Fandom you can't refuse...
Our Mission
Sci-Fi Syndicate LLC is an event and entertainment production company specializing in the genres of speculative fiction, science fiction, fantasy, and horror. Our slogan, “Fandom You Can’t Refuse”, reflects our philosophy that you don’t get to choose what you become a fan of, it usually chooses you. We exist to help fans celebrate their fandoms.
Our Logo
Our logo is not just a pretty picture — it has meaning. The alien represents our roots in science fiction. His black suit and sunglasses harken back to the original men in black of UFO conspiracies of the 1950’s and 60’s, and are projections of the professionalism of our organization or syndicate. The seven stars represent seven aspects of fandom: Literature, Media, Gaming, Collecting, Costuming, Making, and Artistic Expression.
Literature
Speculative fiction, and its subsets of science fiction, fantasy, and horror, are the roots of fandom. Since the dawn of humankind, people have told stories, not just to communicate, but also to entertain. We especially celebrate stories, long or short, that dare to ask the question “What if…?”
Media
Moving pictures were but a few years old in 1902 when Georges Méliès made the first science fiction film, Le voyage dans la lune or A Trip to the Moon. Over a hundred years later, speculative fiction is thriving in theatres, on television, and through numerous digital streaming outlets — live action, animated, and Japanese anime — and fans are always clamoring for more!
Gaming
Fans don’t just enjoy reading and watching speculative fiction, they play it too. From board games to video games, from tabletop role-playing games (RPGs) to live-action role-playing (LARP), from single-player games to massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGs), gamers are game and here to stay!
Collecting
George Lucas made more money off of merchandising than he did off of the first Star Wars film. Today, the toy industry brings in over $110 billion annually in the U.S. alone. Many fans celebrate their fandoms through collecting toys and other collectibles. Some keep them mint in box (MIB) as an investment, others proudly display their collections in their homes, and others choose to play with their toys!
Costuming
Whether you buy your garb, design and sew your own clothing, or cosplay as your favorite characters — costuming is a huge part of fandom. Some do it for fun, others do it for charity, but for almost all costumers it’s a labor of love — and a physical manifestation of their fandom.
Making
Taking pride in what you make is nothing new. Craftsmanship predates written history. However, maker culture has come into its own in the last few decades. The maker movement has evolved beyond fine craftsmanship of everyday objects to creating amazing, highly-detailed, and often fully-functional, expressions of all walks of fandom. Makers make it happen.
Artistic Expression
Whether you’re a doodler, an illustrator, or fine artist; whether you’re a filker, a singer/songwriter, or part of an ensemble act; whether it’s fan fiction, a blog, a podcast, or published works; whether you’re a photographer, a video streamer, or a filmmaker; you have a driving need to express your fandom through art — adding more to the genres we love.
Announcement List
Receive announcements and updates by e-mail!
Principal
is the founder of and principal at Sci-Fi Syndicate LLC. He grew up on re-runs of Star Trek, Doctor Who, Monty Python, and Star Blazers, to name a few. He saw Star Wars repeatedly in theaters in 1977 and that inspired him to go to film school.
During college, Matt Black interned in Hollywood reading and evaluating scripts for television movies and mini-series. He returned East and built a career writing, producing, directing, and editing commercial, corporate, and industrial films and videos.
As video made its way online, Matt Black shifted his career into digital project management of webcasts, web conferences, websites, banner ads, email campaigns, and streaming media. During this time he also produced live events for 20 to 2,000 attendees for a Fortune 500 company.
In general fandom, Matt Black volunteered for Creation Entertainment and was a compensated contributor to Galactic Entertainment for science fiction conventions run by each. He has been a panelist for Philcon, Farpoint, Shore Leave, and Wizard World conventions.
In Firefly fandom specifically, Matt Black has been chair of three Browncoat Balls and serves on the Browncoat Ball Steering Committee. Over the last 15 years he has been a local organizer for the Can’t Stop The Serenity global charity screenings and serves on its Global Steering Committee to provide guidance to other local organizers.
Matt Black was one of the founders of C.O.G.S. Expo, the Community-Organized Gathering of Steampunks, an annual steampunk convention, and helped incorporate the COGS Foundation as an educational nonprofit dedicated to empowering the steampunk community. And he’s not just an event organizer, he’s also a steampunk enthusiast.
Through Sci-Fi Syndicate LLC, Matt Black hopes to bring events and entertainment to fans across a range of fandoms. He believes that we don’t choose our fandoms, they choose us. Fandom You Can’t Refuse.
Contact
Sci-Fi Syndicate LLC
Post Office Box 1642
Havertown, PA 19083-1642
scifisyndicatellc (at) gmail (dot) com