As many of you know, the Calgary Comic and Entertainment Expo is just around the corner. I recently had the awesome opportunity to chat with Emily Expo, the face of the convention. Since she began working with the Calgary Expo shortly after the 2010 year, she has seen the event expand in all aspects, from attendance, footprint and in terms of fan base and how the entire city gets involved.
It’s really fantastic to see the community embrace it and see people really championing their interests. Being a nerd isn’t something to be ashamed of. To me, that’s the biggest way that it’s grown and really the most positive way that it’s grown.
During Emily’s first visit to the Calgary Expo in 2010, she had several people ask her if she was the girl from the logo. She ended up meeting the event’s promoter, and after beginning to help with content writing for the event, they came up with the idea of assigning a name and a personality to the logo in order to better connect with the fans, and Emily was born.
This year will be my first time going to Calgary Expo, and she was glad to give me some great tips for my first time out.
- Wear comfy shoes! You’re on concrete floors and will be doing a lot of walking, so comfort is key if you plan on staying on your feet all day.
- Stay hydrated and bring a water bottle that you can refill throughout the day. With the heat of the building and all of the crowds, it can be quite dehydrating.
- Keep an open mind. You may stumble upon something you never thought about and didn’t know that you’d like because you had never tried it before.
You don’t know what you’re missing until you realize that you’re missing it. […] Get out of your comfort zone a little bit, check out different things and see what captures your imagination!
As for what to check out this year, Emily recommends checking out a lot of the industry panels with creators, especially for those interested in comics, art or getting into the arts as a career, because there are great resources to be found. Additionally, for all Harry Potter fans, Tom Felton and Jason Isaacs (Draco and Lucius Malfoy) are appearing together at a convention for the first time, which will be really special. You can check out all of the programming here on the Calgary Comic and Entertainment Expo’s website. They also have an app that you can download to view programming and build your own schedule.
