Canadian Comix News & Culture

   Thursday, August 14, 2008  
The Doug Wright Awards' so called 'Canadian' language controversy

:: Posted by max @ 8/14/2008 06:00:00 PM
With a charged OP ed piece by Herve St-Louis, the publisher and editor for comicbookbin.com has kicked off a pretty intense conversation over the question of whether or not The Doug Wright Awards has the "right" to call itself a Canadian award.

Tom Spurgeon has started to act as something of a neutral presenter of the issue, posting several responses to the first posting from St-Louis on The Comics Reporter. And there's alot of back and forth in the comments of PW The Beat. So far i've found the debate very interesting.

I have a problem with the tone taken at the start by St-Louis myself; I feel he was pretty wildly hyperbolic in his analogies, and presents a basically false premise. And he seems upon a little asking around, to be speculating a lot about the intentions of the DWA organizers without information. There was a small amount of communication with our own Bryan Munn informally as a DWA representative on the subject, but it seems St-Louis cut that short and ran with his story.

But from a purely rhetorical point of view, many have made some very good points on the broader subject.

Bryan, who is responsible for most of the posting here on Sequential now, is bowing out of commenting on the debate on our site as he's closely involved with the Doug Wright Awards, so I'm going to try to keep on top of this for Sequential, work schedule permitting.

I will be thinking on it and perhaps posting my own perspective more in the future but at this time a few things seem clear to me.


First I think that it's clear the DWA's present themselves as A Canadian award, not THE Canadian awards. A point made by Brad MacKay but also consistent with my impression of their promotion of the awards. St-Louis's argument seems to be build a lot on the idea that something other than this is true.

The About page's first short opening paragraph from the DWA site.

About The Doug Wright Awards

The Doug Wright Awards were established in 2005 to cast a spotlight on the range of cartoonists and comic artists working in Canada.

And, the very relevant last one...

Language of work
[SeqEd:accepted for submissions]

For the first year at least, The Wrights will only consider works that are available in English or are wordless. (French-language works that are translated into English will be eligible.)

And if testimony is required, going back to the first year of the awards, I can confirm from my own discussions with the organizers, that what Brad MacKay says in his official statement as true; That there has all along been very active discussion of how eventually to address the question of, at some point, bringing in a french language category. But that for now they lack the resources to do so. There has been no active discrimination against french creators in anyway, or a flat refusal to address the issue. Only a recognition that they are unequipped to review french language submissions at this time in a manor suited to the standards they set out for the DWA.

And far from being presented as THE Canadian comics award, they are more like A Literary Canadian Comics Award in affect. And yes we could be really precise and call them The Doug Wrights, A Literary English Language Canadian Comics Award, but frankly as precise as that would be, it would be a terrible, terrible name!

OK yes I'm being a little dramatic, but The Doug Wright English Canadian Comics Awards is truly not too much better. So it's the The Doug Wright Awards, period.

As Hervé points out; hyphenation, and over qualification is a pain in the arse.

The idea is to make the awards appealing, and interesting. Not boring and didactic.


Now It's all very fine and well to say they could make the contacts here in Quebec, associate with a local award or start a parallel operation.

But it takes two to tango, and speaking as an Anglo, living in Montreal, I have to say the French community here at least, when not too busy with their own things to be bothered, is seldom very welcoming or enthusiastic of this kind of collaboration over all. Nor do they reach out often themselves in a collaborative manner to make such things happen. It's like herding cats here on both sides of the language divide.

Maybe in Alberta where Hervé lives now, he's unaware of this. He started out here so he should know. It was true more so when he lived here!

It's true that in their own language sphere many people have done amazing things to promote local French work to an international French audience. But making the effort to promote their work to an audience that overwhelmingly won't be able to read it is never appealing to any publisher. Frankly I for one can't fault them for that.

And far from generally being ignored by English Canada, I and many Anglo's have come to Montreal thinking we would be able to connect and build bridges with the french community, only to find a wall of often disinterested backs turned on us because we speak French as poorly as many of the Quebecois speak English.

For those who are more engaged and welcoming - and there are many now - it's shrugs and a lack of interest in general. Not to say it's always cold, but I have not experienced a culture in a hurry to be embraced by it's English neighbors. They want more than not to be admired in their own language in their own region or in the EU. For those few desiring more English attention, they look south, like a lot of us here, were there are many many millions more in the audience than here. A practical issues more than not.

I would put it to Herve that this often kind of insular approach, and a love of confrontation and conflict expressed to me by many of my Francophone Montreal peers, and as exemplified by the rather inflammatory examples in his post - Is as much if not more a problem than any active bigotry in the English community...

