Bank balances have been bled, the jetlag has long gone, and stories told of the great Japanese adventure. Celebration Japan is well and truly behind us and I’ve found myself telling the tales of what took place to friends and family who weren’t there.
So, with that in mind, here are three highlights of Celebration that I’ve kept coming back too and three lessons learned from the trip and convention that I’ll take with me going forward for LA in 2027.
Highlight: The Animation Panel
This one was a movie event panel without the movie. To be in the room for this panel was really something special and it’s always a highlight to hear Dave Filoni speak in any capacity. We saw a full episode of Tales of the Underworld and to see it on the huge screen in the Celebration stage was absolutely magic. Again, with these sorts of things, it’s not the case that we’re seeing it early as you can guess if they’re showing it there’s no major spoilers but it’s the fact that we’re seeing it together. Of course, the real star of the show here was Darth Maul. The announcement and the trailer were next level excitement. Sam Witwer making an appearance was the topper and the trailer was phenomenal. The most exciting part for me is that Dave has used George’s old treatments for the sequel trilogy to serve as the blueprint for this story.
Highlight: The Ahsoka ‘Trailer’
Once again we were in the company of Dave Filoni to hear him speak about the making of season one. We haven’t had any substantial behind the scenes content for the show, so this was a real deep dive. Rosario Dawson was on fine form and, of course, the crowd went wild when The Chosen One himself came out. At the end of the panel Filoni joked how he can’t come to a Celebration like this and give the fans nothing. He spoke about obviously having no footage but a small factor like this didn’t stop George back in the day when needing a trailer for The Empire Strikes Back. What followed was simply beautiful. It was a trailer made up of concept art for season 2 with the voice over guy plucked straight from the 1950’s. The moment the crowd cheered and hollered was obviously the moment the concept art show us Zeb. Why they haven’t released it since is beyond me.
Highlight: The Anime and Manga Pavilion
Located in the main halls of Celebration was a very special and stunning pavilion made up for Visions. It featured artwork of the past episodes and the whole area was adorned with breathtaking production work from the show. It even had a cherry blossom tree in the middle and throughout the day there were talks and signings by the creators and directors of various episodes of the show. It really felt special and unique to this Celebration and like most things that turn out to be a highlight, it was completely unexpected.
Lesson Learned: Have A Plan First Thing
If you there then you know how busy it was. If you weren’t there then you know how busy it was. On the first day of Celebration I didn’t walk the show floor until 5.00pm on the evening. It’s impossible to simply stroll around when the doors open. It’s always heaving and I imagine it’s always going to be heaving. So, have a plan of what to do so time isn’t wasted. I had two panels to go to on the first two days and I was involved in a panel on the final day meaning that I knew where to be. Even if it’s queueing at the Hot Toys booth – know where you want to go. Find a smaller panel, find anything. Just don’t walk aimlessly -it can be quite stressful.
Lesson Learned: Get Autographs from Elsewhere
I won’t tread over old ground here but I’m sure we’re all aware of how the autographs went down for Hayden Christensen. This past weekend at Power of the Force Con in Germany I met Anthony Daniels and waited six minutes in the queue, spending half of what I was charged at Celebration. I’ve met Ewan McGregor and did the same thing in Scotland. Celebration will always have big names. The biggest stars of our galaxy but if you can meet them elsewhere then you’ll save a lot of cost and even more time. There’s always so much to do at Celebration that there is bound to be four panels you want to see whilst you’re waiting in line for your photo or autograph op.
Lesson Learned: Make It an Adventure
To be clear at the start, I know that this is dependent on many factors such as time, money, work and family commitments. Having said that, by the time I got to Celebration Japan I was completely on a high. I’d fallen in love with the Japanese culture, the people and the way of life. I’d witnessed breathtaking beauty and seen things that could only change me for the better. Celebration felt like a bonus. Relax, enjoy and don’t stress. It will be what it will be. Is there queuing? Yes, so get chatting to people. Can you buy everything? No, so grab a few things and be grateful. If you live in LA for 2027 then you can hop over the road. If you’re like me and don’t live in the USA, then try to make the trip an adventure. Don’t just go for Celebration. Thinking ahead there’s obviously Disneyland, and by then the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art will have opened. Perhaps you’ve always wanted to see another state that neighbours California? If you can make it work, then do so. I’ve seen so much of the world thanks to Star Wars that it stops me in my tracks sometimes. Include Celebration, but also live a little. As the boy who never grew up once said; “To live…to live would be an awfully big adventure.”