Sci-Fi on the Rock

Infobox Convention
name = Sci-Fi on the Rock


caption =
status = Active
genre = Science fiction/Fantasy/Horror
venue =
location = St. John's, Newfoundland
country = Canada
first = 2007
last =
organizer =
filing =
attendance = | website = http://www.scifiontherock.com

History

Sci-Fi on the Rock is an annual science fiction, fantasy and horror convention held in St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada. It was founded by Darren Hann and Melanie Collins in mid-to-late 2006, and held its first convention in 2007.

It began in 2007 at the Hotel Mount Pearl, moving on to be housed in the Holiday Inn in St. John's as of April 2008. The convention has had a number a notable guests both from Newfoundland and beyond, including science-fiction author Kenneth Tam ("Defense Command", "His Majesty's New World"), comic-book artist Paul Tucker ("The Underworld Railroad", "Google John Smith"), actor Brian Downey ("Lexx", " Millennium"), actor Jeremy Bulloch ("The Empire Strikes Back", "Octopussy"), author William Meikle ("The Midnight Eye" series), horror author Matthew LeDrew ("Black Womb", "Transformations in Pain") and author Shannon Patrick Sullivan ("The Dying Days").

First Convention

Sci-Fi on the Rock's first convention was held on April 1st, 2007 at the Hotel Mount Pearl (formerly Chateau Park) in Mount Pearl, Newfoundland. It featured special guest authors Kenneth Tam and Shannon Patrick Sullivan, and local business/fangroup, Vader Party. As well as featuring special guests, the convention featured workshops throughout the day including the popular "Lightsaber Techniques", "Basic Horror Make-Up for Film and Television" and "Costume Designing". In addition, there were a number of sales-and-display tables, and a number of competitions such as Video Games, Model Building, Costume Contest, and others. Sci-Fi on the Rock also featured a canteen with Sci-Fi related food (ie: "The Kirk Burger").

Having been planned and put off within only a few months, and with little publicity, Sci-Fi on the Rock's first convention was surprise success with almost 500 people attending, and was covered in many local media pages, as well as internet sites.

Sci-Fi on the Rock II

As a result of the success of the first convention, Sci-Fi on the Rock organizers Darren Hann and Melanie Collins, as well as the now-larger organizing committee decided that the convention should be held again the following year and should be bigger. Around the summer of 2007, planning for Sci-Fi on the Rock II would commence.

The first change was time and place. It was increased from a one-day to a full weekend event, and was held in a larger venue. Sci-Fi on the Rock II was held at the Holiday Inn hotel in St. John's, on Saturday, April 19th and Sunday, April 20th, 2008. As a kick-off to the convention, author Kenneth Tam was invited back as a special guest, and launched the first book in his new series "The Grasslands" on the evening before the convention. Other changes included the amount of publicity the convention received, and the structure of different competitions. The list of special guests grew from three to seven, with Kenneth Tam and Vader Party returning for their second year, and the addition of authors Matthew LeDrew and Willie Meikle, comic-book artist Paul Tucker of Viper Comics, as well as the appearance of Celebrity Special Guests, actors Jeremy Bulloch, who notably played the bounty hunter Boba Fett from the Star Wars Franchise, and Brian Downey, who is perhaps best known for his role of Stanley Tweedle from "".

Like the year before, Sci-Fi on the Rock II was met with positive reviews and overall success. In addition to more media coverage, both before and after the convention, the attendance increased to over 700--with a number of patrons coming from other parts of Canada, the United States and even the United Kingdom. The guests as well had an enjoyable time. Jeremy Bulloch commented on his website that "The people of Newfoundland are extremely friendly. It was only the second time that Darren had put the 'Sc-Fi on the Rock' show on, and it was very well attended. Lots of costumes and games for the children and it seemed that everyone was having a good time". [http://www.jeremybulloch.com] Jeremy Bulloch's Home Page]

Sci-Fi on the Rock II featured a Charity Auction, which benefited the School Lunch Association. Items that had been placed for bid included a Limited Edition Star Wars T-Shirt-and-Box Set which is not available in North America (donated by Jeremy Bulloch), a Lexx Prize pack, including many behind-the-scenes cuts and scripts (donated by Brian Downey), a Limited Edition Boba Fett action figure, personally autographed by Jeremy Bulloch, and a P.A.D.D. that was used on the set of (which was donated by an agent of one of the actors of the show).

Convention #3 and Current Planning

Sci-Fi on the Rock is already in the planning stages for its next convention, which is being held on April 25 and 26, 2009 at the Holiday Inn in St. John's once again. As it is very early in the planning stages, little information about the upcoming convention is available, however it is planned to supplement the convention with a number of lower-key events throughout the year.

On June 2nd, 2008, Sci-Fi on the Rock announced that it's Special Guest Actor for its 2009 convention would be Vaughn Armstrong, who is perhaps best known as Admiral Maxwell Forrest from Star Trek Enterprise. Mr. Armstrong is one of the longest-serving actors with the Star Trek franchise, having been in all series except the Original. He currently holds the record for the numbers of characters played in Star Trek, with his number being 12.

Outside of Star Trek, he has appeared in Babylon 5 and Quantum Leap, and plays filk-music in a band called The Enterprise Blues. Welcome, Vaughn Armstrong, to Sci-Fi on the Rock.

On June 7th, 2008, Sci-Fi on the Rock launched its updated website, promoting its 2009 convention. This new edition included an upgraded layout and a new logo.

Geek Survivor

Additional to the contests discussed in the main articles, there is a larger competition held during the convention called "Geek Survivor", where contestants compete to be crowned the title of "Newfoundland's Ultra Geek".

Although it is called "Geek Survivor", it more closely resembles Jeopardy! and Beat the Geeks in structure and style. It is a trivia-based game, where contestants answer questions of varying difficulty about different Sci-Fi topics. At the end of the game, the contestant with the highest score is crowned "Ultra Geek".

Mark Downey was crowned as the first Sci-Fi on the Rock Ultra Geek on April 1st, 2007. The current reigning Ultra Geek is Dr. Glyn George, a MUN professor and Doctor Who and Star Trek enthusiast. Dr. George was crowned on April 20th, 2008.

Attractions

Apart from the media guest Q&A’s, autographs and photo sessions, there are many other programming options and things to do during the convention:

* Comic-Book drawing
* Acting
* Getting Published
* Getting Self-Published
* Costume Contests
* Lego Robotics
* Lightsaber Workshop
* Movie Make-up
* Writer's Circle

Sci-Fi on the Rock II featured a special entrance referred to as The Transporter Unit (in reality, a rotating blackroom door modified with space decorations and strobe lights). Plans are being made for its return for Sci-Fi on the Rock's third convention.

References

External links

* [http://www.scifiontherock.com Sci-Fi on the Rock Official site]
* [http://www.thetelegram.com/index.cfm?sid=127754&sc=84 Telegram News]
* [http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=48366270520&ref=ts Sci-Fi on the Rock on Facebook]