August 26, 2013: "Man of Steel" Hot Topic at 2nd Annual Smallville Superfest

The second annual Smallville SuperFest took place on August 16, 17, and 18th, 2013. It featured music, vendors, and activities for Superman fans of all ages.

This years Smallville SuperFest was very unique, because it not only coincided with the 75th anniversary of the character of Superman, but it was also the year that the Man of Steel was released in theaters, on June 14.

They filmed the movie Man of Steel in Plano, Illinois in 2011. So, we worked with the Mayor to develop a festival called Smallville SuperFest. This is our second yearwe did our first one last year, and off of that success, we just expanded it again this year, said Jim Martens, the Chairman of Smallville SuperFest. It was an exciting time for us, just to be chosen as Smallville in the movie, and then to work with Warner Brothers, and have such a good response from our community, and to make it all happen, said Mayor Bob Hausler, who was the mayor in 2011, when Warner Brothers asked if Plano could be their set for Smallville for Man of Steel movie, Weve been very excited from the day that they started the set construction, to when they were doing the filming in 2011.

[After filming, Warner Brothers] left a lot of things up, like window displays, so when you walk around town, youll see things that say SmallvilleSmallville Realty, theres the Smallville Surveyor, the logo for the Smallville Spartans, the hydrant internet cafthose are a lot of things that are left from the movie, and thats part of the fun of the Mobile Huntis to experience the things that are still there from when Warner Brothers transformed it, said Martens.

Steve Escorcia portrayed Batman: The Dark Knight; Adrienne LeBlanc portrayed Powergirl, Dennis Cox portrayed Dr. Fate, Charlee Chartrand portrayed Superboy, Colleen Egan portrayed Lana Lang, and Sean Romero portrayed the 'Blur.'

This year, as you know, in June, the movie was releasedwe had a big celebration here in the city for that. We had a Premiere event at the WOW7 Theaterbefore the movie actually was released. As you know, WalMart was selling their Premiere ticketswe had a huge event at our local WalMart store. Dylan Sprayberry, the actor that plays Superman as a teenager was thereit was a huge event that we had, said Mayor Hausler. The date that the tickets went on sale for the WalMart premiere night, everybody slept out for tickets at the WalMart, and Dylan Sprayberry was on hand with WalMart officials from their headquarters in Georgia, to promote this through all of their stores. So, they used our Plano locationhad film crews out to broadcast in their entertainment departments on the TVs, for that date, to help promote the release of the ticket sales, said Martens.

For the opening of the movie, we were actually asked to come out for the review of it, so we dressed up as Lana and Clark, and we were at the premiere in Plano, for the theater, in Smallville, watching the movie, in Smallville. So, I thought it was pretty cool. They also had us for the next day, come out to debut this Museum. This Museum debuted the very following day. So, seeing the movie...where it wasseeing the moviehow it happenedand the red carpet eventeven hearing some of the council go back-and forth aboutthey forget to show thisbut at least they showed that. It was fun to see the city that got to be behind it watch how they were filmed as that movie, said Chartrand, who saw it on June 14. And then the excitement while we were in the theatereverybody that was there wanted to see Thank you Plano on the screenand then, when I went to go see it with my mom out in Virginiaeveryone left the theater, and Im like, Why are they leaving? Weve got to watch the Thank you Plano part! So, me and my mom sat therewe were kind of clapping and screaming like we did in the theater, because it was just a big deal to see your town out there on the screen, said Egan, who portrayed Lana Lang at this years Smallville SuperFest, I am here as Superboys gal from Smallville. I am a Lana Lang cheerleader right now, and Im here volunteering with Plano and for their festival. Last year, before SuperFest started for the first year, Charlee told me that there was a Smallville SuperFest, and asked me if Id come as his Lana Langand thats the first time I actually put on a costume for a convention, and here I am again the second year. Egan also saw it on June 14.

I made a whole week of dedicated Superman. I started out in Metropolisdid the celebration out theremy best friend came up from Florida. When it came out, June 14, we went and saw the first show, togetherour Man of Steel shirtswe got to see the movie. Im lucky enough to live near Plano, so I brought him here after we saw the movie. It was a great weekthat whole week, said Seann Romero, who portrayed the Blur at this years Smallville SuperFest. This is his first year. I saw the website, and I went down to Metropolis, and I live close to here, so I just thought Id come. I grew up watching the Christopher Reeve movies, so I just sat there. Superman has always [represented] to metruth, justice, and the American Waynever lieshes a great hero. And thats how I got into Superman. Growing up watching the Christopher Reeve moviessmall townSmallville. I kind of grew up in a small town myselfI kind of related a lot to growing up in small townsnear farmsthe small town feeling is what I like.

"We were also able to work with Warner Brothers, when the movie came out, to get our own Premiere. We were able to give away six hundred tickets, donated by Warner Brothers, and we were able to work with WOW Theaters, in Sandwich, Illinois, to do our own Man of Steel Red Carpet Premiere. We did our own Red Carpet, where we built a wall with the repeating logo, and everybody was able to come, and act like theyre a star, in Plano and Smallville, and get their picture taken on the Red Carpet, said Martens.

[The most fun aspect was] building the wall, and putting together the Red Carpet. We were able to give ourselves a Hollywood-style Red Carpet treatment in our own town, said Martens, Everybody will be talking about that for a very long timethat we got our own Premiere in Plano. The whole couple days leading up to itwas when we did the Premiere event and all of the festivities with that. We had an actual Hollywood Premierewhere we wore tuxedos, said Mayor Hausler. Plano filled 2 screenings with donated tickets, including city officials from Oswego, Yorkville, Aurora, and Sandwich, as well as twenty-five extras from movie, the Smallville SuperFest committee, and twenty media people.

