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TCAF 2019 Announces Young Adult Guests and Programming

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Building on years of great author appearances, debut books, and a variety of programming, The Toronto Comic Arts Festival (TCAF) presents its first-ever official Young Adult programming stream and Featured Guests for the 2019 Edition. Highlighting a strong array of debuting work for readers across the Young Adult age-range of 12 years old to 18 years old, TCAF aims to create a great experience for fans of the YA category and genre at the 2019 Festival, taking place May 11th & 12th, in Toronto, Canada.

This year, TCAF’s 100+ hours of programming will have a clearly labeled “YA” stream in all panel descriptions and grids, and clearer search tools and pages on the TCAF website. In addition, the website and program guide will feature a YA program overview so that even casual attendees can discover these authors and their works at the Festival.

TCAF’s full slate of programming will be unveiled in April, ahead of the main Festival May 11th and 12th. The YA stream will encompass readings, panel discussions, and creative workshops, in addition to author autograph sessions.

Now, keep reading to be introduced to some of this year’s Featured Young Adult Authors!

Flavia Biondi: Born in Castelfiorentino, Italy, in 1988, Biondi is an accomplished Italian graphic novelist whose breakthrough work, Generations, was published in English in 2017 by Lion Forge. This story of a gay young man returning home to the small town he had fled resonated with readers across the world, and we’re so pleased to finally welcome her to Toronto. Flavia Biondi’s participation is supported by EuropeComics.

Kevin Panetta and Savanna Ganucheau: Co-creators Panetta and Ganucheau attend TCAF in support of BLOOM, a new teen LGBTQ romance graphic novel published by First Second. The team behind numerous popular licensed comic books have turned their attention to this charming new story of generational responsibility and first loves in a seaside bakery, debuting at the 2019 Festival.

Renee Nault: Author of the popular webcomic Witchling, creator Renee Nault has turned her considerable skill to adapting Margaret Atwood’s classic dystopian novel The Handmaid’s Tale into a graphic novel, published by Penguin Random House Canada. Debuting at TCAF 2019, Nault will be attend TCAF in support of this lush, unsettling new adaptation.

Ryan North: Toronto writer Ryan North broke into the medium with Dinosaur Comics, his experimental formalist daily webcomic. Since then, he has won an Eisner and become a New York Times Bestselling Author, with his most recent work being the nonfiction How To Invent Everything, and chronicling the continuing adventures of smash-hit The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl for Marvel Comics.

Sarah Winifred Searle: Australia-based Searle is the author of numerous comic short stories, and attends TCAF for the debut of her first full-length graphic novel, Sincerely, Harriet, published by Graphic Universe! Sincerely, Harriett explores the power of imagination and storytelling a beautiful graphic novel intended for younger YA readers.

Mariko Tamaki and Rosemary Valero-O’Connell: Canadian Governor General’s Award-winning author Mariko Tamaki (Skim, This One Summer) joins illustrator and Eisner-nominee Rosemary Valero-O’Connell (What Is Left) to bring to life the LGBTQ graphic novel Laura Dean Keeps Breaking Up with Me, published by First Second Books and debuting at TCAF. A sweet and spirited tale of young love, it asks us to consider what happens when we ditch the toxic relationships we crave to embrace the healthy ones we need.

Coleen AF Venable and Ellen T. Crenshaw: Eisner-nominated Colleen AF Venable and acclaimed illustrator and cartoonist Ellen T. Crenshaw team for the TCAF Debut YA graphic novel Kiss Number 8. A coming-out story about family, friendship, and a young woman’s first love, Kiss Number 8 is published by First Second and will debut at TCAF 2019.

Tillie Walden: Critically acclaimed cartoonist and illustrator Tillie Walden hails from Austin, Texas. Born in 1996, she is a graduate of the Centre for Cartoon Studies, has published 3 books (with Avery Hill Publishing), and was nominated for an Eisner Award. Walden will attend TCAF in support of her most recent release, On A Sunbeam, published by First Second.

