When I took over as Director for @rcadeCon I was determined that they we get the best of the best and since this was our first year we had to pull out all the stops to be even half as good as some of the more seasoned and well loved conventions in this country. In 2011 we’re spoiled for choice with the amount of Cons we can attend in this country, from GaelCon and WarpCon, two of the largest gaming Cons in Ireland to Eirtakon, Ireland’s largest and best Anime Con to Q-Con a gaming and anime Con in Belfast (Q is also one of the lognest running Cons in Ireland) to fellow newcomers BroCon and AkumaKon in Limerick and Galway respectively.
Any Con worth it’s salt will pull out all the stops to put on a weekend filled with dozens of events, pack out a trade hall with amazing artists, rare traders and throw together one perfect show! The secret to any good Con lies in keeping those people coming along very happy and entertained and if I’ve learned anything from my years attending Conventions in Ireland and Europe, you are doomed to fail if you can’t make people enjoy themselves! Every Con in Ireland has managed to do this to date and we knew we had our work cut out for ourselves when it came to even matching these guys!
One of the biggest draws to a Con and one of the best ways to get people excited for the Con is showing them just who they can expect to meet, in other words the special guests coming to the convention. @rcadeCon is proud to be hosting seven special guests: Robert Curley, Barry Keegan, Sonia Leong, Hayden Scott-Baron, the Emerald Garrison, Travis Willingham and Laura Bailey and for many of our guests it will be their first time to Ireland.
You can find out more about some of our special guests below and if you really want to see them in the flesh then be sure to pick up your ticket for @rcadeCon 2011 over here at PreRegistration.
@rcadeCon 2011 is taking place in the D4 Hotels, Ballsbridge Inn, Friday 1st – 3rd July.
If you have ever watched an episode of Shin Chan, Soul Eater, Fruits Basket, Full Metal Alchemist or if you’ve ever played Street Fighter IV or World of Warcraft then chances are you have heard the voice of Laura Bailey. Possibly one of the biggest voice actors working the Anime and Video Game industry, Laura has lent her voice to hundreds of characters over the last few years and at only 29 years old she has accomplished an awful lot to date.
Some of her biggest roles to date include the voice of Maka Albarn, Lust, Chun Li and Tohru Honda as well as Shin Chan, Serah from Final Fantasy XIII and Anko from Naruto.
Laura currently lives in California. Her interest and work in the Anime industry extends beyond that of a voice actress. Laura has also directed and worked as a producer on shows such as Shin-Chan, Gunslinger Girl and Blue Gender.
This will be Laura’s first time to visit Ireland and @rcadeCon are proud to welcome her as a Guest of Honour!
The Irish Comic Book scene is indebted to the work of Robert Curley. The founder of Atomic Diner, Robert has helped push the work if Irish writers and artists into the mainstream of the comic industry. With titles such as the Eagle Award Nominated Freakshow, Atomic Rocket Group 66 and a new title, ‘The League of Volunteers’, Robert’s work has captured the imaginations and interested of fans both at home and abroad.
Robert is also the man responsible for the organisation of ‘Free Irish Comic Day’!
Be sure to check out The League of Volunteers!
One of the most well known artists working both the video game and Manga Art industry in Europe, Hayden (or Dock) will be appearing at @rcadeCon alongside fellow Sweatdrop Studios member Sonia Leong!
Dock is an artist, professional graphics designer, gamer and movie fanatic who has worked for the BBC, Barrons and Harper Collins
www.deadpanda.com
www.sweatdrop.com
