The Growing Influence of Geek Pop Culture and How to Profit from It

In the not so distance past, geeks were marginalised rejects of society for their interests in underground subcultures, aptitude in emerging technologies, or apparent social awkwardness. Now well into the 21st century, former subcultures like comic books and science fiction have since become mainstream pop culture whilst using the latest smart technologies at our literal fingertips is now seen to be cool. Geeks are no longer labels to be ashamed of and many are indeed pinnacles of modern society behind some of today's iconic brands. Many people now outwardly  profess themselves a Geek in celebration of their specialised interests or like-minded fandoms with fellow Geeks.

It's cool to be Geek!

Marvel's Avengers. Star Wars. Star Trek. Game of Thrones. Beginning as geeky subcultures, within a generation these franchises have since been elevated to mainstream pop culture with millions of fans worldwide. Therefore the industry of modern Geek Pop Culture is now worth billions and continues to grow.

Comic Fiesta, Malaysia's largest fan convention, is attended by upto 50,000 geeks & otakus annually.

In this conference, hear from the Geeks themselves what motivates their fandoms and what they want to spend their hard earned cash on. Then listen to industry panelists sharing ideas on how local businesses may leverage on their franchises to potentially profit from the fans of Geek Pop Culture. Corporate management & executives, SME owners, event organisers and entrepreneurs are invited to attend.

VENUE

Black Box theatre, MAPKL @ Publika Shopping Gallery

Level G2-01, Block A5, Solaris Dutamas,

No 1, Jalan Dutamas 1,

50480 Kuala Lumpur
MALAYSIA

DATE

Tuesday 14 November 2017

AGENDA

1.45pm Doors open to Black Box & Registration

2.15pm Welcome & opening remarks

2.30pm PANEL: What Geeks Want

3.30pm Coffee break

4.00pm PANEL: Leveraging from Geek Franchises

5.00pm Questions & Answers session

5.30pm End conference

7.30pm Geek Night Out Movie Screening: Man of Steel* (see below)

Outpost Commander Richard Chua (right) speaks to Jeff Sandhu of BFM Enterprise about Geek Pop Culture

Listen to podcast about Geek Pop Culture on BFM 89.9 Enterprise Tech Talk with Richard Chua of Outpost Productions.

This conference and movie screening are organised by Outpost Productions as part of Publika's Comic Play, a week-long carnival from 14-19 November 2017 of hobby-centric activities by local special-interest communities. This shared platform brings together artists, performers, art galleries, and NGOs to update on the latest trends, exchange ideas, connect with each other. Comic Play will be staged at four locations within Publika: Boulevard (red & blue zones), The Square, Black Box and White Box. Each location will have its own designated activities that include Art Exhibitions, Mini Collectors Library, Movie Screening, Panel Talks, Bazaar, Stage performances, Retro Gaming Experience, Artists Alley, Cosplay Costume Contest, and Tabletop Games. Get the updates on these activities direct from the official Comic Play Facebook Event.

What Geeks Want

Now that geeks no longer feel the need to figuratively "hide in the closet", many geeks are indeed proud to express their fandoms as well as share their enthusiasm with the public. Whilst geeky merchandise often satisfies the immediate want to own a piece of their fandom, geeking-out also involves sharing such passions with fellow fans at events such as conventions like Comic Fiesta, Comiket and San Diego Comic-Con. Hear from these representatives of local fan communities on what motivates their love of geek pop culture and how they seek to engage with their fandoms.

Panelists:

• Sanjiv Indran, Star Wars Malaysia Fan Club (SWMFC)

An avid traveler, naturalist and Star Wars Geek, Sanjiv Indran channels his passion for Science Fiction into engineering simple, sustainable solutions at Engineers without Borders Malaysia, to help empower Humanity one underprivileged community at a time. Sanjiv holds position of Honarary Secretary for Star Wars Malaysia Fan Club (SWMFC), a nonprofit organization registered with the Malaysian Registrar of Societies run by fans for fellow fans.