Mayor Hausler enjoyed the movie, A lot of excitementvery exciting. I enjoyed the movieI thought the whole concept of Superman in the movie was well done. The whole idea of him being bornthe whole evolution of his super powersand all thatthat was just great. I really did enjoy the movie. Oh, yes, Ive seen it twice. It was amazing. It was just so cool to see it up there, said Martens. The movie is amazingI was so impressed with what they didI think that, as much as I like the Smallville parts, I was more impressed with what they did with Krypton.and all the CG work that it takes to get something like that put together. It was just mind-blowing. The plot was greatand it just makes everybody want another oneso we, of course, encourage them to use us as much as they want for future filming, said Martens, I cant wait to see it on DVD, of course, so I canfreezerewindfreezerewind. I liked the movieit had a good storyline. There was obviously a lot of controversy about a certain spotbut you have to respect the directors ideabecause they were trusted with his visionand Zack Snyder worked his butt off to make sure people saw what he thought should be Supermanso I respect what he viewed and how much work he put into it, said Chartrand. Yes, I enjoyed [it too]I like anything sci-fiand I guess when I was watching itI had to kind of turn off that part of my mind that started going, Well, thats not what Krypton looks likethats not what the Fortress looks like BecauseIm an 80s kidSmallville was very much portrayed after the 80s movieas far as the Fortress and various things of that nature. Then, the historywhen they were showing all those Krypton scenesthat was all new to meI loved all the sci-fithe way they showed the planetthe way they portrayed even some of the creatures that lived thereI kind of felt like I was watching Star Wars to some degreethe whole time I was watching itI felt like I was watching a great sci-fi moviesometimes I forgot I was watching a Superman moviebut I still loved it. Its just a matter ofonce I watched the movieand it was overand I just soaked it all inand realizedthis is a different viewpointits all probably based on a Kryptonian knowledge that I just dont know aboutstuff that I havent seen on the screenonce it all kind of set in like thatpeople [who havent seen it yet] ask me what I thinkDefinitely. Its a great movie. Its just different, and youve got to accept it as somebody elses idea of it, versus trying to portray it the way it was in the 80s, said Egan. It was a movie that you had to just come in with a fresh mindits a reboot. It was a really good movieits a really good Superman moviea good film. Its something where you do have to go in with a fresh mindjust not think about the Christopher ReevesTom WellingDean Caincause all those were really differentyou really got to go in there with a fresh mind, and realize that this is the Superman for the new generationthis is the Superman that is going to continue on for hopefully several filmsand continue on the legacy of Superman. So, it was a good movieI liked it a lot, said Romero. I think it was goodit was different. It just took me by surprise a little bitmore darker. I saw it againand you keep an open mindit was goodI liked itI liked it after the second timethe way [things] happenshould have happened that wayI liked it, said Escorcia, who portrayed Batman at Smallville SuperFest.

There were a lot of initial reactions to the Man of Steel. "My initial reaction wasdifferent than I expected, but thats what you want out of a movieSo, I think with all the trailers that they built up with itpeople had an idea of what they were going to seebut, yet, when they saw, it was still better than they could even think it was going to be. Ive seen it oncebut I would really like to see it again...and againand again, said Martens. My initial reaction wasWow, this is really a good movie. Of course, I was looking for a lot of the scenes that were done here in the city, and trying to focus on that, but, there was so much excitement, and so much actionit was hard to keep focus, and look for certain landmarks and that, said Mayor Hausler. For me, leading up to seeing the movie, I had to convince myself not to think like myselffor Zack, this is something he wanted the world to see. I had to realize that, and I accepted it as something new, and I enjoyed it, said Chartrand, who has seen it twice. I remember whenSuperman Returns came outobviously that one was more similar to the Christopher Reeve in the way the city was, and Krypton, and stuff like that. When that came out, I watched it the first time, and I was like, Nobody can be Superman except for Christopher Reeveit just doesnt work for me. [That] was my first reaction of the 2006 onethen, I watched it a second time and a third timethe more I watched that oneI loved itthen I actually enjoyed the Brandon Routh as Supermanobviously not as much as Christopher ReeveI dont think anybody is ever going to be him to mecause hes always going to be SupermanI actually went out and bought the moviemet [Brandon Routh], enjoyed meeting Brandon Rouththink he did a really humbling job as Superman.so, then, when I started watching this movie, I started noticing that I was doing the same thingI kind of let it soak in, and then I was able to have a more open-minded view of things, said Egan. Ive been waiting for a very action-packed Superman for a long time, and I really, really think that they did it in this spectacular waya great action movie that I liked. I enjoyed it quite a bit, said Romero, who has also seen it twice. It was a lot of effectslike [Lana] said, Krypton was differenttotally different for melike Star Warskeep an open mindI liked it, said Escorcia, after his second time seeing it.

I thought Henry was great as SupermanI thought Zack Snyder did a fabulous job directing, said Mayor Hausler.

Compared to the other Superman movies that have come out, They were able to set it into realitymeaning you could feel that thats what would happen if Superman was here right nowand that is exactly how people would reactif that was part of their goal, then theyve certainly set themselves up for future success, said Martens. I know the last film before this was not very well-receivedI really liked the Christopher Reeves moviesI thought those were very coolbut, I liked Man of SteelI kind of liked [the departure from the John Williams score]It was differentas a lot of the movie wasZack Snyder definitely put his fingerprint on Supermanhe did it the way that he wanted to do ithe changed a few thingsthe more people see itthe more things evolvetheyll appreciate what Zack has done, said Mayor Hausler. Man of Steel compared to the original Superman I would say theyre two completely different thingsI would love to see someone who has never seen both watch Man of Steel first and then watch Supermanand then see what their reaction would bethat would be very interesting to me, said Chartrand. The big difference that I noticedaside from all the visual things like Krypton looking different, and the Fortress being portrayed differentlyin this, hes Clark Kent, and hes known as Clark Kent by Loisshe knows him as the Superman before they called him that.and shes calling him Clarkso she knows who he isand, so, at the endwhen she sees him at the Daily Planetshe knew him as Superman before the Clark Kent that he has to now becometo be the bumbling[in the second one] thats when youre going to start seeing the development of those Clark Kent bumbling characteristicsbut Lois already knows him in this other way as SupermanI never, in a million years, would have thought they would have done it that way.Im interested to see where theyre going to go with it, said Egan. You have to go in there with a fresh mindits not the Christopher Reeve Supermanyou have to go in there with a fresh mind. I just wouldnt compare em, because its two separate universes, said Romero. You cant compare themits a totally new generationnew entitiesa bunch of new sci-fi special effectsits hard to compare emall they are is Supermanother than that, its a lot different from the old onesits hard to compare emyou just got to take it as a new version, said Escorcia.

The story went greatZod was amazingthe character development with Zod and Faora was something that will go down as legendary in film history, said Martens. The progress of the movieI thinkis OK; I would have liked to see someone else aside from just ZodI was happy to see a couple of cameosby two companiesthey said there was going to be more than one villainbut, technically, Zod and his clanI count that as one villain. I would have liked to see someone else also get in there on the action. It would have been good to see a second villain, said Chartrand. Not knowing a lot of Kryptonian history, because I didnt read the comic book stuff, I was watching it and I realized that, Am I learning something new here, that I didnt know before, and this is all stuff from comics that everyone else knows whos a comic book reader? For me, I enjoyed seeing things portrayed on screen that were never portrayed. I will never like it more than the old classics that I grew up with, but I enjoyed seeing something that made me learn something about the myth thatI didnt know. Im looking forward to seeing where theyre going to go with this. I can tell, by the way it ended, that its definitely going somewhere, and its definitely going to be a completely different story as it progresses, said Egan. The tempo just kept changingthe progressionfit for the storylineit was something really differentI thought it was good for the story, said Romero. The storyline was goodit was a bit darker than all the other onesits Superman for a new generationthe storyline was all rightfor me, it was a little darkother than that, it was good, said Escorcia.

