Before the ATX Television Festival, we listed the five things we were most looking forward to. Now, we’re talking about the five best things we saw/ did/ experienced at the fest.

Next up is Lola.

Lola’s Five Favorite Things

This was only my second season at ATX TV Festival. It’s a combination of some of my favorite things; ATX, TV and people who love TV. What I really love about this festival is that it doesn’t take over the city like SXSW or ACL does. It’s a very intimate festival. A festival where you can have these crazy once in a lifetime experiences that you might not get anywhere else! Here are a few of mine from season 8.

• Chilling In The Badge Holder Lounge

Sitting in the badge holders lounge you’ll see and meet a lot of very interesting people. But I can’t say that anyone could top Luis and Cemi Guzman. The father and son duo, who were there to promote Perpetual Grace, were easily the coolest people in the room at any given time. While we were casually chatting with them, my necklace charm happen to break off. Cemi saw me trying (struggling) to fix it and took it upon himself to accept the challenge. So I sat there and watched him carry on a conversation while attempting to fix my necklace (there were teeth involved). In the end he succeeded! Thanks, Cemi!

• Hanging with Luis Guzman

So number one was all about Cemi, but let’s talk about Luis. The man is just cool, that’s the start and end of the story. He’s one of those actors where you know his face because he’s been in so much but when you meet him you’d never guess the life he’s lead in the industry. That’s because his at home, everyday life is just as interesting. We hung out with him on a few different occasions during the festival but the night we ended up on the karaoke stage singing and dancing to “I Like it Like That” takes the cake. And here’s a fun fact: Luis Guzman makes his own maple syrup! Told you he was cool.

• Making Eye Contact With Eric Dane

When Eric Dane, formerly known as McSteamy, looks you in the eyes and says he should just get out of his contract with HBO and come to Austin to join the cast of the Fear of the Walking Dead, you nod your head vigorously of course. Unfortunately, he was joking since he was on the red carpet promoting his new HBO series Euphoria at the time. A girl can dream though.

• Talking It Up With Fred Armisen

This had to be my favorite interaction just because of how kind and humble Fred Armisen is. Also, he couldn’t remember the name of the movie we were talking about that he was in and I had to remind him (Band Aid). Like I mentioned earlier, what I love most about ATX Fest is how intimate it is. None of the talent/ celebrities feel the need to coop up in the VIP lounge or have excess security. That said, I never expected to have a one-on-one conversation with Fred at the Los Espookys party. He is actually who inspired my ATX TV Fest polaroid series. When I originally asked him if I could take a picture, he asked if I wanted to jump in. and was surprised when I said no. He wanted to see my mini Polaroid immediately but it hadn’t yet developed. So he demanded I show him the others that were hiding behind my festival badge. He loved them all and even went on to draw a fun little picture on the one of him!

• Feeling the Presence of Matthew McConaughey

Listen, who doesn’t love some Mathew McConaughey, especially if you’re from Austin? The local and international star showed up at the festival’s lounge party for Yellowstone, starring his good friend Cole Hauser. We walked in not knowing he was there but we could feel the room buzzing more than usual. Turns out that buzz was McConaughey. Later, as he was leaving, I happened to be heading out at the exact same time. I had called a Lyft and was waiting outside trying to spot it when I looked up right into McConaughey’s dreamy blue eyes. He smirked and said, ‘Hi, darlin” and then took off into the night leaving me swooning. That is until my phone rang. My Lyft had arrived and the moment was gone.

These are just a few of my favorite experiences as some I cannot disclose due to the amount of adult beverages that were consumed. The festival is referred to as summer camp for adults who love TV. Well, I can’t fully validate that due to the fact that I never went to summer camp as a child. I never thought I was missing out… until ATX Television Festival! My parents have some serious explaining to do!

Check out what Sofia listed as her favorite moments here.

And what our fearless leader had to say about the fest here.

Featured photo by David Lary.