• Allen Yap, Pop Culture Fun - Malaysia

Growing up in the 80s, Allen Yap was drawn to geeky pop culture through video games and comic books, closely following Transformers, G.I.Joe, The Punisher, Ghost Rider and Captain America from Marvel Comics. These fueled his interest in toy collecting which remains till this day. He started cosplaying in 2006 and founded the Heroes (TV series) Fan Community Malaysia with support from Star World. This series together with launch of the Marvel Cinematic Universe marked the rebirth of the Superhero narrative in mainstream entertainment media and reignited Allen's inner geek. He blogs & vlogs about toys, comic books, and video games on his Facebook channel Pop Culture Fun - Malaysia.

• Hew Shin Chien, Comic Fiesta

Comic Fiesta has been the heart of Malaysia's Animation, Comics and Games (ACG) community since 2002, most well-known for its trademark event every December in Klang Valley. Beyond being a convention for fans of the ACG culture, Comic Fiesta through its various activities spearheads the development of various creative-based areas, such as creative entrepreneurship, illustration, comic industry and cosplay in Malaysia. The most recent Comic Fiesta in 2016 gathered over 45,000+ youths and ACG enthusiasts together in one of the most happening festivals in Malaysia.


Panel moderator: Umapagan Ampikaipakan, BFM89.9

Listeners of BFM89.9 would be well acquianted with Umapagan Ampikaipakan. Uma (as he is fondly known) is a journalist and cultural commentator. From newsprint to the world wide web as well as radio & television, he contemplates everything from the idiosyncrasies of Malaysian politics to his unnatural obsession with the written word. His long running radio show, Bookmark on BFM89.9, is Malaysia's pre-eminent broadcast on all things book related. He is also a film critic with At the Movies and the co-host of BFM89.9's drive time radio show, The Evening Edition.

Leveraging from Geek Franchises

The boom in Geek Pop Culture over the last decade has offered numerous opportunities for corporates and entrepreneurs to cash-in on the billions of dollars spent by geeks on their fandoms. These include many local businesses that have leveraged off popular geek franchises like Transformers, Star Trek, Marvel's Avengers, etc. Representatives from the film entertainment industry will share ideas on creating new business opportunities associated to geek pop culture in Malaysia.

Panelists:

• Kara Lee, United International Pictures

For over 15 years, Kara Lee has been responsible for marketing film products from Paramount Pictures and Universal Pictures. Mega-blockbusters under her helm include Malaysia's highest grossing titles from the Transformers and Fast & Furious franchises. She is directly involved in identifying, pitching and managing third-party brand and media partnerships, in addition to managing promotions and publicity for films released under both Studios.

Kara is Marketing Director at United International Pictures, Malaysia.

• James Andrew Chong, TGV Cinemas

James Andrew Chong has been a fanboy for all things pop-culture, cult, sci-fi & everything “nerdy” for as long as he can remember. Citing Star Trek & sci-fi as his source of inspiration, he is basically a fan of everything “imaginative” from growing up with music, movies, comics and classic 80's TV shows. He has been in the cinema industry for the past 13 years working with both GSC & TGV and still never gets bored of sitting in the cinema auditorium watching & re-watching movies again & again on the BIG screen.

James holds position of Manager - Content Strategy at TGV Cinemas.

• Kelvin Loke, ShiokToys Collectibles

A fanboy at heart, Kelvin Loke's indulges in his geek passion as an avid collector of premium pop culture collectibles. His hobby evolved into business when he took over the reins of Shioktoys Collectibles 7 years ago. Since then Shioktoys Collectibles has grown to be a leading distributior and retailer for premium pop culture memorabilia such as licensed statues and busts from renown brands like Sideshow Collectibles, Hot Toys, and XM Studio. Kelvin's business philosophy of "by collectors, for collectors" means clearly understanding what geeks want and how to cater to those needs in his niche market.

Panel moderator: Richard Chua, Outpost Productions

For the last 30 years, Richard Chua has been a sci-fi geek with interests in Star Trek, Star Wars, Battlestar Galactica, etc. He also enjoys delving into superhero and fantasy genres from Marvel and Lord of the Rings respectively. His passion into geek pop culture is often reflected in his compulsion to collect memorabilia and interest in cosplay. Since 2015, he has been an avid explorer of major pop culture conventions like San Diego Comic-Con to meet his sci-fi idols. Richard's day-job involves geek consulting, entertainment marketing and event services.

