ATX Television Festival Day-by-Day

Austin, Texas, is not only the home of great, live music and surprisingly good beer, it also the home of the yearly ATX Television Festival – a place where you can get a behind-the-scenes look at Hollywood’s finest TV shows, both new and old! Every year, fans from all over the world gather together to celebrate their favourite TV shows, stars, writers and producers. This year, Sappleby.com reported live from the festival in honour of the highly anticipated “Roswell Reunion,” 15 years after the show premiered.

The 2014 ATX Television Festival is now officially over and after four memorable, fun-packed days, Sappleby.com left this laid-back city with plenty of exclusive media footage and enjoyable interviews. Kudos to the organizers for providing a variety of unforgettable moments, and an experience fans and celebrities alike will have cherished.

Relive the Roswell Reunion and my personal ATX Festival experience with my daily short notes:

Dear Diary

5th June (Thursday)
The weather in Austin, Texas in two words: Hot and hotter.
Picked up the weekend badge and received an ATX Festival goody bag.
Goody bag included: Brochure, pins, and some snacks.
Visited the Netflix Press Lounge and enjoyed the evening sun on the balcony.
Thanks to ATX Festival for keeping everyone caffeinated with free coffee in the press lounge.
Met Roswell fans that are also frequent visitors of Sappleby.com.
Thanks for all the kind support and lovely words.
Attended the opening night party at Maggie Mae’s rooftop for drink specials.
Best moment of the day: Getting free drinks at the opening night party!

6th June (Friday)
Attended the Revenge panel at the ATX Festival.
Shiri’s former co-star, Nick Wechsler, as well as Roswell writers Gretchen J. Berg and Aaron Harberts, were all on hand for the event to answer fan questions.
Bumped into Roswell creator Jason Katims and his wonderful wife while leaving the hotel.
Went to the Friday Night Lights screening in the San Jose Hotel parking lot at the ATX Festival.
Met Life Unexpected creator Liz Tigelaar during the outdoor event.
Reached the apex of TV nerdiness.
A little Friday nights love for Life Unexpected and Cate Cassidy.
Liz Tigelaar: Creative mastermind behind many TV shows + awesome personality.
Liz also mentioned that Shiri is in Austin shooting her new movie.
Best moment of the day: Having a chit-chat with Liz Tigelaar.

7th June (Saturday)
Working. Working. Working.
Prep work for the Roswell press conference on Sunday.
One day to go. Starting to get nervous.
Roswellians gathered at Hut’s Hamburgers for a fan meet-up in the evening.
Fans played trivia from the Roswell Pop Quiz book for alien-themed prizes while munching on burgers.
Fan Surprise: The ATX Festival arranged for Nick Wechsler to stop by.
Plenty to smile about. The star was in great spirits as he received his fan-made “Thank You” book.
It was touching to watch all the fans’ excitement over it all.
Nick patiently signed everything from flyers to t-shirts and posed for many pictures with his fans.
He gave free hugs to everyone who attended. Twice.
Great gesture. Great guy.
Best moment of the day: Nick crashing the Roswell fan meet-up by serving the fans fries.

8th June (Sunday)
Rise and Shine: Start of the press conference at Maggie Mae’s around 11:00 a.m.
Announcement that Jason Behr is the surprise guest of the panel.
He arrived one day before, with co-star Majandra Delfino.
Brendan Fehr talked about peeing in his pants on the set after Jason Behr dared him to.
Shiri acknowledged the devotion of Roswell Fans.
Quote: “I remember a woman came to set and she had the hand print tattooed on her stomach.”
Start of the Roswell panel at 11:30 a.m.
Fast passes for the panel had been sold out within minutes.
Panel began with a screening of the pilot episode.
Screening was followed by a Q&A. Moderator: Nerdist’s Ben Blacker.
Shiri listed the pilot as her favourite episode.
She originally auditioned for both the roles of Maria and Liz.
Nick Wechsler left the panel earlier due to another TV convention in Monte Carlo.
Googled: Monte Carlo is in the Principality of Monaco, which is located on the French Riviera.
Last Question: “I just got in from New Jersey and I’m a huge fan of the show. Do you believe in aliens?”
Answers:

Majandra: Yes.
Brendan: No.
Shiri: Yes, there was a recent and very convincing Huffington Post article
Jason: Yes.

It was so dark in the back of the theatre no one realized it was Jersey Shore star and die-hard Roswell fan, Snooki.
Snooki released her own Roswell experience here.
Majandra Delfino and Jason Behr headed directly to the airport after the panel.
Fans were bummed as there was no meet and greet.
Patiently waiting Shiri fans were lucky.
They had the opportunity to meet the actress in front of the Stephen F. Austin hotel.
Thumbs up! Shiri made sure to greet, take pictures and sign autographs with every single fan there.
Noticed how gracious and sweet she was to her fans. Very fan-friendly.
After fulfilling every fan request, she took the time to do an exclusive one-on-one interview with Sappleby.com.
The interview will be released in the coming weeks.
Reminiscing: We love that girl. Shiri is great.
Best moment of the day: Best. Day. Ever.

Days in Pictures

Please make sure to visit Katrin’s amazing website www.sappleby.com, leave your feedback and check back often because you don’t want to miss her interview with Shiri Appleby! – Lena