Danimal Cannon

Danimal Cannon is a composer and sound designer for video games, film, and commercials from Buffalo, NY. His masterfully crafted compositions have been featured in dozens of video game titles as well as being featured in work for Pokemon, E3, and Amazon. He is well known for his elaborate chiptune compositions, enthralling electronic beats, and supersonic guitar shredding.

Members Only

Members Only is an Atlanta-based party band that plays nothing but hits and can keep your event on their feet all night long! We feature 2 lead singers (male and female) and a young, energetic group of players that will make your event unforgettable!

Members Only will perform Saturday 6/21 at our ’80s Prom Event

Atlanta Wrestling Entertainment

Founded in 2014, Atlanta Wrestling Entertainment has grown into the wildest night in Atlanta nightlife. Featuring monthly events, an online community, and philanthropic projects, AWE is the greatest entertainment community in the South.

Live wrestling matches will be hosted in the evenings:
Friday 6/20 @ Time TBD
Saturday 6/21 @ Time TDB

1UP Comedy

Producing Atlanta’s best comedy shows at alternative venues throughout the city since 2012, 1UP Comedy is happy to bring the laughs to the Southern-Fried Gaming Expo with 2 1-hour stand-up sets featuring some of the city’s best comedians.

This event is intended for mature audiences. Viewer discretion is advised.

Friday Night @ 10PM:
1. Zain Sharif
2. Gabbie Watts
3. Joel Byars
4. Wellington Juku

Zamir Stills

Zamir Stills is an Atlanta-based music composer and songwriter by way of Washington, DC. Always being an avid fan of a wide range of music, he strings together influences in his works that range from electronic to jazz to orchestral. No matter the point of influence, Stills is able to display his own unique personality in his songs. Zamir also works as a DJ and displays his eclectic musical taste with his sets.

Zamir is very well-known for his remixes and covers of music from video games and anime. April 2024 saw the release of his first full-length album, “ZGM, Vol. 1”, a video game music cover project with colorful reimaginations of songs from “Pokémon”, “Guilty Gear”, and many other series. Fans of the various series this project pulls from have praised the album for tastefully paying homage to the originals while ushering in Zamir’s signature vibrant sounds. In May 2023, Stills released his first rap EP, “Character”, which sees him assume the persona, MEANRUSE. The project is drawing praise from critics and fans alike, likening the lyricism to MF DOOM and the production to Björk

Outside of music, Zamir is also known for his love of video games, especially fighting games and RPGs. He regularly competes and commentates at fighting game tournaments, where he once actually earned a DJ gig from winning tournaments for multiple games!

Space Knife

Space Knife is an Atlanta based synth rock act. He’s heavily inspired by ’80s pop and new wave. He’s been making Space Knife music for the last 12 years and has had music featured in Stranger Things.

Ian Deaton

Atlanta film composer Ian Deaton is inspired by classic synth punk bands like The Screamers and Suicide and filmmakers like Dario Argento and William Friedkin. Having played in several punk bands (Blame Game, Dasher, Knaves Grave etc.) from the late 90s onward Deaton eventually sought the use of synthesizers, sequencers and drum machines to achieve the sounds he was searching for. Now with experience in both the film and music industries in Atlanta and its actual working realities he attempts to exorcise the good and the bad through a collection of synth punk sounds and convey kinetic energy to the body.

For fans of Berlin, The Units and The Spits.

Synthetica

SYNTHETICA is a Synthpop / Synthrock band from Atlanta. Formed in mid-2023, the emergent sound influenced thename, and SYNTHETICA was born.

Ross Henderson – Vocals, Keys
Eric Sebastian – Guitars
Thomas Decker – Drums
Greg Oler – Bass

Smoochyface

The Mummy Cats

Birmingham-based rock band.

Hyperspace

What do the Goonies, Chewbacca, and Star Trek’s The Borg all have in common? They’re all nerdy pop punk songs released by the Atlanta based band, Hyperspace!

Hyperspace is comprised of vocalist/guitarist Jason Kochis, drummer Ryan Paul, and bassist Kayvan Sarikhani who have been rocking out the southeast corner of the U.S. for a little over a decade.

The geeky rock trio has performed at large and small venues alike, specifically ATL’s Star Bar, Criminal Records, multigenre convention DragonCon, and even embarked on a tour through Alabama, Tennessee, North Carolina, and Florida.

In addition to live performances, Hyperspace has released 4 studio albums. Most recently, they celebrated their long-standing musical career with a remixed and remastered compilation album of their favorites, Retrograde.

Bad Leavers

Ska band from Atlanta.

