The force is strong for Mini-Con in Kells this weekend

A CAVAN film fanatic whose fascination with the sci fi genre inspired him to create a 'Comic Con' event says he is "proud" that it has grown into a inclusive community for people of all backgrounds.

Dave Gernon's Mini-Con convention is making its way back to Eureka House in Kells on April 21st, following a run of packed-out events across Leinster.

The Comic Con movement has exploded in recent years with these events bringing with them an amazing array of cosplayers from all fandoms and franchises including Star Wars, Marveland Anime favourites coming together to celebrate their passion for all things weird and wonderful.

Those attending the Kells event can expect to see Return of the Jedi Actor John Simpkin who portrayed Klaatu in the Jabba’s Palace scenes and a Stormtrooper in the “You rebel scum” scene who will be a special guest on the day. John will be talking about his experiences working on one of the biggest movies of all time and, also about his work as stand-in/double for some of Hollywood’s biggest stars including Tom Cruise and Christian Slater.

Speaking on how his interest in Comic Con type of events began, organiser Dave Gernon now living near Bailieborough was a resident of Ratoath for ten years and brought his first event to the Venue Theatre there, said:

"I'm a big fan of movies, I love dissecting them and I love the art that goes into them. I went to see a talk by Doug Allan a few years back in The Axis Theatre in Ballymun and it gave me the idea to do something like this.

"Doug worked as a cameraman on Planet Earth with David Attenborough. His behind the scenes insight really interested me and I thought it would be great to do a similar style event with actors and film professionals."

With a background in events, previously working on Toys4BigBoys, the Tall-ship Festival, Electric Picnic and Kings of Concrete, Dave says it was "a natural progression" to start organising the type of events he'd like to go to.

"In 2019 I put on an event called "Sci-Fi Talks" in The Venue in Ratoath which was basically a conversation and meet and greet with Trevor Butterfield who played many roles in the original Star Wars Trilogy," said the film fanatic. He moved into Special Effects after that and worked on films like Harry Potter, Indiana Jones, Aliens and many more."

Dave says one movie he saw as a youngster spurred on this love for the Sci-Fi scene.

"I was five or six when I saw the movie Dark Crystal and whole world of the Dark Crystal was created from scratch, it was all sets and puppetry and practical effects and it blew my mind. It is a form of escapism I suppose. "

Dave says the family friendly event attracts a wide variety of people interested in film.

"You have kids turning up reusing their Halloween costumes to people who have spent thousands on a costume," he said.

"We have seen a community grow over the last year with all of the events. We have a lot of neurodivergent adults and children coming along so we are very open and inclusive. It is truly a family event, there is something for everyone. Everyone comes smiling and everybody leaves smiling."

The movie lover is encouraging everyone to come along to the event in Kells.

"There will be a live talk and demo by Eva Foam Cosplay creator Happy Jackson who will help people understand the process of creating high quality costumes using Eva foam.

"Cosplay duo The Bounty Bros will also be talking about the creation of life-like cosplay masks which they create for cosplayers all over the world.

"All Sorts of Photography will be set up with backdrops to get professional pictures of your family with the pro level cosplayers for incredible new profile pics for your social media.

"Over 30 tables of vendors will adorn Eureka house across 2 rooms supplying everything from Pokemon Cards to Retro Gaming, collectibles, comics, retro toys, lego and loads loads more comic con essentials.

"Artists and illustrators will be live sketching with original art for sale on the day.

"Anyone who joined us at Mini-Con Kells last year will attest to the relaxed and fun atmosphere of a true all ages event."