Jim Lee and Geoff Johns look for DC’s heroic future

Jim Lee and Geoff Johns speak at the Hero Complex Film Festival. (Los Angeles Times handout photo)

The 2011 Hero Complex Film Festival is in the books and what a weekend it was.

Robert Downey Jr. shocked the crowd for a surprise “Iron Man” reunion; Jon Favreau made jaws drop with 10 minutes of footage from “Cowboys & Aliens” ; Warren Beatty stretched a Q&A to nearly two hours and declared his need to “vomit” a “Dick Tracy” remake/sequel; “Superman” director Richard Donner wowed the crowd with sparkling stories about the classic film and the late, great Christopher Reeve;  Marvel won the audience over with the world premiere of a new “Captain America: The First Avenger” trailer and the coolest giveaway of the year;  ”Star Trek II: Wrath of Khan” director Nicholas Meyer confessed a painful regret about the late Gene Roddenberry,  while the new “Trek” creative team looked to the Federation’s future on the big screen; comics superstars Geoff Johns and Jim Lee spoke directly to fans for the first time about the huge new plans for the DC universe; artist Mike Mignola talked about his long-awaited “Hellboy” return and the killer poster for this year’s festival; and Pixar revved  up the crowd with a “Cars 2” preview and a free screening of “The Incredibles.”

We’ll be revisiting some festival moments with video highlights. Today, DC Comics writer and executive Geoff Johns revisits his time as the “Superman” director’s assistant.

– Geoff Boucher

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