Over Anna

Booty-shakin’ pop punk from ATL w/ a dash of emo.

Scott Innes

An award-winning radio personality and voice to over 30 Cartoons including Scooby Doo, Shaggy, and Scrappy Doo plus Fred Flintstone and Barney Rubble, Yogi Bear and Boo Boo Bear, Popeye, and many more, Scott is a man of many talents. Most recently, fans can hear Mr. Innes voice the title character of Spooky Pinball’s Scooby Doo pinball machine and see him as the ring announcer in the Zac Effron-starring film The Iron Claw.

Amy Birnbaum

Amy is a seasoned, bright, witty and warm voiceover actress with over 20 years of experience in animation, commercial, promotion, streaming and digital media.

She is best known for her work in anime, particularly as Kirby (Kirby: Right Back at Ya! ), Tea Gardner (Yu-Gi-Oh!), Charmy Bee (Sonic X), Max (Pokémon), and as the voice of the Boomerang network.

**Amy will be in attendance on Saturday only.**

Jeff Schine

Jeff has been an on-camera and voice actor for over 2 decades…with over 100 credits spanning film, television, commercial, animation, and video games. Of his many projects as a VA, he is best known for his role in “Marvels Avengers” as Capt. America, Javier Garcia in Tell Tales “The Walking Dead” and Chris Redfield and Carlos Olivera in the “Resident Evil” franchise.

Brett Wagner

Brett Wagner joins Spooky Pinball at Southern-Fried Gaming Expo. Brett was cast as Leatherface in the 2003 remake of “TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE”. Brett established and portrayed Leatherface for the first iconic kill in the movie with the sledge-hammer called the Kemper Kill, in addition to other scenes. Brett’s other horror and sci-fi credits include Don Coscarelli’s “JOHN DIES AT THE END”, “CHROMESKULL: LAID TO REST 2”, “THE CRAZIES” (2010) for which Brett received the cover of Fangoria Magazine! Brett also appeared on both “BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER” and “ANGEL”, in addition to over 100 other film and TV roles. Brett will be participating in full LEATHERFACE costume Celeb Photo-Ops at his booth in SFGE’s Main Gaming Hall (Galleria Hall D).

Bob Carter

Bob Carter is an independent film director & producer, professional Media Advisor, Voice Actor, Audio Director, and Voice Coach who has worked all over the world. He is known for voicing Ptah in Asgard’s Wrath 2 on the Meta Quest 3, Black Adam in Multiversus, the Street Fighter series, Mortal Kombat 9, Dragonball Z, Smite, Lifeless Planet, Saga of Sins, Destiny 2, & many other video games.

In addition to being an international broadcaster and music artist, (Cartersutra is Spotify Hit in Turkey), Bob has voiced many anime projects such as Fairy Tail, Dragonball Z, Full Metal Alchemist, Samurai 7, Blassreiter, and many other cartoon & anime series.

He has owned the Neighborhood Studio in Atlanta since 2016 where he proudly continues to help Aspiring Creatives become Working Creatives.

Annie Cox

Ana (Annie) Belle Cox is an Atlanta-based dancer, choreographer and cosplayer. Her favorite video game is Fallout: New Vegas. Ana has over ten years of theatre and costuming experience, but is currently studying Nutrition Science to surprise people who think she’s just a pretty face. If you enjoy high quality content, follow her on Instagram, Tiktok and Youtube: @annie_doyoucosplay

Steve Leininger

Steve Leininger was the engineer that created the TRS-80 in 1977, one of the first personal computers available. Steve is retired, but he has not run out of things to do. Growing up with undiagnosed ADD. and dyslexia, Steve would often be easily distracted (SQUIRREL!!) but did well in school because he had so many interests and a mom that fed those interests.

His current list of “things to do” include developing STEM presentations for elementary school students, being a mentor, maker, and board member for a makerspace in Colorado Springs, hiking the many trails in the Pikes Peak region, splitting wood for a firewood ministry in the mountain community up the pass from Colorado Springs, and orchestrating monthly training and resource meetings for leaders in the local Boys Scouts of America council.

A partial list of other interests include embedded computers, crafts, mechanisms, toys, woodworking, carving, cooking, musical instruments, science, and magic.

Retro Ralph

Meet Retro Ralph, the go-to guy for all things retro arcade gaming and pinball on YouTube. Ralph isn’t just about playing games – he’s all about preserving arcade culture. Whether he’s restoring classic cabinets, diving into the latest in arcade tech, or sharing insights from his role in the “Token Taverns” documentary produced by Bob Rose, he’s a true steward of the arcade scene.

