WELCOME
TO OUR 2025
guests
Linda Ballantyne
VOICE ACTOR
For the past 30 years, Linda’s has worked as a professional voice actor. Her extensive animation career consists of a wide variety of characters including series leads in Sailor Moon (Sailor Moon/Serena), The Avengers (Wasp), Disney’s Yin Yang Yo (Saranoia, Ella Mental, Smoke and more), Cyberchase (Wicked), George of the Jungle (Magnolia), Go Dog Go! (Lady Lydia, Mayor Sniffington, Sgt. Pooch, etc), Book Hungry Bears (Narrator), Max and Ruby (Mom, Candi), Top Wing (Honu Turtle and Bonnie), Luna Around the World (Pippa Chockers), Mia and Me (Queen Mayla), Toot and Puddle (Tulip), Will and Dewitt (Shelley), Gerald McBoing Boing (Gerald’s Mom), Meteor and the Mighty Monster Trucks (Sinker), Mischief City (Mrs. Adams), Corduroy (Moppy’s Mom), Timothy Goes to School (Fritz’s Mom), Animal Shelf (Getup), and many, many more. She has also voiced various characters in The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About That, The Doodlebops, Totally Spies, 6Teen, Time Warp Trio, Carl Squared, Bob and Margaret, Girl Stuff Boy Stuff, George Shrinks, etc. In addition, Linda voiced characters in the feature films Thomas and the Magic Railroad (Percy), Care Bear’s Journey to Joke-A-Lot (Champ Bear), Care Bear’s Big Wish Movie (Champ Bear), Disney’s Lucky Ducks (Reporter) and many others. Linda has voiced hundreds of commercials world-wide and was the voice of the Comedy Network for 13 years.
Toronto born Katie Griffin has had a successful acting career on both the large and small screen since her 1992 debut as Dede in Are You Afraid of The Dark – Tale of The Prom Queen. A student of the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in Los Angeles, Katie’s diverse and unique talent has been featured in a wide array of projects over the years – from the recent gritty Netflix series Grand Army to animated shows such as Go Dog, Go! and Agent Binky: Pets of the Universe on Amazon Prime. One of Canada’s pre-eminent voice actors, Katie has spent the majority of her 30-year career inside a recording booth, voicing commercials, cartoons, and jingles. Katie’s roles include Sailor Mars from the iconic Anime series Sailor Moon, Ruby from Max and Ruby, Alex from Totally Spies and more recently as Sam Sparks in the animated series Cloudy with A Chance of Meatballs, a role which garnered her a Canadian Screen Award nomination. Katie is thrilled about the release of two upcoming animated shows, Superbuns, a role in which she was nominated for the 2024 ACTRA Award for best voice performance, and the newest season of the highly popular Total Drama Island, as Scary Girl (Lauren). She is also very proud to be part of the Gangnam Project playing the role of Julie Shin and due for release in March, 2024. She currently resides in Toronto with her husband and two sons.
BRIAN HERRING
PUPPETEER
Brian Herring is a film and TV puppeteer who was one of the performers for The Meep in the Doctor Who 60th Anniversary special The Star Beast, animatronics performer for the Goblin King in the Christmas Special The Church on Ruby Rd as well as the escaped Ice Warrior in Cold War.
He is best known as the principle performer of BB-8 in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, The Last Jedi and The Rise of Skywalker. His other performances in the Galaxy Far, Far Away include numerous characters in Rogue One and Solo: A Star Wars Story such as SE-2, Hirang Birren, the Porgs, Oki Pokis, Corellian Hounds, Lady Proxima, Craite Officer, Tham, Mouse Droids and many more.
His other work includes Hellboy 2, Prometheus, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, Wizards Vs Aliens, Dolottle, 28 Weeks Later, Spitting Image, The Hoobs, Jim Henson’s Construction Site, Mopatop’s Shop, The London 2012 Olympic Opening Ceremony, Muppets Most Wanted and Muppets Treasure Island.
Saffron Henderson
ACTOR
Saffron Henderson may be familiar to horror fans as an unfortunate rocker named JJ Jarrett from Friday the 13th Part 8: Jason Takes Manhattan, but much of her career has been spent in the studio, creating voices for characters in Anime and Animation, and singing with artists like Jann Arden, Tom Cochrane and her dad, Bill Henderson of the Canadian Music Hall of Fame band Chilliwack.
Saffron went pro as a kid, tap dancing in Rest Homes and bringing joy to children as the back end of a reindeer at Breakfast with Santa. Rest Homes led to theatres, nightclubs, overseas tours, film and tv, and landed her in her favorite place…the studio. Saffron has had the honor of voicing hundreds of characters for Anime, Animation and Video Games. Her first dubbing job was as the innocent, scrappy English voice of Young Goku and Young Gohan from Dragonball and Dragonball Z. Then came characters like Oxnard from Hamtaro, Lieutenant Noin from Gundam Wing, Sachiko Yagami from Death Note, Sota Hirugachi from Inuyasha, Sherry Belmont from Zatch Bell, Shen Hua from Black Lagoon, Lua from Kong, Kleo from Kleo the Misfit Unicorn, Junko from Nana, Kentaro from World Trigger, as well as roles in X-Men, My Little Pony, Barbie, Class of the Titans, Slugterra, and many more. Saffron’s Video game credits include Saints Row, The Punisher, Sponge Bob, Everquest, The Unit, Avatar, and Bratz.
Sheldon David Mercer has always been what the community would label a ‘well-rounded artisan’. His skills have been displayed in painting, sculpting, leatherwork, foam craft and various other mediums. His creative interests have been inspired by gaming, fantasy, horror and his own spin of creative madness. Cosplay has been a particular area of interest for several years and he is always aiming to improve and better his quality, mastering the nature of becoming a chameleon. This work not only represents but embodies these characters.
Some of the more notable characters he has embraced are The Witcher, Dr. Strange, Carnage, Revan, and even a Clicker from The Last of Us. His attention to detail is what separates him from many others and he also has a unique approach in his building that is not only cost-effective but movie quality. For further appreciation of his work search for his socials, that are Dark Dimensions Cosplay. He is truly a unique talent with a keen eye!
Fat Apollo
comedian, local celebrity & MC Extraordinaire
Fat Apollo, Michael McCluskey, is a mixture of all things geeky and nerdy rolled up in a crunchy comedic shell. Donning Everlast boxing gloves, as well as a cape and shirt made of vintage Battlestar Galactica bed sheets (circa 1977) – Fat Apollo is a true multi-media juggernaut. The showbiz bug bit early with a stint as a Buster Brown shoe model, and appearances on the Reach for the Top teen show. Fat Apollo really made his mark in Victoria BC, as the special guest morning-man replacement on Q100.3 launching the briefly popular, guess that tune game, The Kazoo Monster.
Now residing in his hometown of Halifax, Fat Apollo is a charter member of the long running Geeks Versus Nerds comedy show. Voted funniest comedy night and best podcast in Halifax by The Coast’s readers, it is recorded live and has been featured five times at Hal-Con. In 2010, Fat Apollo debated Nathan Fillion as to superiority of the Millenium Falcon over the Serenity, and in 2011 defeated Teddy & Ajay of Innerspace, successfully proving Yoda was the better headmaster than Dumbledore. His one man show “Storytime with Fat Apollo” is a hit at conventions everywhere! Follow him on Twitter @realfatapollo and on Facebook Fat Apollo, celebrity.
