Episode 81: ComiqueCon, Detroit Bus Company, Folkteller

Episode 81 of our weekly broadcast is in the rear view mirror, and it was definitely a good one.

We were joined in-studio by two of the ladies behind ComiqueCon to discuss their November event, the owner of The Detroit Bus Company to talk about their recent dust-up with a production house as well as their efforts to keep Detroit’s youth safe and able to access programs, and the writer behind Folkteller to talk a little Detroit folklore and history in the context of their stories, graphic novel, and in-progress film version…

ep81Hey, did you hear Spock died?  In case you went Amish for a few days, Leonard Nimoy died, and so of course we chatted about that for a few.  Our Pink Slip Party event is just a couple of weeks away, and in just a week we’re down to only one sponsor slot left open.  We talked about a need that our friends over at Penguicon have that will help them work miracles for some local children, so you should go read about that here.  The opening of Buffalo Wild Wings in Royal Oak…and people standing in line in the freezing weather for basically nothing.  Uber’s data breach and the guy who got hit with a $452 fare over an 11 mile, 30 minute ride.  That stupid dress that took over the internet for a few days.  Net neutrality and the internet being classified as a utility.  So, so much more.

838.Comique-Con-Poster-Final-smAfter a break, we came back with Sharon and Chelsea from Comiquecon, an event being put on in November focused on female creators, authors, artists and panels.  It’s taking place on Saturday, November 7 at the Arab American National Museum in Dearborn, and since they’re still in the planning stages, there’s plenty of time for you to get involved.  They’re looking for sponsors, ideas for panels, volunteers, presenters and more.  Tickets haven’t been released yet, but they made a few announcements last night as to some guests who have been booked for appearances at their event, so listen in and hear what they’ve got going on.

10854896_10153171316850850_8254621004113883009_oIn segment three, we chatted with Andy Didorisi of The Detroit Bus Company on a couple of different topics.  We invited him in originally because of a bit of whacky mayhem that went down regarding a tv program that apparently took the liberty of stealing a video he was a part of…and if that wasn’t bad enough, they bundled it into their own work and completely misrepresented his story.  Even better, he didn’t know about it until he started getting calls and texts from people watching it.  But then, even though we initially brought him in to chat about that, as we did a little pre-show research, we discovered that his company does some very cool things, including ensuring that school kids who don’t have access to after school programs due to a lack of transportation availability are able to get where they need to go to have the opportunities to learn and grow.  Which, as it turns out, isn’t cheap at all to do.  They received a grant to get them rolling (pardon the pun) last year, but this year it’s on them to raise a hefty chunk of the cash required to keep this program alive, and so they’ve got an IndieGogo campaign running to raise the money they need.  There are worse things you can do with your money, so go give it a look and donate.

graphc-novelFor our last segment, we brought Joseph Bastien of Folkteller into the mix to discuss his Nain Rouge story, graphic novel and movie in the works.  For those unfamiliar with the urban legend / folklore of Nain Rouge, the story goes that there’s a red dwarf who shows up when bad things are about to happen in Detroit, dating as far back as 1701.  There are events that have cropped up around the story in recent years, beers have been named after it by local breweries, and it’s a rather interesting story and bit of legend for the area.  This was an interesting chat, going through the process of a writer trying to get his story more easily accessible to today’s readers, as well as the process of finding the talent to support his work, and the painstaking process involved in getting a movie coming together.

ComiqueCon can be found online at http://comiquecon.com/

The Detroit Bus Company can be found at http://thedetroitbus.com/ and their fundraiser can be found at  https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/keep-detroit-s-youth-transit-alliance-on-the-road/

Folkteller can be found at http://www.folktellerstories.com/

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