Author Topic: No NerdHQ for SDCC 2018  (Read 4097 times)

Offline semigeekgirl

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No NerdHQ for SDCC 2018
« on: June 06, 2018, 02:34:14 PM »
Posted by Zach Levi on Instagram:

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Offline SynXack

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Re: No NerdHQ for SDCC 2018
« Reply #1 on: June 06, 2018, 02:40:45 PM »
 :'( :'( :'( :'( :'( :'( :'(
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Re: No NerdHQ for SDCC 2018
« Reply #2 on: Today at 10:37:11 AM »

Offline DRWHO42

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Re: No NerdHQ for SDCC 2018
« Reply #2 on: June 06, 2018, 02:44:20 PM »
Saddened by this news. It was my favorite offsite.
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Offline chocolateshake

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Re: No NerdHQ for SDCC 2018
« Reply #3 on: June 06, 2018, 02:54:25 PM »
Sad too.  But it really ended in 2016.  Last year was just an echo of what it once was.  Like all the other mini-cons, 2016 was the last year.  In 2017 they got shutdown hard.  Conival was my favorite.  Like NerdHQ, it was just a shadow of itself last year.  I doubt that will be coming back, even in it's greatly reduced form, this year.

Offline Angel_

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Re: No NerdHQ for SDCC 2018
« Reply #4 on: June 06, 2018, 03:02:24 PM »
Well h*ck.   ???
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Offline epicskyline

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Re: No NerdHQ for SDCC 2018
« Reply #5 on: June 06, 2018, 03:33:02 PM »
I didn't realize that it was CCI who was shutting down the panels outside of the con. Is that an assumption based on how they all closed down so quickly after that huge boon in 2015-16, or was there some specific news that I missed?

Offline Angel_

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Re: No NerdHQ for SDCC 2018
« Reply #6 on: June 06, 2018, 03:44:33 PM »
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I didn't realize that it was CCI who was shutting down the panels outside of the con. Is that an assumption based on how they all closed down so quickly after that huge boon in 2015-16, or was there some specific news that I missed?

From my understanding it's speculation since it all seemed to go down at once.  There may have been some rumors but I don't think there was ever an official announcement by anyone.  If there was, I missed it too.
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Offline Angie

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Re: No NerdHQ for SDCC 2018
« Reply #7 on: June 06, 2018, 04:49:14 PM »
The only thing I recall is Zac saying something a few years back hinting that CCI was not on board with him having HQ. I feel like it might have been in some video Q&A he did? Its possible they allowed him to continue because it was for charity and did not interfere with the guests commitment to comic con (or maybe it did? Who knows).

The fact that he said it probably won't ever return makes me think cci just flat out said he could not do it. As others have pointed out, conival as we knew it in 2016 is gone too.

Offline chocolateshake

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Re: No NerdHQ for SDCC 2018
« Reply #8 on: June 06, 2018, 06:01:18 PM »
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The fact that he said it probably won't ever return makes me think cci just flat out said he could not do it. As others have pointed out, conival as we knew it in 2016 is gone too.

He said more than that.  In that Instagram post he said he hopes to bring it to other venues.

Offline chocolateshake

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Re: No NerdHQ for SDCC 2018
« Reply #9 on: June 06, 2018, 06:15:02 PM »
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I didn't realize that it was CCI who was shutting down the panels outside of the con. Is that an assumption based on how they all closed down so quickly after that huge boon in 2015-16, or was there some specific news that I missed?

As far as I know, it's pure speculation.  Take that from one of the people that did the speculating. ;)

I doubt the real reason will ever be known.  But the fact that they all shut down at the same time is really hard to accept as a coincidence.  At the last full Conival, a celebrity stuck around after her panel and signed autographs and stood for selfies.  I overheard her being told that it was against her contract with comic-con to do that.

I don't fault comic-con.  From their point of view, all those mini-cons were competition.  Why would people camp overnight for Hall H or stand in those long lines for autographs if they could just stroll into Conival at anytime with no line at all?