REGISTRATION

Ticketed event by online registration only via our listing on Eventbrite:

Admission Fee, RM50 per pax

Who should attend?

Corporate management & executives, SME key decision-makers, event organisers & agencies, entrepreneurs, business media.
(Qualified Attendees)

OUTPOST GIVEAWAY

For Qualified Attendees, we giving out five (5) pairs of General Admission tickets worth RM100/- via our Facebook Page contest. Follow these few steps to participate:

1. Like this announcement post and our Facebook Page Outpost Productions.
2. Share this post and write " I want to make more $$$ from Geek Pop Culture. Join me to learn how! #GeekConferenceMY #OutpostGiveaway "
3. On the event listing choose either Going or Interested to stay informed on updates.
Contest closes Friday, 10 November 2017, 11.59pm. Winners will notified by our Facebook Page with further instructions for registration; credentials may be requested as qualified attendees.

Terms and Conditions for Registration:

1. Admission to event is subject to completed registration and payment as registered attendees. Walk-in admission is subject to availability of seating.
2. No refund will be given for no-show by registered attendees. However, registered attendees who are unable to attend may nominate a substitute by contacting organiser at crew@outpost.com.my before 12 November 2017.
3. The organiser will take every reasonable effort to deliver the event agenda. However to to circumstances that may be beyond reasonable control, the organiser reserves the right to revise event agenda and/or panelists without penalty or refund to registered attendees.
4. In the unlikely event of cancellation on the scheduled date by unforeseen circumstances, registered attendees will be first offerred the option to attend rescheduled event, or receive refund of admission fee.

* Note: Geek Night Out Movie Screening for Man of Steel is FREE for all convention attendees and public but a separately ticketed event. Register in advance via Eventbrite as seating priority will be given to registered attendees.

For inquiries, kindly email crew@outpost.com.my or send a direct message via our Facebook Page Outpost Productions.

ABOUT THE ORGANISER

Outpost Productions caters to a wide audience of Geek Pop Culture in Malaysia recognising that geeky fans are often passionate on not just one but multiple fandoms. In our ideal world, Star Wars fans and Trekkies peacefully co-exist. Same with comic book geeks who love both Marvel and DC. Our social media channels publish and share geeky content plus support local pop culture events with fan engagements and coverage.

For corporate clientele, Outpost Productions offers Geek Consulting supported by on-ground events implementation. For over a decade we have provided solutions for thematic marketing and promotions aimed at retail customers. Our clients include leading brands in film distribution, cinemas, toys and entertainment services. 

May The Force Be With You and Live Long & Prosper!

Force Friday II Unleashed: Malaysian Star Wars fans hyped for The Last Jedi

Geeks around the world are absolutely excited for Star Wars Episode VIII: The Last Jedi this December. Although the movie is still more than three months away, Star Wars fans celebrated early by "poisoning" themselves with new merchandise from this next chapter in the epic saga! At the stroke of midnight on 31st August Merdeka Day, Toys R’ Us in Mid Valley Megamall held a launch event called Force Friday II for these new toys and associated merchandise. Fans of all ages were attended the event to be the first in Malaysia to get their hands on Star Wars The Last Jedi products, some queueing up for 3 hours since 9pm.

Vulcan Jedi Smock reporting from Force Friday II.

Our resident Vulcan Mr. Smock attended this event to gain better cultural understanding on our human devotion to Star Wars and the franchise's place in popular geek pop culture. He also partook in the activity of costuming dressing up as a Jedi to experience human fandom first hand.

The countdown timer to midnight at the entrance of Toys R Us Mid Valley.

A massive Star Wars inspired prop was placed at the entrance of Toys R Us mounting a countdown timer to 12am when doors to the toy store will be opened for fans to get first dibs on the  new merchandise. The couple of hours to midnight, fans were already gathering in significant numbers to form a queue along the perimeter of the concourse atrium.

During the lead-up to midnight, the event emcee offered giveaways to the waiting crowd via movie trivia.

Meanwhile Lucasfilm recognised fan communities were out in force costuming as characters from the franchise.

Members of the 501st Legion Malaysia Garrison.

Members of lightsaber performers from Force Arts Stunt Team (FAST) with Kylo Ren from the 501st Legion.

