Days of the Dead Convention

"Days of the Dead's primary goal is to bring back the concept of the genre convention being a welcoming communal gathering of like minded friends and fans and not just another "pay-and-go" autograph show that has become an all too common (and impersonal) experience in the convention scene. Chock full of special events tailored just for the fans, an active after hours scene of horror themed parties, and a massive guest list of the hottest celebrity guests, artists, and up and coming independent film makers, Days of the Dead has already began rewriting the script and setting the bar for what a true horror convention weekend should look like." -Days of the Dead website

So, the con itself is pretty small and it's held over the course of 3 days at one hotel and clearly it's horror themed. It's a casual con, with a lot of the celebs just there signing autographs and taking photos. However, it's pretty nice when you go to the panels because they are small and intimate. You're much more likely to get your question answered and to have a chance for a nice one on one with whoever you want to meet.

The Stranger Things cast was the best panel of the weekend. The kids talked about how they got into acting, their auditions for the show, and their favorite movies. They were super excited to be there and were excited when we got some extra time in the panel because they said doing panels was their favorite part of cons. This was by far my favorite panel of the con because the kids were so into it and honestly did a great job answering questions and genuinely wanted to be there.

At another great panel, Doug Bradley talked about going to school with Clive Barker, one of the teachers that was influential in getting Clive into writing (who also helped push John Lennon into creating), and his time and experiences with Hellraiser.

After the panels we toured around the exhibitor hall and looked at all of the neat things for sale. There were a lot of neat jewelry booths, some oddities, and other collectible booths. The film festival had a lot of cool movies and we got to watch one by the guy who puts the film track together. The last thing we saw at the con was Sid Haig talking about his career, what he has going on next, and then spouting some weirdo political junk.

Just like other conventions, costumes are a huge part of the con. The costumes were amazing! In addition to Jason, Leatherface, and Michael Voorhies, there were people dressed up like Freddy, the clown from American Horror Story: Freakshow, Twiggy Ramirez (since he was at the con), a creepy ice cream man, Stormtroopers (because Star Wars is everywhere), and so much more. There were also great set pieces for photo ops.