All Registration Now Closed for SCF2008

Holy cow, people!

So today was supposed to be the Early Bird Deadline, after which table prices were to go up to their regular rates. However, the demand has been so amazingly high for tables for our upcoming Fest this April that we're going to have to actually close ALL exhibitor registrations at this point!

There has been a tremendous and unexpected surge of support from our exhibitor community in the last week, and I've been registering an average of about 8 tables per day all week. Eleven forms arrived in the mail today, and I still need to go through those, but I am positive that by the time I'm done I'll need to start a waiting list. I'm frankly flabbergasted. In our four years of putting on the Stumptown Comics Fest, we've never had to close the registrations before the Early Bird Deadline had passed, let alone selling out all our available tables within two months of opening registrations! This is truly a first.

I know a bunch of you probably mailed yours out in the last couple days, and so I haven't received them yet. Rest assured you'll automatically go on the waiting list, and as soon as something becomes available I'll let you know via email or phone.

For those of you who still hadn't gotten around to mailing your registrations in yet, don't be afraid to do so, just understand that you're not guaranteed a table. I'd even recommend not including payment with your form - if something opens up we'll work out an arrangement to collect the registration fee.

First thing Monday I'll contact the Doubletree Hotel and see if there's any space we might be able to expand into.

The lesson I take from this is that we must be doing something right.

UPDATE: I just finished going through today's registrations, and did indeed begin a waiting list. I've updated the Exhibitors Page with the latest names, so if you're not on that list I'm afraid you either do not have a table, or you asked that your name not be publicized. My apologies if you're not on the list, and as I say, I'll see if I can find some more exhibitor space at the hotel. Keep an eye out for updates!

Special Guest of Honor: Mike Richardson

The Stumptown Comics Fest is excited to welcome Mike Richardson, founder of Dark Horse Comics, as the Special Guest of Honor for its Fifth Annual fest. Under his direction, Dark Horse has gone from a tiny startup during the black-and-white boom of the ‘80s to the biggest independent comics publisher in the nation, featuring such talents as Frank Miller, Mike Mignola, Neil Gaiman, and the late comics legend Will Eisner, and revolutionizing the industry’s approach to licensed properties through innovative Star Wars, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Conan, and Aliens/Predator stories. Richardson recently celebrated Dark Horse’s 20th anniversary.

Early Bird Registration, and Portfolio Reviews at the Fest!

Hey, potential exhibitors!

The Early-Bird Deadline for exhibitors is coming up this Friday, February 29th. Spaces are going like hotcakes, and are currently available for the discounted price of $70 for a half and $110 for a full eight-foot table. (The former includes one show badge, and the latter includes two.) In March, regular rates go into effect—$90 for half and $150 for full—and registration closes March 31st, so act now! Registration forms are available on the Registration page.

Also, this little tidbit is excellent news for exhibitors and attendees alike:

Portland is a treasure trove of big industry names, and the cream of the crop will be doing portfolio reviews during the fest! Our thanks go out to Dave Roman (Nickelodeon Magazine), Diana Schutz (Dark Horse), Brett Warnock (Top Shelf), James Lucas Jones (Oni Press), Eric Reynolds (Fantagraphics), Jim Valentino (Image), and Steve Lieber and Ron Randall (Periscope Studio) for donating their time and significant expertise. These individuals will evaluate art portfolios and give advice, but will not look at pitches or submissions. Specific times to be announced on our Events Schedule before the Fest.

Finally, we’re cooking up something both awesome and secret for the entire month of April. It’ll be big, so keep your eyes on the ol’ blog!

The 2008 Poster Revealed!

I just got the final artwork for our 2008 poster yesterday, and I'm really excited to share it:

The drawing is by our special guest Craig Thompson, with famed local rock-concert-poster- and album-cover designer Mike King graciously handling art direction for us. The final poster measures 18"x24", and we'll have these available for sale at the Fest for a scant $5, though one will very likely come free when you arrive with your Weekend Pass!

Guest: Scott McCloud

Scott McCloud has been described by Frank Miller as, "the smartest guy in comics." He built this reputation on a number of ground breaking ideas, not the least of which are the Creators Bill of Rights he co-drafted in 1988, and the 24-Hour Comic, a phenomenon that has continued to grow and prosper in the 18 years since he first dreamed it up.

Scott is possibly best-known for his 1993 book, , a revolutionary book which represented a major step forward in developing a theoretical basis for understanding the comics medium... told in a comic format. Though controversial and contentious at the time, the book has since become the cornerstone on many a creator's bookshelf, and is used as a textbook in college courses across the country.

Scott followed up Understanding Comics with two more volumes devoted to the industry and the craft of comics: and his latest, . To celebrate its release, Scott took his family on a year-long 50-state lecture tour, during which Scott lectured at the Pacific Northwest College of Art as part of their week-long Graphic Novel Intensive program, coinciding with last summer's Platform Film Festival.

Scott first made his name in comics with the critically-acclaimed alternative superhero title Zot!, published for 36 issues by Eclipse Comics in the late 1980s, and according to him, he is anxious to get back to writing and drawing long-form fiction comics again, to put some of the things he learned while working on 'Making Comics' to use.

We're excited to have Scott joining us for our fifth Comics Fest, and if you want to exhibit alongside Scott and our other Special Guests, fill out the Registration form and send it in - the Early-Bird Discount deadline is coming up at the end of February.