To outsiders, South Jersey is an obscure sprawlscape of Wawas and cheapo gas stations whose heart and soul is Cherry Hill.
But insiders know better. "I grew up here, and all my geeky interests come from South Jersey," says Ryan Morrison, a computer gamer and organizer of his homeland's very own Geek Fest.
Content creators, YouTubers, board game enthusiasts, graphic artists and fans of tech, comic books, and pop culture past and present will gather from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday (April 19) at the Woodbury Heights Community Center, on Helen Avenue in Woodbury Heights, Gloucester County. Organizations such as Fanboys Anonymous will be on hand for the festivities; admission at the door is $8.
"I'm excited that we've got 12 indie game developers, analog and digital, attending, as well as pixel painters and other local artists," says Morrison, who owns Island Officials, a Woodbury game development firm. He notes that while South Jersey is hardly an epicenter of game design, the region is home to talented independents doing high-quality work.
And besides offering opportunities for networking and merchandising, South Jersey Geek Fest will provide people "a chance to come out and be proud of their geekiness, which is something we all have embraced," Morrison says.
--KEVIN RIORDAN