Junji Ito Heads to TCAF 2019

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Smashed

Japanese manga creator and horror sensation Junji Ito will participate in TCAF (Toronto Comic Arts Festival) as a featured guest and is also the poster artist of the 2019 festival. TCAF is being held May 11-12, 2019 in Toronto, Canada.

Junji’s works include Uzumaki, Gyo, Tomie, and “The Enigma of Amigara Fault,” and he’s heading to the show to support his new short story collection Smashed: Junji Ito Story Collection, to be published this April by VIZ Media.

Junji Ito will participate in an on-stage interview, live drawing, and special ticketed autograph sessions whose details will be announced later.

Featuring more than 350 exhibiting creators, the Toronto Comic Arts Festival 2019 runs Saturday May 11th, 9am-5pm, and Sunday May 12th, 10am-5pm, at the Toronto Reference Library, 789 Yonge Street, Toronto, Canada. Attendence is free to all events. Some events with Junji Ito will require ticket, info TBA.

Check out this year’s poster below.

TCAF 2019

Around the Tubes

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It was new comic book day yesterday. What’d you all get? What’d you enjoy? What’d you dislike? Sound off in the comments below! While you decide on that, here’s some comic news and reviews from around the web.

IGN – Stan Lee Sues POW! Entertainment for $1 Billion – Things are getting weird.

Newsarama – Bullseye Cast for Daredevil Season 3 – Report – Makes sense as far as villain.

Newsarama – Elisabeth Shue Joins Amazon’s The Boys – Report – Interesting.

Publisher’s Weekly – TCAF 2018 Marks Festival’s 15 Years – Never been but we hear it’s a fantastic show.

Comichron – Super-teams dominate: Early demand high for June’s Justice League, while Avengers reorders keep rolling – Interesting.

The Beat – Camilla Zhang joins Kickstarter as Comics Outreach Lead – Congrats on the position!

Europe Comics Tours Canada

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Europe Comics, the all digital all European graphic novel venture, will be bringing four European creators to Canada for a series of events on May 10-20.

French creators Lewis Trondheim (Dungeon, NBM; Poppies of Iraq, D&Q; Maggy Garrisson, Europe Comics) and Brigitte Findakly (Poppies of Iraq, D&Q), Spaniard Nico Naranjo (Toucan Patrol, Europe Comics) and Belgian Wauter Mannaert (Weegee – Serial Photographer, Conundrum Press; El Mesias, Europe Comics) will be featured guests at TCAF. After TCAF, Lewis Trondheim and Brigitte Findakly will travel to Edmonton, Calgary and Vancouver for a series of public events and school workshops, ending their tour at VanCAF.

Full details below and here and here.

2 Weeks until the Toronto Comic Arts Festival 2018!

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The 2018 Toronto Comic Arts Festival is just two weeks away, and this incredible and international celebration of comic books—graphic novels, manga, bande desinee, WHATEVER you want to call them—is going to be a can’t miss event for comic fans in the city and around the world!

With a diverse and exciting line-up of programs leading up to the festival, amazing panels and interviews throughout the weekend, and more than 400 authors and publishers from over 20 countries around the world in attendance, TCAF has grown to be one of the most respected and well-attended pure comic book events in North America, with PLENTY of opportunities for great stories to be told. 

Over 100 Debuting Books!

TCAF 2018 will see more than 100 new works released in conjunction with the festival! And better yet, all authors in attendance to sign and share their works with you!

  • French author Yvan Algabé sees his powerful treatise on contemporary society released in English for the first time in Yellow Negroes and Other Imaginary Creators, by the New York Review of Books.
  • Toronto’s Georgia Webber releases her long-awaited memoir, detailing her battle with vocal disability, DUMB, by Fantagraphics Books.
  • Japan’s Inio Asano metaphorizes the heavy burden hanging over the heads of the next generation when massive alien spacecraft invade… and then do nothing, floating omniously over Tokyo for years, in Dead Dead Demons Dededede Destruction from VIZ Media

Get a full list of debuts at the convention website.

Two Knights at TCAF!

