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With the heavily anticipated and exciting launch of ‘Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them’ due to hit screens this November, Leaky was not only present at the San Diago Comic-Con event, but also lucky enough to get some behind the scenes action from our two representatives watching the live cast interviews unfold, from the Great Hall at Leavesden Studios in London!

Prior to the Live interviews commencing at Comic-Con, across the pond in London, we eagerly awaited the main event of the evening and took time to appreciate the Harry Potter Studios in all it’s glory! From famous sets to beautifully executed props with a magical aesthetic, the evening consisted of everything J.K. as we able to indulge in ultimate wizarding fan entertainment!

After a fantastic tour, fans were guided to a private screening, showing us the newly released trailer of ‘Fantastic Beasts’. Watch the trailer here! (If you havent’t seen it already–it’s amazing!)

Finally the Great Hall doors were opened, and along with some limited edition, ‘Newt Scamander’ wands gifted by Warner Bros, the audience was seated ready to go live with everyone at the SDCC exclusive event! The interaction with the cast was brilliant, with Ezra Miller and Dan Fogler receiving a particularly cheerful response from our London audience as they made the interview even more fun amongst their talented co-stars.

As a perfect round off to the already magical evening at the Warner Bros Studios, we were given a glimpse at the extraordinary 1920’s costumes used in the movie. The wizarding world felt very much present as fans took a good look at the very individual looks presented, but they definitely emitted something fresh and original to keep everyone on their toes for the latest Rowling installment!

Over in San Diego, Carianne and Tabitha met up with Warner Bros to take seats across from the Fantastic Beasts cast, as everyone prepared for a live Q&A with the cast of one of the most anticipated films of the year. Carianne, a proud Hufflepuff (just like Newt!) from San Diego, and Tabitha a proud Gryffindor, with a lot of Hufflepuff qualities mixed in, wrote about their experience at the events unfolding at SDCC 2016.

Carianne described what it was like behind the scenes, saying:

Being in the room in San Diego during the livestream was an incredible experience. The Fantastic Beasts group was so close to me that I couldn’t even fit them all in one picture! When they entered the room, the cast was buzzing with excitement over how well their Hall H presentation had gone (that room holds 6,500 people, so it’s a pretty big deal). Their energy was electrifying and contagious and an absolute joy to watch!

Then the host announced “2 minutes till live!” and the room suddenly became still and silent with anticipation. To lighten things up again, Ezra Miller started cracking jokes, such as giving us signals to follow during the live stream: He said if he tugged his ear we were supposed to laugh, and if he scratched his nose we were supposed to cheer! He was kidding, of course, but he got everyone laughing and really livened the room up again. He was such a riot! (Ezra also made a few hilarious quips after the Leavesden host said she wanted to “Take an Ezra Miller home,” but those might be the kind of things he would rather I did not share with the internet.)

After the livestream, they stood on the stage talking to each other for a few moments, looking just like a group of friends rather than co-movie-stars. It was clear that this cast really gets along well with each other. Their was a friendly and supportive demeanor among all of them. It honestly just made me even MORE excited for the film to come out! November can’t come soon enough

As the even ended, a few of the cast members gave a little bit of attention afterward to the fans that were in the room. They didn’t have a lot of time (as they were running late to make it to their next event), but just a “thank you for your question!”, a high-five, or a quick photo went a long way. They were in no way obligated to do any of those things — they just did it because they are nice. My only regret is that I couldn’t spend more time talking with them! Maybe someday…

There was a great spirit of camaraderie between all of the writers/interviews there. I talked a bit with a couple of writers there, one representing Snitchseeker and the other MuggleNet. We got to know each other a little before the interview, and we all expressed how excited we were for this opportunity. 

To me, as someone who has never been behind-the-scenes for something like this, it was fascinating how something as seemingly simple as an interview takes so much preparation by a host of different people. All of the camera operators had to prepare their equipment and test it extensively; other members of the crew had to test the live-feed between San Diego and Leavesden to make sure it worked properly; and of course, there were quite a few people dedicated solely to making sure the actors were ready. 