Members of Rebel Legion Malaysia Outpost.

A Jedi and Padme Amidala costumers.

Jedi Smock joins the costumers.

Vulcan opening diplomatic ties with the Jedi and Rebel Alliance.

Costumers comprised representatives from 501st Legion Malaysia Garrison, Rebel Legion Malaysia Outpost, Force Arts Stunt Team (FAST), FightsaberMY, and Star Wars Malaysia Fan Club.

Event attendees and mall shoppers were delighted for the opportunity to snap photos with costumers.

Once the countdown timer reached zero at the stroke of midnight, the shutters of Toys R Us were lifted. Fans prompted marched in to prompted grab their most sought after products.

The store area was quickly filled to capacity once doors were opened.

 New Star Wars toys released by Hasbro includes action figures, vehicles & role-play merchandise.

Hasbro 3.75in series action figures from The Last Jedi.

LEGO Star Wars from The Last Jedi.

The opening shelf stock for new LEGO building sets were quickly depleted but refilled shortly after.

There are standees placed in toy stores this weekend offering the opportunity to unlock Augmented Reality (A.R.) Star Wars characters. In order to do so, you need to download the Star Wars app either from IOS store or Google Playstore first. Once you downloaded it, open the app. The go around the shop and find any posters that have signs that say ‘Find the Force’. Use the app to scan it and you will be able to unlock the characters and take pictures with them! 

Find this standee to scan and activate Augmented Reality content.

Watch this video for more visual instructions:

"It's a Trap!" LOL!

Listen to what Mr. Smock has to say on Force Friday II plus view the scene at this midnight launch event:

=== / ===

Now the Outpost Movie Recon Team (M.R.T.) will present a closer look at some of the toy products launched during Force Friday available locally in Malaysia; prices shown below at time of publication at retailer sources available.

3.75in series action figures are priced at RM59.90 each.

3.75 inch series action figures & vehicles by Hasbro have always been fan favourites since being introduced from the very first Star Wars movie in 1977 made then by Kenner. As usual, each solo-packed figure comes with accessories and priced at RM59.90.

The Rathtar seems to share rather similar traits as that tentacled creature in the opening scenes of Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. Get a Rathtar for RM139.90 together with someone named Bala-Tik.

3.75in series vehicles released. Expect Kylo Ren's TIE Silencer to be a HOT buy!

Avid fans of the classic Star Wars Trilogy will want to get hold of that Imperial Probe Droid (top right) as seen in EpV The Empire Strikes Back. Priced at RM139.90 together with Darth Vader.

3.75in scale vehicles include action figure of their pilots. Kylo Ren's TIE Silencer (above bottom left) is priced at RM329.90 while Poe Dameon's Ski Speeder (above bottom right) is priced at RM269.90. Great for kids to play and adults to collect!

Listen to dialogue or sound effects from the movie with the Force Link wristband sold for RM169.90.

For readers too young to recall when Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace was released in 1999, Hasbro 3.75in action figures had with a special datachip accessory to use with a communicator device to play the dialogues from the movie; communicator sold separately of course! History repeats again this time, just repackaged like Episode VII The Force Awakens! The new 3.75 inch figures for The Last Jedi as well as vehicles are planted with a concealed microchip  to be detected by a Force Link wristband to play special dialogue or sound effects. Wristbands sold seperately of course for RM169.90.

Black Series 6in action figures are all priced at RM139.90 each.

The new characters appear highly sought after by collectors except for classic Darth Vader and to a lesser extent Emo... er, Kylo Ren.

For more adult collectors in mind, Hasbro launched the Black Series 6in action figures a few years back. These come with more detail than their 3.75in counterparts plus better articulation. However only 3 figures released during Force Friday are actually from The Last Jedi, i.e. Rey, Luke Skywalker and Kylo Ren in new movie attire. Other figures comprise classic Darth Vader and Stormtrooper, plus fan favourites Grand Admiral Thrawn (hurrah!) and Hera from Star Wars Rebels. Expect these last 2 to be very hard to find! Each figure is priced at RM139.90.

Samples of Hasbro role-play toys.

Unsure whether your calling is to the Light or Dark? Then get this Bladebuilder to be either Jedi or Sith.

