Things To Do In London In August If You Like Comics

The creation of the Marvel Cinematic Universe has been one of the most exciting pop culture developments of the last decade – and contradicts the decades-long strategy, followed primarily by DC, of keeping superheroes in their own worlds for their screen incarnations. Now DC have plans to follow Marvel's lead (and Sony are developing an entire Spider-verse), but will the "Marvel megafranchise model" work for others? Does an interconnected universe imply certain kinds of stories and not others? What are the advantages of solo films? And how are different studios using other media – in particular, TV – to further develop their properties?

130 years ago the emergence of Ally Sloper's Half Holiday saw the first comic book (as we recognise it) published in the UK. Since then the medium has gone through many cycles of expansion and contraction.

What comic books from outside the UK have been influential upon the development of comic books here – artistically, politically, and thematically?

And how have British comic creators and stories in turn exerted their influence upon the comic book industries in other countries?

Is there a recognisable British comic book tradition? And how is it changing and adapting in an instant, connected world with a multitude of styles and visions?

Manga developed in Japan as a syncretic reaction to American comic books from an indigenous art perspective, to become a unique style of sequential art.

Manga has since emerged from Japan to become a vibrant style adopted by creators in other countries.

What are the more interesting and existing transformations that Manga has undergone in Japan, and outside its birthplace? What is the future of Manga as an art expression in the 21st century?

Discover new drawing skills, learn professional comics making tips, and get ideas for coming up with fresh drawings and stories. Create your own new character, then release it into the wild in this fun, interactive comics game. Be sure to bring along your questions!
Please note that children will be given priority to participate in this child-friendly session.

Which comics published in the 21st century will be quoted as the 'classics' in the decades to come? Will Y: The Last Man, Saga, Attack on Titan, Lazarus, Ms. Marvel, Grandville, Snowpiercer, or The Wake be remembered by future readers? What are your bets for the titles 22nd century comic book aficionados will consider comic book canon?

3pm-4.30pm

What is Art in the 21st Century?

Loncon, ExCel, Capital Suite 13

Stephen Nelson, Ric Bretschneider

A discussion of the best cosplays based on comic book characters.

9pm-10pm

Drawing the [redacted]: comics and censorship

Loncon, ExCel, Capital Suite 11

A Cavalcade of Crazy Cartoonists will razzle-dazzle us all by drawing live, projected onto big plasma screens in the Comica Drawing Parade, an all-day highlight of the free Comica Comiket from 10.30 to 16.30 at The British Library.

10.30-11.00am

Ian Williams (The Bad Doctor from Myriad)

Comiket, British Library

11.00-11.30am

Andrew Rae (Moonhead and the Music Machine from Nobrow)

Comiket, British Library

11am-Noon

Revealing the Real World Through Comics

Loncon, ExCel, Capital Suite  10

June Madeley, Mary Talbot, Dominick Grace, Maura McHugh, Mike Carey

It can be argued that cartoons have a long tradition of grappling with, and commenting on, political and domestic problems through editorial cartoons and illustrated satire.

Yet it's generally considered that the rise of autobiographical comics came about in the 1960s, and has slowly become popular as an means of expression in the intervening decades – especially after Maus won the Pulitzer Prize in 1992.

Why have comic book journalism, graphic memoirs, and tackling social issues through the medium of comic books and cartoons become so popular? What can we reveal about the real through a medium that often uses abstract or surreal images combined with text to tell a story?

And why will they earn awards from the literary scene, when their fictional counterparts rarely get listed?

11.30-Noon

Asia Alfasi (Best New Manga from Constable & Robinson)

Comiket, British Library

12.00-12.30pm

Al Davison (Hokusai Dreams and Muscle Memory from Astral Gypsy)

Comiket, British Library

Noon – 1:30pm

Fresh Perspectives: Comic Books for Young People

Loncon, ExCel, London Suite 3,

Emily Wagner, Inko, Klaus Æ. Mogensen, Smuzz, Cory Doctorow

Children and young people were well catered to for comics during the heyday of the medium, but the last few decades has seen a narrowing of titles aimed at younger audience… until recently.  Are we seeing a new wave of comic books aimed at teens and children? What are the best comic book titles to introduce a new generation to the medium? Is there a fresh perspective sweeping into comics via these titles?

What are the old childhood classics that remain popular, and what are the new stories that will help shape the medium in the 21st century?

And how are new technologies affecting the expectations of this growing audience?

Noon – 1:30pm

12.30-1.00pm

Mark Buckingham (Fables and Dead Boy Detectives from Vertigo)

Comiket, British Library

1.00-1.30pm

Francesca Dare (Penny Goodfeather from Sloth Publishing)

Comiket, British Library

1.30-2.00pm

Jan Cleijne (Legends of the Tour from Head of Zeus)

Comiket, British Library

1:30pm – 3pm

Old New Classics: The Off-Beat and Indie Comics of Yore

Loncon, ExCel, Capital Suite 14

Scott Edelman, Smuzz, Allan J. Sim, Peter Sutton, Barbara G.Tarn

When people discuss the Golden Age and Silver Age of Comics the conversation is often dominated by the emergence of the superhero in both DC and Marvel in America. However, from its inception comics books were always a fertile breeding ground for fun, weird, and alternative stories from around the world.

1:30pm – 3pm

How to Draw Manga: A Workshop for Young People

Loncon, ExCel, London Suite 3

2pm-2.30

Warren Pleece (The Great Unwashed from Escape Books, Alby Figgs from Blank Slate)

2.30-3pm

Nick Hayes (Rime of the Modern Mariner and Woody Guthrie from Jonathan Cape)

3pm-4,30pm

Setting Up Your Comic Book Press: New and Old Models Examined

Loncon, ExCel, Capital Suite 13

3.00-3.30pm

Emmanuel Guibert (Alan's War, The Photographer and How The World Was from First Second)

3.30-4pm

Jade Sarson (For The Love Of God, Marie!, Winner of the First Graphic Novel award, forthcoming from Myriad)

6pm-7pm

Sunday 17th

10am – 11am

Vox Populi: the new voice of comic book criticism?

Loncon, ExCel, Capital Suite 3

K. A. Laity, KT Davies, Marcus Gipps, Emmeline Pui Ling Dobson, Didi Chanoch

Anyone with a blog or social media presence can send their opinion directly to comic book creators. How is this affecting comic book criticism?

Is this the death of the old stuffy regime of taste-makers, or the rise of a new type of creative pressure? How is the closer connection between creator and audience affecting the work?

And what happens when the collective force of a fanbase focuses upon 'punishing' critical voices?

11am – 12pm

Writing and Pitching Comics

Loncon, ExCel, Capital Suite 9

Maura McHugh, Paul Cornell, Mike Carey, Mary Talbot, Debbie Lynn Smith

A discussion about creating comic books from the writer's perspective. Breaking into comic book writing can present a unique challenge for new writers, because the route in is usually different than for artists (there are no portfolio reviews for writers).

Then there are basic issues, such as formatting scripts, which aren't even clear-cut.

How do writers craft the pitches that get them jobs as comic book writers? How do they proceed once they get the gig? What's it like to liaise with artists, colourists, letterers, and editors?

What are the joys and perils of collaborating with so many people?

11am-Noon

The Great War In Comics

Conference Centre, British Library, £5, (£4 Over 60s) and £3. Book now. Part of the COMICA Festival Weekend.