When Clark goes into the church[for] advice from the priesthe tells the priest, Im the one that theyre looking for. The priest just kinda like stumblesthats kind of my favorite [quote/scene] there, said Romero.

Mayor Hausler explains what it was like to see Plano as the town of Smallville in the movie, It was great. I was asked by someoneHow does it feel to see your town blown apart?in the movies, its greatit was a great source of pride and excitement for our residents and our citizens. Planos always been a great community, and we have a lot of historythis is just one additional great thing that has happened in the city of Plano. All I kept saying is, Hey, my house is right behind that! said Martens. It was great, because seeing a town in the United States. I believe, last time, they picked a Smallville, it might have been in Canada or something like thatso its good to see a local Midwestern town portray a local Midwestern character, and it fit really wellthe people here make a lot of sensetheyre Smallville town folkthis is as average as a town can get, said Chartrand. It was awesome to see it in the movie, while I was here in Plano, watching the movie, said Egan. I liked itI liked how they added buildings and stuff. I thought it was really cool, said Romero. It was greatI loved ithow they made the effects and everythingand the fight scenes and everythingI loved watching itthe way they filmed it and everything, said Escorcia.

Several flashbacks in the movie alluded to the Man of Steels past, It certainly is a way to use flashbacks to develop a storyline, and I think that that was done very well, said Martens. I thought that was one of the best parts of the moviethe flashbacksthe evolution of his super powers, and how all that went on, said Mayor Hausler.

There were several themes in the movie, The whole idea of truth, justice, and the American Waythe family values that Superman stands forall of those basic things when we think of SupermanI remember watching it when I grew up on TVjust the whole idea of the values that Superman had, said Mayor Hausler. The thing that I noticedthey did a big take on the whole alien side of thingswhen I saw it in the movie that they were really concentrating on his alien aspect and the government was kind of getting involved and taking him [away] in handcuffsSuperman never felt like an alien beforeIt wasnt until this movie that I really saw them putting such an emphasis on the alien aspect of things, said Egan. [I liked the] alien aspect of the movie, said Escorcia. How he had to adapt into learning the powersthey had to physically show his body going through suffering to learn how to evolve itself into getting used to it. Because his body evolved into adapting to the Earths atmospherethe reward for going through all that was the powers. Also, the idea of Zod receiving all that pain from immediately taking off his helmet in the atmosphere. They did a very good job of the cross between both worldsthey wanted to put both worlds together, in a different wayso that was good, said Chartrand. The major thing that really stood out to methe whole alien aspect of the whole situationit does seem like he was more alienatedhe learned younger than most generations about his powershe didnt know how to cope with them. It seems like the Kents didnt really know how to cope with his powers, but they tried as hard as they couldyou see a man stuck between two worlds, and he ended up choosing the humans over the Kryptonians, said Romero.

Mayor Hausler explains what he liked most and least about the movie, The leastmy part in the movie was on the cutting room floorI was actually the bank manager in the movie. Youve seen the moviethe bank scene is...in...outjust a few secondswhen the [bank scene] filming was going onwe were there like for 3 daystheres actually a really neat scene that took place in the bank that wasnt in there. Maybe itd be in the sequel. That was a real neat scene. The best thing about it wasit was so well-received. For folks at Warner Brothers to announce that theyre going to do a sequel votes well for the quality of the movie. I like that Lois is a redhead nowit gives me something to work with now for a new character. I can have people stop telling me that, Well, Lois doesnt have red hair, because now I can tell them, Yes, she does. She actually had it back in the 50s, but a lot of people dont want to hear about thatIm not going to change anythingIm just going to wait to see what happensto determine whether Im going to change what I think I need to changebecause it might happen later, said Egan. For me, first off, what [Lana] said, with the red hair, that makes me feel happy, because she can go walk around asLois, and no one would make hair jokes. Aside from that, I enjoyed watching Henry actually try to figure out how to use his powers.seeing him try to flyand then fall through a cliffand then have to get up again, and then bump his head on the top of somethingseeing him actually realizeOk, I finally figured out how to fly[and] how to use vision, and how to use this, and how to do that. That was so amazing to me, because they actually scientifically [put in] a way for him to adapt his body to create the powers, and that was one of the weaknesses he was able to use against Zod, because he had to adapt, said Chartrand. I liked the action scenes, and the flying scenes. The only thing I would changeI would put the symbol back on his cape. Superman ReturnsI got really upset about it, and thenthe Man of SteelI just wish theyd put that symbol right back on the cape, said Romero. The flying scenes were goodthe action scenes were goodthe fight scenes were good, said Escorcia.

Regarding the departure from John Williams Superman score, The music was OKThe music of Supermanfrom what Ive noticedeach time they have a definite theme for Supermanregardless if its from Dean Cainregardless if its from John Williamsthat musichas specific characteristicsyou can tell the notesthe notes are very heavy and definedyou can tell that was a notethe melody was very strong and boldthe melody was very strong for Man of Steel, but it felt like it was too over-blended. They should have spaced it out, made the notes more subtle and selfish, and extremely loud, said Chartrand. It was good musicand it was music made for a different movieit fitlike a darker feel maybe evenbut I still miss not having the other music. I know that they have to have different music, because it is a different director and everythingI would have enjoyed some of the music, said Egan. I love John Williams musicI actually have the original soundtrack on vinyl. At first, I was not happy that they said that they werent going to use his music, but then again, you had to go with that whole, theyre two separate universesyou cant have anything tie one universe to the other universe. I can see where they had to come up with their own music. [The Man of Steel music] was goodI liked itthat was good music, said Romero. Im partial to John WilliamsIm always going to think of the old music said Escorcia.

The Man of Steel has brought in more than $644 Million worldwide. I think its greatit shows that people are still into Superman, said Escorcia. Its as huge as everybody expectedone of the hard things to do is to live up to such high expectations, but, when youre about to actually meet them and exceed themthats even better. I think that it just plants them very firmly into sequels to comeand to come, said Martens. [It] just means that more people are seeing it than may have been expectedthis generationits been since the 80sthere hasnt been a Superman movieand theres a whole generation of kidsits great that now theres a Superman franchiseits [good] to see a Superman movie comeback, said Egan. I think its great, because that means theres going to be more, and more meanshopefullytheyre going to come back to Planoand film some moreI cant wait[to see the] progress of the storyline, said Romero.

For a sequel, I would like to see more of Smallvilleand it would be neat to see Batman come to Smallville, said Mayor Hausler, who says that he is open to more filming, It was a fun time.

I was involving in the changing of the way our building was laid outget rid of those partitionshave the building open for a MuseumJim Martens helped set things upalong with the other members of the Smallville SuperFest Committee. So, it was a collaborative effort by the city and the Festival Committee, said Mayor Hausler, The easiest was having the idea, and having everyone on board with the idea. The toughest part was laying it outhow we would do itand getting the props into place. For example, the gas pump that, in the movie, actually explodes, its a real gas pump. It took several peoplefour of our city workers, to get it into [the] position that its in now, and getting things laid out inside the Museum was a challenge. The hardest part was getting the Museum completely remodeled. It takes time to do a renovation on a 100-year-old building. said Martens.