His series “Chasing Nostalgia” takes you on a journey into the minds of collectors, exploring what drives them to hunt down their favorite pieces of arcade history. With his infectious enthusiasm and deep knowledge, Retro Ralph is keeping the spirit of arcade gaming alive and kicking for fans old and new alike.

Dwight Sullivan

Dwight has helped to design and develop pinball machines since 1989. Some of the highlights include: TERMINATOR 2, STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION, STERN’s PIRATES OF THE CARABIEN, GHOSTBUSTERS, GAME OF THRONES, STAR WARS, MANDALORIAN, and VENOM.

Dwight is also a board game enthusiast and game designer with a published game: Noblemen.

AshSaidHi

Ash is the queen of retro gaming. As an entertainer, host and broadcaster her mission is to share her passion for video games. She is driven to connect with her audience through heartfelt conversation and enthusiastic live streaming gameplay. Her main platform is Twitch but you can also find her across social media @AshSaidHi where she posts energetic, wholesome, and family friendly content.

Bobby Blackwolf

Bobby Blackwolf is the host of The Bobby Blackwolf Show, an Atlanta-based video game podcast and live stream, since 2005 and is the co-founder of the Voice of Geeks Network, a network of podcasts and streaming channels about geek culture. He has also hosted panels and events at conventions around the southeast, and has recently appeared as one of the hosts of the Games Done Quick charity speedrunning marathons. He peaked as a gamer when he was a city semfinalist in the 1990 Nintendo World Championships – which is actually a wild story.

Emceemur

Emceemur is a YouTube gaming creator with a decade of experience and an avid video game hunter/collector since the late 80s. As host of The Emceemur Show, Mur takes audiences along for “the hunt” and takes looks at both games & hardware, as well as what’s happening with them in today’s market.

Brandon Blocker

Brandon Blocker loves movies, games and comics of all types. He’ll be hosting “Video Game Name That Tune.”

Abby ADOS

Abby ADOS is a veteran award winning cosplayer who has been part of the Atlanta cosplay community since 2006. She loves using her wide variety of knowledge to teach the newer cosplay community, often running panels on how to get started and basic cosplay skills as well as panels more focused on armor and props. She’s excited to bring her knowledge and experience to once again run the cosplay contest for Southern Fried Gaming Expo again this year and hopes to see you all there.

Charles McFall

Welcome to the world of Charles McFall, affectionately known as the “Rock God of Podcasting.” With a passion for podcasting and a relentless drive to make a positive impact, Charles has carved a unique path in the digital media landscape, captivating audiences with his energy, authenticity, and insightful conversations.

Charles’s podcasting journey began in 2004 when he discovered the brand-new medium called Podcasting. Inspired by the creative possibilities, he started recording segments for a show called “2 Guys 1 Brain” during his downtime as a Paramedic. Charles continued to hone his craft, producing high-quality content and several successful podcasts.

As an experienced creator, Charles brings his tech-savviness, storytelling expertise, and an unwavering belief in the power of connection to his podcasts. His ability to ask probing questions and actively listen allows him to uncover the stories that resonate with his audience. Through his shows, he inspires and motivates, reminding others of their potential and their ability to overcome obstacles.

Beyond podcasting, Charles is the Director of the Digital Media Track for Dragon Con. Through his involvement, he has contributed to the growth and evolution of the track, expanding it from a podcasting-focused endeavor to a platform that celebrates all forms of digital creation.

David Greelish

David has studied computer history and collected vintage computers for over 30 years now. At one time or another, he has owned almost every significant American personal computer as part of his collection.

David also recently completed production of a feature-length documentary film about the history of the Apple Lisa computer. The film covers the Lisa’s influence on creating the Macintosh, as well as establishing the foundation for our modern personal computing paradigm.

David was also the Founder of the Atlanta Historical Computing Society, and first Director/Co-Founder of the Vintage Computer Festival Southeast.

AnEternalEnigma

AnEternalEnigma is a full-time Twitch streamer and online content creator! He has been streaming since 2011 and a Twitch Partner since 2017. Enigma brings together all sorts of elements like speedruns, horror games, sports games, live giveaways, Marbles races, and just about everything else. You never really know what will happen on his streams, which truly live up to the moniker of Enigma!

Fernando Aragon

Fernando is a life-long gamer with a passion for education. He works at Gwinnett County Public Library as supervisor of the Learning Labs. The Learning Labs at GCPL serve as innovative hubs dedicated to providing creative resources to the community. In 2022, GCPL expanded their offerings to include Game Development workshops and has hosted annual Game Jams. In addition to working full-time at GCPL, Fernando is a part-time instructor at Georgia State University and Gwinnett Technical College teaching a wide range of Game Design and Development courses.

