EagleCon 2025 celebrates sci-fi visionaries Alex Rivera and Herman Zimmerman, honors diversity and imagination in media

In his film Sleep Dealer, Alex Rivera imagined a dystopian future in which robots have assumed the jobs in such American industries as construction, farming, and home security. The catch was the robots were being controlled by workers on the other side of a sealed U.S.-Mexican border.

The film was released in 2008, prior to robotics, remote work, and international job outsourcing had become commonplace, and years before President Donald Trump's idea of building a wall.

Cal State LA's EagleCon 2025 honored the visionary filmmaker with the Prism Award, which is presented to creators who have made outstanding contributions to diversity in speculative genres across media.

"The importance of Alex's work is undeniable," said College of Arts and Letters Dean Stephen Trzaskoma as he presented Rivera with the award. "It is incredibly relevant to our current moment in its themes-not only in migration, but of technology, of economies, of injustices. It's an incredibly powerful testament to imagination. And, of course, EagleCon is all about imagination."

The annual convention, celebrates Latina(o) futurism, Afrofuturism, and speculative visions of fighting for a better world. The two-day event, co-sponsored by the Art Directors Guild, IATSE Local 800, presented hands-on workshops, panels of industry professionals, and student presentations on Sept. 23 and 24 at the University-Student Union.

"It's really these types of spaces that have kept Sleep Dealer alive," Rivera said. "The idea came to me in 1997-a long time ago. It was filmed in 2006 and released in 2008. The film bounced off the surface of the culture. It didn't have a big opening weekend, it didn't have a successful commercial run, but over the years-and now decades-it's actually finding an audience and a place in culture, thanks to spaces like this."

The writer-producer-director's filmography also includes the feature film The Infiltrators (2019) and the short films Papapapa (1995), Why Cybraceros? (1997), The Borders Trilogy (2002), and The Sixth Section (2003).

"The discussions about Chicano and Latino futurism didn't emerge until he made his Chicano cyberpunk film," said Patrick Sharp, professor of liberal studies and event organizer. "He's a foundational artist who gave us a new language that we could wrap our heads around."

EagleCon 2025's theme, "Resistance Is Not Futile," has long fueled the speculative genre's most popular franchises, including Star Trek and Star Wars.

It was only fitting that that this year's gathering also honored Herman Zimmerman with the Imaginator Award. The art director and production designer's storied career was highlighted by his work with a long list of Star Trek productions, including Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987-94), Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (1993-99), Star Trek: First Contact (1996), and Star Trek: Insurrection (1998).

"He's a legend," Sharp said. "He's the guy who created the look of Star Trek from The Next Generation forward. From the '80s to the aughts, he had his hand in every movie and every TV series."

Additionally, the Organization of Transformative Works (OTW) was honored with the Lemonade Award, which recognizes individuals or organizations for acts of kindness that further science fiction communities. OTW is a nonprofit organization established by fans to serve the interests of fans by providing access to and preserving the history of fan works and fan culture in its myriad forms.

EagleCon has come a long way since its inception in 2014, when it was more of a cosplay and fanboy/girl event akin to Comic Con.

"That's not what we do anymore; it's morphed over the years," Sharp said. "EagleCon gives students the chance to meet Hollywood professionals and think about jobs and careers. It gives them a chance to educate themselves about the history of the genre."

Sharp estimates that EagleCon draws about 500 people-from within the university, local high schools, community colleges, and other universities-over the course of the event.

This year's workshops were titled "Pitch Perfect: Selling Your Creative Ideas to Industry Pros," "Résumés, Reels, and Portfolios: Crafting Your Creative Calling Card," and "Images of Resistance," and the panels included "Evolutionary Science, Living Art, and Crafting Speculative Environments," "Careers in the Entertainment Industries: The Artists' Perspectives," and "Student Panel: Telling Your Own Stories Through Comics."

"The Art of Resistance in Film and Television," an exhibit by the Art Directors Guild, will be on display at the University Library 2nd floor walkway through Oct. 30. It honors the work of Zimmerman and previous Imaginator Award winners such as Harrison Ellenshaw, Rick Carter, Dawn Brown, and Wynn Thomas, and includes production art from the Star Trek universe, and Star Wars universe, and other films and TV shows

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