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| Lancaster-based comic writer Andy Diggle will be just one of the guests at Kendal’s comic festival in October |
The programme’s in place, the venues booked. Now, comic creators from across the North West – including Lancaster and Morecambe – are getting ready for one of the biggest comic events of the year in October – the Lakes International Comic Art Festival.
Britain
is buzzing with comics festivals and conventions up and down the land
and throughout the year. Across the spectrum of scale and longevity,
Oxford’s determinedly human-scale small press weekend Caption is the longest one still running, while the MCM Expos
can draw humungous hordes of fans, though not necessarily of comics.
The term ‘Comicon’ has become rather debased lately worldwide,
sidelining comics and standing more for fantasy and genre movies, TV,
games and pop culture in general. Other festivals like Thought Bubble in Leeds and Comica in London, both bouncing back this autumn, put the emphasis firmly on the richness of comics.
This year is buzzier than ever, what with newcomers Nerd Fest in Nottingham and 22 Panels in Falmouth, Cornwall and the Edinburgh Book Festival running a big comics programme Stripped. But the most exciting premier is the Lakes International Comic Art Festival
over the weekend of 18th – 20th October, which long time comics ambassdaor Paul Gravett – who has run events across the UK for over 25 years – feels is set to make the
lovely Cumbrian town of Kendal world-famous for more than just the
glorious Lake District scenery and scrummy Mint Cake.
The plans for its first year are audaciously ambitious and, in an interview here with Paul, its director Julie Tait brims over with vivacity and vision.
Lancaster-based comic creators expected to be at the Festival include comics writer Andy Diggle, artist Sean Phillips (who also has an exhibition of his work there), Paul Harrison-Davies and comics editor and former editor of Doctor Who Magazine John Freeman.
“Comic
art has always been an interest and my 15 year old son has intensified
this for me over the last few years so it has become a shared interest,”
says Julie, who has been working in the arts for nearly 25 years. “We
have been to a wide range of conventions and events together. He has
Asperger’s Syndrome so our experiences have been a little unusual too –
another longer story.
“I have seen the parallels between outdoor
arts and comic art and feel there is huge potential to reach a wider
audience and so much amazing work going on – innovative and of the
highest quality. Call it zeitgeist. The four-year Olympic programme,
Lakes Alive, which I have been working on has come to an end (of
course!) and whist there is a legacy, it is smaller scale now. So this
leaves some room for new ventures. Plus there is no major event in the
North West celebrating comic art and where better to put on a true
cultural festival about this medium than the Lakes?
“…The Town
and District Councils are hugely supportive as are the Library Service
(county-wide), schools and colleges – all critical to success too,” she
continues, asked about local support for her ambitious project which
will see over 80 comic creators on various stages and in numerous
venues, along with an increasing number of publishers and editorial
teams, such as Titan Comics and The Phoenix. “Most importantly,
more and more businesses are coming out of the woodwork with their own
ideas of how to support it, and the local population, whilst not quite
sure what it all entails, are becoming increasingly curious and then
excited because it offers a new kind of event…”
While
Julie is no doubt deligted that the event is being compared in its
style to the prestigious French comics festival put on in Angouleme
each January, which attracts over 100,000 visitors to the small French city, she is also realistic about what can be acheived in the
show’s first year.
“Reality check first, which I already knew
about from my travels to French street arts festivals,” she cautions.
“The Europeans get it, really value culture and have big budgets (still)
and are embedded in their towns and cities – huge envy! Then the
excitement about making it happen on no budget from a standing start but
with a great place and local energy to build on.
“To be honest
that is the nub of it – the individual aspects were what I had expected
and cheekily I even had ideas for how they could improve their festival
‘offer’! The most inspiring bit was the scale and the breadth and depth
of its impact – lots and lots of people and from all backgrounds
reveling in comic art with displays in shop windows and streets feeling
alive with it all…
“…The events programme represents a wide
range of genres etc and a reasonable international representation too.
Much to build on in the future. At the same time we have areas which are
totally free and less “earnest” in presentation to attract those new to
it all. However quality is the connecting factor I hope.”
With
the project looming ever closer, there’s no stopping now, and Julie’s
enthusiasm for the whole Festival is apparent throughout her interview,
even touching on advance planning for 2014, with meetings and ideas
already flowing for next year’s event. She’s keen to ensure guests this
year go away and advocate for what the Festival team are doing,
“private sectors come to the table to support in year two and the public
sector and tourism industries here see the benefits and want to help
sustain it.
“If we can put down enough markers this year, I think we have a great future potentially…”