Witchbomb II Day 2 – Electric Boogaloo

Witchbomb II Day 2 had a less than auspicious start as I managed to oversleep. My fault entirely for not switching up my weekend alarm.

The first task of the day was stewarding photos, something I did the year before. For those who don’t know once you buy your ticket and a few weeks before the event an email notice goes out for stewards. You apply and indicate your preferred role and then things get confirmed at the opening of the event. I decided to do it to meet people as I was heading to my first Starfury event last year. I did it again because I think it is fun.

Photo Sessions

One thing that sets Witchbomb II apart from more generic conventions is how well the photo sessions actually run. Yes, it undoubtedly helps that it is held in a very nice hotel with enough restrooms located nearby instead of in aircraft hangar sized venue where such a strip is going to take 20 minutes if you’re lucky. The thing that really sells it even as someone who was just there occasionally directed people was the positive atmosphere. There was an energy in the room of celebration which I only see at events like this.

Anyway a few hours of directing people and chugging ice water (that room is too hot) while watching fans interact with their favourite actors is really a lot of fun. Once we made it all the way through photos it was just getting to 12.00 and when the first hiccup arose.

The schedule at a Starfury event is pretty tight and makes taking a break or grabbing something to eat a measure in “what are you willing to miss out on?”. I get it there are only so many hours in a day but. As any office worker knows 30 minutes is not enough for lunch and most attendants would not get that. As a steward at an event this was my own issue but this would not be the first time the tight schedule made things tricky.

Kandyse McClure

For me it was time to hit the panels which started with Kandyse McClure. Last year’s attendees know that a panel with Kandyse is unmissable. I feel like she chooses to share a lot of personal stuff in a way you won’t often see at panels. I did as much coverage as I could but here is some more.

One of the first questions that came up was around how Kandyse prepared for the role of Nicte. Kandyse doesn’t watch TV generally so only became aware that she was taking over a role played by another actor after casting.

She shared some weird things that she has eaten after a question from fans. She included pickled pigs feet (Trinidadian food), chicken feet and sea urchin. Kandyse also got asked what musical she would like to do and responded with the Aristocats.

One of Kandyse’s shows that came up was one called Higher Ground which also starred Hayden Christensen who she was very complementary about. She lamented the cancellation of the show and talked about the fact that it tackled real issues of the day.

The last question on I’ll talk about came pretty near the end of the talk and about hair and makeup for people of colour. She spoke about the lack of provision for POC hair at TV/Film productions, a lot of women need to do their own hair before coming in to film and that means early calls become even earlier with the time spent at home doing hair.

So up next was one we were all waiting for and made me glad that I was already seated.

Lynne Renee & Jessica Sutton

For Witchbomb attendees this would be the first time seeing Jessica and the anticipation was certainly building. How could it not? During their talk one of the first questions was if they could would there be any rewrites for Season 3. Then ensued a lot of discussion of different takes on the Ice Cave scenes. We got some lore because apparently a lot of what was filmed there did not make it to our screens (DVD/Blu-ray extras pls) including some more comedic stuff.

For the question about what their favourite witchy details of the show first up was Lynne. She spoke passionately about the Biddies who she formed a true bond with while shooting. Unfortunately, all the Biddies had to leave the production at the start of COVID and you could see how much that affected her. Jessica talked about the unique fight choreography in MFS and the fact that witches don’t use firearms.

Oh can’t let this panel pass without this gem, according to our showrunner it was Tally Craven herself who becomes General in the future. Just another thing to make you gnash your teeth at the lack of more seasons.

Jessica talked to us about finding out that she got the job. She was surprised that the production was willing to take a chance on her. Someone with her little experience and the potential difficulties that come with getting a VISA for her to come and work in North America.

Taylor Hickson & Amalia Holm

The two took questions from the crowd, with the first around the worst injuries that they had sustained during an acting role. Taylor spoke about her injury in season three and we learned the crew built a quiet space for her on set for when she needed somewhere to distress. She also listed a few other injuries sustained. Amalia’s injury happened during the filming of Midsummer Night, specifically during the dance around the pole she broke her pinkie toe.

A question that came up multiple times over the weekend, what is your food of choice for a food fight. Taylor went with tuna salad which is diabolical work while Amalia opted to go with Norwegian style chocolate pudding.

Another weekend question was if you could start a cult around an idea what would that idea be. Amalia opted for a cult dedicated to chocolate but I didn’t note down Taylor’s choice, let us know in the comments.

Lorena Andrea & Olivia Delcan

I covered this via twitter instead of making crazy amount of notes on paper. I think probably because I was looking down too much. One highlight was Olivia pitching a potential death for Camila, featuring a beautiful score and being very heroic while she falls to her death from a great height. The two also talked about the Camila/Lilith fan fiction shipping. Lorena thinks there is more of a sister vibe there, Olivia thinks it is sweet.

Olivia also talked about her theatre and directing work and once again proved that she is a serious film buff.

Kristina Tonteri-Young

Things got loud when Kristina Tonteri-Young took the stage as if the anticipation had been building all day. First question I recall was, which character from Warrior Nun would you want to protect you were you caught in a horror film. She couldn’t choose between Beatrice or Lilith saying that they were both great choices with very different approaches to getting out of there alive.

Kristina’s idea for a Cult would be the No Shoe Cult, the cult would encourage its members to go outside and spend time in nature. The last thing she binged was The Decameron, a black comedy on Netflix. A fan asked how Kristina would like the Avatrice reunion should go. Kristina sold us on the two of them fighting for their lives in a massive free for all before finding each other unaware the other was there. Apparently similar to a scene in Pirates of the Caribbean for those in the know.

The last thing I can share was her talking a little about acting and that she finds acting scared to be one of the tougher things to do. She explained this as fear being a very transitory state of being and difficult to stay in it for long periods through takes. Also wants to get back on stage.

Cosplay Contest

I missed the cosplay contest last year so I wasn’t about to let that happen again. The contest sees attendees cosplaying as characters from either of the two shows with our guests serving as judges. It is a popular event for the weekend which unfortunately meant here wasn’t enough seating for everyone .

A bit of a shame and if I had anticipated I would have brought my DSLR and long lens with me. With numbers set it seems a strange thing to have happen. Anyway but let’s get to some pictures I took from the event.

The cosplays and the ideas behind them were really good. I respect those who took part a lot. It can definitely be intimidating to step up to the stage especially in a relatively small room. I loved them all but yeah Young Alder took things to a whole new level. Her performance reminded me of the cosplay performances I usually see at MCM Comic Con. Our judges did a great job encouraging the cosplayers as well I think that helped as well. Once we crowned the winners and the prizes given out that was pretty much my day.

That was that, as we all headed off to decompress and talk about the day that was.

I did come down to the disco but decided to head up early. Best to get as much rest as possible for the final day of Witchbomb.

Witchbomb II Day 1 coverage