Monday, August 13, 2012

Major, "Level Three" Event This Wednesday

The KINK CRUSADERS movie documents the history of the International Mr. Leather Contest in Chicago, and will be showing at the Birch North Park Theater at 2891 University, starting at 7PM on Wednesday, August 15.
There will be a Gear Contest (ANY kind of street-legal gear - not just leather) with prizes valued at a total of $875, introductions of our brothers who have represented San Diego at the IML contest over the years, a Q&A with the film's director, a majorly huge Group Photo outside, a free shot of any kind at the Eagle after the movie (redeemed with your ticket stub), and, best of all: 
We'll all get to enjoy the shared experience of being crammed together with a large number of men who share your tastes and interests, and who will laugh, gasp and howl with lust at the same times that you do, while learning more about our shared history. 
Unless you already have way too much brotherhood in your life, you might not want to miss this Wednesday's fun. You'll be pissed off if you do, because your friends are going to report back about what you missed.

This Wednesday's FMSD Movie Night has now become what I am calling a Level Three Event, meaning it has become a semi-regular, major Tribal event that has many, many people participating, and sharing their talents for the common good.  This puts it in the same category as the BELT partiesIML, the Folsom/Dore Alley Street Fairs, the Mr. San Diego Eagle Contest, the private Foxhole M4M parties, BearNight at Numbers, and the BULC dance nights (or my own Rampart dance parties) from the past.  They all started small, and then turned into something vastly more meaningful.

Not ONE of them can be replicated through the online experience. They require everybody's physical presence, in swarming, good-natured crowds. That's where the magic comes in, and that's what makes an event legendary for decades afterward.

These are all ever-growing events that could become messy, unpredictable, and go in any zany direction, but they always succeed and go well, due to the massive mounts of goodwill and shared, sweet intentions of the folks attending. They are shared Tribal events with immense amounts of amiable good will, not Level Two top-down consumer events like a circuit party.

How do I know that a simple "movie night" has jumped two levels higher than normal? Because I'm hearing about it from everywhere. The Jungle Drums are going crazy, night and day. I've been around a long time; I've hosted over 1,000 events, and I know the signs. 

The first FMSD Movie Night last November sold 150% more tickets than FilmOut had predicted, and that was before we figured out what was possible. It seemed like a shockingly large number at the time... Now, it seems like a very nice beginning, and we have a strong foundation to build upon for future increases:
This just shows the guys who showed up in gear 
(25% of the men who showed up). November 9, 2011.
I predict that these FMSD Movie Nights will keep happening for years and years, with deeply satisfying results. We need more traditions that we can look forward to, and gladly plan our time around.

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