On a light note, the room the interview took place in was *tiny*! It was maybe a fifth of the size of the Great Hall shown in Leavesden. The stage took up about half of the room, and there was hardly any free space for people to move around in. 

Unfortunately, the cast couldn’t stick around for long after the interview. They were rushed out pretty much immediately afterwards to go sign autographs at Comic Con. 

Thank you to Georgia, Gemma, Tabitha and Carianne for attending the Fantastic Beasts Live Q&A events both in London and SDCC 2016. The video of the event can be seen here.

Tomorrow, The Leaky Cauldron will join the Fantastic Beasts team at San Diego Comic-Con and Warner Bros’ special event at Leavesden Studios in London. Leaky will be involved with an exclusive Q&A with the cast and crew of the film, so listen out for us!

The Fantastic Beasts Facebook page also shared some new movie art celebrating their appearance at Comic-Con, and gave the username of the new Harry Potter Snapshat account (wizarding_world), which will be shared by Pottermore, Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts teams. A special message will be delivered via the app tomorrow, so be sure to add them and check it!

The Wizarding_World has arrived on Snapchat… Add us for something special coming tomorrow! pic.twitter.com/0yBVbeQ7sh

— Fantastic Beasts (@FantasticBeasts) July 22, 2016

Be sure to add wizarding_world on snapchat and watch the Q&A at 10:10pm BST/ 2:10pm PT/5:10pm ET tomorrow via the Fantastic Beasts Facebook page (here) and Twitter (here), and listen out for Leaky’s question!

According to Pottermore, Newt Scamander will be coming to San Diego Comic-Con this month – in Funko Pop! style!

The new figure will make his debut at the convention, and will be on sale to the general public following the event. Being a magizoologist, it’s only fitting that Newt be sold along with a three-pack of a Cornish pixie, Mandrake and Grindylow – these ‘fantastic beasts’ will be exclusive to Comic-Con, and we’re super jealous!

The convention will run from 20th – 24th July. Find out more here!

  [UPDATE: “Unfortunately, due to multiple talent having new filming schedule conflicts beyond our control, we have been forced to cancel the Wizard World Cruise.”  Wow… I was at Wizard World Philly, and they were promoting this then. Methinks there wasn’t enough interest.]   Wizard World, known for their many fan conventions hosted across the […]

By Nicholas Eskey As the world’s largest comic convention, one that celebrates all forms of popular culture in film, television, video games and of course print, San Diego Comic-Con is also well known also for its grand physical scale. You’d be hard pressed to find a corner of downtown that isn’t affected by it. This […]

How do you find time to put a focus on the littlest pieces of our writing to create big pieces of work?

  Every summer, thousands of librarians and other bibliophiles meet at the American Library Association’s Annual Conference. This year, it’s in Orlando (yeah…) and like years past, “ALA Annual” will host feature numerous creators, publishers, and panels relating to comics, gaming, and all the other geekery stuff that kids who hang out in libraries enjoy […]

Flame Con, New York City’s first LGBTQ comic con, has announced that the second year of their event will be “(toy) Gun-Free” in the wake of the June 12 mass shooting in Orlando.

Fantastic Beasts will be in attendance at VidCon this year – one of the biggest fan conventions based around the power of online video, originally conceived by YouTube’s Vlogbrothers, Hank and John Green.

In the run up to the convention, the film’s Facebook page released a brand new poster, featuring Newt Scamander, and a message teasing at something FANTASTIC set to occur at VidCon:

“A new piece of art to celebrate a new era of the Wizarding World! And stay tuned because something FANTASTIC at ?#?vidcon2016? is being announced soon… ?#?FantasticBeasts?“

This new poster is absolutely beautiful – we can’t wait to see what they’ll be up to at VidCon! Watch the official trailer here!

