Midsummer Scream took place this weekend and it was awesome. The 2018 Halloween and Horror Convention was held at the Long Beach Convention Center both Saturday and Sunday July, 28 and 29. I went both days, along with other King Halloween staff and we had tons of fun. This post will feature photos from the event along with photos of some items we purchased. Another Midsummer Scream post will show you where to get the great Halloween items we found and give you the business links so you can check out these great Halloween and horror shops for yourself.
What to do at Midsummer Scream
The 2018 Midsummer Scream had a huge turnout with long lines to get in. Once inside, there were a lot of things to do and it never felt over crowded inside the convention center. Attendees to Midsummer Scream could go to panels, movie screenings and workshops. There were also over a dozen horror experiences in the Hall of Shadows.
I really enjoyed the Six Flags Fright Fest experience because it was an open walk through experience with no line. We walked through it repeatedly both days of Midsummer Scream while traveling around the Hall of Shadows. The other experiences were much scarier, but the lines took a lot longer.
Midsummer Scream had a ton of unique Halloween items for sale all in one place. There were around 250 vendors with many creative and handmade items for Halloween and horror fans. Scroll down to the bottom of the page for photos of the cool stuff we bought in 2018 at the convention.
Midsummer Scream Creatures
There were a lot of festive people dressed up and walking around the conference both days. In fact, you could actually watch body make-up being applied at booths and then see the monsters walking around later in the day. Below is a picture of make-up being applied at the EI Transformation booth.
There were a couple creepy mummies walking around the event that did a great job creeping people out. The one in front walked slow and bent over with the gait of classic mummies.
A lot of creepy figures wandered around the Halloween and horror convention. Surprisingly, there were a few Krampus costumes present this year and they were all great. Here is one of them in the third box of the image below.
New Michael Myers Mask
Fans of the Halloween franchise know about the new Halloween movie coming out in October 2018. If you aren’t familiar, check out the trailer and our quick write up about it here. Big news about the new movie is the updated Michael Myers mask.
Many people have already preordered the mask which is set to be released around September or October. We were lucky enough to get a good look at the mask while at the Midsummer Scream convention.
Trick or Treat Studios had the mask and a live Michael Myers at the Halloween and horror convention. We were also able watch an interview about the new movie and the featured mask. As you can see from the photos, the mask is based on the old Halloween mask but has cool aging effects.
It’s a definite improvement for a franchise that has struggled with mask consistency throughout the making of the Halloween films.
Hall of Shadows
Midsummer Scream is know for its huge Hall of Shadows area. This year the Hall of Shadows, also called the Dark Zone, was over 75,000 square feet of fun. Getting pictures can be difficult because the entire zone is shrouded in darkness, so there are only a few good spots where pictures show up well. (Unless you want to be the annoying person using a camera flash.)
The Reign of Terror Haunted House had a killer clown photo opportunity set up for fans.
Wicked Pumpkin Hollow had an amazing Halloween display set up in the Hall of Shadows. There were classic Halloween elements and tons of jack-o-lanterns. To see a short video with the full display, check out Wicked Pumpkin Hollow’s Facebook. The video is posted on July 28,2018. You can also see the display in Sherman Oaks, California this October.
This huge wall banner by Sinister Pointe was hard to miss while traveling around the Hall of Shadows. This California haunt is sure to be terrifying for Halloween fans near Orange County this year.
Cool Stuff at Midsummer Scream
The photos below are a random collection of fun Halloween items from the convention.
Dreadful Little Things by Megan takes old dolls and makes them look really cool for fans of Halloween and horror. You can check out more of her creations on her Facebook page.
This awesome creature was created by Imaginerick Studio. Fans took fun pictures with him and other Imagine Rick creatures all weekend.
Midsummer Scream Souvenirs
There was no way I could be surrounded by all this Halloween paraphernalia and not bring some home. Below is a quick summary of all the items King Halloween staff members purchased from Midsummer Scream this year. There will be another post with more details and links to find items for yourself.
Also, we did not receive any deals, free items, etc. as payment or trade to mention products. We purchased everything ourselves and are mentioning them because they are awesome.
Check out our Midsummer Scream souvenir post for more close-ups of our fun Halloween items and the name of vendors selling each one.
Next year’s Midsummer Scream is expected to be even bigger than this year, so check it out if your are in the area. You can bet we will be there again!