(soft music)
- [Voiceover] Star Wars Celebration is a convention
that brings together fans of a galaxy far, far away
and offers up incredible experiences
that just don't happen anywhere else.
No matter what you love about Star Wars
or how you like to connect to the movie franchise,
you're bound to find something that's gonna delight you.
I basically spent the entire weekend
grinning ear to ear like a fool because I loved everything.
For the car lovers, the custom vehicles on display
made for some truly drool-worthy moments.
Who wouldn't want to cruise to work
in a Mandalorian-themed ride or pull up to a PTA meeting
with some serious Sith street cred?
One of the most popular areas of the show floor,
without question, was the Battlefront Pavilion.
People have been waiting for a new installment
to this popular video game series for years.
EA was showing gameplay footage and offering attendees
the chance to get in on some move magic
and the line, as a consequence, went on for hours and hours.
The sheer volume of Star Wars Lego sculptures
would impress anyone that was going to Celebration.
I was totally wowed by all of the amazing
large-scale creations, but I have to admit
that I also just wanted to play with some Legos myself!
One of my absolute favorite things from the weekend
was all of the full-size set pieces
that were literally everywhere.
There was a massive and beautiful Mos Eisley Cantina set
that served as a base of operations
for interviews with Lucasfilm's bigwigs
but there were also loads of other really gorgeous
fan-made sets and props in almost any direction you looked.
From the indoor bunker to a seat next to Jabba the Hutt,
there were photo ops o'plenty.
One awesome photo op that benefited others
was a visit with Roxy the Rancor.
The fantastic builders behind Roxy
have basically made her a charity ambassador,
so fans can make a donation and get their picture
taken with her and all of those proceeds
go to Force for Change for UNICEF.
So she may look dangerous but this Rancor is all heart.
For fans who prefer to relax a bit
and engage in Star Wars via tabletop gaming,
there is plenty of fun to be had.
And I'll confess, I was so busy running around
that I never really slowed down to play,
but these tables were always busy
and everyone that was there seemed
to always be having a fabulous time.
If you came to the show with a spending budget
for souvenirs, there were plenty of vendors
willing to sell you just about any Star Wars thing
you could possibly think of, clothing, toys, games,
art, accessories, it was all incredibly tempting.
I managed to escape without too much damage,
though I caved on art more than anything else.
Of course, everyone loves droids.
I couldn't get enough of them
and I would still be there, chatting up droids
and their builders if they'd have let me move in.
Because I am super excited for new Star Wars films
and I love costumes, getting to see
The Force Awakens Props and Costumes Exhibit
was nothing short of a sublime joy.
I got so excited looking at all
of the details on everything.
Nothing, absolutely nothing, gives me nerd goosebumps
like a costume exhibit to ogle.
Of course, my famous personal souvenir
from the show is my awesome Greedo tattoo.
It is always gonna remind me
of one of the best weekends of my life
and getting to see so many incredibly skilled artists
at work in the Tattoo Pavilion
was nothing short of awe-inspiring.
It was beautiful no matter who was doing the work.
Getting to hang out with the staff from Rancho Obi-Wan
and interview Steve Sansweet was another
absolute highlight of the show.
All of the incredibly creative pieces
that were on display in their booth
were fan-made and they were so inspiring.
The creativity that Star Wars brings out in fans
was absolutely mind-blowing
and so exciting and I just love it.
But at the end of the day, there are all of these
different disparate pieces that are really cool,
but the best part of Star Wars Celebration
really is the fans, fans in costume, fans going to panels,
fans willing to wait in line for the things
that get them excited about Star Wars.
There is just a natural camaraderie at events like this
and a sense of friendship, even among strangers,
that makes the whole event
a really incredible community experience.
(slow music)