02.16.11 // Programming Highlight: Character Studies: Geek Girls in Popular Culture

We are pleased to announce programming highlights leading up to GeekGirlCon’s inaugural convention this October 8th and 9th, 2011.

CHARACTER STUDIES: GEEK GIRLS IN POPULAR CULTURE

PANEL DESCRIPTION:

From Willow Rosenberg to Wendy Watson, from Codex to Kitty Pryde, geek girls have always been an intrinsic part of popular culture. And when you’re a geek girl sitting in the audience or poring over the page, there’s a special thrill in discovering a fictional persona who truly speaks to you. Our panel of creators will discuss geek girl representations in film, TV, novels, comics, and beyond: what are the challenges in creating and portraying these characters? How do you balance the “girl” with the “geek”? And what’s the state of the geek girl character in our current pop cultural landscape?

PANELIST BIOS:

Cecil Castellucci is the author of numerous books for young adults, including “First Day on Earth,” “Rose Sees Red,” “Beige,” “The Queen of Cool,” “Boy Proof,” and “The Plain Janes” graphic novel series. She wrote the libretto for a comic book opera, “Les Aventures de Madame Merveille,” and she used to lead a band called Nerdy Girl. She once waited in a tent for 6 weeks for “Star Wars: Episode I” tickets. She also loves “Star Trek,” BioWare games, and outer space. She lives in Los Angeles, CA. For more information, go to www.misscecil.com .

Javier Grillo-Marxuach is a writer/producer of TV, films, comic books, and transmedia content. He is best known as one of the Emmy, Golden Globe, and WGA award-winning producers of “Lost” and creator of the graphic novels and TV series “The Middleman.” His credits include the George Foster Peabody award-winning “Boomtown,” as well as “Medium,” “Charmed,” “seaQuest,” and “The Pretender.” His original graphic novel “Ramiel: Wrath of God” will be published in July 2011 by APE Entertainment.

Sarah Kuhn is the author of the geek romantic comedy novella “One Con Glory,” which has earned kudos from io9 and USA Today/Pop Candy and is currently in development as a feature film. Her work has appeared in such fine publications as Back Stage, IGN.com, Geek Monthly, The Hollywood Reporter, Creative Screenwriting, and StarTrek.com. Sarah was also featured on San Diego Comic-Con’s popular “Geek Girls Exist” panel in 2010. As one fourth of the mighty Alert Nerd collective, she can often be found discussing important issues – like the state of Cyclops’ hair – at AlertNerd.com.

Jessica Mills is a transplant from Texas currently living in Los Angeles. She is best known for writing, producing, and starring in the geektastic comedy web series “Awkward Embraces,” which has been featured in the New York Times and Pink Raygun. She is currently hard at work on a number of other nerdy projects for her production company, Project A Productions. Jessica likes to knit tiny TARDISes in her spare time and secretly wishes she were Wonder Woman.

Stephanie Thorpe is an actor/writer/producer/lifelong geek. She has been a driving force as a producer and actor in numerous web productions, including the critically acclaimed “After Judgment” (6 Streamy nominations), “Asylum” (NYTVF), “Apocalypse WOW,” “Hurtling Through Space!” (for Babelgum), and the crowd-sourced “ElfQuest” fan fiction trailer (featured in the New York Times). She’s excited to be starring in the “GOLD” spin-off series “Night of the Zombie King.” Stephanie was proud to host the 2nd Celebrate the Web event during Comic-Con 2010: an interactive forum for genre web creators and fans.

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