Ken Cromwell

Ken Cromwell joined the pinball industry in 2020 as the Marketing and Communications Specialist at Jersey Jack Pinball. He has helped in the roll out of three games at JJP (Guns N’ Roses, Toy Story 4, and The Godfather) and is the host of the Jersey Jack Pinball Podcast. Ken’s pinball collecting days started in 2006 with the purchase of an Earthshaker pinball machine. Ken is also the co-creator of the popular Special When Lit Podcast.

Cartidgeblowers

cartridgeblowers aka Carty B has been a variety streamer on Twitch for over five years. He is known for hosting at over ten Games Done Quick events and for his series “SNES in Excess,” where he plans to beat every game in the Super Nintendo library. Catch him at www.nimtemdo.com!

Lady J the Sith

A gamer for so long she can’t remember a time she wasn’t gaming. Whether its on PC with Oregon Trail to Diablo III, or a console with Mrs. PAC man to Pokemon Sword, and everything in between, she has been classified as the “weird girl” “rather unusual”, “the cool aunty”, “kidult”, etc. and wears every one of those labels proudly. Latest obsessions are Bayonetta series, Resident Evil 6 Mortal Kombat, Pokemon series, Animal Crossing, Legend of Zelda Breath of the Wild and Resident Evil: Village

Michael Fox

Michael Fox has been in Sales and Business Development at Jersey Jack Pinball for the past 3 years. Prior to his current role, he worked at Pinball Life for 11 years managing the parts department. Michael has been collecting, repairing and restoring pinball and arcade machines over the past 25 years. At Jersey Jack Pinball, Michael works with existing and new distributors as well as representing JJP at some of the national pinball shows.

M.G. Brown

M.G. Brown has been writing Site Reviews, Coin-Op Show Reviews and the feature “Pinspotting”, including photo and video content, for Pinball News since 2016.

He is a past employee of Bally/Midway and was a past manager of a Bally’s Aladdin’s Castle location at West Main Mall in Kalamazoo MI.

He was formerly employed as an IT software developer and project manager by Sparton Electronics (Navy Contractor) of Jackson, MI, and Abbott Laboratories International Division (and spin-off companies).

Ian O’Donnell

Ian O’Donnell is a Voice Actor, Accent / Dialect Coach & Game Show Host, based in Atlanta, Georgia. Ian has worked in a variety of Voiceover genres, but his heart is in VO that involves characters & accents! |

Recent industry recognition includes being nominated for Best Male Performance in Animation (2024 One Voice Awards) and Best Overall Performance in Television Narration (2023 One Voice Awards). He also received the ‘Best Voice Acting’ award in the VO / Animation battle, hosted by ASIFA, the International Animated Film Association. And he was a Top 3 finalist in the 2022 SIEGE Game Design competition, providing character voice, casting voices and designing & creating the game itself. |

Ian has twice been honored to represent the Voiceover industry as a Guest Speaker for the International Creativity Conference. His speaking & presentation engagements also include: OneVoice USA, VO Atlanta, DragonCon, SFGE, GGDA (Georgia Game Developers Association), SIEGE, Women in Animation, CONjuration, ASIFA, and more. |

Mr. O’Donnell has voiced characters for video games, as well as full-length animation and audio drama, including portraying characters in the Jurassic World franchise. He has also done voice matching for feature film. In addition to character voices, Ian is known for versatility and believability with a wide range of accents and dialects. |

Ian’s background also includes live theater, acting & performing in stage productions, including music performance, stage combat, and fight choreography. He is a musician and singer, with decades of live performance and studio recording experience. He is also an Emcee & Game Show Host at conventions including DragonCon, ASIFAC, CONjuration, SHAOCON, VO Atlanta & OneVoice USA, at professional in-person conferences, and at numerous corporate events. |

Last, but not least, Ian has been a long-time gamer (TTRPG, board games, pinball/console, etc.) and brings all of that experience, along with his theater background, as he returns to SFGE with his live, audience-interactive, improv Dungeons & Dragons game session, which was a huge hit last year & will no doubt be a ton of fun. :

Steve Resk

Steve Resk, a game designer, has transformed into the CEO of SRG Universe following the success of his creation, Supershow the game. Over the last decade, he has brought unparalleled passion and expertise to the realm of game design, overseeing the development of numerous groundbreaking projects. As a dedicated father of four, Steve collaborates closely with his team to introduce innovative products to the gaming industry, providing opportunities for many talented artists. His visionary approach to both creation and marketing has established his products and company as industry standouts. He believes that games can change lives and bring people together. Since inception of his company Steve has fostered the idea of “Playing it Forward” using games to help people and create an environment where competition comes second to community. He feels his proudest accomplishment is not the success of his products but seeing the positive impact gaming has had on people lives.