Did you know that two different TCAF Featured Guests have been KNIGHTED?! It’s true!

Françoise Mouly was decorated by the French government as a Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters in 2001! She’s the groundbreaking editor of venerable alt-comix classic RAW Magazine, the art editor of The New Yorker, and the co-founder and publisher of children’s graphic novel publisher TOON BOOKS, which will celebrate its 10th Anniversary at TCAF!

Lewis Trondheim was also decorated by the French government as a Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters, in 2005! He has created or co-created over 100 French-language graphic albums, and is attending TCAF with his wife and creative partner Brigitte Findakly, in support of their memoir and historical chronicle, Poppies of Iraq (Drawn & Quarterly).

Check out the full list of guests.

Special Events Galore!

TCAF is about the authors and the books, but we present so many exciting ways to interact with the medium of comics! From gallery exhibitions to a “Comic Book Opera”, the TCAF 2018 programme is full of great events!

  • Hockey Noir: A Comic Book Opera: TCAF has teamed with ECM+ and Continuum to present a brand new Opera, HOCKEY NOIR, with Libretto by Canadian Graphic Novelist Cecil Castellucci! Danger, passion, and a Toronto/Montreal hockey rivalry! Tickets now available!
  • Toronto: Past, Present, and Future: This year’s TCAF Kick-Off event at the Appel Salon on Friday May 11 at 6:30pm will feature generations of Toronto cartoonists including Fiona Smyth (Sneaky Dee’s exterior artist), Ho Che Anderson (KING), and Hartley Lin (Young Frances) talking about the history of graphic novels in Toronto, and the future for artists in the city.
  • TCAF Turns 15: This is the Festival’s 15th Anniversary, and its 10th held at Toronto Reference Library. We’re celebrating with the largest and most internationally diverse list of exhibitors ever!

Get the full list of events.

Comics for all ages and interests!

TCAF is a great big event that contains so many different styles, scenes, and cliques within it that every audience is bound to find something to enjoy at the Festival!

  • TCAF Kids Area: Head to the Forest Hill Ballroom of the Marriott Bloor-Yorkville for 2 full days of programming for kids! Famous picture book and graphic novel creators will be reading their books, running crafts, drawing with kids, and so much more!
  • Wowee Zonk!: The best in outre, avant-garde, and outsider comics art comes to TCAF courtesy of the Wowee Zonk collective. Check out the Browsery Space in Toronto Reference Library!
  • Zineland Terrace: New for TCAF 2018, ZINELAND TERRACE will be taking over the upper level of the venerable Cumberland Terrace, at Cumberland and Yonge Street, with dozens of Toronto and international zinesters showing their wares! Including workshops on screenprinting and making your own zine!

Toronto Comic Arts Festival celebrates Image Comics 25th Anniversary with Panels, Signings, and More

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Image Comics has announced that the Toronto Comic Arts Festival (TCAF) 2017 will celebrate the company’s 25th anniversary with a slew of cannot-miss panels and events.

For two days in May, Image Comics creators, staff, and friends, will take over TCAF’s newest venue The Masonic Temple (introduced in 2016), located at 888 Yonge Street, a block north of TCAF’s main location Toronto Reference Library. The Image 25th Anniversary Party at The Masonic Temple will be a fully accessible venue which will feature both all-day exhibitors and timed creator signings, as well as panel discussions, live drawing, special ‘talk show’ segment, and more.

The Image 25th Anniversary Party at The Masonic Temple runs Saturday, May 13, from 10 a.m.-5 p.m., and Sunday, May 14, from 11 a.m.-5 p.m., and as with almost every TCAF event, admission will be FREE.

Image 25th Panels:
SATURDAY, MAY 13th 
TIME: 11 a.m.
LOCATION: Forest Hill Ballroom, Marriott Bloor-Yorkville
Image 25th: THE WALKING DEAD artist Charlie Adlard and KILL OR BE KILLED artist Sean Phillips in Conversation
Charlie Adlard (THE WALKING DEAD) and Sean Phillips (KILL OR BE KILLED) are giants of not only Image Comics, but also of the great wide world of British comics! Come and see these two titans in conversation, as Sean interviews Charlie about his career, being part of such a huge cultural phenomenon, and his new role as the UK’s Comics Laureate.