In keeping with the exponential announced attendance of various “fourth biggest comic-cons” in the US, this weekend’s Denver Comic Con announced a preliminary attendance of 114,900 people. This is above the predicted, record setting attendance of more than 100,000. According to the Denver Post 35,000 people attended on Friday alone and Saturday was a sellout. […]

New York Comic Con, already one of the world’s biggest pop culture events, is expanding its reach via a deal with Blammo Events, a European gaming media company with. perhaps, the best name of all times. Select NYCC panel will be livestreamed to the Firstlook Festival, a Dutch gaming-focused event being held October 7-9 – […]

A lot of lucky comics folks are headed to Charlotte, NC for HeroesCon which kicks off tomorrow with its usual stellar guest list, informative programming and unmatched hospitality. Unfortunately due to political machinations beyond HeroesCon’s control — or the control of the many good folks who live in NC including a bunch of my family […]

LeakyCon recently posted an exciting – yet mysteriously vague – letter to Minerva McGonagall to their Facebook page. The letter came from Ana Rodriguez – Director of Magical Gatherings and Celebrations at the US Department of International Magical Cooperation all the way in New York City:

The letter hints at an exciting event being planned, and LeakyCon posted this letter with the caption “Magical things are happening…”:

“I personally reviewed your recent proposal and am happy to inform you on behalf of MACUSA and the Quahog Administration, that we are excited to work with Hogwarts and the British Ministry of Magic to make this exciting and historic event a reality.

I have already alerted my counterpart at the California DOIMC office as well as our embedded contact within the Consulate General in Los Angeles to begin coordinating the logistics. Representatives from Ilvermorny are also excited to help in whatever way possible.

…

We are thrilled to have a hand in making this celebration a truly international affair”

The exciting integration of new knowledge of North American magical institutions – thanks to Fantastic Beasts – and the incorporation of our beloved Professor McGonagall (maybe hinting at Cursed Child links?). Who knows! We’re glad to hear that Harry’s legacy is still going strong in the wizarding world!

LeakyCon is also now looking for programming proposals for presentations on magical subjects:

“We are looking for a select number of knowledgeable witches and wizards to present on their favorite magical topics at LeakyCon 2016. If you have a burning desire to share your ideas and research on the Harry Potter universe, this is the place to tell us about it so we can help you make it happen!”

What do you think it all means? Find out more and buy tickets at the LeakyCon website, here!

Another weekend, another record setting comic con. In this case it was Conpalooza Weekend (June 3-5) which saw five major cons across the US alone. Phoenix Comicon, a fast rising “fourth biggest convention” may very well be the fourth biggest if these numbers are correct, as organizer Matt Solberg announced this year they had record […]

This is your last day to register as a fan for the purpose of buying New York Comic Con tickets. The process begins here. I wrote a bit about it here. It appears there are work around if you do not have a cel phone. 



We’re hitting that point where SDCC announcements will start rolling in over the next four to five weeks. Studios will be unveiling their panel schedules and reporters like me will be hoping there’s some secrets to uncover wherever we can find them. Last year, Marvel Studios sat out the festivities in San Diego, opting instead […]

This past weekend, I had the pleasure of attending Dallas Comic Con. James and Oliver Phelps, or sometimes more well known as Fred and George Weasley, have attended Dallas Cons quite frequently in the past few years. Two years ago, I was actually fortunate enough to meet them. This year, however, I only got to see them from afar as they took the stage for a Q&A session. Along with their Q&A session, they had a couple photo ops and were out on the floor for autographs in their down time.

When I met James and Oliver, they were both very kind and inviting. I got a photo op and an autograph with them both. As the line in front of me progressed and I finally made it into the photo op room, I was struck by how happy they both looked. It was one of the very first times I got to meet people at Comic Con, back when I was still treating them like gods instead of humans and acted like the human disaster I am when I met them. Despite my awkwardness, they greeted me with grins and didn’t force me to be too sociable as they placed their arms around me and we took the photo. The autograph was much the same except I had a little more time to greet them and ask them how they liked Texas.

Here’s the aforementioned photo from two years ago:

This Con’s Q&A was particularly entertaining. The Phelps Twins are always entertaining. I was quite impressed by the fact that they chose to stand the entire time, I definitely do not have the energy to stand for 40 minutes while being interrogated by fans of varying degrees of craziness. No offense, I do believe I have quite a high degree of craziness myself.

They ran onstage after the interviewer announced them, greeting the cheering crowd, but then ran off again with a quick “hang on.” They came back a few seconds later, James wearing a Texas Rangers baseball cap and Oliver in a ridiculous cowboy hat. The crowd loved it.

