This year's con didn't floor me with its new games. I was actually disappointed by the recurring booths of games that still haven't released yet after many years *cough Guild Wars 2 cough*. All in all I still had a great time and I ended up playing a variety of games on different consoles, devices, boards and even index cards.
The highlight of the ENTIRE con for me this year was actually the Freelance Illustration Career panel. I had planned on attending anyways, but I was trying not to squirm in my seat as I read the summary in the PAX guide: "...panel will feature WotC art directors..."
So unlike the last "art career" related panel I went to (which involved many questions like: How do I get art directors to notice my work if none of them ever email me back?!"), this one was full of intelligent people really looking to how to be successful at a freelance career and the art directors were there so that we artists understand their expectations. Many answers I could have predicted; however it was good to hear the answers from the AD's mouths; also hearing any answer to any question from Jeremy Jarvis is totally worth the wait in line. That man is hilarious while still being an AD whom I respect due to his honest responses to all the artists' questions.
Yes, I got to shake Jon Schindehette's hand and thank him for creating and updating ArtOrder.com without fainting from those omg-i-just-met-a-famous-person jitters. I also shook hands with Jeremy Jarvis after the MtG World Building panel which had its own level of awesomeness. And these things are really what made PAX Prime this year; but it was this quote from Jarvis that really inspired me and is better than any swag, especially since I've been having a hard time coping with having a "normal" job:
"Always be out there working hard towards being an illustrator...and don't be ashamed of your day job. In the end, we're all people and we have to eat somehow."
Thank you Jeremy. And thank you everyone else who made PAX 2011 Awesome for the 3rd year in a row.
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