TIME: 1:30 p.m.
LOCATION: Masonic Temple, 888 Yonge St
Image 25th: Drawing Action
Lights? No. Camera? No. Action? Yes! Action! Comics are full of them! But how do you draw something with enough POW that it jumps off the page? Join Brandon Graham, Emma Ríos, Adam Warren, Jason Latour, and Cameron Stewart as they discuss everything from fight choreography to epic chase sequences and beyond.

TIME: 2:45 p.m.
LOCATION: Masonic Temple, 888 Yonge St
Image 25th: Designing New Worlds
Magical Monsters! Terrific Technologies! Alien Alternatives! When the real world isn’t big enough for your ideas, sometimes you’ve got to build your own! Join Jamie McKelvie, Sloane Leong, Simon Roy, and Andrew MacLean as they discuss what it takes to design a whole new world to contain your stories.

TIME: 4 p.m.
LOCATION: Masonic Temple, 888 Yonge St
Image 25th: Glitterbomb vs. Monstress—Terrifically Terrifying Comics
Few things are as horrific as real horror! Few things are as felt as true feelings! So how do you convey both of those things in comics? Join the teams behind the terrific and terrifying MONSTRESS (Marjorie Liu and Sana Takeda) and GLITTERBOMB (Jim Zub and Djibril Morrissette-Phan) on how they go about imbuing their stories and characters with real emotion, while also scaring your pants off.

SUNDAY, MAY 14th
TIME: 1:30 p.m.
LOCATION: Forest Hill Ballroom, Marriott Bloor-Yorkville
Image 25th: SNOTGIRL vs. KAPTARA—they’re funny, off-the-wall, and always enGROSSing
Snotgirl. Gross. KAPTARA. Also gross. But these books are also both very funny and very stylish! Come hang out with Bryan Lee O’Malley and Leslie Hung as they talk with hometown heroes Chip Zdarsky and Kagan McLeod about comics, collaboration, and jokes.

TIME: 12 p.m.
LOCATION: Masonic Temple, 888 Yonge St
Image 25th: Finding a Balance
Day jobs. Everybody’s got one. But how do you go about paying the bills while creating hit creator-owned comics? How do you make sure you have enough creative energy for both? Marjorie Liu, Jim Zub, Ivan Brandon, and Jason Latour are no strangers to balancing projects they do for others and projects the do for themselves. Come and hear how they try to make it work.

TIME: 1:30 p.m.
LOCATION: Masonic Temple, 888 Yonge St
Image 25th: From MOTOR CRUSH to ISOLA, Fletcher, Stewart, Tarr, and Kerschl talk collaboration of the years
The teams behind MOTOR CRUSH and the upcoming Isola have been working together for quite a while. Come and hear Brenden Fletcher, Cameron Stewart, Babs Tarr, and Karl Kerschl talk about their comic book making pasts, jumping to creator-owned comics as a team, and if there’s any friendly competition when both of their books are on the racks.

TIME: 2:45 p.m.
LOCATION: Masonic Temple, 888 Yonge St
Image 25th: Cartooning On The Edges of Reality
Drawing things you can see is hard enough. But how do you go about drawing things that aren’t what they seem? How do you draw the surreal and the supernatural? Join masters of the unreal Farel Dalrymple, Vanesa Del Rey, Wes Craig, and Ray Fawkes as they talk about creating visuals for the unknown.

TIME: 4 p.m.
LOCATION: Masonic Temple, 888 Yonge St
Image 25th: Island: Experimental Storytelling and Beyond
Island was an exciting experiment in creating a Heavy Metal-style anthology for North America. Having recently wrapped with issue #15, come and join series editors Emma Ríos and Brandon Graham, along with contributors Simon Roy and Farel Dalrymple, as they discuss the goals and achievements of Island, and what’s coming next for North American sci-fi.