As I mentioned before, James and Oliver are very polite people. Right off the bat, they thanked everyone for being so kind to them and pointed out how glad they were that no one had collapsed at their signing table yet.

Just to clarify for the crowd, the interviewer tried to name which twin was which, but he ended up getting them wrong the first time! To be honest, the only way I could tell is I knew that James was standing on the left and Oliver on the right…

Now, since it was a forty-minute long panel, I’m not going to write about the entire thing. I will, however, put the video that a friend of mine took at the end!

To start, I’d like to kill a rumor that circulates through the fandom quite a bit. “I heard that y’all would sometimes switch roles, sometimes, on set. I was wondering, what is the longest stretch of time that y’all went without getting caught.” This question has come up at both of their panels that I’ve been too. Sorry to burst your bubble, but they never switched roles. They knew that, if they had done, it would have taken a lot of time and money to refilm those scenes and they didn’t want to be a nuisance to the other people working on the film. They did admit to doing it during rehearsal though.

Fan questions at Q&A panels aren’t always the most entertaining. They can be very repetitive and, sometimes, a bit stupid. But occasionally you get that fan who has thought long and hard about their question before asking it, making sure it was unique and interesting.

“If you could do anything besides acting in the film industry, what would it be?” This is a question I had never heard before! And since I am a film student I was very curious to hear their answers. There are hundreds of people with hundreds of different jobs that work on a single movie. Cameramen, video editors, sound editors, directors and assistant directors, producers, etc. You have an encyclopedia of options for working in the film industry. James said that he’d want to be “Grip”, or a person who mounts and moves the camera on a track. Oliver, on the other hand, seemed quite content with acting, but did say he was interested in the makeup department.

“What one scene from the books do you wish they would have put in the movies?” As fans, we all have several different scenes from the books that we were quite upset weren’t put in the movies. Not only scenes, but characters as well. The actors had to put up with the differences without complaint but they must have had opinions too, right? Well, James and Oliver both agreed that they wanted the swamp scene from the fourth book to appear in the movie, but they knew there was a chance it wouldn’t show up.

“What was your favorite book and movie?” I always feel that a persons favorite Harry Potter installment can tell you a lot about their personality. That and I am a very nosy person and just like to know these things about people. James knew immediately that his favorite book was the Prisoner of Azkaban. He informed the crowd that it was the book he was reading when they were cast as the twins. He seemed to add as an after thought that his favorite film was the Goblet of Fire and Oliver picked it up there saying that was his favorite book. James and Oliver like to tease each other quite a bit, which is evident when Oliver informs the crowd that his favorite film is The Deathly Hallows Part 2.

I guess I should stop boring you with my perspective on their panel. But watch the video of the full thing below! You don’t want to miss any of their bickering or stories of pranks they pulled on and off set!

Disclaimer: I was a sponsor and paid guest for Awesome Con held last weekend in Washington, DC so considered this a sponsored post. That said, as you know, I write a lot about comic cons, and I am not a spokesman for Awesome Con. These are my honest opinions and if you have any questions please […]

Well, well, as we predicted a few days ago, BookCon is becoming a major brand for ReedPOP’s  portfolio, and it’s getting a major boost with the announcement that this year’s New York Comic Con will have it’s very own BookCon @ NYCC. The event — which will be open only to NYCC badge holders — […]

Yep, it’s coming. I was twice as stressed out at this time last year, but now…maybe I’m just jaded, maybe I just know I can handle it, but so far so chill. We have a brand new sonsor for our SDCC coverage this year, who we’ll be announcing in a bit. It’s just getting started […]

Embed from Getty Images This was announced last year but no one really paid much attention to it: Conan O’Brien is once again producing his chat show from the San Diego Comic-Con this year. The carrot-top broadcast four live shows from SDCC for the first time last year, after flirting with attending via a art […]

…and he had a good time! I attended my first Wizard World convention when most people did… in 1997, when Wizard had purchased the venerable Chicago Comic Con, and attendance was 5,000. Later, I checked out the “Con War” edition of Wizard World New York in 2009. I hadn’t been to any others, partly because […]

If you’re not in Florida for GeekyCon’s exclusive Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Parts One and Two scriptbook release party, you may be in luck!