According to Martens, all city officials, Mayor Hausler, the former mayor, the Smallville SuperFest Committee, and Planos Historical Society were present for the Smallville Museum Grand Opening, which lasted about a half-hour. Then, visitors walked through the Museum for about 3 hours. The Man of Steel premiered on June 14, and the Smallville Museum Grand Opening was on June 15. So we did the Museum the following dayon Saturday. I believe we had about 130 people come through the Museum on that day, said Mayor Hausler, The Museum was [advertised] not only [through] our local mediathe local radio stationbut also the Chicago area newspapers and television [news]. The Museum opening was the same time as the Premiere, so everything was based around the movie opening, and then us just being ready for the date. Most stuff had already been set up a long time ago, because we knew the things that we had for Museum. We had already a good idea of what we had to put in the Museum, so it was real easy to fill it once the renovations were finished, said Martens. CMOS Collectibles set up a booth and helped promote the Museum Opening as well. We appreciate them and welcome them back next year, said Martens. The Museum is open the first and third Saturday of every month, from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., as well as during the weekdays, from 8-9:30 a.m. and 6-9 p.m.

According to Martens, there are approximately twenty props in the museum, and a whole new museum of props will be available every 6 months. We have great communications with Warner Brothers, and we have asked for additional [props], and also to try to get some stars here for our next SuperFest[Warner Brothers has] been very accommodating, and theyve been doing what they can to make our festival a success. Its been a great working relationship, said Mayor Hausler. Two months ago, Warner Brothers had a storage shed that they emptied out, with all of the signs that were left for the businesses, so they donated back to us, and were working with the businesses, to get them the signs that were on their stores, but then theyll also donate them back to the Museum for future exhibits, said Martens. According to Mayor Hausler, the Smallville Museum has a variety of props from the Man of Steel movie. The real gas pump, the train that plows into the Sears building, and the scale model that the Warner Brothers art department made are among these items. The first thing that happened in the movie, when they filmed here, was the blowing up of the 7-11. So, they donated four gas pumps, the one of them is the one thats all exploded and obviously blown upso we have some stuff from the 7-11. The train that crashed into the Searswe have a big piece of that mounted on a wallthe special effects department created fake building parts that are foam, and turned into brick walls, so that it looked like buildings blew up everywherethey also built fake asphalt, so it looked like the street had been blown up. We also have one of the wings from the fire plane that crashed, as well as the Smallville Town Hall sign at the front of the Museum. We have the donated key from the movieits donated from Warner Brotherswe have the keythe key lights upthe case lights up. When they filmed the [Kent Farm] scene, when you see teenage Clark Kent with Pa Kent, and hes handing him the key and explaining about his past, and that he came from a spaceshipin the background there is info on UFO crashesso somebody had done a collage to representPa Kent researchingSupermans [spaceship] crash. Thats part of the collection from the Kent farm, said Martens.

It was very excitingthe real neat thing about the model that we received from Warner Brothersit shows all those buildings that are down now, and all the buildings they used for their sets. We had a lot of people come to town to walk up and down Main Street to see all those buildingsand to see the set. It was just a very neat experience, said Mayor Hausler. Martens explains the model that Warner Brothers sent to the Smallville Museum, Warner Brothers shipped [the display that they built for the pre-production of the movie] to us last week. [The display is what] they built so that they could talk about all the pre-production that they did for the moviewhere they came up with all the ideas, how they did all their blocking for their scenes, how they set up all the explosives, and all the special effects work that was done. So, they were able toif it was the art department, go through, and say, OK, this building is getting painted like thiswe need to hang this sign like this So, they made [this] display, and thought it was so important that they saved it and then sent it to us. So, you can actually look closer and youll see notes that are actually notes written in places of the artist...So, its fun[This scene right here is]train crashed and went into the Sears. The Sears didnt even exist[thats] a road that they built the building into. So, they took [this] display, and said[this] is a street, so youll build [this] building in the store frontand itll look like its the main downtown. So, they were able to do things like that. Like, [heres] the 7-11...that was the first building that they blew up when they started all the filming. So, we just encourage everyone to come to Plano and check out the new Smallville Museumthis is all props and memorabilia from the movie, and Warner Brothers has worked with us to donate as much stuff as was left over. They went way out of their way to send us [the poster with 10 autographs on it] this poster.it has ten autographs on it, soeverybody in the movie has signed thisso weve made sure thats its framed and hanging up, and itll be here forever. So, you will always be able to come to Plano, and there will be a store that has all our stuff for sale in it. We also have [our new DVD]thats got all the imagesthat was done by one of the business ownersthat is a videographerthats his professional trade is to do duplication and things like that. Hes the one that did that. We want to certainly encourage everybody that they can get the DVD of the making of Smallville. Its pretty cool[Warner Brothers] spent who knows how much...they shipped this to us from L.A., to make sure that they got it here by this Fest. They also donated 2,000 comic books.

The most difficult planning was because the movie just came outand we spent a lot of work planning for the movie to come outand then realizedOh, were putting a fest on in 2 months. The easiest part started Friday morningset-up and then through the festival, said Martens. We actually were meeting right after the last years event, which we will this year, too, to see what we can improve while its all fresh in everyones mind. And then, well meet throughout the fall, well take a break during the holiday season, and then well start meeting in January to continue to meet, to plan for next years SuperFest, said Mayor Hausler.

The easiest part of it was working with the groups that volunteered last year, to get things going. We did a 5K run [Sunday] morning. The American Legionthey took ownership of thatand they took care of all thatso that was very easy on the Festival Committees part. We have several church groups that have done a great job doing the same thingwe havent had to provide volunteersthey get the volunteers, said Mayor Hausler, The hard part is trying to go out for sponsorshipsactually getting the money to provide this Festival free-of-charge and do the things that we do. According to Mayor Hausler, The city approves and supplies the basic services for the Festivalwe OK shutting down the streetsand all the basic servicesthe Festival Committee really does the work as far as laying things out. I cant say enough good things about the work that our Festival Committee does.

When we first started SuperFestfirst we named it, and then we had to decide what our symbolism would beits more about us developing our own identitypart of that is all brandingso it was very important to us.and by developing the skyline outlinewe were able to use that in our banners and in our advertisement to develop our own imagesto represent Smallville SuperFest, said Martens. Brad Gardner is on the Smallville SuperFest Committee, and has contributed through his computer graphics work and through working with the webmaster.