CREATORS ATTENDING:

  • Charlie Adlard (THE WALKING DEAD)
  • Ivan Brandon (BLACK CLOUD)
  • Wes Craig (DEADLY CLASS)
  • Farel Dalrymple (POP GUN WAR)
  • Valentine de Landro (BITCH PLANET)
  • Brenden Fletcher (MOTOR CRUSH)
  • Brandon Graham (ISLAND)
  • Meredith Gran (OCTOPUS PIE)
  • Leslie Hung (SNOTGIRL)
  • Karl Kerschl (ISOLA)
  • Jason Latour (LOOSE ENDS, SOUTHERN BASTARDS)
  • Bryan Lee O’Malley (SNOTGIRL)
  • Jeff Lemire (ROYAL CITY, AD: AFTER DEATH, DESCENDER, PLUTONA)
  • Sloane Leong (FROM UNDER MOUNTAINS)
  • Marjorie Liu (MONSTRESS)
  • Andrew MacLean (HEADLOPPER) (Andrew MacLean will be exhibiting in Toronto Reference Library.)
  • Jamie McKelvie (THE WICKED + THE DIVINE)
  • Kagan McLeod (KAPTARA)
  • Djibril Morrissette-Phan (GLITTERBOMB
  • Sean Phillips (KILL OR BE KILLED)
  • Emma Ríos (ISLAND, PRETTY DEADLY)
  • Simon Roy (ISLAND)
  • Cameron Stewart (MOTOR CRUSH, THE OTHER SIDE)
  • Sana Takeda (MONSTRESS)
  • Babs Tarr (MOTOR CRUSH)
  • Chip Zdarsky (KAPTARA)
  • Jim Zub (GLITTERBOMB, WAYWARD)

Graphic Medicine Heads to the Toronto Comic Arts Festival

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Three authors of books in Penn State University Press’s critically acclaimed Graphic Medicine series are participating in the Toronto Comic Arts Festival this May.

Graphic novelist, printmaker, and textile artist Gareth Brookes will exhibit advance copies of his forthcoming graphic novel A Thousand Coloured Castles. Rendered entirely in unique scratched-off crayon drawings, the book depicts life with Charles Bonnet syndrome, which causes intense hallucinations in people with pre-existing vision problems. Brookes’s previous graphic novel, The Black Project, won the 2013 Best Original Graphic Novel Award from Broken Frontier.

MK Czerwiec is a nurse who uses comics to contemplate the complexities of illness and caregiving. She is co-curator of GraphicMedicine.org, co-author of the Eisner-nominated Graphic Medicine Manifesto, and artist-in-residence at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine. Her newly released graphic memoir Taking Turns tells the story of HIV/AIDS Care Unit 371 at Illinois Masonic Medical Center in Chicago, where she worked in the mid-1990s at the height of the AIDS crisis.

Ian Williams—recently named the “guru of Graphic Medicine” by the Canadian Medical Association Journal—is a visual artist and illustrator, a medical doctor, and an independent scholar of the humanities. He founded the website GraphicMedicine.org and is co-editor of the Graphic Medicine series and co-author of the Eisner-nominated Graphic Medicine Manifesto. His graphic novel The Bad Doctor is a darkly humorous look at the practice of medicine through the eyes of a neurotic doctor weighed down by his responsibilities.

Czerwiec and Williams will present on Graphic Medicine in a TCAF session on the 13th at 4pm in the Summerhill Ballroom, Marriot Bloor-Yorkville.

Graphic Medicine, a subgenre of graphic novel that is growing in popularity and professional recognition, refers to work that uses comics to tell nuanced stories about health, illness, and the medical field. Learn more at GraphicMedicine.org; see the full list of series titles at PSUPress.org.

Celebrate Image Comics’ 25th Anniversary at TCAF 2017!

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TCAF, The Toronto Comic Arts Festival, has announced that it will host a celebration for the 25th Anniversary of groundbreaking comic book publisher Image Comics!