Barnes & Noble will be throwing a whole month of parties in the lead up to the midnight release of the Cursed Child Rehearsal Edition scriptbook (June 30th), beginning June 24th.

Business Wire reports:

“Barnes & Noble, Inc., the nation’s largest retail bookseller and a leading retailer of content, digital media and educational products, today announced that it will host a month-long celebration in advance of the publication of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Parts One & Two. The events will kick off on Friday, June 24, at 7 PM when all stores nationwide will feature activities designed to give participants of all ages the opportunity to relive the magic of Harry Potter, and enter the Barnes & Noble exclusive Harry Potter Limited Edition Cover Prints Sweepstakes for a chance to win a set of 7 Harry Potter Limited Edition Cover Prints, available exclusively at Barnes & Noble, up until the July 30 Countdown to Midnight Party. On Saturday, July 30, starting at 8PM, customers can visit their local Barnes & Noble for the fan-favorite Countdown to Midnight Party leading up to the midnight release of the epic eighth story, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Parts One & Two. At the Countdown to Midnight Party, two customers from each store who entered the sweepstakes will be chosen at random. Then, on Sunday, July 31, customers can return to their local store to share their perspectives on the new book and participate in additional Harry Potter-themed events, with activities and giveaways.”

Customers can enter sweepstakes (once entry per store, per day) up to the midnight release party, where two winners per store will be chosen at random. If you fancy entering the sweepstakes, just ask a local Barnes & Noble bookseller to find out more details, Official Rules and information on events and activities taking place at nearby stores:

“At the June 24 event, Barnes & Noble stores across the country will set up a coloring station where participants will have the opportunity to color various Harry Potter-themed materials including the 4 House Crests (Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin) and a special Owl Post Postcard exclusive to Barnes & Noble that they can send to friends to invite them to the Countdown to Midnight Party. In addition to trivia and activities for Harry Potter fans to enjoy, many giveaways will also be available at the event while supplies last, including Harry Potter vintage posters, bookmarks and more. Stores will also host a robust Harry Potter trivia event. In addition, the Barnes & Noble Café will be offering special Harry Potter-themed treats including The Cheesecake Factory Bakery’s^® fun and delicious Chocolate Witchout Cupcake (a Barnes & Noble Café exclusive), The Decorated Cookie Company’s delightful Witch Hat and Cauldron Decorated Shortbread Cookies, and the Passion Potion Iced Tea, a bewitching shaken blend of brewed passion tea, raspberry and vanilla flavors.

All stores nationwide will also host a Wrebbit 3D™ Harry Potter™ event, in celebration of Harry Potter’s arrival at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, during which Harry Potter fans of all ages are invited to participate in the assembly of Wrebbit 3D™ Hogwarts™ Astronomy Tower, an 875-piece 3D puzzle. In addition, Barnes & Noble will put on display a fully-built, first-to-market Wrebbit 3D™ Hogwarts Express™ 3D puzzle in all stores for customers to marvel in and enjoy.”

Business Wire also report on the midnight release schedules:

“Harry Potter is back, and on Saturday, July 30, at 8PM, Barnes & Noble stores nationwide will host a special Countdown to Midnight Party leading up to the release of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Parts One & Two, a special rehearsal edition script book, which goes on sale July 31 at midnight. The party will feature a special Muggle Wall where customers can share their favorite memories of Harry Potter as well as several amazing giveaways. On Sunday, July 31, customers can return to their local store to discuss the new book and participate in special Harry Potter-themed events and activities, as a follow-up to the Countdown to Midnight Party the night before.”

It’s set to be an exciting month, coinciding with preview performances of Cursed Child in London!

Find out more and pre-order the Cursed Child scriptbook over at the Barnes & Noble website (here), and read the full Business Wire article here.

If you can make it to Florida and you want to join a night of old-school Potter book release festivities for only $20 (which includes a ball, costume contents, sorting, quid ditch, wizard chess, special guest appearances and more), find out more about GeekyCon’s midnight release party here!