Chuck Struck, who runs Bikers Beef, was at Smallville SuperFest from the beginning, and lives near the area. I used to watch Superman when I was growing up as a kidthe original Superman, said Struck. We have sponsorship packages to fit every budget for businesses, so we just encourage everybody to find a way that they can get involved at a level theyre happy with, said Martens, Almost [every vendor] is returning this year. Weve added a few new food vendors, like Mickeys Massive Burrito, TKs, Hot Diggity Dog, and The Wurst Kitchenwe try to provide a wide variety of food.

We estimate that about 9,500 people showed up at the first Smallville SuperFest, and were pretty confident that its about the same number we got this year. I would, of course, like to see as many fans show up as are willing to come out. Future SuperFests will certainly keep growing, said Martens. We actually expanded the festival area another block in our city, said Mayor Hausler. Last years festival went as expected, said Mayor Hausler, They really went very smoothour Festival Committee did a great job of organizing thingsthe core group [of volunteers] is the same group that we had last year.

We were so impressed with last years [Smallville SuperFest], it was real easy to do this years, said Martens.

According to Mayor Hausler, at the premiere of the Man of Steel, they publicized Smallville SuperFest, via several Chicago TV and radio stations who did interviews, as well as at an event at Union Station in Chicago, where brochures were available. There was also local radio coverage on WSPY, as well as several other radio stations. We worked with local radio stationswe sent out press releases to all local newspaperswe did articles in newspapers said Martens.

It takes a whole year to start planning everything to do for next yearand then get started again on next years SuperFest. We hope to sign up all the returning vendors, and sponsors, as soon as possible, said Martens, [Dedication] and cooperation with our sponsorsits dedicated work with our committee membersthe city cooperateswhether its passing everything through the city properly, making sure that were following health codes and working with advertising to get the public involved. According to Martens, this years Smallville SuperFest cost around $14,000.

The musical guests this year included The Rural McCoys, Talon, Versus DJ, Brothers of Absolution, Platinum, CCC, Dead River, Ryan Mumby, Triple Threat Chicago, DJ Mark on Saturday.

Adding a few things and a few more events and getting things going are really where the biggest changes [are], said Mayor Hausler.

[The Zipline] was a giventhat we will keep doing thatbecause its just so much funyou dont just go anywhere and ride down [the] main street of a city. So, its fun to do the Ziplineweve added the Bungee Jump this yearthat was non-stop with the kidsthe biggest thing that weve changed and added is more things for the kidsworking with the blow-ups, to create this Kids Carnival. We were able to do old-fashioned gameswe built boothsyou can do your Smallville skee golf, which is like skeeball, but with a golf cluba little putter. You had Jor-Els bottle knock-downyou hadZods Krypto-Tosswe had a lot of theme-orientated games for the Kids Carnivalit was a great success, and well be bringing it back every summer, said Martens.

The old-fashioned Kids Carnival is brand-new this yearthats eight games that we startedwe plan on doing that again next year, and we are also talking about doing that at other local fairs," said Martens. One of the organizations Martens would like to thank is the Kendall County Police Department for bringing the Homeland Security Truck. This year, weve really expanded the Kids Areathe extra block that we added was to accommodate the additional games we have for kids, and for families. We also added a car show this yearthat we didnt have last yearso we had more room for that, also, said Mayor Hausler. The Euro-Bungee, also provided by The Fun Ones, was new this year, which would allow one to jump up to 15 feet in the air, was non-stop3 to 8 oclock, said Martens.

Also new this year, according to Martens, is the Smallville Mobile Hunt, Its a way for you to come on your own time, do a guided tour of the scenes from the Man of Steel movie. So, when you come to town, youll see these QR codes. Theres 30 of em throughout town, and if you go to the Museum, which is the Depot, youll find the main one, which is called Smallville Town Hall. So, youll scan that QR code with your Smartphone technology using an app, so when you scan it, it opens it up, and youll see the title of our website, and then youll see the title of the page you just scanned, and then a picture of where youre at. And then, in the movie, it was Smallville Town Hallwhats really at Plano locationthe Train Depot. So, then, you just keep going, and itll explain about the filmingand thisll go through everything about them filming the movie Man of Steel, and the scenes that you sawbasically Smallville. So, at the bottom, you can scroll all the way downitll explain the details about how you go around town and find these codes. Some of the buildings that were in the movie are not here anymore, because theyre empty parking lotsthey were never real buildings. So, thats where this is fun, because its a way for you to see the buildings that arent here today, and then you can also get a better idea of what Hollywood changed, and what they didnt. So, its something new that we have, and we hope that people can comeand anytime you come to Plano you can do this.

There was a new Kids Area this year, said Mayor Hausler. It was moved to accommodate the additional games, to allow Bounce Town to be in a more accessible area, as well as to be adjacent to the water fights. Mayor Hausler said that the Kids Area had a very good attendance, of people ranging in age from 3-12 years of age.

Other events included Fishing With the Mayor, on Saturday, where about 30 children and their families participated, We have children that go down with their parents or their grandparents, and they catch their first fish everits very excitingits a lot of fun. We have some great sponsorsPlano Moldingthey sponsor us very well. We have a lot of other sponsors that make it free for the community, said Mayor Hausler. We stock the pond with bluegill, and they already have the polesCountry Market donates the worms, and Wurst Kitchen donates hot dogs, said Martens. There was also the Zipline, Thats one of my favorite parts of the Festival. Last year, I was the first one down after they tested itthis year, I was able to be the first one down again. Youre like Supermanflying down Main Streetso it was very fun and exciting, said Mayor Hausler, The Zipline, provided by The Fun Ones, is 20-30 feet tall, and takes up a whole city block. So you can fly down the whole city block of Main Street. Two people at a time can fly down, said Mayor Hausler. The Andrew Kuebrich Hero 5K Fun Run & Walk, That was a good timeI think we had 250 plus runners. Sunday morning, we started at 8:30, said Martens. There was also a Pancake Eating contest, with twenty pancakes at Sherrys Caf; ten contestants participated, and the winner finished all twenty pancakes in 24:37, according to Martens. The Parade was comprised of at least 50 vehicles, with hundreds in the parade, and thousands watching. Touch-A-Truck is also returning this year, What we do with that is we take all of the big city vehicles, tractors, big heavy equipment, and they stop on Main Street after the paradeand then everybodys encouraged to get a closer look and actually get up inside some of em. Its a lot of fun; its a way to get the community involved with the city and other local businesses, said Martens. Touch-A-Truck is comprised of approximately 15 vehicles. Last years Cut-outs returned to Smallville SuperFest this year, said Martens. There was also a Costume Contest, which featured an adult male and female winner and a child boy and girl winner. Cars of Steel was on Saturday morning, We had Cars of Steel on Saturday morning. We want to thank Midwest Motor Sports for putting our first Cars of Steel car show togetherhuge successwe had the Chicago Black Hawks Nascar truckwe had the Hard Daze late model Smallville carwe had the General Lee in town, said Martens. This event featured approximately sixty cars, from the 1940s to the present. There was also a Bike Rodeo, Our police department sponsors that, along with D.A.R.E., and its part of our Safe Routes To School programthat we teach kids how to bike safely. We provide bicyclesor they can bring their own bicyclesand register them at the same timebut we also give away a bikejust for being thereand signing upand going through the course, said Mayor Hausler.

