The following is an interview with Matt Dunford regarding the upcoming return of San Diego Comic Fest from October 25-27, 2024, in Carlsbad, CA. In this interview, Fanbase Press Editor-in-Chief Barbra Dillon chats with Dunford about what attendees can anticipate from this year’s event, the incredible programming planned and exhibitors scheduled to be in attendance, and more!
Barbra Dillon, Fanbase Press Editor-in-Chief: San Diego Comic Fest will be celebrating its 10th annual convention this weekend at the Westin Carlsbad Resort & Spa. What can you share with us about the theme of this year’s event?
Matt Dunford: San Diego Comic Fest returns on October 25-27, 2024, at the luxurious Westin Carlsbad Resort & Spa next door to Legoland. This year, we struggled to pick the San Diego Comic Fest theme. Over the years, we have celebrated 100 Years of Jack Kirby, 200 Years of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, 50 Years of the Apollo 11 Moon Landing, 100 Years of Ray Bradbury and Ray Harryhausen, and 100 Years of Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry. But this year, two massive icons of pop culture were celebrating centennials. Both of which had huge impacts on the world. One redefined storytelling in science fiction, and the other redefined cartoons and satire as we know it in America. So, we decided to celebrate both of them. The theme of this year’s San Diego Comic Fest celebrates 100 Years of MAD Magazine Founding Father Harvey Kurtzman and 100 Years of Twilight Zone creator Rod Serling.
BD: What will attendees have in store in terms of the artists, exhibitions, and other activities available for this year’s convention?
MD: San Diego Comic Fest is always full of activities. We always want to provide more than enough to ensure everyone has a great time. We always have a full Dealer’s Hall where you can browse through comics, collectibles, and meet the Special Guests of San Diego Comic Fest. The event has five panels running every hour, and a variety of programming ranges from all things comics to science fiction and animation. We also offer a full digital art workshop, where you can learn from professionals on many aspects of art and making digital comics. San Diego Comic Fest will also have a full artist alley and small press area where you can meet and mingle with artists and writers and pick up art pieces and new reading material because we don’t want you to leave empty-handed. The Comic Adventures of Starman will also be sponsoring an interactive scavenger hunt across the resort where you can win some great San Diego Comic Fest exclusives of their comic.
BD: An event of this size and scale is only made possible through a team effort. What can you share with us about the individuals who helped to bring San Diego Comic Fest to life this year?
MD: I cannot thank the dedicated volunteers and staff of San Diego Comic Fest enough. This may be a small event, but every pair of helping hands makes it possible to put this all together: from the staff coordinating the event at large to the volunteers they are setting up displays and the panelists giving time to inform and entertain the fans. The Audio/Video team helped to resolve every tech issue at the event. San Diego Comic Fest is truly an event based on community collaboration. The people who put together this event have a shared love of comics that they should be proud of because I am so proud of all of them.
BD: The convention always has fantastic programming. Are there any panels in particular that you want to highlight for our readers?
MD: This year, we have stepped up our programming. This year, we are featuring many panels that talk about the life and career of Harvey Kurtzman, from his time at MAD to his decades at Playboy and even the pre-MAD War stories. On the side of Rod Serling, I look forward to Serling’s Dystopian Fiction panel. This panel will examine his work on the end of the world, a theme that popped up quite often in The Twilight Zone, but my favorite dystopia written by Serling happens to be Planet of the Apes. I’m looking forward to the X-Men ’97 panel with Eric Lewald, Julia Lewald, and Larry Houston, because that show exceeded my expectations. I can’t wait to see the Spotlight on our Guest of Honor, Rick Geary, who many know as the creator of the Comic-Con Toucan. We have a Spotlight on Special Guests Jill Thompson and Mark Russell. The unusual panel that is catching my eye is Super Wealth in Comics, which focuses on characters like Uncle Scrooge, Richie Rich, Batman, Veronica Lodge, and all those other folks who have more money than they know what to do with.
BD: Lastly, what would you like to tell fans who want to learn more about and purchase tickets for San Diego Comic Fest?
MD: If you are interested in joining us for San Diego Comic Fest, tickets are available at our website, www.sdcomicfest.org. Rooms at the Westin and neighboring Sheraton are also available in limited quantities via our website. Our event-exclusive T-shirt drawn by Scott Shaw is also available for pre-order on our site, and those sell out, so act fast. The event kicks off Friday evening with an opening reception party with the special guests. We have all put in an astounding amount of work to make this the best San Diego Comic Fest yet. I hope to see everyone there to have a great time with many icons of comics, science fiction, and animation.