Travis Connell

Travis Connell is a long time GM and Twitch streamer. He primarily runs Pathfinder 1e and 2e but has experience with Dungeon Crawl Classics, Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay, Dungeons & Dragons, and other fantasy systems. He primarily streams Street Fighter, JRPGs, and and interesting games he’s eager to share.

Adam Connell

Adam is an archaeologist by trade but moonlights as a scholar of games of all kinds; video games, tabletop, or sports. He occasionally finds the time to organize his thoughts into long form videos you can find on YouTube under “Sharqodile”.

Sarah Shortcake

Sarah Shortcake is a cosplayer from Georgia. She has over 15 years’ experience as a seamstress and has created over 100 costumes for herself and others. Sarah is constantly inspired to take on new creative challenges from her favorite video games, anime, and movies. She prides herself on embellishments, intricate details, and clean construction.

Sarah Shortcake has won multiple Masters and Best in Show awards for her pieces. She strives to bring positivity to her local community by answering questions and sharing the latest progress on her current projects. As a self-taught seamstress, she believes sharing knowledge is foundational in keeping our hobby accessible and thriving. When she’s not sewing you can find her playing video games, reading, watching scary movies, or spoiling all of her cats.

Jess

Cosplayer, sprite artist, & plush maker.

Anna Rundbaken

Anna is an undergraduate student studying psycholinguistics, with a special interest in how language shapes the way we play and interact. When she isn’t at university, she takes care of her 4 guinea pigs: Muffin, Cheese, Noodle, and Miso. At this year’s expo, she’ll be speaking on two panels: one diving into the creative world of Terraria, and another on using linguistic insights to gain an edge in social deduction gameplay.

Regeta

Regeta is an Old school fan of videogames and anime. He also is avid con goer/cosplayer and a game developer enthusiast who working on a cosplay themed Rpg series!

Bruce Sheffer

Bruce Sheffer has been a TTRPG game master and CRPG player since 1980. He has written extensively for Tri Tac Games and is one of the founding hosts of Gaming on the Frontier Podcast.

Trey Csar

Trey Csar is relatively new to the pinball hobby, and began working on his homebrew machine, themed after the hit Nickelodeon cartoon Avatar the Last Airbender, in Summer 2023. In his paying job life, he helps lead a statewide education nonprofit in Florida that supports public school districts. He lives in Jacksonville with his wife, Sunny Gettinger, and their two school-aged children, Cort and Max, who are well on their way to also being pinball nerds.

Coffee Cat Cosplay

Coffee Cat Cosplay is a Georgia-based award winning cosplayer and seamstress who has been crafting for over 15 years. She has been a lifelong fan of video games, animation, film, and other aspects of pop culture and loves bringing those designs to life. She loves to create intricately designed costumes; the more complex the better! CoffeeCat also makes tutorials for many sewing techniques and enjoys talking with other cosplayers about the various aspects of crafting. Her passion for cosplay has brought her to many conventions around the States, judging and hosting panels at many of them. In the real world CoffeeCat works in healthcare and in her downtime she enjoys watching shows and playing video games in addition to crafting.

Ernie Silverberg

Ernie has always been interested in how things work and why they work that way. Once he found pinball (well found again, as his family had a machine when he was a kid), he was hooked. He has created 5 different custom pinball machines from scratch, is finishing the world’s biggest homebrew (bigger than Hercules), and selling kits to help people do their own DIY machines.

GXG-Jon

Jon Reddick is a well-credentialed nerd of the 80s, classic game history enthusiast, and technology geek. In 2017, he merged those interests into the creation of GenXGrownUp: a YouTube channel & weekly podcast that explores and celebrates the media, games, tech, toys, comics, and pop culture of yesterday and today through the eyes of Generation X’ers.

GXG-George

George Sumpter is a lifetime lover of all things geek. Born in 1971 (best year ever) most of George’s childhood was spent playing baseball or Atari 2600 with a smattering of school and social life in between. A huge pop culture trivia nerd, George is always ready with an insightful quip or story to entertain.

GXG-Mo

Mo grew up in New York City and, sometime in Junior High School, accepted his nerdism and today owns it proudly! He was that kid that played DnD and hit up the arcade with his friends and has since passed that love of the movies, music, books, and general awesomeness of the eighties to his kids!

Quinn Dillard

Quinn Dillard is a current student at the University of Georgia. She has extensive experience in role play games and has studied linguistics during her college career. She enjoys music, playing with her dog, and talking about gaming!