Adam Wolfe, who worked with the Super Mini-Con, explains his role in Smallville SuperFest, I do independent comics and films, and I also do all of the video work for the Siegel and Shuster Society out of Cleveland, and Jamie, who has the big huge Superman store and collectionI do a lot of video for him, as wellI started making films and stuff when I was back in high school, with a buddy of mine andmy last name is Wolfe, his last name is Packard, and we came up with WolfePack Entertainmentjust been a huge Superman fan, actually, and thats what inspired me to make my own films and stuff. [I] started making films and comic books, and [have] done a little bit of everything since. We would like to put together a couple of feature-length films, hopefully a zombie film, based mainly on our comic book thats coming out, called The Mutation, which is a zombie apocalypse thriller that were doing. So, wed like to actually do a film off of that, and also keep adding to our comic book line, said Wolfe, [It involves] Basically, a lot of volunteer worka lot of hard work at homewriting the filmsgetting the people togetherfilming them locally. We go to a lot of places locally, and then the comic books[hes my cousin]his brother did all the artworkhes a graphic designerdid the artwork on all of our stuff here. Wolfe has been doing independent comics and films for some time, I officially started putting stuff out for sale and online in 2007...late 2006, early 2007...but Ive been doing kind of my own stuff since about 1998...the most difficult aspect is having enough people to do some of the bigger projectsgetting people together. One of the easiest things to do is getting together to do shows like thishonestly, this is one of the easiest thingsactually doing the show.

Adrienne LeBlanc, who portrayed Powergirl at this years Smallville SuperFest, basically heard about it through Charlee, helped withthe scenery this yearjust basically have always been fans of comic booksthe first time you really saw Smallville, aside from the comic books, was when they did it in the Christopher Reeve movieswhen he was growing up, and then of course they did the series on TV. So, just basically superheroes in generalanything superheroeswe go for it. She thinks that the biggest attraction at Smallville SuperFest this year will be, Seeing Superboy and Lana Lang going down the Zipline. Mayor Hausler provides his thoughts on what he thinks will be the biggest attraction at Smallville SuperFest this year. I kind of am in favor of the Museum. We werent able to do that last year, because the movie wasnt released. This year, with the movie being released, were able to have all these neat props that we have. And, also, a lot of different things here in the Depot at the Museum that we didnt have last year. Marten thinks that the biggest attraction will be, The Grand Opening of the Museum, the ribbon cutting of the Museum was certainly on everybodys mind, and everybody is encouraged to come to town to Plano, see the new Museum all year-round, and sign our guest sign-in book. Visitors to the Museum are encouraged to provide their feedback on it at Info@smallvillesuperfest.com.

Its our goal to do small school tours, so were hoping that school kids can come in in small groupswe would like to do instructions on behind-the-scenes work on what it takes to film a movieso some of the stuff that the crew used for special effects design, so we would like to do guided school tours with that, said Martens.

This years Smallville SuperFest featured at least 6 people who dressed up in costume. With the reaction of the kids, its so funny, because half the time theyll know exactly who it is, and one of us will unfortunately get tackled by a whole mob familyor the kid will know who it is, and because he knows who it ishe wont budge and hes holding onto dads legs for dear life. They can be shythey can be happy. And its funnybecause sometimes a grown-up will act like a kid, and thats even funnier, said Charlee Chartrand, who portrayed Superboy at this years Smallville SuperFest, and said that I come here to volunteer as Superboy, and help them out and make sure everyone has fun. I heard about the SuperFest, and I found out that there wasnt anyone in costume. They needed someone super here to help out and give the kids someone to take a picture with, and I wanted to make sure they had somebody. Even if they dont recognize what exactly you are, but just that Ooh-a superhero. Ive noticed, last year, I changed the outfit, because now it says Smallville across the front. So, a lot of people, last year, were confused, and saw the S, and they thought it was like Superwoman [or something]. Cause it had just the S on the frontIve noticed that peoples reactions this yearnow they know what it isOh, its a Smallville cheerleader! They dont know its Lana Langthey at least know its a Smallville cheerleader, versus[them] thinking of Superwoman.which was fine to me I went along with it if they thought I was SuperwomanHey, look, its Supergirl or its Superlois!I went along with itit sounds fine to me. But, now, Ive noticed the difference in the reaction of just knowingits a little more obvious now," said Egan.

Ive seen a lot of little girls drawn to her costumeI wouldnt have known her costumebecause not knowing a whole lot of comics, butits a superheroits cool, and she stands out. Ive noticed, like even though they dont know who it iswhether youre Supergirl or Powergirl, theyre still interested, said Egan. Ive been called shiny one said Dennis Cox, for whom it is his first year, and who portrayed Dr. Fate at Smallville SuperFest on Saturday, and a vigilante on Friday. We came to help Charlee, and support the town. He got involved with Superman in the 1960s, Ive been doing comic books since the 60s. Ive done everythingIve been a professional performer for many years, and now Im retired, and I do this for funplus renaissance fairs. They love em. Ive been taking pictures like crazy out there with kids. Its something that they love, and I love it when they react to itits great when they react to it. Its a great feeling. The kids run up to you and say youre Batman, said Escorcia, who portrayed Batman: The Dark Knight, at this years Smallville SuperFest. I came here to support my buddy Charlee, Superboy, said Escorcia. He has been involved with Smallville SuperFest for a couple of years now, Me and Charlee go down to Metropolis, celebrate down there, now were celebrating it up here, Smallville. He explains how he got into Superman, I got into Superman when I was youngwhen I was a kid. I used to watch Super Friends on TVI always thought he was one of the best superheroes out there, so I was collecting the comics, and just kept it up. The kids recognize the character, and their face just lights up, said LeBlanc.

Adrienne LeBlanc portrayed Powergirl at this year's Smallville SuperFest. She explains how she chose her costume, The challenge. The challenge of creating the costume, itself, because we actually make our own costumes. This is her first year, and she was Supergirl on Friday. Being [in] costumes a bit like having a dream. Its something you can do, and you find others to share your intereststo dream with you, said Cox, for whom this is also the first Smallville SuperFest.

