MISSION STATEMENT

Holy Grail Multiverse™ is a multi-media & fandom convention created by fans for fans as a platform for insight, entertainment, and community. Composed of fandom and seven categories called Holy Grails, HGM is for fans of comics and anime, cosplay, alternative history narratives, aliens, gaming, robotics, mind & body wellness, space exploration, mysticism, vehicle customization, and more!

HGM CON21 Where Fandom Meets Future Tech is an IRL Saturday-Sunday event at the Palm Springs Convention Center featuring vendors, a gaming arena, special guests, featured cosplayers, a cosplay competition, speaker sessions and panels, artistry contests, a VIP evening with HGM's special guests, and more! Find Your Fandom at #HGMCON21 

The Holy Grails:

• Ancient Man
• Gaming
• Robotics
• Meta Mind & Body
• Outer Space
• Mystic Arts by HGM
• The Seventh Grail

There's also art and fandom:

• Cosplay Continuum
• Cosplay Cars
• Statue Con (details coming soon)

Mythologically, The Holy Grail was a specific item, but now we use the term as a metaphor for a thing that is being earnestly pursued or sought after. Here's why we think each of our Grails qualify. 

In the case of Ancient Man, we have been earnestly pursuing insight about our origins since we started asking "why". Without the intellect and resilience of our ancestors, we would not be here today, so it is out of respect for who they actually were, and respect for our innate curiosity, that we study the clues they left behind. With technologies, like LiDAR, uncovering new evidence all the time, we believe the study of our origins begs to be called a Grail.

Games have been a way to learn, pass the time, and connect with friends since we were drawing lines in the dirt. By the year 2023, gaming will be a 200 billion dollar industry. We love our games, and we think gaming is an integral part of being human. From peek-a-boo to Dungeons & Dragons to virtual reality, games and game theory underpin our every day existence so strongly that it would be difficult to imagine reality without games. Gaming at it's heart is about the earnest pursuit to surmount the obstacle, to prove one's medal, to be the best. 

The quest for automation and robotics--by which we extend our reach, efficacy, and efficiency--is ancient and ongoing. Not surprisingly, on the subject of robotics and AI in ancient times the World Economic Forum quoted Gods and Robots: Myths, Machines, and Ancient Dreams of Technology by Adrienne Mayor: “Historians usually trace the idea of automata to the Middle Ages, when humans first invented self-moving devices, but the concept of artificial, lifelike creatures dates to the myths and legends from at least about 2,700 years ago..." 

Some researchers believe it's possible to go even farther back! Although no devices have been recovered, there is evidence that certain elements of megalithic construction would have been impossible without the use of core drills and other such advanced stone-working devices, many of which may have been automated. As we learn about what the ancients left behind, the evidence “cries out from the rocks” themselves. For HGM, Robotics is a Grail because it remains a quintessential part of our advancement as a species, allowing us to discover the mysteries of outer and inner space.

Finally, the intrinsic substance of mind and body qualify it to be a Grail. Meta Mind & Body will explore mental and physical wellness, new developments in pharmacology, psychology, philosophy, and so much more.  

While Galileo Galilei was among the first to use a telescope to observe the sky, according to Sethian Gnosticism, Seth's decedents are credited with the discovery of what we now call astrology and astronomy. Whatever the case, decoding the stars and our place within them has always been of utmost importance, and with the advent of the space age, our relationship to the stars has only expanded! It goes without saying that space exploration is now one of our highest priorities as a species, both for survival and adventure, and the Grail of Outer Space is here for it! 

For many, "Mystic Arts" conjures images of Hogwarts, the upcoming Marvel's Masters of the Mystic Arts, or the paranormal in general, but the mystic arts of ancient times were a unique blend of Gnosticism, Hermeticism, Animism, Shamanism, Astrology, and more. In the ways and words of the Ancients we find wisdom that can help us today, and for this reason, Mystic Arts is a Grail.

Please stand by. The Akashic record is downloading...

There will also be live art, exhibitors, and competitions in the following categories:

• Cosplay
• Cosplay Cars (refers to decorating a vehicle)
• Statue Artistry

Completed Competitions

• Cosplay Continuum (May-June 2020)
• Cosplay Cars by HGM (August-September 2020)

Upcoming Competitions

• Statue Con

Model A: Multiple Grails

In model A, a Saturday & Sunday HGM convention would feature multiple Grails. For example, we envision an exhibit floor filled with cutting-edge robotics and gaming tech by some of these companies and these companies. Also on the exhibit floor, purveyors of cosplay paraphernalia, health and wellness companies, and statue creators and vendors like Speculative Fiction, XM, or Sideshow. Maybe there's a robot war in front of the venue, and a featured VR demo in the lobby! We see seminars by Graham Hancock and Brien Foerster examining clues to a history of civilization long forgotten, or intentionally hidden. We see a cosplay competition, a statue competition, and an array of Cosplay Cars displayed in the vicinity of the Palm Springs Convention Center. There will be concessions by Savoury's for the duration, and maybe an exhibitor reception on Friday night, also by Savoury's. There's something for everyone at this public fandom convention! 

Model B: One Grail

Model B focuses on just one of the Grails. In a future where HGM is wildly successful, there could be multiple Model B type conventions per year, in multiple cities. Model B works when there is overwhelming support for one of the Grails. Take gaming, for example. If there is interest from a myriad of gaming companies, the exhibit floor could be filled with nothing but gaming tech. Seminars and panels would be given by leaders in the gaming industry, developers, designers, artists. Cosplay filling the venue would be characters from Square Enix' Final Fantasy, Diablo IV Return to Darkness by Blizzard, or Cyberpunk 2077 by Projekt Red, and statues on display would be characters from games.  

Savoury's Good Earth Cuisine, the parent company of Holy Grail Multiverse, is the exclusive food and beverage provider for the Palm Springs Convention Center. Because of this, we felt it made sense to make our first home The Palm Springs Convention Center.