Name: Men of Steel and Messiah Figures: Religious Currents in Various Mediums of Popular Culture
Start: 2016-10-01T16:00:00-0700
End: 2016-10-01T17:20:00-0700

Welcome to the VCON 41 Online Schedule!

VCON is the oldest general-interest science fiction, fantasy, and games convention in Canada and the Pacific Northwest. This 100% volunteer fan-organized convention has promoted the interests of science fiction and fantasy culture in Vancouver BC and its environs since 1971, offering events and exhibits focused on a variety of Science Fiction and Fantasy fandom interest areas such as literature, art, media, music, costumes, comics, tabletop games, electronic games, etc. For more detailed information visit our website: www.vcon.ca.

VCON 41 will be held Sep 30 - Oct 2, 2016, at the Sheraton Vancouver Guildford hotel. The convention’s main theme is "Muppets, Puppets & Marionettes" with a secondary theme of "The Small Press Cabal".

Please take a moment to check out the "Sponsor" tab to see who has helped support this year’s event.
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SESSIONS ARE ALWAYS SUBJECT TO CHANGE

SEPTEMBER 17, 2016: The schedule is now as "final" as it ever gets! Which means that, yes, there will probably still be changes here and there, but generally only to resolve when we’ve accidentally placed one panelist on two panels at the same time, or if a panelist has to cancel.)

-Jenni Merrifield, VCON 41 Programming Coordinator
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Back To Schedule

Men of Steel and Messiah Figures: Religious Currents in Various Mediums of Popular Culture

After a brief presentation by Kaelin Kirk (Film Maker, Sword Fighter, Popular Culture Theorist and Analyst) our panel will discuss the various "Messiah Figures" that populate the various mediums and fandoms of pop culture, including specific examples from literature, film, comic books, anime, and manga. Discover how characters as diverse as Superman, Harry Potter, and Vash the Stampede fulfill a more than simply heroic role. Do these literary or cinematic Judaeo-Christian archetypes play a role in how young people perceive religion and entertainment in contemporary secular culture? (1.5 hrs)

Moderators

Kalelin Kirk

Kalelin Kirk has a diverse background in many fields, including filmmaking, acting, writing, sword-fighting, live theatre, archery, and a hodgepodge of assorted creative endeavours. She worked for many years in the comic book industry, though she is currently an educator (both at... Read More →

Panelists

Jason Bourget

Instructor, Douglas College

Currently I'm an instructor in the English Department at Douglas College, where I teach courses on science fiction, horror and weird fiction. My research focuses specifically on how political beliefs inform representations of masculinity in late twentieth-century science fiction (especially... Read More →

Graham Darling

Author, Scientist & Medievalist, Active Materials Inc.

Dr Graham D Darling designs new molecules with weird properties. As Graham J Darling (from another middle name), he writes as fiction what the world isn't ready for as fact. As Doctor Carus, he demonstrates medieval sci/tech to scholars of all ages.

Rissa Johnson

Rissa Johnson is a fat, queer, left-handed, Jewish, dyslexic, insomniac who stays up all night wrestling with Dog. A creative writer and technical editor, their poetry and flash fiction have won awards, including the City of Surrey Youth Recognition Award in Creative Contributions... Read More →

Trevor Melanson

Trevor Melanson is the author of Terminal City, a new dark fantasy novel published by EDGE. He's also the senior editor of Vancouver Magazine and has edited and written for many major national magazines and newspapers (occasionally, on geeky topics).

Michael Walsh

Retired newspaperman MICHAEL WALSH has lived long enough for somebody to detail his sins in a Wikipedia entry . He'd prefer that you read his version, set out on his own website, Reeling Back .

Saturday October 1, 2016 16:00 - 17:20 PDT
01 - Large Programming 1 (with AV) Tynehead 3 (2nd Floor)

Session Type Moderated Panel, Presentation

VCON 41

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