Here's some speculation on how they could have been shutdown.  Any celebrity that presents at comic-con agrees not to appear at any other event that week.  By default, there are no more mini-cons.
« Last Edit: June 06, 2018, 06:58:08 PM by chocolateshake »

Offline semigeekgirl

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Re: No NerdHQ for SDCC 2018
« Reply #10 on: June 06, 2018, 10:17:33 PM »
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As far as I know, it's pure speculation.  Take that from one of the people that did the speculating. ;)

I doubt the real reason will ever be known.  But the fact that they all shut down at the same time is really hard to accept as a coincidence.  At the last full Conival, a celebrity stuck around after her panel and signed autographs and stood for selfies.  I overheard her being told that it was against her contract with comic-con to do that.

I don't fault comic-con.  From their point of view, all those mini-cons were competition.  Why would people camp overnight for Hall H or stand in those long lines for autographs if they could just stroll into Conival at anytime with no line at all?

Here's some speculation on how they could have been shutdown.  Any celebrity that presents at comic-con agrees not to appear at any other event that week.  By default, there are no more mini-cons.

But... Comic-Con has no problem selling out every year, and the offsites only draw more people to town, a lot of whom try for badges. And Comic-Con would really prefer NOT to have overnight lines, they just have no idea how to fix it.

Also, as far as I know, CCI has no agreements whatsoever with the celebrities who attend (except for the few Special Guests, and most of those aren't "celebrities", really). Actors/creators attend because their studios send them as part of their promotional obligations. The studios decide what properties they feel like promoting - and more promotion is almost always good.

I'm not saying CCI had nothing to do with the end of Conival and NerdHQ - but if they did, their reasoning had to have been a lot more complex than just an aversion to competition.

Offline debster

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Re: No NerdHQ for SDCC 2018
« Reply #11 on: June 07, 2018, 04:22:34 AM »
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He said more than that.  In that Instagram post he said he hopes to bring it to other venues.

Does anyone know if they've been anywhere else besides when they did NYCC a few years ago? It was maybe 4 or 5 years ago, and they just had a merchandise booth on the floor and periodic smiles for a cause during the con there but no panels.

Offline DRWHO42

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No NerdHQ for SDCC 2018
« Reply #12 on: June 07, 2018, 05:09:18 AM »
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Does anyone know if they've been anywhere else besides when they did NYCC a few years ago? It was maybe 4 or 5 years ago, and they just had a merchandise booth on the floor and periodic smiles for a cause during the con there but no panels.
They hosted a celebrity ski event a few years ago. I remember seeing it on TV.
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Offline rallyv

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Re: No NerdHQ for SDCC 2018
« Reply #13 on: June 07, 2018, 06:27:31 AM »
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But... Comic-Con has no problem selling out every year, and the offsites only draw more people to town, a lot of whom try for badges. And Comic-Con would really prefer NOT to have overnight lines, they just have no idea how to fix it.

Also, as far as I know, CCI has no agreements whatsoever with the celebrities who attend (except for the few Special Guests, and most of those aren't "celebrities", really). Actors/creators attend because their studios send them as part of their promotional obligations. The studios decide what properties they feel like promoting - and more promotion is almost always good.

I'm not saying CCI had nothing to do with the end of Conival and NerdHQ - but if they did, their reasoning had to have been a lot more complex than just an aversion to competition.
They don't have contracts with celebrities, they have contracts with studios who have contracts with celebrities.

The easy way for CCI to combat things like NerdHQ and Conival would be through studios. They can pressure the studios for more control of the talent by dictating that they can't promote at both CCI and outside events but if they choose CCI, they can ensure panel space and advertising assistance. From there the studios control where talent can appear through promotion clauses in contracts.  The media range of an SDCC panel promotion will always be wider than a mini-event nearby so it becomes a no brainer. You may get one off celebs who aren't promoting anything currently and willing to show up but it's doubtful you could fill 4 days with these celebs, certainly not if you're a non-profit using pay panels to offset costs and still having money for donation.

Offline mark

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Re: No NerdHQ for SDCC 2018
« Reply #14 on: June 07, 2018, 07:13:44 AM »
Whatever the reason, I'm bummed. I always felt that NerdHQ had great synergy with SDCC (I don't use that word lightly, I hate businessy jargon words.)