by Daniel Andrade
This past weekend, SkySoft did something unprecedented to celebrate their five-year anniversary: they hosted their first-ever convention. Not only that, the whole thing was done virtually. It certainly was a huge undertaking, with multiple panels, interviews, galleries, and showcases to look forward to. So how did it go? Let’s break it down day by day.
DAY 1
Day 1 started off on a high note, with Monroe Hayden giving us a sneak peek at some of the exciting projects coming soon from SkySoft. We started with a dark and intimidating look at Mutant 5, which was revealed to be a compilation of six different stories taking place “only minutes from now.” It was a scary but thrilling look at what will undoubtedly be a gripping show. That was followed up by a gorgeous look at SkySoft’s first feature film, Mayari. We were shown a stunning look at a palace atop a mountain, no doubt a palace of the Gods, followed by a beautiful look at the moon hovering over clouds, with a mysterious figure zooming past the title. On top of that, an incredible poster was also revealed for the movie as well! It was a great way to hype up this important project! Finally, we ended with a teaser for Beast that gave us a taste of what to expect, including the classic rose imagery, falling snow, and another glance at what the Beast will look like. It was a fantastic way to get the Fest started, and set the bar high for what to expect throughout the rest of the weekend.
Next we were welcomed into the main hall by none other than Sheana Turner! There was a wonderful thank you video that celebrated five years of dreams! We got to see some behind-the-scenes videos, bloopers, and more fun stuff that has never been seen before! One of my favorite parts was seeing old interviews of Monroe, Hunter Tabiendo, and Liz Lanz-Schattner talking about the early days of Fox! They shared favorite memories, talked about how "everyone needs a Bethany" in their life, and about what the show meant to them. There was also a brief look at the importance of color grading, with raw footage slowly being edited and finalized into what we ended up seeing on screen! Additionally, we got to see the symphony responsible for Fox's fantastic soundtrack in action! It was a great preview for the musical journey we would go on later in the Fest. It was a fun and exciting collection of clips that showed viewers what it takes to make a show for SkySoft and how much fun it can really be.
Teaser Poster for Mayari
We were treated to an interview with Jade Vourkari on Day 1 and got to hear about how both the character of Daisy and Jade herself grew and evolved over two seasons, what Daisy’s legacy would be, some of her favorite moments during her time on set, and what we can expect in the future for Jade. A notable takeaway from her interview was when Jade revealed what advice she thought Daisy would give to viewers who felt down or stuck in a rut: "Be your badass self and stop caring about what other people think of you! " It was nice to reconnect with Jade and get to catch up with her since the conclusion of Fox.
Another big highlight of Day 1 was the interactive Fox guide. The guide was introduced by none other than Bethany Wagner (Jorgie Mason), who walked into a dimensional portal that led the viewer to a treasure trove of information related to Fox. From biographies to quotes and even family trees, everything you could possibly want to know about each of the characters from the Fox universe was included. Additionally, there were even biographies and information pages for each of the actors involved. Furthermore, the full history and culture of all things Gan Adan was included as well. If you’ve ever wanted to learn Ohaplushlang, study up on the lore of The Seven, discover what kind of foods your favorite characters ate, find out what dramon is and how it affects people, or so much more, you could find the answers there. It’s every Fox fanatic’s dream and was a fitting way to celebrate five years of the show.
We were treated to a nice surprise when we actually got a new Sherwood trailer followed by an exclusive clip of the show. This clip comes from the pilot and was our first look at Raven, Nigel, and the Sheriff in action. It was fun seeing Raven, played by Janelle Garcia, break the fourth wall by looking directly into the camera and talking to the audience! That was balanced out by a terrifying look at the cruelty of the Sheriff, who violently tortures and then executes a civilian. When we see the Sheriff look at us, there is a scary craziness to her stare that sets her up to be an intense character! In addition to all of that, we got a first taste of the kind of music to expect in the show, with a cool retro style remix to a contemporary hit. It was exciting to see the potential for what it will deliver as a show! Sherwood stars Janelle Garcia, Daniel Andrade, Jacob Maciel, Jade Vourkari, Kealoha Nakamura and Hunter Tabiendo.
