For those not lucky enough to visit San Diego Comic-Con in person, lurking forums and other places on the web during convention weekend for grainy cell phone footage of the latest and greatest movies is part of the unofficial Con experience.
That might not be the case this year. Director James Gunn, the man behind Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy and the upcoming Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, seems to imply in a recent Facebook post, that SDCC might be employing some new technology in order to prevent piracy during this year's convention. When asked when fans might see a glimpse of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, Gunn had this to say:
"Well, you might see something if you're in Hall H on July 23 with me and the Marvel panel," Gunn writes. "Or if someone secretly films that — which is less likely to happen because of new technology, but I still know sometimes happens — then you'll see it right after. If not then, it will be a short while."
It's unclear exactly what "new technology" Gunn is talking about, but perhaps he would be one to know, given that he will be in attendance and footage from his movie will be shown. Efforts have been made in recent years to prevent footage from Marvel, DC and other film panels from leaking, but almost always, something makes its way online. ComicsAlliance (via Comicbookresources) wildly speculates that SDCC might be using new Apple technology (or something similar) that could turn off user cell phones at any time, but that's pure speculation and seems like an unlikely scenario. What other methods might SDCC use to prevent fans from leaking "con only" footage? That remains to be seen.
The leaking of exclusive footage is a bit of a tradition, at this point. Oftentimes, footage aired during the show in the convention's legendary Hall H is never officially shown to the public, or if it is, it's usually months later. It's for that reason some fans go through such lengths to record and post the footage online for fellow fans unable to attend the show.
This year, it sounds like that might not happen, even if it's still unclear exactly how SDCC staff plan on completely preventing piracy. Instead, fans will simply have to be content with detailed descriptions of all the footage shown. At least that's something.
