Zombies, wookiees and superheroes convened this weekend to celebrate the third annual SwampCon.
Saturday and Sunday, people of all ages and fandoms gathered at the Reitz Union to celebrate their favorite books, TV shows, games and characters.
Attendees could participate in panel discussions, play games, join tournaments, watch performances or participate in other activities like scavenger hunts.
Vic Meredith, a moderator for several panels at SwampCon, said she thinks the UF convention combines several aspects of many other popular conventions.
“There’s a nice mix of anime, sci-fi, gaming and panels here that you usually don’t see in most other conventions,” Meredith said.
Amber Hollingsworth, a panelist at SwampCon, said this is her 10th year attending conventions. She said she appreciates that UF has something most venues don’t: on-site refreshments.
“It’s nice that they have food and drinks readily available,” she said. “Other places, all you have is that $7 pretzel.”
She said that another positive aspect to UF’s convention was the broad range of topics and activities available to participants.
Lawrence Chan, a 20-year-old UF journalism junior and the main event coordinator for SwampCon, said turnout improves each year as the event grows.
However, because most conventions are expensive, Chan credited some of SwampCon’s popularity to the free admission.
Most of this year’s attendees were from Florida, but some came from as far as California, he said.
“You see all these people talking, chatting,” said Chan. “They’re all happy about being here, seeing different things, going to different conventions.”
Chan has been to several conventions, but this was his first time organizing one.
He compared the passion that these people have for their hobbies to the passion of fans cheering for their team at a football game.
“Ultimately, we are providing a medium for people to follow their dreams, follow their interests,” said Chan.
A version of this story ran on page 3 on 1/21/2014 under the headline "SwampCon brings fans from across US"
Merlin, played by 21-year-old UF anthropology senior Ashley Egelie, joins the Doctor and his companion, Clara (not pictured), in the opening number of “Whosical the Musical.”