Special guests, amazing programming, and even a dedicated venue will thrill fans old and new alike at TCAF 2017, taking place May 13th and 14th, 2017, in Toronto, Canada. Image Comics is the largest publisher of creator-owned comic books in North America, with notable titles including The Walking Dead, Saga, The Wicked + The Divine, and Toronto’s own Sex Criminals, reaching beyond ‘mainstream’ comics’ traditional borders to bring in new readers, promote fairer contracts, and publish some great work!

The Image 25th Anniversary Party @ The Masonic Temple

For two days in May, Image Comics creators, staff, and friends, will take over TCAF’s newest venue The Masonic Temple (introduced in 2016), located at 888 Yonge Street, a block north of TCAF’s main location Toronto Reference Library. The Image 25th Anniversary Party at The Masonic Temple is a fully accessible venue which will feature both all-day exhibitors and timed creator signings, as well as panel discussions, live drawing, special ‘talk show’ segment, and more!

The Image 25th Anniversary Party @ The Masonic Temple runs Saturday, May 13, from 10am to 5pm, and Sunday, May 14, from 11am to 5pm, and as with almost every TCAF event, admission will be FREE!

Please note: This is opening 1 hour later than TCAF’s main venue at Toronto Reference Library. At points during the day they may need to stagger entry to conform to fire code regulations. Make sure to dress as warm as you need to and bring an umbrella, just in case you’re waiting outside!

Over Two-Dozen Image Comics Creators!

Since its creation in 2003, each TCAF has welcomed a number of comics creators who’ve published with Image Comics, but this year we’re blowing the roof off with more than 2 dozen creators (and maybe more to come…)! Check out this amazing guest list:

  • Charlie Adlard
  • Ivan Brandon
  • Wes Craig
  • Valentine De Landro
  • Brenden Fletcher
  • Cameron Stewart
  • Babs Tarr
  • Brandon Graham
  • Emma Rios
  • Farel Dalrymble
  • Simon Roy
  • Meredith Gran
  • Karl
  • Leslie Hung
  • Bryan Lee O’Malley
  • Jason Latour
  • Jeff Lemire
  • Marjorie Liu
  • Sana Takeda
  • Sloane Leong
  • Andrew MacLean
  • Jamie McKelvie
  • Kagan McLeod
  • Djibril Morrisette-Phan
  • Sean Phillips
  • Chip Zdarsky
  • Jim Zub

Mark off May 13th and 14th for TCAF 2017 at all of their venues, including Toronto Reference Library, The Marriott Bloor Yorkville, and The Image Comics Anniversary Party @ The Masonic Temple!

Comic Book Creators Converge on Toronto! Announcing TCAF 2017, May 13-14! The Toronto Comic Arts Festival

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TCAF, The Toronto Comic Arts Festival has announced a ton of its Featured Guests and programs for the 2017 Festival, running May 13 & 14, 2017!

Returning once again to Toronto Public Library’s flagship branch, Toronto Reference Library, as well as official hotel The Marriott Bloor Yorkville, and new venue The Masonic Temple, TCAF 2017 is set to welcome more than 400 comic book authors from around the world, and will feature more than 50 comics and graphic novels making their debut at the Festival!

If you’ve missed the announcements on Twitter, Facebook, and torontocomics.com, keep reading for an overview of TCAF 2017!