Kumalatte Cosplay

Kumalatte Cosplay is an Atlanta based cosplayer, maker, and lifelong nerd. In her 13 years of cosplay, she has brought over 100 characters from anime, video games, and television to life – with some of her costumes winning an award or two! Kuma’s work has been featured in national publications and has been a featured guest and panelist at several Southeastern cons and events. She aspires to become a well-rounded maker and hopes that her cosplay journey can inspire other cosplayers of color to become makers themselves. In addition to sharing her cosplay work online, Kuma runs her own small business, Kumalatte Creations, where she sells cosplay supplements and nerdy apparel, made and designed by herself.

Reece Moseley

Reece Moseley is a longtime fan of social deduction games and a self-proclaimed “retired” Among Us veteran turned Blood on the Clocktower devotee. An actor at heart, Reece was drawn to these games for the thrill of performance in bluffing, sleuthing, and savoring that final three-player showdown where tension fills the room. As a storyteller for BOTC for nearly three years, Reece blends immersive game design with theatrical flair, complete with live sound effects, lighting cues, and even a real gong to keep the vibes high and the town on edge.

ViceroyOfMonteCristo

Viceroy is someone who has taken an inordinate amount of time making sure that just people don’t care about a piece of media, doesn’t mean it shouldn’t be archived. An avid enthusiast of the “lesser-admired” genres, he has spent most of his life driving fake cars around in circles and is probably going to be good at it soon. Hopefully.

Greg Hirsch

Greg Hirsch is the Captain and Artistic Director of Chaos Theory Improv Team, as well as an Atlanta-based actor and comedian. Some of his recent credits include starring in and directing the play Jerry Finnegan’s Sister at Atlanta Workshop Players, leading improv workshops at several states’ Thespian Festivals, and teaching his 2025 Stand-Up Comedy class at Lionheart Theatre. Outside of theatre, he loves playing Pokémon cards with his Poképals and schooling his brother in Yu-Gi-Oh.

Sara Meadows

Sara Meadows has been video/board gaming since she was knee-high to a grasshopper (popular Nebraskan slang for “the year Centipede came out”). Her love for retro video gaming is only surpassed by her love of board gaming (…and chocolate, and her kids, and…). Sara “let” Will start Tantrum House in 2014 after they had been hosting regular Game Nights in their home every Monday night since they first got married in 2005. Together, by teaming up with some good friends, they have built a popular board game channel where they produce daily Kickstarter preview videos, Playthrus, and Top10 lists. Sarah’s favorite board game is Endeavor: Age of Sail, and we are also big fans. Tantrum House is a board game media group intent on pursuing ever improving video, audio, and visual quality standards in the passionate promotion of our hobby because we believe that games have incredible power ​to connect people and bring them joy.

Will Meadows

Will, and his wife Sara, are board gamers to the core! They’ve been hosting weekly game nights out of their home since their teenagers were rugrats—hence the name “Tantrum House”—and they’ve managed to pull in a number of good friends along the way! TantrumHouse.com is now a media powerhouse of board gaming content run by 4 couples (all with very different gaming tastes). From weekly live Playthrus and Podcasts to their very own gaming convention in NC, TantrumCon, they are a constant source of high-quality, family-friendly, hobby-focused fun.

Brett Connell

Brett is a long time TTRPG player and is well versed in a myriad of rule sets. When he isn’t at the table roleplaying he is hiking, reading, or playing video games.

TheBayxlr

Jim has been a huge fan of video game music and music game shows for as long as he can remember. Putting on a panel where music fans compete to see who has the best mental jukebox of video game music has been a dream of his forever. He is looking forward to hosting his first panel at SFGE!

Josh Rainwater

Josh co-owns Transmission Arcade in Columbia, SC. He is in charge of maintaining the pinball machines & arcade games at Transmission Arcade alongside other locations in town. Josh’s favorite pinball machine right now is Swords of Fury & his favorite arcade game right now is Warlords.

Katie Downey

Katie Downey, aka GoblinKatie, is a ridiculous creature within the TTRPG community. She is best known for playing Saesha Valispard on the D4 actual play stream and Nicolette Veritas on The Velvet Lodge. She may have graced your earholes on the Stellar Arcanum Podcast as her character Zale Oromae, or perhaps Loot & Dagger, Dragon Talk, Sidekicks & Side Quests, or any number of other delightful podcasts. Her multi-epsiode accolades include Dawnbringers, The Witching Hour and Nerdarchy Presents: Zoo Mafia. She’s guested on a few streams with Kobold Press, as well as Distinguished Adventurers, and Rivals of Waterdeep.

