GenCon Reflections Part 2: A Humble Bard Overwhelmed
My first GenCon experience was fantastic! People were all over the Dead Gentlemen booth this year, and I have got to tell you, I have still not recovered! Talk about a rabid fan base! The great posters that we have introducing everyone to The Gamers: Dorkness Rising characters were some of the hottest items at the Con. We even introduced the Dorkness Rising Survival Pack, which has a map of Mud Hollow Inn, the first chapter of the Goodman Games module of the movie, any of the posters that we had there, a set of D20 Crystal Caste dice made just for us, and my favorite, a miniature of one of the cast members exquisitely crafted by the good folks at Magnificent Egos! I must say that the Bard is my favorite miniature, but then again I may be a little biased…
What absolutely blew me away at the Con was the screening of the Making of Dorkness Rising. Apparently, word had gotten out that DG would be screening The Gamers: Dorkness Rising. Thankfully, all of you, our fans, were very gracious when you found out that it was going to be a great behind the scenes look at the Making of Dorkness Rising, and not the full movie. (As those of you who were there know, the movie is fully shot, ‘in the can’ so to speak, even though this one is DIGITAL!! And for now, our release date is top secret….Hey, watch out! You’re drooling on your die!)
Despite the change, more people came to the screening than we ever would have imagined. I mean, here I am, Scott C. Nobody from Tacoma, Washington and I enter the Westin Hotel, looking for Capital Ballroom #3, the ballroom of destiny for the Dead Gents. I am with a small group of people whom you might know: Sean K. Reynolds, Monte Cook, Aaron Williams and their significant others. As we enter, there are a couple of lines, and we think they are going to the ballrooms, but really aren’t sure. We soon notice that one line is snaking from the ballroom entrance, down the wall, along the other wall, and almost out the front doors to the hotel.
Once I realized that was the line to Dorkness, I almost broke out in tears. To see that kind of fanaticism and exuberance for something that I was a small part of was too much for me to handle. When I turned to tell my fellow travelers, they looked at me with big knowing smiles and said, ‘Well, it looks like it is going to be up to YOU to get US into this thing!’
Words cannot describe that moment.
The audiences for the Making of Dorkness Rising were so large that they packed both screenings! In some respects, I sort of felt bad that they were finding everything funny, because for every funny moment or joke that they laughed at, it was so raucous that they missed two others! And the fact that everyone laughed at all the characters, crew, situations, and what have you, tells me that not only are our fans smart, but that we did our job well. And, honestly, I think the crowd really liked the fact that the Bard is a bit libidinous, and that it frustrates the living ‘Frell’ out of Lodge! A serious guy like Lodge needing to deal with a highly charismatic character like Flynn, I mean that is just pure gold!
The coolest thing I heard fans say during the entire Con was one of two things:
1. We can’t wait to see the new movie
and
2. Thank you for making these movies.
All I can say is, we can’t wait to see the new movie either, and ‘Thank You’ for watching them. Without you, we would probably still make them, but it wouldn’t be as fun!
My most memorable moment at the Con occurred when I was walking outside the Convention Center. The gentleman holding the door open for me turned and said, ‘Aren’t you Flynn from the new Gamers movie?’ I was blown away that anyone at this point would recognize me. This was about 3.5 hours before the screening, and nobody really knew who I was with regards to DG. Well, that special someone turned out to be Joshua from WOTC, and he honored me again by watching the screening with me. I tell you, the people in the gaming community are among the finest people in the world.
As a part of this fabulous GenCon caper, I had to wear my costume. Yes, a grown man in public in a bard costume, you must be thinking ‘He must have a lot of confidence,’ ‘Wow, I wish I could do that,’ and ‘Man, those tights must really be comfortable.’ You know what? They are!
I enjoyed wearing the costume of Flynn while we were shooting, and it was great to revisit the character on the floor at GenCon. For the screening night, however, when we had our Celebrity Gaming Session of the new Goodman Games module, I had to venture out into the city streets of Indianapolis. Now when we were shooting, I did things like pay a traffic ticket at the Tacoma Court House while in costume, and usually people smiled, laughed or shied away. So I was familiar with being in public dressed a bit peculiarly. However, this particular Saturday Night in Indianapolis happened to be a home exhibition game for the home football team the Colts.
I will not get into the gritty details of the longest 6 block walk I have EVER taken in my life, but I will tell you some of the things that were said to me would make a pirate’s mother blush!! The greatest thing about that journey, however, were two small children, each around 5 years old, who were very polite and asked me if they could have their picture taken with ‘Mr. Pied Piper.’ I tell you, I have never wanted more to have my picture taken than I did at that moment.
Ultimately, it was the support, and willingness of our fans to just saddle up and talk to all of us at DG, that made the Con for me. I met some great folks, some of whom watch The Gamers before every gaming session, to those who had heard about the movie from friends and just had to see what the fuss was all about. Hats off to all of you who came out to show your support.
So, again, this is Flynn the Fine, saying ‘Thanks for the Memories’!
