C-ACE (the Canadian Art and Cartooning Expo, held in Ottawa) has come to a close for its sixth - and apparently final - year. Guests included artist/costumer Andrew "Loopy" Pidcock and fantasy author Fiona Patton.

The main reasons cited for the closure were increased hotel operating costs and the lack of medium-sized facilities.^[1]

Hello everyone!

It gives me great pleasure to announce that C-ACE finally has ONLINE REGISTRATION! You can now fill out the forms online and get your pre-registration, sponsorship, dealer table, art show panel and even past years' t-shirts paid with PayPal!

Of course, we still accept payments through regular mail with cheques, through printed text or pdf forms, like usual.

Remember that you can still save if you register before February 5, 2005 at the low rate of Cdn$30 for the whole weekend! You can also show your support by buying a Sponsorship at $80 and above, which gives you a free t-shirt,a free print by our Artist guest and a free lunch Saturday with our Guests of Honours - as well as our many thanks!

Don't forget about reserving your hotel room too! Just call the Best Western Victoria Park Suites at (613) 567-7275 or toll-free in North America at 1-800-465-7275, and mention Group Reservation #153544 to get our special rate of $109 for semi-suite and $119 for a Queen suite, all with kitchenettes included!

We hope to see many of you next June!

Niall MacConaill
Chair, C-ACE 2005
chair@c-ace.org

CACE is only 3 weeks away, and we're putting our final touches on this year's event. It's shaping up to be another exciting convention!

Here are some updates on programming, the masquerade, at door registration, hotel info, and other important details ...

Here's a list of the programming panels, entertainment events, and contests currently scheduled for CACE 2004, along with a brief description, broken down by day. A few panels are still to be confirmed, so look back here later for an update, including some new topics, full descriptions, and a programming grid with exact times. Please note that all programming topics and the contents of the panels are subject to change.

Well, there's now less then 2 months until the opening of CACE 2004, and we're working hard to put the finishing touches on what is looking to be our best year yet!

CACE brings its unique approach to the costuming world with the debut of our first masquerade! That's right ... CACE becomes a full service convention this year, as we add an event that a lot of people have been waiting for.

I have some good news from our hotel; double rooms are available again. I spoke to the Chimo Hotel today and was able to get 15 double rooms added to our room block. Singles and singles with fold out couches continue to be available too. I expect that the room block will sell out before the deadline based on our reservation rate so far, but this should allow everyone who currently wants a double to get one. If you book within the next few weeks, that is.

One request from the hotel ... if you require an early check in, please let them know when you make your reservation. Otherwise, you won't be able to check in until the 3 PM check-in time. Thanks! Information about booking hotel rooms is available on our web site at http://www.c-ace.org/.

The action is starting to heat up around CACE as we count down to only four months before our third convention. First of all, CACE is proud to announce Jen Seng (the artist of the popular comic strip "Boondocks" and a fine cartoonist and illustrator in her own right) as our Cartoonist/Comic Artist Guest of Honour. Jen joins well-known fantasy artist Heather Bruton as a guest this year. As well, we're adding a dance after the Chocolate Social this year for those who like a bit of music and excitement. We're busily working on the programming grid right now, and will have more details at our next update.

I'd like to give everyone a brief initial report about programming at CACE 2004, both in terms of what to expect and what we're looking for in potential programming ideas.

We're continuing our commitment to learning and skills acquisition, balanced with discussion panels and social events, to present what we feel is a very balanced and interesting program. This year, we're still developing our programming tracks, but I can assure you that many of our premiere events, such as the Friday Night Chocolate Social, the Life Drawing Session, and our writing contest will return, along with popular panels on recent animated movies and illustration of weaponry. We're also presenting a variety of workshops on topics in animation, comic and illustration art, cartooning, costuming, and writing, with an increased emphasis on areas outside of anthro/furry fandom.

Registration and hotel bookings for CACE 2004 are now available. Registration is similar in price and structure to last year. The $30 pre-registration rate is in effect until May 3, 2004. A sponsorship (which includes a T-shirt, special edition print, and brunch with the Guests of Honour) is available for $90.

CACE returns again next year, taking place from June 4 to 6, 2004. And due to popular demand from both our guests and staff, we will again be at the Chimo Hotel. Also returning will be our great selection of workshops, classes and panels, the focus on creativity, the Art Show and Dealers Room, and our popular Friday Night Chocolate Social, amongst other attractions.

Since we've done well with our room block and since some room types were sold out while others types remained, the hotel has adjusted things a bit and agreed to extend the reservation deadline to May 7 (next Wed). Please see http://www.c-ace.org/ for more information.

Just a reminder that there's only a week left until the C-ACE pre-registration deadline! If you'd like to pre-register for the low rate of $30 CAN/$20 US, you'll need to send in your registration letter and payment postmarked by Friday, May 2. Everyone who pre-registers is eligible for the draw for a free commission by Gryllus! As well, the deadline for reserving a hotel room at the special low convention rate is Thursday, May 1.

Pre-register for C-ACE 2003 ( http://www.c-ace.org/ ) by the May 2 registration deadline and you'll be entered in a draw for a free commission by Sue "Gryllus" Packard -- artist and admin on Yerf.com (see http://www.gryllus.com for sample art). The winner will receive a one-character, colour commission sized at 9 x 12 inches on bristol board.