We’ve barely retired our cowboy boots or recovered from the meaty sweats of SXSW, but the passage of time waits for no one… We can deny it no longer. We are DEEP in the throes of Con season, and next up on the ol’ Nerdist agenda is an event that’s near and dear to our hearts: WonderCon!
This year, WonderCon is headed back to Anaheim, CA for another weekend of panels, parties, and poor spending habits. (We can’t be the only ones who spend half the time scouring Artist’s Alley for beautiful prints and trinkets.) Make sure you join us all day on Saturday, April 1st (no foolin’!), where we’ll be putting on a bunch of panels with our pals at Geek & Sundry. Not only do we have our annual Nerdist panel with all your favorite folks, we’ll also be exploring the science of Mass Effect and analyzing the parallels between sci-fi TV and real life.
Check out our full schedule below, and let us know in the comments or on Twitter if you’ll be joining us!
Nerdist Panels:
5:15pm – 6:15pm: The Nerdist Panel – Join the Nerdist crew, including Jessica Chobot (host of Nerdist News), Kyle Hill (Because Science), Rachel Heine (Nerdist editor in chief), Andrew Bowser (Nerdist supervising creative producer), Mike Shaw (Nerdist head of video), Joan Ford (Nerdist writer) and Aristotle Acevedo (Nerdist podcast producer) as they talk sci-fi, superheroes, what it’s like to work at Nerdist and entertain games from the audience. Dan Casey (The Dan Cave) will moderate. Room 300AB.
6:15pm – 7:15pm Nerdist Science: The Science of Mass Effect – Kyle Hill (Because Science, MythBusters: The Search) and nerdy panelists Matthew Patrick (The Game Theorists, MatPat’s Game Lab), Dianna Cowern (PBS’ The Physics Girl), Raquel Nuno (UCLA’s Planetary and Space Science, the Mars 2020 project), and Jennifer Ouellette (The Physics of the Buffyverse, Cocktail Party Physics) discuss the surprisingly accurate science in the sci-fi video game franchise Mass Effect, followed by a Q&A session moderated by Kyle Hill. Room 300AB.
7pm – 8pm Nerdist TV: Tech the Future, Tech the World– Join Alicia Lutes (Nerdist Managing Editor and host of Fangirling), and special guests Cory Bird (Co-Producer Colony), Naren Shankar (Showrunner, The Expanse) and Mackenzie Donaldson (Producer, Orphan Black) as they dissect how on-screen technology has changed TV stories …and even the world, followed by a Q&A. Room 207
Geek & Sundry Panels
11:30am – 12:30pm Space: Playing Games In The Void- Collin Kelly (Joyride), Jody Houser (Faith), Ray Utarnachitt (DC’s Legends of Tomorrow), Eric C. Campbell (Eric’s TBD RPG), and Amy Dallen (The Wednesday Club) discuss how to approach the infinite possibilities of the galaxy as a storyteller and player in an RPG set in space and partake in a Q&A moderated by Jackson Lanzing (Vast). Room 213.Â
1pm – 2pm Geek & Sundry LIVE!- As one of the biggest channels on Twitch, Ivan Van Norman (Game the Game), Erika Ishii (Game Together) Hector Navarro (Dick & Johnson), Stef Woodburn (Mines N Crafts) Eric C. Campbell (Eric’s TBD RPG) discuss what it takes to make broadcast magic happen and the future of live programing.  The Twitch crew will partake in a Q&A session moderated by Sax Carr (supervising producer: Twitch). Room: 207.
2pm – 3pm Live Talks Machina with the cast of Critical Role- Join Brian W. Foster (host of Talks Machina) as he moderates a special live episode featuring the cast of Critical Role:  Matt Mercer, Marisha Ray, Laura Bailey, Travis Willingham, Sam Riegel, Liam O’Brien and Taliesin Jaffe. The Critical Role cast will discuss the latest adventures of Vox Machina and answers your burning questions. Room: Arena.
