StarFest 2016

All About StarFest
April 20-22
Denver Marriott DTC

StarFest is a combination of several entertainment conventions rolled into one big event that takes place over three days. Started in 1977, it attracts thousands of people who are fans of popular culture for a weekend of social interaction, fun and games. Activities this year take place at the Denver Marriott DTC and the Hilton Garden Inn DTC Hotels. Activities include:  Studio Presentations, Onstage Q&A Sessions (with actors, producers & directors), Autograph and Photo Sessions, Costume and Talent Contests, Film Festivals, Model and Art shows, Collectible Marketplaces, Educational Seminars, Discussion Panels, Musical Performances, Dancing, Kids Events, Fan Club Presentations, and tons of assorted Klingons, Jedi and other creatures thrown together.

StarFest started as a local science fiction convention and has grown into a regional celebration of media entertainment. It now encompasses several “Fest” conventions that take place under the umbrella of the StarFest Entertainment Convention. They include: HorrorFest, ComicFest, RoboCon, ScienceFest and GameFest. Your membership to StarFest gives you admission to all the Fests

HorrorFest (included with your StarFest membership) is devoted to all things, well, horror. HorrorFest has its own multi-track programming, guests, performances, panels, and film festival.

ComicFest is Denver’s longest running (and best) comic book convention. It has artists, authors, panels, activities, collectibles, and yes – COMICS.

RoboCon is all about robots. RoboCon fans come from all over with their mechanical marvels to display them and compete for prizes. Attendees have the chance at hands-on instruction in building robotic devices by the leading creators in the field

GameFest activities are included in your StarFest membership. Petries Family Games will be providing tabletop and role playing games throughout the weekend.  It’s designed to be a place to come, sit down, and have fun.

MODEL and ART SHOW a great place to learn about model building, model painting and basically anything there is to do with models. Enter your model in the show for a chance to win ribbons and prizes.  The Art Show allows artists to display their work as well as sell pieces to the general public,

The StarFest Entertainment Convention has hosted a virtual who’s who of Actors, Directors and Producers, including: Tom Cruise, John Travolta, Tobey Maguire, Sean Astin, Patrick Stewart, William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, Summer Glau, Anthony Michael Hall, Christian Bale, Moon Bloodgood, Jon Lovitz, Harry Shearer, Famke Janssen, Tricia Helfer, Karl Urban, Danny Elfman, Francis Ford Coppola, Tim Burton, Rob Bowman, Michael Piller, Dean Devlin, Frank Marshall, and many more.

A very-brief overview of the convention activities and ticket options

StarFest is all about choices. You can come for just a day if you want to check things out or dive-in with a three-day pass for a completely immersible experience.

Friday
Starting early, programming expands throughout the day until around 3pm when things really start hopping. Friday night our Official Meet and Greet party is hosted in the Main Events Room. At the Meet and Greet you can rub shoulders with many of our convention guests over coffee, soda, and desserts. After the Meet & Greet this year we will be running a restored version of Forbidden Planet in the Main Events room too. Of course there will be lots of parties and get together events held also, well into the night.

Saturday
The biggest day of the convention starts early (some events at 8:00AM) and continue throughout the night. Conflict Warning: Because of the size and scope of StarFest, there is no way for you to see and do everything. With dozens of events starting simultaneously, and across three convention centers, you are going to have to pick and choose. We work really hard programming events that cater to just about everyone’s special interests so the variety of entertainment at the show may be a little daunting and overwhelm you. Think of it like an all-you-can-eat buffet, everything looks great, but remember to limit to how much you put on your plate so you don’t end up missing out on something you really like!

Keep in mind that most of the movie studio presentations will take place on Saturday, make sure you consult the program schedule and program book carefully for details, we wouldn’t want you to miss something that you’d be sorry about later. We try to list the events in the schedule and then give you a lot more details about those events in the program book. If you look at both carefully, chances are you’ll come up with a “must see” list that will make your experience memorable.

The Saturday night festivities are what make StarFest unique. We usually have a live performance right before the Costume Contest in our Main Events Room and follow that up with The Federation Ball. Don’t miss the Ball, it’s an incredible costume (optional) party that creates an incredible mix of things to see and do that just can’t be matched. The Ball runs until midnight and simultaneously, throughout the hotels, you’ll find room parties and fun to keep you busy into the wee hours of the morning.

Sunday
StarFest isn’t anything like an Auto Show or Exhibition where you can come for one day or a couple of hours and see everything. Sunday’s schedule is completely different than Saturday, with lots of guest speakers (different than the ones on Saturday). There are new events and panels to participate in and enjoy. Because a lot of the rush to get autographs is over by Sunday, you’ll often find lots of time to talk to the actors that are attending for the weekend. Over-all, Sunday is a great day to take things at a bit slower pace than Saturday and visit some of the convention areas that you couldn’t get to on Saturday.

What’s up with VIP tickets? Camping out for good seats may cause you to miss a lot at the convention. VIP memberships free-up your valuable time to see more stuff. VIP Members get a special express line at Registration and Reserved Seats in the Main Events Room. VIP members don’t have to camp for seats to see their favorite guests.

If you want to experience the entire weekend and all the guests, you should be buying a 3-day membership. You’ll save money by buying a 3-Day ticket. If you go for a VIP 3-Day membership you’ll get the best Main Events Room seats available (just behind our Platinum Members).

Platinum VIP tickets provide you with the ultimate StarFest experience. The VERY BEST seats in our Main Events Room are reserved for Platinum VIP members. You Platinum membership also include merchandise discounts, special giveaways, priority photo and autograph lines and seating seniority at future conventions.