There are many things involved in making the costumes. Working with spandex is one of the most challenging parts. We do renaissance costuming, and thats not near as the same way to sew. Spandex will stretch on you, and distort the seam, so its hard to get the fit quite right when youre working with Spandex. So, that, in itself, is a very big challenge, said LeBlanc. And in other types of costuming, like Batman, he probably fabricated that whole armorwhich you have to have a talent for. Youve got to size [the costume], youre got to lay it up against your bodytake measurementscreate it to make it suit your purpose, said Cox. I actually bought my jacketI didnt make it. The reason why I chose to wear the Smallville Blur costume is because Smallville came out when we all needed Superman back in our lives. Lois and Clark had been off the air for a couple years, we had the whole tragedy of 9/11...we needed a Superman in our livesand when Smallville came out as an origin storyas a fresh new startit actually introduced a whole new generation to Superman. Now, I think, as a series, its very important for mythology for Superman. I really enjoyed the series, so I decided to just continue to wear the Superman outfit, said Romero. Ive been doing Batman for a couple of years, but I usually do Lobo the Bounty Hunter, in DC, and Im usually Lobo every year at the Metropolis festival. I have another Batman costume that was a Michael Keaton Batman from the original Batman movieI had that, so then I just made this one. Basically, I love making costumes. I make costumes for my sonits fun. The only thing I bought was the maskeverything else I got from thrift stores. The suit itself is a diving suit, and its painted in blackand then everything else, like [front of the costume], are just foam, put on a chest piece, and the belt is just a regular belt from a Batman suit. Other than thatI got my bootstheyre actually my Lobo boots Im wearing from my Lobo costume. This is really like shin guards for a hockey [player]painted blackput them on [legs of the costume]. Youve just got to use your imaginationsee what fits. said Escorcia.

LeBlanc enjoyed meeting Brandon Routh, Brandon Routh is actually from Iowa, which is where [Dennis and I are from] as well. We actually met him at DragonConreally nice guy. Wouldnt mind meeting Dean Cainhavent met him yet. Have met a couple of the other actors and actresses. Actually, [Colleen and I] are still looking forward to meeting Stacy Haiduk and Annette OToole, because Colleen does a lot of reference to her costume to resemble their characteristics as Lana. And, also, Im a Superman III fan, someeting Annette would be wonderful, said Chartrand. This year, I can actually say Ive met Dean Cain alreadyIve met Brandon RouthIve met Gerard Christopherobviously I never met Christopher Reeve when he was hereso I would say himso now I have to meet Tom Welling, said Egan. It would be Christopher Reeve. If I had had a chance to meet Christopher ReeveI grew up watching his movies, and that was one of my big inspirations growing upwas watching Christopher Reeve as Superman, said Romero. Christopher Reeve tooI grew up watching him tooI met Brandon RouthI met Dean CainChristopher Reevehe was Superman when I was a kidwhen I was in my teenshe was the one. I remember when Superman: the Movie came out, I went to see it like 9 times that yearMy girlfriend got tired of itshe went like 3 times with memy friends went like 3 times with methen I went by myself 3 more times. The effects were great for that time. The flying scenes were great. To me, it was amazingit was amazing said Escorcia.

In regard to actors/actresses were inspirational, For costuming actor/actressprobably Linda Carter. She was the first Wonder Woman. She was the first female superhero that you really saw on TVthat was a superhero. She was always strong, and fighting the bad guysand very graceful. She would probably have to be the first inspiration said LeBlanc. For me, the inspiration is still Christopher Reeve and Gerard Christopher. In meeting Gerard Christopher, and recently meeting John Shea and Dean Cain, Ive also had more appreciation for every actor, because, in their own right, theyve inspired in their own way. They have their own story, from their timeline, of their version, of their universe, and you can learn something from each version of it, said Chartrand. From the Superman III moviesI liked [Annette OToole] then, but when I started watching her in Smallvilleover a 10-year periodI dont even know that I can say whether shes a better Lana or a better Martha Kentshes still the same person to me, said Egan. I actually did meet the gentleman that was in the Superboy seriesback in the 80s. I met him, and he was a very nice fellow. Mine was 1966 BatmanIm talking about way backAdam West wasbig, big hero of mine. It was campy, but it gave you something to come home to, to think aboutlive a little in the fantasy world, said Cox. I loved the way Christopher Reeve was able to split Superman and Clark Kent into two different characters. To me, hes actually the only actorthat Ive seenthat was able to put such a difference between Clark Kent and Superman. Brandon Routh did a real good job, but he was really acting off of Christopher Reeves characters. Christopher Reeve has been my biggest inspiration throughout life, and Tom Welling did a great job, toobutChristopher Reeve is the one... said Romero. Christopher Reeve would be the one againhe was a great actor, cause he not only did Superman, he did other movies. I loved his other movies that he did.. Somewhere In TimeHe did a couple of comedieshe was a great actorto me, he was a good actor, said Escorcia.

If they could tell the actor/actresses that they admired anything, it would be, Thank you for portraying the characterthe way they portrayed the characters was what inspired all of us, said LeBlanc. If I had to talk to the people that have inspired methe only one would be Christhat I havent metthat I havent said anything tothank you for playing the role, and setting the exampledont forget how many people look up to you, and thank you for staying so humbling, because this is a role that will honor you for the rest of your life, if you can appreciate it, said Chartrand. I would say Thank you. Saying Thank you to [Margot Kidder] was very life-fulfilling, said Romero. [Christopher Reeve] Thanks for being the characterit made [the flying thing] a little more believablethanks for inspiring said Escorcia.

If they could change anything about any Superman incarnation, Regarding the Man of Steel, it was a great movieI loved it to death, but Im a traditionalist. I was born in the 80s, and I tend to retract back to that decade, because thats where Im from. I would bring up Henrys suit to a sky beautiful teal blue, keep the texturethats finebut Id give him a pair of decents, and have him wear a pair of trunks, said Chartrand. LeBlanc agrees with the addition of the trunks to the suit. I would change the armor in the new 52, said Romero.

LeBlanc thinks that she will most be remembered at this years Smallville SuperFest, Probably for the interactions with the children and the other people, and basically taking the pictures. Making sure the community can benefit from a great opportunity, and keeping them happy and interested in doing it over and over and over, cause we want to come over and over and over, said Chartrand. This place has a small-town feel to it, and ever since I came here last yearthe way they welcomed usit makes me want to come back and continue doing the same character over and again, because we started off doing these two last year, and even with the growth and the extra characters and everything, I think Im always going to want to do this character, so I think I willprobably be known [for this character], said Egan. Sharing the fun with everybody, said Cox. Its keeping the new generation involved in Superman, and even getting the older generations [to] come back to Supermanor even educate them on whats going on with Superman nowadays, because not a lot of the older generation knowsIve had older people come up to meWho are you?you explain to the older generation whats going on with Superman nowadays, and then the newer generationyou just keep em involved, said Romero. Its just great to keep the icon goingeverybody knows him. Its great to see everyone come out to enjoy it, said Escorcia.

