Silicon Valley Comic Con Announces First Wave of Panels

FIRST WAVE OF SILICON VALLEY COMIC CON PANELS ANNOUNCED:

INDUSTRY ICONS TO EXPLORE POP CULTURE, SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, COMICS AND MORE

Pop Culture Panel Highlights Include: “An Evening with William Shatner,” “Ask Adam Savage,” 

“Let’s Go to Mars!,” “Con Man: The Fan Revolt 14 Years in the Making”

Science Enthusiasts Can Hear from Leading Experts On the World of Tomorrow: Space Travel, Black Holes, Artificial Intelligence, Eugenics, the Quantum Physics of the Marvel Universe and More

Silicon Valley Comic Con (SVCC), Steve Wozniak’s pop culture and technology expo, today revealed the initial round of panels that will be featured during the highly anticipated event that blends the best of entertainment, technology, gaming, comics, VR and all things pop culture. Attendees will have the opportunity to gain an insider’s perspective as they hear a wide variety of discussions helmed by their favorite Hollywood icons, scientists, technology luminaries and more.

Panel Highlights: 

A full list of SVCC panels can be found at www.svcomiccon.com/the-show/the-panels/

POP CULTURE AND ENTERTAINMENT

An Evening With William Shatner

From Star Trek’s Captain Kirk to Boston Legal’s Denny Krane, there are few actors that are more iconic on the screen or in person. Mr. Shatner will be reflecting back on fifty years of Star Trek, and hosting a Q&A session to talk about his career (past, present and future). More details to follow. 

Ask Adam Savage

Adam Savage: MythBusters

Ever since MythBusters' final season was announced last fall, Adam has received tens of thousands of questions from fans. After the MythBusters finale airs on March 2 (just two weeks before SVCC), he’s guessing you’ll have more.  For one hour, Adam will answer your questions on everything from his past (which includes not only MythBusters but also Star Wars), to his present, to his future.

Con Man: The Fan Revolt 14 Years in the Making

Alan Tudyk's dream show based on his global convention experiences seemed impossible with the compromises Hollywood demanded. Instead he went directly to fans; with more than over 46,000 responses coming to a record-breaking $3.2 million raised on Indiegogo, Con Man was officially born. With season one a smash hit on Vimeo and season 2 in the works, we’ll talk Con Man and the crazy ride that made his dream project a reality.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

Let’s Go To Mars!

Andy Weir: Author of The Martian 

Bobak Ferdowski: NASA Systems Engineer

Adam Savage: MythBusters

Sending rovers was just the first step -- NASA is developing the capabilities needed to send humans to Mars in the 2030s. But safely crossing ~140 million miles of space won't be easy. Join Andy Weir, author of The Martian, Adam Savage, host of Discovery Channel’s MythBusters, and Bobak Ferdowski, a systems engineer at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, as they talk about what life on Mars -- and truly science-ing the s**t out of the Red Planet -- may actually look like.

Space Exploration: Moving Towards Reusability & Beyond Chemical Rockets


Laetitia Garriott de Cayeux: Co-founder, Escape Dynamics Inc.



Radical breakthroughs are promising to redefine space access and space exploration. Laetitia will take you on a journey to explore the next big leaps - including full reusability and new forms of propulsion beyond chemical rockets for both launch and in-space travel - New Space (the private spaceflight industry) is bringing onto the space roadmap for lower cost space flight and wider space access!

Superbabies vs A.I.

Astro Teller: Currently oversees [X Labs], Alphabet’s moonshot factory

Danielle Teller: Author of Sacred Cows: The Truth About Divorce and Marriage

Imagine a world where parents order their baby’s eye color and IQ off a menu, and then doctors reach into their embryos’ DNA  to program their destinies. Famed computer scientist Astro Teller has imagined this future, and he sees the HORROR of eugenics: X-Men and a planet entirely populated by the sort of kids who beat him up in middle school, all rolled into one. His wife thinks he’s full of crap. Danielle Teller is a brilliant physician-scientist who understands that the REAL THREAT to humanity is artificial intelligence. Humans are creating super intelligent computers that will eventually destroy us all, no matter what sort of Asimovian instructions we try to give them. Watch the Tellers duke it out over the biggest threat to humankind in Superbabies vs A.I.!

