It is time once again to get your fairy wings and light sabers out of the closet: the Sun City SciFi has returned to El Paso for 3 days of epic fun—it’s where the fantasy world comes to life and mingles around.
The event comes at the tail end of a one-two punch, being that are 2 comic/anime/science-fiction conventions happening in consecutive weekends this year. “All I know is that we were working on bids with the El Paso Convention Center for March 14-16,” said Ean Puhlman, organizer of Sun City SciFi. “Once we announced those dates, a couple weeks after, they announced their event for the weekend before.”
The convention will feature an impressive line up of celebrities including Ray Park (Darth Maul), Phil LaMarr (Samurai Jack, Metal Gear Solid 2 and 4), C. Andrew Nelson (the voice of modern Darth Vader), Scottie Thompson (NCIS) and Esme Bianco (Game of Thrones). Make sure to look out for Cosplay guests Mariedoll, Toni Darling and Kirika Yashida who will not only be at the festival decked out in costume, but will also be judges in a cosplay contest.
The convention will also feature a 20-foot-by-20-foot replica of Jabba the Hutt’s palace featured on the convention floor and also an “Anime Room” which will be run by Borderland Entertainment Anime and Media.
One of the many featured artists who will be exhibiting art on Artist Alley is Jorge Baeza who recently did work for Topps Trading Cards illustrating a new series of “Mars Attacks” cards. He was also tapped to do work on a new Star Wars card set by the company set for future release.
“I think Sci-Fi gives writers an opportunity to talk about several topics in this wide spectrum,” Baeza commented of the importance of the storytelling in the science fiction genre. “It can touch on so many issues and is not confined to one specific time or geographic location,” he went on to say about opposing genres like Westerns that are geographically and often chronologically confined. “Ean and Jeanine Puhlman have been very supportive of my work since the first time we worked together and I’m very thankful for that.”
“I’ve been attending conventions for 12 years now,” Puhlman said. “I’ve been to San Diego Comic Con seven times. Also, we’ve (he and his family who help organize the whole convention) been vendors for five years. So we’ve been in different aspects of conventions for the last 12 years. We really have a good perspective as to what people want.”
Don’t miss out on all the fun and excitement of the Sun City SciFi this year March 14-16.
TEXT: JOHN DEL ROSARIO | ILLUSTRATION: JORGE BAEZA