SPOOKALA Day 1: Scream, Killer Klowns, Jurassic Park and more!
Today we cover our experience on the first day of SPOOKALA, plus a tease about a merch reveal for our upcoming Tales From Nocturnia Kickstarter campaign
SPOOKALA TAMPA is in the books, and it was one for the ages. We’ve decided that instead of trying to cover the whole event in one post, we’ll highlight one day at a time.
For those that have been to SPOOKALA previously, you know that the floor layout and crowd flow in the original Ocala venue made it so the entire event felt like one big gathering. In October ‘23, because of the new venue in Tampa, and the sheer size guestlist, it felt a little more segmented out.
Much to the delight of everyone, the April 2024 Tampa layout was a return to form, with celebs, vendors, guests, and the panel stage all under the same roof, and integrated together. This made the crowd not have to choose between ‘celebs OR panels OR vendors’, they could be in a celeb line, or standing at a vendor booth, and still see the panel jumbotron.
As for the panels, #TeamINSYM’s Matt aka ‘Top Hat Matt’ was back on the stage, and had some EXCELLENT panels and panelists for Day one.
The day started off with WAYNE KNIGHT from Jurassic Park and Seinfeld. Super nice, FUN guy and an amazing way to get the event started off. He was followed by the show stealers of the weekend, the KILLER KLOWNS FROM OUTER SPACE. This panel held particular interest to 13 year old Matt, as SUZANNE SNYDER was the heartthrob in his favorite movie of all time, WEIRD SCIENCE. They say don’t meet your idols, well, she couldn’t have been any nicer of a human being than she was. Far exceeded expectations.
That being said, the five castmates that were with her (the two male costars plus three of the KLOWN actors) were all the most likable human beings. For one (PAUL HALEY) it was his FIRST CONVENTION EVER, and the joy on his face will not soon be forgotten. Both ‘first panel/convention ever’ and ‘Killer Klowns steal the show’ will be revisited again as we continue these overall reviews.
The nightcap on day one was the reprise the SCREAM OG panel from October. That panel was the most attended panel in the history of SPOOKALA (which was matched by no less than THREE possibly FOUR panels at this event). This time out we had SKEET ULRICH, MATTHEW LILLARD, DAVID ARQUETTE, and a newcomer to the convention scene, RORY CULKIN.
The panel started off in typical SCREAM OG panel chaos, but it was unforgettable, nonetheless. One of the top moments was Rory saying that he’s trying to eclipse the SEAN BEAN’s on screen death record of 16. He’s currently at 14… and there was also Skeet spilling coffee all over the center of the stage as well… but we won’t talk about that.
Overall day one set the stage for an incredible event. We’ll get into the rest of SPOOKALA TAMPA, April ‘24 in coming BLOG OF DESTINY POSTS.
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And don’t forget, #StephCannonWrites and #TopHatMatt have a brand new KICKSTARTER upcoming for TALES FROM NOCTURNIA: The Complete Legendary Saga REVISITED. It’s launching on 4.16.24 and we’d love for you to follow it here
www.tinyurl.com/tfnre so you can get lost in a world of medieval madness!
FFO: World of Warcraft, Dungeons & Dragons, Game of Thrones, Lord of the Rings, and epic medieval fantasy in general!
We’ll be back soon with a MERCH reveal for this campaign: The DRAGON LORD is back, but this time he’s not alone…
We can’t wait to share this with you!
Matt & Steph
#TeamINSYM
www.linktree.com/insymmetrycreations
DON’T FORGET TO VISIT OUR STORE HERE!