Black Hole Blues and Other Songs from Outer Space

Janna Levin: Theoretical Astrophysicist/Author

In 1916, Einstein became the first to predict the existence of gravitational waves: the ringing sounds of spacetime generated by astrophysical calamities, like black hole collisions. Come listen to Janna Levin, one of the world’s most eminent theoretical astrophysicists and award-winning author, along with a few of her astro friends from Caltech discuss black holes, gravitational waves and the sounds of spacetime.

Marvel’s Ant-Man, Doctor Strange and the Quantum Realm

Spyridon Michalakis: Quantum Physicist/Caltech

The third phase of the Marvel Cinematic universe will introduce Doctor Strange, a new superhero with powers that border on magic. If magic exists, its source is in the quantum realm. Come listen to Spiros Michalakis, physics consultant on Ant-Man and director/researcher at Caltech Institute for Quantum Information and Matter, as he describes how the laws of physics and the very notions of space, time and energy may emerge from the more fundamental concept of quantum entanglement, the thread that weaves the quantum realm together.

COMICS

Convergence of Technology and Social Media in Comics

Bret Blevins / Tim Blevins

Emmy Award winning animator and comic book artist, Bret Blevins, and comic book writer, Tim Blevins, will discuss the evolution of the comic industry and the recent impact of technology on it. The comic industry has been slow to embrace technological innovation. Most comic book product extension has involved transitioning comic characters to alternate media forms such as film, television, video games and merchandise. Recent technology innovations and models, such as mobile computing, content streaming and social media present interesting opportunities to expand and rejuvenate the comic book experience. Bret and Tim will present an example of a new model for an interactive user experience in the context of comics and comic art in social media and mobile computing. The audience will be encouraged to participate in the creation and evolution of this new type of “social comic.”

Masters of Webcomics

Host: Chuck Whelon

Masters of Webcomics is a podcast featuring in-depth interviews with webcomicers of the past, who are either still making them now, or who have gone on to diverse careers in the arts. Host Chuck Whelon will conduct a Q&A with the panel about what it takes to make a webcomic, what you can get out of it, and how making one can form a great foundation to a career in the creative arts.

The Art of Creating Languages for Sci-Fi and Fantasy

David J. Peterson: language creator for Game of Thrones, Defiance and author of The Art of Language Invention 

Britton Watkins: Klingon language coach for Star Trek Into Darkness, director of upcoming Conlanging

Josh Feldman: director of Senn, co-producer for Conlanging

Join David J. Peterson (language creator for the TV shows “Game of Thrones” and “Defiance,” and author of “The Art of Language Invention”), Britton Watkins (Klingon language coach for “Star Trek into Darkness” and director of the upcoming feature documentary “'Conlanging”') and Josh Feldman (Britton's producing partner and director of the sci-fi feature “Senn”) for a behind-the-scenes look into the art of crafting languages. They'll also reveal a never-before-seen 20 minute sneak peek of their new film “Conlanging” which features interviews with Jason Momoa (best known for playing Khal Drogo in “Game of Thrones”) among others.

The call for speakers is open through February 8th. Please visit the SVCC panel submission page at www.svcomiccon.com/panels.

For the latest news and updates on additional panels, celebrity guests, exhibitors and events, follow @SVComicCon on Twitter.

To purchase tickets, visit www.svcomiccon.com/tickets and to become an exhibitor or for sponsorship opportunities, visit http://svcomiccon.com/sponsors/want-to-exhibit/.

ABOUT SILICON VALLEY COMIC CON

Silicon Valley Comic Con celebrates the Age of the Geek by bringing together America’s two greatest superheroes: pop culture and technology. Featuring top celebrities, comics, independent artists, cosplay, video game creators, consumer electronics, music and apps, Silicon Valley Comic Con is where entertainment and our electronic worlds intersect. The inaugural Silicon Valley Comic Con will be hosted at the San Jose Convention Center in San Jose, CA the weekend of March 18-20, 2016.