CMA is partnering with Paste Magazine to provide students a once-in-a-lifetime assignment.
Walker Stalker Con is the largest fan-run touring convention for fans of the zombie genre and this year, it will be in Atlanta at the Georgia World Congress Center from Oct. 28-30 , only 1.2 miles (and adjacent to a MARTA stop, so you can visit via public transit as well) from CMAATL16. And we want to send YOUR students to cover this event for Paste! Therefore, your students should prepare for the festival and order a response paper.
But we’re not just going to pick six students out of a hat: this is an assignment your students will have to earn.
To apply for this assignment, attach your résumé and links to your best clips (written or photography) to a 250-300 word email explaining why you should cover this event for Paste. The Paste editorial staff, led by Editor-in-Chief Josh Jackson, will review each application and select a team of two (one writer and one photographer) to cover a day from this event (six students total). The email is to be sent to with the subject line “Walker Stalker Con application.”
Applications are due by October 13 at 5:15 p.m. EST. The winners of the assignment will be announced on the CMAATL16 website on October 20th. Please read Assignment Rules for details/exceptions.
Please direct any questions regarding the selection to the CMA convention planning coordinator, Bryce McNeil, at .
***Assignment Rules: The students will be selected solely by the staff at Paste and will receive no recommendations from the College Media Association, its board or convention organizers, with the only exception being that CMA will verify the eligibility of participants based on the following criteria:
- Applicants must be enrolled in a postsecondary institution as an undergraduate for the Fall of 2016. The institution does not need to be a CMA member school, however the student must be registered for CMAATL16, indicating their institutional affiliation.
- Paste retains first publication rights of all successful entrants’ work and their work is subject to the curation and editing of Paste’s editorial staff. The student is expected to retain all other publication rights from that point forward.
- Selection for this assignment does not constitute employment for Paste nor will Paste provide payment for services rendered.
- Students from Atlanta-based universities are not eligible to apply for this opportunity.
The list** of those appearing at Walker Stalker Con includes a plethora of actors from the main cast over the years:
Andrew Lincoln (Rick), Melissa McBride (Carol), Norman Reedus (Daryl), Jeffrey Dean Morgan (Negan), Lauren Cohen (Maggie), Steven Yeun (Glenn), Danai Gurira (Michonne), Tom Payne (Jesus), Khary Payton (Ezekiel), Chandler Riggs (Carl), Lennie James (Morgan), Scott Wilson (Hershel), Emily Kinney (Beth), Michael Rooker (Merle), Michael Cudlitz (Abraham), Josh McDermitt (Eugene), Christian Serratos (The Walking Dead), Sonequa Martin-Green (Sasha), Alanna Masterson (Tara), Chad L. Coleman (Tyreese), Ross Marquand (Aaron), IronE Singleton (T-Dog), Tyler James Williams (Noah), Lawrence Gilliard Jr. (Bob), Alexandra Breckenridge (Jessie), John Carroll Lynch (Eastman), Seth Gilliam (Father Gabriel), Austin Nichols (Spencer), Austin Amelio (Dwight), Jordan Woods-Robinson (Eric), Dahlia Legault (Francine), Madison Lintz (Sophia), Michael Traynor (Nicholas), Kyla Kenedy (Mika), Kenric Green (Scott), Katelyn Nacon (Enid), Jason Douglas (Tobin), Alicia Witt (Paula)
Also appearing**: Nick Carter (Backstreet Boys & Jack, Dead 7), Robert Englund (Nightmare on Elmstreet), Kane Hodder (Friday the 13th), Ron Perlman, Tommy Flanagan & Ryan Hurst (Sons of Anarchy), Sean Patrick & David Della Rocco (The Boondock Saints), Denis O’Hare (American Horror Story), Michael Emerson (Lost), and many more!
**Walker Stalker Con is a separate event from CMAATL16 and is subject to those organizers’ scheduling; some speakers may not appear on certain days.