This official press release brings together all known facts about this year’s Toronto Comic Arts Festival, and if the names “Guibert” and “Tatsumi” mean anything to you, you will probably want to be there. A summary:

Drawing a diverse array of cartoonists from around the world, the Toronto Comic Arts Festival (TCAF) is a phenomenal exhibition of international comics talent, and a chance to celebrate Canadian comics authors here at home. TCAF will showcase the talents of its guests through an ambitious programme of exhibitor presentations, gallery showings, lectures, workshops, discussion panels, interactive readings, and the 2009 Doug Wright Awards for Canadian Cartooning.

At the center of the Festival proceedings are the international premieres of numerous long-anticipated works, both by and celebrating Canadian cartoonists, and by graphic novel creators from around the world! Canadian programming highlights will include the debuts of The Collected Doug Wright – both a collection of work and tribute to the beloved Canadian newspaper cartoonist – and George Sprott, a new graphic novel by Seth collecting his acclaimed comics from The New York Times Magazine. Toronto’s own Bryan Lee O’Malley, creator of the popular Scott Pilgrim series will attend TCAF to present the fifth volume of the series, and to discuss the Hollywood adaptation of his work filming in Toronto this spring!

Among the international cartoonists appearing at TCAF for the first time will be: Emmanuel Guibert (France), with his new graphic novel The Photographer, a gripping account of the work of Doctors Without Borders in Afghanistan; Yoshihiro Tatsumi (Japan), debuting his massive 840-page biography A Drifting Life; Anke Feuchetenberger (Germany) will present new work at the Festival (TBA); American Adrian Tomine will premiere the softcover edition of his bestseller Shortcomings; and American Ivan Brunetti will offer the collection of his dark humour comics, entitled Ho!.

1 COMMENT

  1. Interesting. I wonder if the Doug Wrights Awards have adjusted their discriminatory practices against French-speaking Canadian cartoonists? Perhaps that’s why they felt the need to wrap up their discriminatory award in a larger festival…

    I still say that anyone who participates in the DWA or support them in effect supports discrimination. But comic book industry folks are not known for taking issues of discrimination seriously, if it means they have to change or think about their own behaviours and attitudes.

  2. Interesting. I wonder if the Doug Wrights Awards have adjusted their discriminatory practices against French-speaking Canadian cartoonists? Perhaps that’s why they felt the need to wrap up their discriminatory award in a larger festival…

    I still say that anyone who participates in the DWA or support them in effect supports discrimination. But comic book industry folks are not known for taking issues of discrimination seriously, if it means they have to change or think about their own behaviours and attitudes.