Yesterday, for a good part of the day, I took over one of our big conference room tables here at Lucasfilm and started playing a big puzzle game with the floorplan of the Messe Essen in Germany.
My task: To look over all kinds of different ways to pack as much fun and excitement into our space as possible. Star Wars Celebration Europe next summer will be the biggest Star Wars event ever in Germany, and we want to make sure all the very best in Star Wars fits in the best possible way.
One of my challenges is that many fan groups have great things to share. Don’t get me wrong — it’s a wonderful challenge to have! There are props and photo stations and displays and exhibits…the list goes on, and we want to fit in as many as we can.
We have a number of partners and licensees interested in being part of the show, and some are talking about big plans and experiences that would be fun for attendees. We’re just getting going, but hopefully I can write some more specifics about these soon. At any rate, they will need space, and we need to make sure to plan for it.
Then there’s the Celebration Store, with exclusive collectibles you can only buy at Celebration Europe. Many fans love collecting, and even those who are not collectors like to take home a souvenir or two from the show. We need to make room to display these treasures in a cool way, and of course, to allow for enough cash registers so the lines are not too long.
And speaking of lines! We plan for queue space for registration, Will Call, autographs, the stages…. We certainly cannot forget to have ample space for fans to get in line, and share the Star Wars lining-up-experience with their fellow fans.
Of course, we’ll have a number of special show features unique to Celebration, and the live stages — we must allow plenty of room for those — plus the less-exciting-but-necessary details like bag check and concessions.
The list goes on! It’s like getting to play with a big jigsaw puzzle, but I can reshape the pieces and put them in different locations. The goal is to end up with the best possible picture for fans to enjoy at Celebration Europe.
Tags: celebration europe II
Just make it better than London, that was TOO crowded.
Looks exciting!!! I wish I was going but it’s rather far away! Good luck with the planning Ms. Frankin!
I loved London 2007, just hope i can make it to Germany.
Can’t wait!
It was be nice if a few of us performers from ‘Return Of The Jedi’ were invited for a kind of 30 years since we filmed it reunion!
Best wishes
Tim Dry – ‘J’Quille’ and ‘Mon Calamari Officer’.
I can not wait to return to Germany and not only that go and see my first Celebration I just hope the tickets don’t sell out too fast as I don’t think you look after the Euro fans quite as good as you should. Just saying ..
Haha – good luck with the planning. I don’t envy you one bit. Looking forward to working with you again though. Take Care
I loved Celebration Europe in London. It may have been crowded but that was part of the fun, you couldn’t go anywhere without seeing anything new and interesting.
I was fortunate to only live 2 hours away from London and the experience was hard to beat. This year I am lucky enough to be living about 2 hrs away from Essen and I can’t wait to be at Celebration Europe again!