This year’s Eagle-Con, a virtual sci-fi and fantasy conference hosted by Cal State LA and the Art Directors Guild (IATSE Local 800), will honor concept artist and set designer Dawn Brown, graphic novelist and comics scholar John Jennings, science fiction and fantasy writers Jaymee Goh and K. Tempest Bradford, and worldwide charitable Star Wars cosplay group the 501st Legion.
The theme of Eagle-Con 2022 is “Media Multiverses,” which will explore how science fiction stories are now created and experienced across platforms. Virtual sessions will be offered over a series of three days, March 10-12. Cal State LA students, faculty, and staff can also attend the March 10-11 sessions in person. To attend and view the full schedule, please visit the Eagle-Con website.
On March 10, Brown will be presented with the Imaginator Award for her wondrous achievement in visual conceptualization and Jennings will receive the Octavia E. Butler Memorial Award, which celebrates an author who exemplifies the spirit of Cal State LA alumna Octavia E. Butler’s work.
Brown is the creator of the award-winning animated series, House of Monsters, which ran on El Rey network television. She has worked on projects including Terminator: Dark Fate, Star Trek, Transformers: Revenge of the Fall, The X-Files, Pirates of the Caribbean, and the upcoming series Obi-Wan Kenobi. Brown is also the Eisner-nominated creator of the book series, Little Red Hot, published by Image Comics.
Jennings is the director of Abrams ComicArts imprint Megascope, which publishes graphic novels focused on the experiences of people of color. He is half of the legendary comics duo known collectively as “Black Kirby.” A professor of media and cultural studies at UC Riverside, he is also co-founder and organizer of MLK NorCal’s Black Comix Arts Festival in San Francisco.
As part of this year’s program, Eagle-Con will present its first Lemonade Awards, which recognize acts of kindness that further the science fiction community. The individual awards will be presented to authors Goh and Bradford on March 10, and the institutional award will be given to the 501st Legion, the world’s definitive imperial Star Wars costuming organization. The award was created by science and speculative fiction author Nalo Hopkinson with support from the Speculative Literature Foundation.
The free three-day convention also includes a student film festival and exhibitions spotlighting the work of Art Directors Guild members. An exhibit highlighting the work of Imaginator Award honoree Dawn Brown is on display in the University Library and will be available to view virtually. The Art Directors Guild has also curated a virtual exhibit of work from top science fiction, fantasy, and horror movies and television shows.
Eagle-Con 2022 will feature a wide range of sessions and workshops providing an inside view of science fiction, fantasy, superheroes and comic books, as well as insights into breaking into the entertainment industry. A March 11 panel will feature Cal State LA alumnus James Lynch, executive vice president of production at Paramount TV, alongside a panel of other entertainment professionals discussing the business of modern media and California’s creative industries.
Eagle-Con 2022 will culminate on Saturday with two all-star panels. The Imaginator Award Super Panel will feature previous awardees Rick Carter (Jurassic Park, Avatar, Star Wars: The Force Awakens), Wynn Thomas (Mars Attacks!, Hidden Figures), and Oliver Scholl (Spider-Man: Homecoming, Independence Day) discussing their love of science fiction and legendary careers in Hollywood. During the Award Winners Roundtable, awardees Jennings, Brown, Goh and Bradford will discuss the importance of diversity in science fiction and their contributions to the genre.
Eagle-Con is co-founded by the College of Arts and Letters and the University-Student Union at Cal State LA and the Art Directors Guild (IATSE Local 800). Together they work to educate the students of Cal State LA and members of the Greater Los Angeles community about the history, impact and continued necessity of the contributions of women, people of color, the LGBTQIA-identified, the differently abled and the variously aged to the science fiction and fantasy genres.
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California State University, Los Angeles is the premier comprehensive public university in the heart of Los Angeles. Cal State LA is ranked number one in the United States for the upward mobility of its students. Cal State LA is dedicated to engagement, service, and the public good, offering nationally recognized programs in science, the arts, business, criminal justice, engineering, nursing, education, and the humanities. Founded in 1947, the University serves more than 26,000 students and has more than 250,000 distinguished alumni.
Cal State LA is home to the critically-acclaimed Luckman Fine Arts Complex, Pat Brown Institute for Public Affairs, Hertzberg-Davis Forensic Science Center, Hydrogen Research and Fueling Facility, Billie Jean King Sports Complex and the TV, Film and Media Center. For more information, visit www.CalStateLA.edu.