LeBlancs favorite series is, Probably the animated Super Friends would have to be my favorite. It wasnt strictly Superman-related, but it was the Super FriendsBatman, Superman, Green Lantern, and they all worked together as a team to defeat the bad guysthe villains. For me, Im still a big fan of the Superboy series, but Colleen has been bringing me into the world of Dean Cain, because shes a very big Lois and Clark fan, and thats become a second favorite, said Chartrand. Smallville the TV series is what got me back into this from the get-go. So, that is probably always going to be one of my favorite series. Even within that whole 10-year storyline, over the past year, Ive gotten more interested in where they bring in the Justice Society of Americain season 10, and the JLA characters, and they start bringing them together, and I never knew about JSA before, andwatching Smallville I learned about Green Arrowwhen they brought the two teams togetherthe guys from the [past] and the guys from the presentIm starting to learn a little bit more about that world now, and thats very interesting to me, said Egan. Justice League, the Animated Series, and Justice League: Ultimate Animated Series, and Batman: Animated Series, and Superman: Animated Series, said Cox. My favorite story arc is the Doomsday, The Death of Superman. At the timeI was a kid when it came outat the time, it was just so mind-blowing that Superman could actually die. It was my favoriteits just such a great story arc within Supermans timeline, said Romero. The Superboy series in the 80s was goodI liked itit came out right after the Superman moviesit had something for the kids at that time. My sonwas like 10, 11 at the time, and he loved it, said Escorcia.

Of all the episodes of Smallville, LeBlancs favorite is, The JSA episodes, that they brought Hawkman and Dr. Fate, and all of the JSA backthose were favoriteswe actually recorded those specific episodes by themselves. I would have to say my favorite Smallville episode was when he first encountered the Fortressbecause the way they wrote itthey just had this essence of This is what Krypton would of looked like, and he was awestruck. Tom Welling did a really good job in that episode, of just really embracing it. Its a tie between that one, and the one where Dr. Swann also appeared. Both of those really just caught him off guard, because hes thinking, Ok, this is what Ive been waiting forthis is the truth that I wanted, and hes sitting there just going, Its beautiful! said Chartrand. I have a few different favorites as last year[since Power]its the one [Fortune] where Zatana puts a spell on the wine when they all go out to celebrateLois bridal party, and they all end up all overits so funny. It just takes the middle of everything going down thats so serious, and they just had to throw something comical in therejust for some relief, said Egan. Of course, I liked the one when he met Dr. Swannthats the turning point in the storylineI liked the finaleI liked the way they ended the seriesyou didnt get to see Tom Welling dressed up as Superman, but thats the whole serieshe wasnt dressed up as Superman. You knew he was, though, at the end. Theres a lot of flaws to itIll admit itbut I did like the finalefor Smallville, said Romero. I liked the first episodescause it was just coming into itbrand newwith a different take on Smallvilleswitched things aroundI like the way that they made the first episodeit was goodthey put the chain on himmade him into a scarecrow, and put the S on himeverything fitthe S on his chestso I like the first one, and I like the one when the Flash appeared, said Escorcia.

If they could be any other characters, [Dennis and I] are planning to doHawkman and Hawkgirl. Thats the planthats the challenge, said LeBlanc. One day, I would love to create a girl version of Green Arrow. I still want to have it look exactly like the Justin Hartley look, but something like that in a feminine style, and be a femaleand do a female exact of that, said Egan. Coming up, Im re-doing a Superboy suitSuperboy Connor Kent my favorite costume of that Superboy is the Billie Idol onethats always been one of my favorite suitswhenever I get a chance to update it, because Ive worn the costume so muchI always enjoy it. Im starting from scratch again. So, its always a fun project, said Chartrand. Romero said that he would probably be the Flash. Escorcia will always be Lobo.

The attraction that Chartrand is most looking forward to at Smallville SuperFest this year is, This whole weekend. The idea ofthis is the weekend that brought me and Colleen together. This is our weekend to celebratewe make this all about us. This is what got us to fall in lovewere here to thank everyone for helping us do that. This is their second year in, so I think thateach year, even since last yeartheyve grownan extra couple blocks of new things that they haveI think it would be neatto seethe expansion of the Mini-ComicCon [Super Mini-Con]they have some art theretheres a story there. Sosee more of those things, and I think that that would also bring in some more business for the town, said Egan. The whole celebration of Supermanthats why I came herebeing able to dress up and be with people that are like-minded is just so greatits just a good way to celebrate the man, the myth, the legend, said Romero. I love the celebrationin MetropolisI love going thereits excitingits freewalking aroundmeeting peopleshowing up in costumemake kids happyjust the whole atmosphere said Escorcia.

Itll be good to have [Man of Steel] on DVDand to hopefully get an extended version. Instead of 2-and-a-half hours, itll be 5 hours, maybe, said Mayor Hausler.

For Smallville SuperFest 2014, Romero would like to see an art competition. I like the idea of having some sort of a well-known guest that people would want to come and see and meet and be able to talk to, and basically interact with, said LeBlanc. I would like to see them starting to work on the guests for each festival. Unlike Metropolis, they go crazy and fill a whole hotel with guests. They should just focus on one guest, that way, there isnt a level of competition, make the guest always have a relation to Smallville. Itll bring a local interest, because, Hey, this is a guest that filmed something with Smallville. It doesnt have to be Man of Steel, it doesnt have to be the show, it doesnt have to be Superboy, it can be Smallville from the comicsjust have a guest thats well-known, that the fans recognize fromSmallville. Anything from the idea [of Smallville]. Thatd be fun to see, said Chartrand.

I really enjoyed [Man of Steel]. Its bringing a whole new generation into the Superman culture and the Superman beliefs, said Romero. Whenever someone has an opportunity to show what theyre made of, or say what they think, or if they want to try something new...they should always do it. Zack Snyder and Christopher Nolanthey obviously wanted to show that Plano, obviously, was Smallville. They took advantage of something that they could show the world. The fact that people are so brave enough, and theyre bold, and they want to expedite their beliefs, and let everyone knowpeople need to be brave, and just say, this is my opinion, take it or leave it. The fact that everyones embracing it, and people are actually listening to everyones opinions, I can say that mankind is evolving a little bit. Our opinions of getting intelligent, and how to growwere thinking a lot better than we used to, said Chartrand. We were kind of overwhelmed by the amount of time, effort, and the detail and the artistic ability of just the folks that were working on the set to create the buildings that they builtwhen they built the 7-11 gas station, for example, I was being told the story by our local Catholic priest that he was being visited by a priest from a different cityand he actually pulled into the 7-11 to get gas, and he was late for one of the services they were having at the churchhe pulled into the gas station, they told him it wasnt real. Just the amount of people that worked on the set, and their artistic ability, and the way that Warner Brothers wanted everything right down to the exact detail that they envisionedthat was really an interesting part of the whole process.

We appreciate anyone that would come to townwe invite anyone from, not only the United Statesweve had people here from different countrieswe want to show off our citywere very proud of our cityI feel we are like Smallville U.S.A. We just invite people to come to town and see everything, said Mayor Hausler.

Congratulations to Charlee Chartrand (Superboy) and Colleen Egan (Lana Lang) on their engagement at Smallville SuperFest 2013!