First Time attending a Queer Comic-Con!

Artists in the video (in order of appearance):

GO ROBO NOW!

Writer: Raheem Nuamah

Illustrator: Jorell Rivera Illustration

Instagram: @Jorelldoesntsocialize

Website: Jorellrivera.com

Julia Reck

Instagram: @juliareck

Website: Juliareck.com

Rachel (Jenovasilver)

Instagram: @jenovasilver

Annie Stoll

Instagram: @aniistoll

Website: anniestoll.com

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Meet The Artists in Artist Alley: Flame Con 2019 | Artist Alley

vlog: 190820Flame Con 2019

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[ AUGUST 20TH, 2019 ]

I was invited to attend Flame Con 2019 as media, and this was my favorite convention of the year.

I heard about Flame Con back in 2018 while I was attending Liberty City Anime Con. The timing was not right,and I did not attend. During Flame Con 2019 I had fun attending panels, interviewing artists in the artist alley,  and being surrounded by queer people in a queer-positive space.

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Flame Con 2019 was held from August 17 – 18 at the Sheraton Times Square Hotel. 

“Flame Con is the world’s largest queer comic con. Featuring a two-day comics, arts and entertainment expo, showcasing creators and special guests from all corners of the LGBTQ fandom. It features thoughtful discussions, exclusive performances, screenings, cosplay and more!” – Flamecon.com

Flame Con is so important to me because it was one of the first times I actually felt free. I was able to be myself without the fear of judgment. I was able to display my gay pride in a safe space. It was truly freeing. The highlight of my day was buying a lesbian disaster pin because let’s be honest, I am a lesbian disaster.

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When I  arrived, I attended the panel Cosplay and the Straight Male Gaze. 

“From costume choices to photographers to the way we interact with social media and attract audiences, what does it mean for us as queer cosplayers in a hobby/profession that is so often straight men consuming images of sexualized women? Listen to a panel of seasoned LGBTQ+ cosplayers discuss how the straight male gaze influences their relationship to cosplay.” – Flamecon2019.sched.com

Moderator: Rachel Greeman

Speakers: GeishaVi , Nekonami Cosplay, Sara Spookystitch, Cuchinta

I learned a lot of new information about the cosplay community. As a film major, I have studied the male gaze in cinema, so I was very intrigued to see how the male gaze can affect cosplayers. 

The speakers and moderator talked about ways to make the cosplay community more inclusive and safer as well as sharing their personal stories. 

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The final panel I attended was The Gay Animation Renaissance. 

“Recent years have seen a wave of new LGBT+ content in western animation. Show-runners face many hidden roadblocks behind the scenes, but find creative (and often imperfect ) solutions to break new ground. The incremental contributions by Avatar, Steven Universe, Adventure Time, Voltron, She-ra, and others will be discussed.” – Flamecon2019.sched.com

Speakers: Judith Fisch & Natalie Reichel

I sat in one of the seats reserved for media, and it went to my head. I felt so important and special you couldn’t tell me anything. But seriously this panel was my favorite because it opened my eyes to queerbaiting, lack of representation, and misrepresentation of queer people in animation. I wish I took more video of this panel because it was so good, but I included a small clip in my vlog. 

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Let me tell you this was an EXPERIENCE. I am a very anxious and introverted person, so getting myself to attend this convention alone was A TIME. Once I was there, I felt at home, but interviewing people was anxiety-inducing. I interviewed people at a previous job, but I had a partner, I never did it alone.

Every person I talked to was so lovely, and I slowly started to come out of my shell and become more comfortable and confident in approaching people and talking to them.

Overall, Flame Con 2019 was a great con. I highly recommend attending this convention to all of my fellow queer people, but I think that there is something for everyone at this convention.