Her current projects include: The Players and Book actual play stream where she portrays Dominique the Triton Bard. (She’s a cast member, producer, and web master for the stream. Poor things.)

Phil Jr.

Phil is an operator in the Carolinas and works side by side with his father, Phil Sr and business partner, John Whitaker. They have machines in 5 locations around Greenville and Upstate South Carolina. Their business, The Phils Pinball, rents, refurbs, and sells machines as well as services small and large redemption arcades in Carolinas.

Marietta Kingpins

Marietta Kingpins purchases and restores pinball and arcade machines and routes them in one of two locations here in Marietta. MK has a mix of machines from 1980 – present and partner with Marietta Melt Yard (15 machines) and Solar Slice Pizza (3 Machines and growing) and operate independently within each location. Wes and Dan work a normal 9-5 and do the operating gig on the side as a hobby.

Rosemary Maiden

Rosemary Maiden is an award winning cosplayer, who started attending cons back in 2014 and has now created over 60 costumes. As a child she fell in love with storytelling and character design, which led her to study Illustration. She later discovered cosplay and her passion for bringing these beloved characters to life. Rosemary specializes as a seamstress; finding joy in the details and adding fancy embellishments. But don’t let that fool you as she also dabbles in prop work, wig styling, makeup and 3d modeling. Her love for crafting inspired her to start creating online tutorials and process videos, offering unique tips and tricks to help others create the cosplays of their dreams! She’s a small entrepreneur both in stature and in business, but that won’t slow down her dream to build a creative community that inspires others!

Mack Thomas

Mack is a photographer and bartender who loves his friend Annie. (He/They)

Matt Metzger

Matt Metzger is an actor and producer that has run the popular D&D improv show Funyuns & Flagons for 4 years! His background ranges from character work on the Roku Series “The Campaign Show” and falling out of buildings as a stuntman on various shows and movies. Currently, he is the Artistic Director and GM over at Limelight Theater.

Paul Juray

Paul Juray is a Monitor Technician who is self-employed. He has been working in the field of arcade game repair for over 20 years. He is known for his expertise in repairing arcade monitors, and he has helped to restore many classic arcade games to their former glory. Juray is also a skilled electronics technician, and he is able to repair other components of arcade games, such as the power supplies and the control boards.

Joseph Juray

Joseph is a incredibly smart 15 year old that at a young age helped his father Paul Juray with minor task around the arcade that gave him the knowledge and experience to one day become a expert monitor repair man just like his father.

Ben Hirsch

Ben Hirsch is a behind-the scenes member of Chaos Theory Improv Team who aids the team in setup and show-monitoring. He thanks Greg for his inspiring leadership and admittedly superior skill (from improv to Yu-gi-oh), and he hopes you catch the team’s performance at SFGE (and follow them on Insta and Youtube!).

Leo Binkowski

Leo Binkowski is a software developer that got his start writing video games right out of high school. He started part time and eventually worked his way up to Director of Content Development at the NABU Network, a computer and software distribution company in Canada.

Matthew Janeczek

Matt started his arcade collection in 2014 with a handful of cabinets and just a basic understanding of digital and analog electronics. As his collection grew, vector games started to trickle into his lineup. He soon found a Sega Star Trek: Strategic Operations Simulator (SOS) with the infamous “Flaming G08” color vector monitor. Were the urban legends of the monitor spontaneously combusting true? How difficult could it be to repair? After realizing not many people out there had experience with the hardware and even fewer people could offer repair advice, the challenge was accepted. Matt spent many long months learning about the failure modes, design deficiencies and idiosyncrasies of the Sega G80 and Electrohome G08 hardware platform. Ten years later, he can whip a G08 into shape in no time and now offers mail in repair services, virtual consultations and OEM hardware sales worldwide. The G08 monitor is beautiful when rebuilt properly and many shuttered games have been brought back to life over the past decade.

Aaron Davis

Co-Founder of FAST Pinball

Matt DeBusschere

Matt is the owner/operator of Marietta Melt Yard, a lively/casual restaurant and bar located near the downtown Marietta square. Melt Yard features over the top burgers, creative cocktails, craft beer on draft, a 1968 GMC van that has been turned into a bar, tons of TVs, music videos and a retro arcade. The Melt Yard arcade (curated by the Marietta King Pins) currently consists of roughly 15 pinball machines and 4 classic arcade games.

Imoto Harney

Imoto Harney is a traveling cinematographer, Marketing Director for Marco Pinball, and a co-owner of Captain Crazy’s Paradise Arcade in Gulf Shores, AL.

