Comic-Con International is the largest annual comic and pop festival gathering in the world. Each year, more than 130,000 people make the pilgrimage to San Diego for a week of film screenings, panel sessions, interactive games and other experiential activities. Comic-Con began as a small gathering of comic book nerds in 1970 and over a few decades exploded into one of the largest and most influential events for the entertainment and gaming industries. The few times I have attended Comic-Con, I usually spend more time observing the attendees than the exhibitions. Sure, the fans come for the fun, but many of the people who attend the event, are aspiring artists themselves. They come to network, see their heroes and hopefully turn their passion into a career. In that sense, Comic-Con is a lot like any other business convention. Living in San Diego, I have had the chance to see first-hand how Comic-Con has evolved over the years. While today the big studies and television networks are driving the big crowds to the event, Comic-Con has somehow maintained its authenticity and has never strayed too far from its roots as the world’s greatest mecca of die-hard fans of comics, super heroes and science fiction. It’s endearing and a fun thing to witness.