Every Star Wars fan has likely dreamed of becoming a Jedi or a Sith? Fortunately plenty of Role Play toys are being made by Hasbro! The blade building lightsaber (above centre) is where kids (and adults) can choose to be a Jedi or a Sith by inserting the proper hilt. The set is at RM 329.90. There is also Kylo Ren’s new lightsaber (third to the left) and it is priced at RM469.90. Two voice changing masks are available as well for Stormtroopers or Kylo Ren priced at RM199.90.

Feel like a Resistance pilot with this replica helmet by Hasbro.

For fans who instead aspire to be a starfighter pilot, they would really, REALLY want this pilot helmet. Modeled after the one used by Poe Dameron in the Resistance, this electronic 1:1 scale helmet comes with surround sound speakers inside to simulate flying a X-wing. This Black Series replica helmet is priced at RM419.90. Stay tuned for our unboxing and review video with a special guest. Meanwhile watch this below from Hasbro to find out a bit more about this product:

When Star Wars and LEGO teamed up in 1999, it was a perfect match for fans of both franchises. Many years on, Star Wars building sets contribute massive sales for LEGO and thereby offer a huge assortment of character figurines, vehicles and playsets from the saga. The Last Jedi pose-able character figures are priced between RM99.90 to RM199.90 and consist of Rey, Chewbacca, Elite TIE Fighter pilot and Elite Praetorian Guard. 

Build a figure sets (top left, clockwise): Elite Praetorian Guard 75529 RM119.90, Chewbacca 75530 RM199.90, Rey 75528 RM119.90, and Elite TIE Fighter Pilot 75526 RM99.90.

For building sets of the First Order, another Star Destroyer is a must-have plus Kylo Ren's TIE Fighter. On the ground, the First Order muscles-up with the "gorilla"-looking Assault Walker supplemented by "crabby"-looking Heavy Scout Walkers.

First Order vehicles: Star Destroyer 75190 RM799.90 (left) and Kylo's TIE Fighter 75179 RM399.90

More First Order war machines: Assault Walker 75189 RM699.90 (left) and Heavy Scout Walker 75177 RM299.90.

For the fledgling Resistance forces, there are only 2 vehicle sets available: a Resistance Bomber which seems to be a labour-intensive set of space wings requiring 5 crew (lots of mini-figs) and a boxy looking Resistance Pod.  

Now the good guys: Resistance Bomber 75188 RM549.90 (left) and Resistance Pod 75176, RM199.90.

But everyone's new fav droid since EpVII The Force Awakens receives a collector's series BB-8 building set (below) to be assembled from 1,100 pieces priced at RM499.90.

Finally, a new Star Wars Advent Calendar set (above) is already out priced at RM149.90. Find out more about each of these LEGO sets from the official LEGO website.

Assortments of Star Wars themed vehicles by Hot Wheels priced RM24,90 for solo cars and RM29.90 for starfighters.

Another toys licensee worth mentioning are Hot Wheels by Mattel of cars inspired by Star Wars characters, and toy model starfighters / spacecraft. There are also playsets form by larger scaled toys of the Millennium Falcon (above).

Geeky Star Wars bags ranged in price from RM229.90 (left) to RM139.90 (right).

Apparel such as tshirts and accessories like bags, tumblers, etc. were also launched.

Finally for techies or geek collectors of interactive gadgets, Sphero is releasing the evil BB-9 droid (above right) to no doubt make things difficult for BB-8. BB-9 should be priced the same at BB-8 at RM799. Their older droid "brother" R2-D2 also comes to life from Sphero, scaled accordingly to the smaller droids and priced at RM979.

These are some of the first wave of Star Wars Episode VIII: The Last Jedi toys being released at Toys R Us in Malaysia, as well as major retailers and hobby shops. Collectors here may also hope that some of the US retailer exclusive products (Target, Walmart, Amazon, etc.) will be distributed here at a later stage to selective retail channels. So prepare your wallets / credit cards and happy Star Wars shopping. May the Force be with Us!

STAR WARS EPISODE VIII THE LAST JEDI
in cinemas 14 December 2017

Disclaimer: Star Wars and other trademarks are copyright to Lucasfilm and/or Disney, referenced here for fan service announcements without intent to infringe.