ATX TV Fest 2013 - Thursday

I honestly don't remember how I stumbled upon the ATX TV Fest. I'm going to guess Twitter. All I know is when I saw they were holding a TV Pitch Competition, I swore to myself I could only attend if I entered the contest. And I did.

My pitch made the Top 25 Semi-Final round, which was crazy exciting. But it didn't go any further. While it took my ego some time to recover, this allowed me to enjoy the festival without mega-stressing all weekend long about pitching to industry professionals on the last day of the event.

Here you'll find my thought on the event, written from the perspective of a few days later. I'm breaking it up by days, since each day was definitely jam-packed. 

Be warned: I have to say upfront that I was not in this strictly as a fan girl. Yes, I had specific screenings I wanted to see and actors I wanted to meet. But there are a few popular screenings that I chose not to attend. So if you're looking for some fun info about the Friday Night Lights screening or Party of Five, you'll have to search elsewhere.

Thursday:
My boyfriend Cory and I arrived in Austin around noon. We found our hotel, then found the venue, a few blocks away: The Stephen F. Austin Hotel - and we registered. There were no events that night that we were planning to attend so we spent the evening walking around downtown. We eventually ended up back at the Stephen F. Austin bar for the kick-off party. This was not our intention. We just went back to check out the hotel & realized something was going on. So, somehow, we got in.

Here's the thing. Cory and I are bad at this kind of stuff. Really, really bad. We're bad at getting into after-parties. And in the rare instances we do get in, we stand around awkwardly, clutching our drinks for dear life, and scanning the room for... I don't even know. What are you supposed to do at an after-party other than drink? Don't get me wrong, I like drinking, but... I don't know... Anyway...

Cory and I are standing around the door, drinks in-hand. We didn't really socialize and were probably about 2 sips away from leaving, when a group of people approached the girl checking names at the door. A few seconds later, the cast of Boy Meets World walks past us. Ben Savage, Rider Strong, Matt Lawrence, Trina McGee, Maitland Ward, Betsy Randall, and Lily Nicksay. Each about a foot away from us. We smiled at them as they came in, but didn't hound them for photos (an urge I had to resist all weekend long). But seeing them up close, hearing them talk to each other, even for a few seconds, was definitely worth it. They all sat down together, so Cory and I stayed around a little longer. We felt like extras at Chubbie's. That was kind of fun.

That about wrapped up our Thursday. Friday morning kicked off with the Boy Meets World screening & panel so we had to get some rest for that.



PS - If you're wondering why I didn't ask for a pic with the actors from one of my all-time favorite shows -- a few reasons. First, the festival organizers asked that we respect the actors and their space. And most attendees seemed to behave. It wasn't like a Comic Con situation, where the actors are instantly mobbed if left unattended. Second, it's just not in my nature to approach someone. A personal weakness, I suppose, but that's what being an introvert does to you. My dad has no qualms approaching famous people in any situation, offering a handshake and "I enjoy your work." I need to learn that.