The highlight of the day for many was the set of Beast panels, in which we got to hear from lead actor Bryon Allen as well as Monroe Hayden and Daniel Andrade about their upcoming roles in SkySoft Premiere’s first show! Bryon talked about his love of the character of Beast from the Disney film, the differences in SkySoft’s Beast, and what he’s been doing to prepare for his first leading role. Monroe and Daniel meanwhile talked about why Beast will be rated TV-MA, the attention to detail that was brought in to make Beast as realistic as possible while still containing some magical elements, the significance of religion in the show, and who exactly Bella and Ludovic are. Throughout both panels, we got some exclusive looks at some concept art for the characters and the settings that we can expect to see in the upcoming show, and all of it looked incredible. It was a phenomenal closing to a fantastic first day of the Fest.
DAY 2
Day 2 kicked off with some deleted scenes from Fox, which showed a little more backstory and a stronger connection between some characters. Monroe explained each scene and talked about why they needed to be cut, and it was an interesting look at what could have been.
Next, we had an interview with Liz Lanz-Schattner, where she talked about how looking and feeling good can be empowering, and the importance of taking care of your skin. She gave viewers valuable advice on how to do that, especially focusing on how crucial a good sunblock is and why you should always invest in good quality products. The three things she said everyone who is looking to start up a skincare routine needs were cleanser, toner, and moisturizer. Overall, it was a revealing and informative conversation.
One of the most fascinating parts of Day 2 was “Fox: A Musical Journey,” which was introduced by Kealoha Nakamura, who played Davi in the series. The three-part concert was an epic tribute to the incredible music from Fox Seasons 2 and 3! It was like an exciting feature-length music video! From the subtle color changes on the edges of the screen (red glowing around the scenes when villains or action scenes were happening, blue glowing when the heroes were saving the day, etc.) to character-specific highlights showing off different sigils for different people, it was an awesome look into the power of music for the show! The editing weaved both of the series together beautifully, connecting all of Fox’s greatest hits into one compelling, emotional, and thrilling story. It was also wonderful to hear just how complex and intricate each of the songs were since you could hear every layer clearly and completely. Every voice, every instrument, every clap was heard combined together in literal perfect harmony. It was an impressive feat that paid respect to the hard work involved in scoring the series.
After that was an interview with Terrell Cooper about his time with SkySoft. He talked about the connection he felt to Monroe and Hunter as soon as he met them, how Shevan was a role he never knew he needed, the journey he took to find himself and find his own inner peace, and how sometimes you have to leave your comfort zone to learn what’s best for you. It was great to reconnect with Terrell and see what he has been up to since taking on the role of Shevan back in Season 2.
The day ended with a fitting tribute to SkySoft’s past, present, and future. We were treated to some sneak peeks at what Mayari could possibly look like with a mysterious figure flying through the sky and also landing powerfully on the ground, as well as some extra looks at Sherwood. We were reminded of the love, loss, action, and friendships from all of SkySoft’s shows, with some touching narration in the background reminding us that it’s the little things that we remember the most, and that unfortunately these moments don’t last forever. It was a beautiful and moving way to wrap up the first-ever SkySoft Fest.
CONCLUSION
In a time when so much has been taken away from us, especially in the field of entertainment, SkySoft Fest was a welcome dose of hope for a brighter future. It gave us some amazing things to look forward to, reassured us that their cast and crew were doing well and were excited to continue making films and shows, reminded us about the power of film and music, and showed us how far SkySoft has come and how far they can and will continue to go from here. It was wonderful to reconnect with actors that we hadn’t seen in a while, and fun to reminisce about why we’re all fans of SkySoft in the first place. I for one look forward to seeing what’s in store for SkySoft’s future and hope this isn’t the last SkySoft Fest we get to experience.
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