clay and Susan Griffith, David Boop, Will Nix, Lindy Keelan

4:00p: Classic Sci-Fi Roll-a-Panel: 1978 and 1998 (1 hour)
Removed due to scheduling conflict.

5:30p: Fandom Toxicity: What Can We Do? (1 hour)
American Science Fiction and Fantasy Media/Star Wars
Marriott Marquis, Atrium Level, A601-A602
How dare they have a female Starbuck or a black stormtrooper! Are we too entitled or too possessive? We’ll discuss the bad aspects of these behaviors that are alienating people, and what we can do to encourage more positive interactions. How can you express your dismay without “nerd rage”™?
Panelists include: Brian Larsen, Britnay Ferguson, Shaun Rosado, Swara Salih, Sue Kisenwether

7:00p: Jurassic Park: Hanging On To Your Butts for 25 Years (1 hour)
American Science Fiction Classics
Marriott Marquis, Marquis Level, M103-M105
Inflatable T-Rexes and shirt-open Ian Malcolm cosplayers welcome!
Panelists include: Alex White, Sue Kisenwether, John Hudgens

8:30p: Classic Sci-Fi Remakes: Westworld, Lost in Space, Planet of Apes (1 hour)
Rescheduled to Friday at 2:30p

 

Classic Sci-Fi Court: Defending Star Wars Holiday Special, Mac & Me, LXG (1 hour)
Removed due to scheduling conflict. Panel has been rescheduled to Monday at 11:30a.

2:30p: ESW Presents: 12th Doctor Retrospective (1 hour)
BritTrack
Hilton, Galleria 5
The Earth Station Who podcast crew host a retrospective of the Twelfth Doctor from the introduction of the Angry Eyebrows to his struggle to be a Good Man to ending where he began. Sonic sunglasses optional.
Panelists include: Mike Faber, Michael Gordon, Sue Kisenwether, Mary Ogle, Robert Bowen

 

11:30a: Luke Skywalker, Hero? (1 hour)
Star Wars
Marriott Marquis, Atrium Level, A706
In the Original Trilogy, Luke Skywalker worked his way through The Hero’s Journey. But we see a very different Luke in The Last Jedi. Did he make it back to being a hero? Did he ever stop?
Panelists include: Bryan Young, Nanci Schwartz, Thomas Harper, Bruce Gibson, Riley Blanton

1:00p: Lois & Clark: Super-Romantic 25th Anniversary (1 hour)
American Science Fiction Classics
Marriott Marquis, Marquis Level, M103-M105
This panel will last an hour, the same time it took us to download Teri Hatcher photos when the show was on.
Panelists include: Michael R Bailey, Michael D. French, James Palmer, Michael George Williams