Special Report - ConCarolinas 2004
(source: ConCarolinas 2004, 06-07-04)

Yes, folks, ConCarolinas 2004 is over, and everyone (well, pretty much everyone) managed to survive the experience. Before you get the chance to experience some of the fun yourself, though various interviews and panel recordings that were made during the con, here's a quick rundown of the basics of this amazingly fun convention experience.

The con was held in Charlotte, NC, USA, from the evening of Friday, June 4, until the mid-afternoon of Sunday, June 6. Just by looking at the schedule, one would have expected Fanworks to be represented by two back-to-back panels on Friday night, the first being a live recording of a merged Requiem of the Outcast and ChronoRadio episode, and the second being a Q&A panel about fan audio.

In actuality, the Fanworks representatives (Nathan P. Butler, Rich Sigfrit, Ron Garner, Janine Garner, and Amy Ferrell) became synonymous with the con experience that weekend, running all over the place, making new friends, doing interviews, and just generally having more fun than any quintet should be allowed to do.

Beyond the two fan audio panels, Janine took part in a panel for child costuming, another on adult costuming, and the Iron Seamstress event, even going so far as to end up winning the con's costume contest with her amazing works (which you'll be able to see on the ROTO website). Nathan participated in a panel on Anakin Skywalker ("Tragic Hero or Bad Seed?"). Rich also managed to get the ROTO/CR team to emcee the Stormtrooper Minute-Man contest and a fan film viewing session (including the premiere of the amazing Fall of a Saga and an MST3K treatment of the incomprehensible Wayfarer).

Of course, no ROTO or CR appearance would be complete without a series of great interviews, and ConCarolinas 2004 provided numerous opportunities. Among them: a 4-on-1 interview with Alan Dean Foster; a 1-on-1 CR interview with artist Joe Corroney; a ROTO interview with Earl Newton and Joshua Smith of Fall of a Saga; and many, many more.

Overall, to say that ConCarolinas 2004 was an enjoyable experience for all of the Fanworks participants would be an incredible understatement. This was, thus far, the con to remember, and our thanks go out to everyone who helped to make it the great experience that it was (Ron, Janet, Alan, Joe, Davey, Neal, Josh, Deanna, "RRatio," "Javan," etc).

We hope others can join us next year and share the experience. We'll definitely be back.