Since 2011, she has been promoting arcade culture via her Imoto Arcade YouTube channel, which features video walkthroughs of arcades and coverage gaming events around the world. Working with Stern Pinball and Marco Pinball, Imoto focuses on promoting pinball culture and creating educational content, teaching people how to repair and maintain their games while still having fun!

Zane Everett

After spending 10 years creating video and board games for education and entertainment, Zane has been an instructor with Unity for over 2 years. He is passionate about the intersection of games and learning, and enjoys teaching people the psychology, economics, and process of creating games and real-time software. Zane has mentored and taught people that either worked at or went on to work at game development studios, both big and small, locally and internationally. After spending the pandemic as the only Unity Instructor in Cambodia, he has returned home to Atlanta to be Unity’s Senior Technical Trainer for the Americas.

Paige Fraize

Paige is a longtime Licensed Game Apologist and Speedrunner, particularly a fan of licensed racing games. Growing up with limited access to gaming, she grew to strongly appreciate disregarded genres and forgotten properties.

Mae Manning

Mae is a video editor from Atlanta with a decade-long love affair with Dungeons & Dragons. When she’s not cutting trailers or promos, she is rolling dice and raising hell as one of her many wild, angry, and chaotic D&D characters. Known for her sharp wit and high energy, she brings a fiery edge to every table she joins.

Marc Gunn

Marc Gunn is a Rhythm & Folk songwriter and host of the multi-award-winning Irish & Celtic Music Podcast living in Atlanta, Georgia. He plays Irish and Scottish folk songs and fuses Celtic folk songs with pop culture. His musical weapon of choice is the autoharp.

Gunn started Pub Songs & Stories to share the liner notes behind the songs he writes and records. His Celtic Invasion Vacations podcast shares stories from his trips to Ireland, Scotland and beyond. You will learn if a Celtic invasion is right for you.

Keiran Leamon

Kieran is an editor with a B.A. in Film and Media. He also created his own video game called Thief of Hearts, which has received over 5000 downloads! It is free to download on itch.io.

Joseph Ard

Joseph Ard, affectionately known in the podcasting world as Joe “Embrace the Underscore” Ard, is a multifaceted talent balancing a thriving career in software engineering with a passionate devotion to podcasting. By day, Joe excels as a software engineer, bringing innovative solutions to the tech world. By night, he transforms into a charismatic podcaster, enchanting audiences with his deep insights and engaging personality.

Joe’s podcasting journey began with the immensely popular Pokémon GO Podcast, which he co-hosted from October 2015 until April 2023. During his tenure, he captivated listeners with his profound knowledge of the game and his lively, approachable style. This successful venture evolved into Wise_N_Nerdy: Where Fatherhood Meets Fandom, a unique podcast that blends the joys and challenges of fatherhood with an unabashed love for all things nerdy.

Beyond the microphone, Joe is a devoted husband and father, cherishing his family life and drawing inspiration from it for his podcasts. His passions extend to a wide array of nerdy interests, including Dungeons & Dragons, novels, anime, and video games. Joe’s enthusiasm for these hobbies is infectious, making him a beloved figure in the nerd community. Whether he’s dissecting the latest game mechanics, diving into a new fantasy series, or discussing the intricacies of anime plotlines, Joe brings a heartfelt enthusiasm and deep understanding that resonates with fans.

With his dynamic presence and unwavering commitment to both his professional and personal passions, Joseph Ard continues to be a cherished figure in the worlds of tech and fandom.

Corwin Emery

Host of The Spooky Pinball Podcast and game designer for Spooky Pinball LLC.

Elliot Eismin

Elliot Eismin is a highly skilled mechanical engineer and now a Lead Designer at Stern Pinball. Since joining Stern in 2014, Eismin has made significant contributions to the mechanics of numerous celebrated pinball machines, including titles like “Rush” (2022), “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” (2020), and “Ghostbusters” (2016). Recently, he has taken on a pivotal role as Lead Designer, with his first cornerstone game being “John Wick Pinball.”

Steve Ritchie

With an iconic career spanning over 50 years, Steve is the mastermind behind groundbreaking games like Flash, Firepower, The Black Knight trilogy, Terminator 2, Star Trek: The Next Generation, and AC/DC. Most recently, he brought the glitz and glam of Elton John to life through his work at Jersey Jack Pinball, where he continues to shape the future of the game.

Oh, and if you hear a booming “FINISH HIM!” in your head, that’s probably Steve too. He voiced the original Shao Kahn in Mortal Kombat and lent his voice to several classic Williams and Midway video games. Don’t miss your chance to meet a true pinball legend!