Canadian Guests

  • David Collier, creator of numerous beloved alternative comics works and unique projects including the recent Colville Comics for the Art Gallery of Ontario will return to TCAF to debut his new graphic novel Morton: A Cross-Country Rail Journey from Conundrum Press.
  • Katherine Collins, creator of Neil The Horse will be on hand to be inducted into Giants Of The North Canadian Cartoonists Hall of Fame, and debut The Collected Neil The Horse from Coundrum Books.
  • Dave Cooper, cartoonist, fine artist, and animator, will attend TCAF in support of the anniversary edition of Ripple: A Predilection for Tina, and to screen the new animated feature based on his work ‘The Absence of Eddy Table.’
  • Guy Delisle, author of PyongYang, Jerusalem, and The Burma Chronicles, will be on hand to launch his new graphic novel Hostage from Drawn & Quarterly, and will be the subject of an art exhibition on the third floor of Toronto Reference Library.
  • Jeff Lemire, award winning creator of Essex County, Underwater Welder, Sweet Tooth, and the acclaimed recent release The Secret Path (with Gord Downie) will launch his new graphic novels Roughneck, from Simon & Shuster, and A.D.: After Death, from Image Comics. Jeff Lemire is also the illustrator of one of TCAF 2017’s three official posters!
  • Jillian Tamaki, Governor General’s Award winning co-creator of Skim and This One Summer, and creator of SuperMutant Magic Academy, returns to TCAF to launch her new collection Boundless, from Drawn & Quarterly.

American Guests

  • Gabrielle Bell (USA), author of The Voyeurs, and Lucky, will be on hand to launch her new book Everything is Flammable.
  • Gary Panter (USA), alternative/underground comics legend and set designer for beloved TV Show Pee Wee’s Playhouse will return to TCAF to launch his new graphic novel Songy of Paradise, from Fantagraphics Books.
  • Nate Powell (USA), creator of the graphic novels You Don’t Say, Any Empire, and Swallow Me Whole, and illustrator of the acclaimed civil rights memoir MARCH, with John Lewis and Andrew Aydin, returns to TCAF for the release of Nate Powell’s Omnibox, a collection of works from Top Shelf Productions.
  • Ngozi Ukazu (USA) returns to TCAF to celebrate the release of the second volume of her beloved gay hockey comic series Check, Please!

International Guests

  • Paolo Bacilieri (Italy), will attend in support of his new graphic novel FUN from SelfMadeHero, and be featured in an exhibition of his original art with the support of The Italian Cultural Institute.
  • Penelope Bagieu (France), author of Exquisite Corpse, will launch her new graphic novel California Dreamin’, a biography of The Mama’s and The Papas’s singer Cass Elliot, from First Second Books.
  • Joe Decie (UK), returning to TCAF with the support of The Lakes International Comics Festival, in support of his new graphic novel Collecting Sticks, from publisher Jonathan Cape.
  • Igor Hofbauer (Croatia), best known for creating all of the album artwork for the Juno-nominated ‘Afraid of Heights’ by Canadian rockers Billy Talent, will make his TCAF debut with the graphic novel Mister Morgen, from Conundrum Press.
  • Jason (Norway), is a fan favourite comics creator and is returning to TCAF in support of his brand new graphic novel On The Camino, from Fantagraphcs Books.
  • Michael Nybrandt (Denmark) attends TCAF in support of his English language debut Dreams in Thin Air from Conundrum Press, the story of the formation of the Tibetan National Soccoer Team, with a preface by His Holiness the Dalai Lama.
  • Gengoroh Tagame (Japan), internationally renown creator of Japanese gay erotica, will return to TCAF to debut the English-language translation of My Brother’s Husband, the Japan Media Arts Award-winning story of gay struggle and acceptance in Japan, published in English by Pantheon Books. My Brother’s Husband will be the subject of a small exhibit of original art displayed in the Browsery at Toronto Reference Library.
  • Marcelino Truong (France, Vietnam), will be at TCAF in support of his memoir Such A Lovely Little War: Saigon 1961-63, published by Arsenal Pulp Press.

These are just some of the more than 40 Featured Guests and 400 exhibitors from around the world that will be participating in TCAF 2017! For the full list, head to torontocomics.com!

Special Program: Celebrating Toronto Publisher Koyama Press’ 10th Anniversary!

