MovieViral Comic-Con 2011 Coverage Preview

It’s that time of the year again. San Diego Comic-Con sweeps the (geek) nation starting tonight and going through to Sunday. We’ll be there covering it from the floor of the convention center and the streets of the gaslamp district. Get the details on our coverage after the break, as well as some interesting highlights for this year’s convention.

Once again I’ll be flying solo, doing my best to represent MovieViral. For live updates, you can follow me on Twitter (@MovieViral), which is also probably the fastest way to get my attention. We’ll be posting full blown articles mostly late at night and early morning, since that’s the only time I’ll have (not to mention the Wi-Fi and 3G coverage stinks at the convention center). We’ll be posting photos on Flickr and TwitPic (eventually I’ll move all photos to Flickr). Last year I made a few videos, so I’ll try to do the same again this year. You can see those on either our YouTube or my Vimeo. I’ll be trying to grab swag for a contest in the coming weeks, so stay tuned for that.

As for what content we’ll be covering, the schedule is a bit fluid. I’ll of course focus on the big movies and television shows, but since I’ll have access to interviews and such, I might have to skip some of popular panels (i.e. Breaking Dawn). Our whole staff will be on the look out for The Avengers viral that we know should be prevalent. Hopefully The Dark Knight Rises tries to start something. I’ll be in the Gaslamp district, which always has fun stuff, and I’ll even review a few movies.

If you are going to Comic-Con, below are some of the things I’ve gotten wind of that might interest you. Of course, if you see me, say hello!

Lionsgate wanted to extend an invitation to you to come visit the Lionsgate booth (#3729) to experience The Touch Wall on Preview Night. The Touch Wall is a state-of-the-art giant touch-screen composed of 6 3D-TVs (in partnership with VIZIO). At roughly 11 feet across and 8 feet high, the Touch Wall will allow visitors to Lionsgate’s booth to interact with movie content in never before seen ways. You can use the Touch Wall to view trailers, browse photos, share on your social networks and take larger-than-life photos with the cast from Lionsgate’s upcoming movies.

Costumed Samurai Rangers will be making appearances on the show floor and at the Nickelodeon Booth (#4113) throughout the Con, thrilling fans with their exciting Samurai stunts and Ranger moves!

VOLTRON SCAVENGER HUNT:
In addition to the panel, Voltron fans can participate in the interactive adventure, “The Hunt to Form Voltron.” The scavenger hunt will take place July 21 to July 23 in the area surrounding the convention center. Participants will play using their smartphones on a mission to find the five Voltron lion standees and their corresponding QR codes. At each standee, players will receive an exclusive button and a chance to win a variety of collectible prizes from THQ, Mattel, WEP, Viz Media and Classic Media including: a 92-inch flat screen Mitsubishi television, an Xbox 360 console, classic Voltron action figures, Voltron retro t-shirts, DVDs and more.

Bruce Campbell will…be signing autographs in Fox booth #4313 shortly after the Burn Notice panel.

Thursday, July 21, 2011
9:30pm – Performance from KÀ by Cirque du Soleil at PETCO Park (time is approximate, please arrive by 9:00 pm)

Cartoon Network once again goes beyond the San Diego Convention Center with an even bigger presence, this time based around the massively popular show Adventure Time! Visit the Cartoon Network Pizzeria (Ciro’s Pizzeria, 536 Market Street, Between 5th and 6th in the Gaslamp Quarter) from Wednesday, July 20–Sunday, July 24 for a unique, fully immersive takeover. The restaurant brings you into the world of Adventure Time with floor-to-ceiling décor, episodes and clips, and a custom Jake plush free with purchase throughout the entire convention (while supplies last). Also, brand ambassadors throughout the Gaslamp District will distribute coupons for special Happy Hour free food and drink each day.
• Thursday, July 21: “Deadliest Warrior” Virtual Mobile Scavenger Hunt . Spike TV has partnered with GoldRun to allow Comic-Con attendees to interact with various augmented reality (AR) warriors. Throughout Comic-Con, attendees will get to enter the world of “Deadliest Warrior.” Fans will get to hunt and capture the series warriors during the “Deadliest Warrior “ Scavenger Hunt. Users are encouraged to take a picture with the warriors and upload them to the Warrior’s Den Facebook page.
o “Faceoff” – Attendees to the Spike TV booth will get the opportunity to “Conquer Warriors” by striking a fighting pose with the AR character. A new warrior will be released each day (Joan Of Arc, George Washington and Ghengis Kahn.). Designated iPads will stream the action to the booth’s monitors. Players will be prompted to upload these photos to their Facebook profiles as well as the Warrior’s Den Facebook page.
o “Warrior’s Wardrobe” – Through this portion of the application, participants at the Spike TV booth can become George Washington or Ghengis Kahn by taking a picture of themselves with virtual props; George Washington’s wig and tricorn hat or Ghengis Kahn’s helmet. A slideshow of the best images rotate on the monitors at the Spike TV booth.
o “Vampires vs Zombies Face-off” – this component of the app allows Comic-Con attendees to take photos of zombies, vampires, floating body parts and animated blood at the “Deadliest Warrior” panel. Players can then present their pictures for exclusive giveaways at the Spike TV booth.

Visit the Norton & Captain America Truck parked at Petco Park Lot D1/D2 9am-9pm on Thursday, July 21 to enter for a chance to meet Stan “The Man” Lee himself for a Q&A in the Marvel booth at Comic-Con. See Truck for terms and conditions. Captain America in theatres 7/22.

South Park Year of the Fan Experience (details here)

Use the comments section below to let us know what kind of things you want to see in our coverage!