REGION: Con convergence -- Hollywood, comics, games and fantasy coming to San Diego this weekend

By GARY WARTH - Staff Writer | Wednesday, July 23, 2008 10:47 PM PDT ∞

SAN DIEGO ---- With more than 100,000 people expected to attend the four-day Comic-Con International that kicks off today at the San Diego Convention Center, Upper Deck could not have wished for a better showcase for its latest product.

Huntik is a fantasy role-playing game and cartoon that is scheduled to premiere in January on the CW4Kids network, and some Comic-Con attendees will be the first to see it this weekend.

"It's huge for Upper Deck," said Erika Conway, who for the past three years has worked as a brand manager developing Huntik. "Upper Deck has a big presence at Comic-Con every year, which is why we thought it was the perfect avenue for a premiere."

Huntik, the first cartoon the Carlsbad-based company has created, is described by Conway as an adventure with a magical twist ---- think Indiana Jones meets Harry Potter ---- with each episode following characters around the world on different adventures.

The 20-year-old Upper Deck began manufacturing sports trading cards and has branched out to produce the games World of Warcraft, Marvel VS and Yu-Gi-Oh. It will premiere Huntik with a panel presentation at 1:30 p.m. Sunday at Comic-Con. All days are sold out.

Games are just part of the attraction of Comic-Con, which began in 1970 as a modest convention that attracted about 300 people who wanted to meet the creators of some of their favorite comic books.

It since has become a pop culture phenomenon ---- a convergence of Hollywood, television, games, fantasy, art, animation, costumes and just about everything else that fits under the broad genre of creativity.

Oh, yeah ---- there's also comic books. Powerhouse publishers DC and Marvel still attract crowds of fans eager to hear what to expect within the pages of Detective Comics and the Amazing Spiderman.

But the convention center's biggest hallrooms are reserved for sneak looks at the movies spawned by the comics. Word of mouth and blogs generated by fans attending panels can create a make-or-break buzz for upcoming releases.

At 11:30 a.m. Thursday, Keanu Reeves and Jennifer Connelly are scheduled to appear with director Scott Derrickson and producer Erwin Stoff to give an exclusive look at the film "The Day the Earth Stood Still," a remake of the 1951 science fiction classic.

Friday is Star Wars Day at Comic-Con, with six programs devoted to the movie franchise. The day also includes a session with the stars of the TV show "The Big Bang Theory" at 10:15 a.m.

One of the convention's most-anticipated panels is scheduled for 11:55 a.m. Friday with a presentation about the upcoming Warner Brothers movie "Watchmen," based on what the studio is calling the most acclaimed graphic novel of all time. Participants have not been announced.

At 5:15 p.m. Friday, an assembly that could only happen at the Comic-Con will bring together filmmakers Kevin Smith ("Clerks," "Zack and Miri Make a Porno"), Frank Miller ("The Spirit," "Sin City"), Zack Snyder ("Watchmen," "300"), and Judd Apatow ("Pineapple Express," "The 40-Year-Old Virgin").

Each is working on or about to release a new movie, and the four will participate in a panel called Filmmakers Visionary.

Seth MacFarlane and the cast of "American Dad" are scheduled to read a never-aired episode of the show at 2:45 p.m. Friday.

On Saturday, Disney Pixar will present exclusive animation of its upcoming projects "Bolt" and "UP" at 2:30 p.m., and Sarah Silverman of "The Sarah Silverman Program" will appear at 7:15 p.m.

On Sunday, the comedy "Hamlet 2" will be previewed at 11:30 a.m., and Kal Penn, John Cho and Neil Patrick Harris of "Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay" will appear at noon to promote the film's DVD release.

Comic-Con also will celebrate past TV favorites, including an anniversary reunion with the cast of the current hit series "Battlestar Galactica" at 2:15 Saturday and a 20th anniversary reunion of the cast and creators of "Mystery Science Theater 3000" at 7:15 p.m. Friday.

Also on Friday night, the Comic-Con recognizes achievements in comic books at 8:30 p.m. with the Eisner Awards, which are known as the Oscars of comics and named after Bill Eisner, creator of The Spirit, a comic crime-fighting character from the 1940s and '50s and the subject of the upcoming film by Frank Miller.

Writers outside of the comic genre scheduled to attend include suspense thriller novelists Dean Koontz, who has had 48 books on the New York Times bestseller lists. He will be at the convention at 11:45 a.m. Saturday.

The convention is so popular that rooms at county hotels and motels were booked well in advance, with few, if any, vacancies reported. Some businesses with rooms still available were asking double the regular rate. More than 125,000 people attended the convention last year.

Contact staff writer Gary Warth at (760) 740-5410 or gwarth@nctimes.com.