Vital Toronto publishing house Koyama Press turns 10 in 2017, and they’re making this TCAF a big one! With 6 essential debuts from some of the freshest voices in the medium, Koyama Press will be properly celebrated through a variety of panel discussions and an amazing art show, and will have artists in attendance from throughout the history of the company! Featured creators include:
  • Eleanor Davis (USA), author of the Award Winning short story collection How To Be Happy will be on hand to debut the new graphic novel You & A Bike & A Road, from Koyama Press. Eleanor Davis also illustrated one of TCAF 2017’s Official Festival Posters!
  • An Nguyen & Jane Mai (Canada & USA), this duo will be on hand to launch their exploration of Japan’s Gothic Lolita Culture, So Pretty, Very Rotten. This book will also be the subject of a gallery showing of original art and materials at The Japan Foundation Toronto from May 11th through May 16th. 
  • Other featured Koyama Press creators include Eric Kostiuk Williams (Canada), launching their new Toronto-focused queer graphic novel Condo Heartbreak Disco; Jesse Jacobs (Canada), launching their psychedelic new graphic novel Crawl Space; Keiler Roberts (USA), launching their new graphic memoir of motherhood and artistry Sunburning; Ben Sears (USA), launching their new action adventure graphic novel Volcano Trash.
  • Plus look for Koyama mainstays John Martz, Patrick Kyle, Michael DeForge, Ginette LaPalme, Dustin Harbin, and more exhibiting at the rest of the show!

Special Program: NBM Turns 40!

TCAF is excited to host a special celebration of the 40th Anniversary of NBM Publishing! Publisher Terry Nantier will be on hand for the company and he’ll be joined by comics luminaries including , and they will celebrate through programming and author appearances including:
  • Sandrine Revel (France), visiting TCAF for the first time in support of her book Glenn Gould: A Life Off-Tempo!
  • Rick Geary (USA), author of the historical true-crime series’ A Treasury of Murder… amongst a luminous career of achievements!
  • Metaphrog (Scotland), the Franco-Scottish duo of Sandra Marrs and John Chalmers have been delighting audiences for decades, through their Louis series, and their beautifully illustrated new children’s fairytales!

Special Program: German Comics Pavilion presented by Comic-Salon Erlangen, in partnership with The Goethe Institut Toronto

TCAF is partnering with premiere German comics event Comic-Salon Erlangen, taking place every two years in Erlangen, Germany! The first part of the partnership is an exhibition of German comics and artwork at TCAF 2017 in The Appel Salon at Toronto Reference Library. Produced with the support of The Goethe Institut in Toronto, this exhibition will feature an original art show, information on the Erlangen Comics event, a selection of German-language graphic novels, and participating artists including:
  • Ulli Lust (Austria/Germany), returning to TCAF for the first time since 2013! Ulli is the award-winning creator of Today is the Last Day of the Rest of Your Life, and the forthcoming book Voices in the Dark. 
  • Anna Haifisch (Germany), visiting Toronto in support of her independent comics work and her comic strip The Artist, featured on Vice.com.
  • Martina Schradi (Germany), an author, cartoonist, and cerified psychologist. Martina Schradi will be curating a special exhibition on German LGBT comics art in this space, including her own work Oh, I See?!.
  • Rotopol Press (Germany), the German art comics publisher will return for TCAF 2017 and will welcome publisher Rita Furstenau and cartoonist Carmen Jose.

TCAF to Partner With Vancouver Comic Arts Festival

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vancafThe Vancouver Comic Arts Festival (VanCAF) has announced that going forward it will now officially take place in partnership with The Toronto Comic Arts Festival (TCAF). The partnership will take effect immediately, beginning with the planning of VanCAF 2017, a two-day comics exhibition taking place on May 27 and 28 in downtown Vancouver, British Columbia, returning to The Roundhouse Community Arts & Recreation Centre.

TCAF’s staff will directly oversee all future iterations of VanCAF, under the stewardship of the new VanCAF Festival Director, Andrea Demonakos. Demonakos, previously of Emerald City Comicon and ReedPOP, takes over from departing Festival Director and VanCAF founder, Shannon Campbell. Campbell will now join the VanCAF Board of Directors in an advisory capacity, alongside new board members Miles Baker and Andrew Woodrow-Butcher from TCAF, Vancouver-based comic creator Nathan Fairbairn and musician/visual artist Jarrett Samson.

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