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| Mad Decent Dance Tent (Photo by Rob Fenn) |
ID10T Music Festival + Comic Conival
Created and Hosted by Comedian Chris Hardwick
Wraps Its Inaugural Year With Thousands In Attendance
June 24 & 25 in Silicon Valley, California
Thousands of music, comedy, comics and pop culture lovers congregated for the inaugural ID10T Music Festival and Comic Conival, a groundbreaking, first-of-its-kind experience, created and hosted by Chris Hardwick. A diverse group of attendees - many of whom were sporting impressive cosplay attire - roamed the Shoreline Amphitheatre and surrounding grounds in Mountain View, Calif. on June 24 and June 25. Each day kicked off with panels, which were overflowing with patrons. Some highlights include Mystery Science Theatre 3000 playing clips from the new season of the reboot, The Magicians discussing the upcoming season, and during the Animaniacs Live! sing-a-long, cheers could be heard from across the venue as the original voices from the show broke into a quick live rendition of the show’s theme song. Throughout the day, fans explored comic vendors, displays, and artist signings, with a number of themed discussions in the artist alley. Roaring laughter could be heard coming from the comedy shows, which included a surprise guest set from Chris Hardwick on both nights. Fans rushed the Mad Decent Dance Tent upon opening to grab a spot to dance. On the main stage, Saturday headliner Weezer played to a packed crowd that sang along to every lyric, and Sunday headliner Girl Talk concluded the festival by filling the stage with fans for a full on dance party. “ID10T Festival was an out of this world, incredible experience and I want to personally thank each and everyone of you that came out and joined us this past weekend,” Chris Hardwick said. “Whether you were there for music, comedy, panels, artists or just to get the dust off your cosplay, you helped make ID10T more than just a festival—you made it a community. I was blown away by how much joy resonated from every section of the Shoreline grounds and can’t wait to do it again next year.” ID10T co-creator Rob Tweedie said, “What an amazing weekend. This festival was something that had never been done before, but absolutely needed to exist. The sense of celebration and unity was undeniable, and I think everyone from fan to exhibitor to artist to panelist to comedian to musician felt it. It really was a dream come true.” ID10T co-creator Lee Loughridge said, “With over two years in the making, it was great to see all of this finally come together. I feel like people couldn't wrap their heads around the concept initially, but after seeing our vision come to life, now they get it. I really think we are onto something.”The two-day festival featured panels from: Portlandia, Mystery Science Theater 3000, The Magicians, Animaniacs Live!, Harmontown, Stan Against Evil, Con Man, and Futurama; live Nerdist podcast tapings including a Hostful Nerdist podcast, Bizarre States podcast, and Comic Book Panel podcast; comedy sets from Michael Che, Demetri Martin, Garfunkel & Oates, Nikki Glaser, Brian Posehn, Michael Ian Black, Greg Proops, Mike Phirman, Brent Weinbach, Jonah Ray, Matt Braunger, Marcella Arguello, Dan Mintz, Hampton Yount, Adrian McNair, Natasha Muse, Irene Tu, and April Richardson; live music from Weezer, Girl Talk, Madeon, Zeds Dead, OK Go, TV On The Radio, Troyboi, Animal Collective, Crystal Castles, Lord Huron, Jai Wolf, Party Favor, Car Seat Headrest, The Mowgli’s, Gryffin, Ape Drums, Robert DeLong, Mothers, 4B, Ron Gallo, Tank & The Bangas, Wax Motif, John Beaver and Sweet Crude; and a number of comic themed discussions, signings, and more in the artist alley. A full list of participating guests and talent can be seen at: id10tfest.com/guests/ Additional highlights include the Saban’s Power Rangers laser tag course from Lionsgate/Nerdist, which had a steady line both days and featured a special appearance from the Yellow Ranger and Blue Ranger themselves, Becky G and RJ Cyler. Toyota and their interactive experiences, including Catch Me If You Can (a virtual reality demo featuring the Toyota CH-R) and Pick Your Poison (attendees could choose a drink concoctions), were a hit, KRAVE Jerky had life sized Jenga that had fans screaming and cheering each other on all weekend to see who could make it to the top, and Jelly Belly got fans bean boozled, daring attendees to compare some of their tastiest and most popular flavors with the craziest ones. Snickers partnered with April Richardson as their unofficial spokesperson for the weekend, kicking off on Friday night as she hosted ID10T’s ‘Drink and Draw’ launch party. They also partnered with comic book artist Andrew Robinson to create original drawings for their photo booth activation and sketch live drawings onsite portraying how fans feel different on the inside when they don’t have a Snickers. |