"If the Harvey Awards, were to refuse all comic books by blacks or women, until they bleached their skin white or undergo hormone therapy to change their gender, it would be clear to everybody that their policy and the support of those awards was morally wrong"

Really? Comparing asking for translations to bleaching skin, AND forced gender reassignment. Was one over the top inaccurate analogy not enough? Hmmmmm.


Numerous times have I inquired locally in Montreal, as to why more effort is not made by French creators and publishers to translate the huge amounts of work produced here into English for the larger North American market. Or why there are so few sites promoting the Quebec community outside of the Francophone sphere.

Coverage and effort has improved, yes, far more of both things happen now than just 5 years ago. But it's been very, very slow.

And my said inquiries are more often than not responded to with shrugs and the refrain that they rather someone else do the work. They are too busy, it's as simple as that. No bigotry, no conspiracy, no surprising undercurrent of hate.

I've done my own best when I've had the time to do so to promote local work, regardless of language, as has Bryan who is I'll repeat an active member of the DWA organization.

I have tried at some length to recruit contributors for this very site to help cover the Quebec scene, as well as trying to find people on the coasts and in the mid west.

I have constantly failed to find interested parties on all counts.

Even Herve's own site spends most of it's time reporting on American, English comics. On the site's menu there is not even a way to filter the posts to view QC or Montreal stories. Just Cunuck. And I invite you to look for yourself to see how many are for French Language books....

It seems to me Herve is asking, demanding, others to confer praise for work he seldom promotes himself. No he does not call himself THE Canadian comic news site anymore than the DWA call them selves THE Canadian comic awards, but then this only furthers my point.

I can understand that there are a lot of bruised egos, as I'm always reminded when I talk to my peers here in Montreal about this sort of thing. It does not come up nearly as often as Herve's article would suggest but sure, some feel a little left out.

But I have a hard time giving too much credit to said egos, when they do so little to change the situation themselves through constructive positive actions. But rather it seems - when bothered to do anything - prefer to rant at supposed arms length about it. In this case at Provincial length, and without foundation or information speculating in an overwhelmingly demonizing way about the intentions of the 'Others' they think someone may perceive themselves slighted or ignored by.


So what do I think they should do instead?

How about this; I've not talked to anyone about this so I don't know if the will or means can be mustered, but say they do and could be. Say someone in QC, or the french community outside of QC cares about this all that much, and wants to do something.

Say maybe the Prix Bedelys have any interest in this, that they take the initiative to put together a jury and reading list for a French language award to spotlight Original French books to the rest of Canada and the English comics reading world and any French readers who may be paying attention, to be presented at The Doug Wright Awards.

They can also help raise funds locally for the prize and to pay for the trophy, and The Doug Wright Awards in turn give them the additional press and attention. The DWA orginization have the current problem of a lack of resources and means on their side addressed in this way.

Maybe as a way to make this a mutual trade - not to besmirch anyone's best intentions; but the Bédélys trophy is not, well, all that impressive. Perhaps they also might be able to persuade the Doug Wright Awards rather famous trophy builder to help them out as well?

Call it a trade for mutual benefit, and fix the problem by doing something about it, rather than making over the top and inaccurate analogies to civil rights abuses and the intentions of others you don't actually talk with before speculating on publicly.

But in the mean time, until the French Comics community is willing or wants to be bothered to take on the task of promoting their own work to the rest of the world regardless if it's Francophone or not, I think it's a little disingenuous for someone in the to cry discrimination in this manor.

A lack of means does not equate a intentional bigoted refusal.


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   Monday, August 11, 2008  
Big News Links: Lynn Johnston, Steven Harper, Muhammad

:: Posted by Bryan @ 8/11/2008 01:00:00 PM

  • Conflict of Interest Dept: As we reported in the previous post, The Wright Awards were held last Friday. I guess the big news, besides the winners of course, was a few comments by Lynn Johnston about the "absolute" end date of For Better or For Worse (August 31) and her intention to redraw the old strips for re-syndication. Nancy Beiman has a blog post with some Johnston quotes from the Q&A event, knitted together and somewhat out of context, but largely accurate. The CBC coverage has a straightforward report with more great quotes. Editor and Publisher has a short blurb/Johnston backgrounder. And see here for Best Emerging Talent-winner Jeff Lemire's earliest comics memories.
  • Does Harper Hate Comics? Dept: The Harper government has cut funding to PromArt, the federal agency responsible for promoting Canadian art and performance abroad. The agency granted money ($4.7 million annually) to artists to pay for travel, to exhibit, perform, attend conferences, etc. As the name of the agency indicates, this was one of the major ways for creative types to promote art from this country in other countries. Conservative media like the National Post have heralded the move as a vote for free markets (and more starving artists, I guess). The government spin is the usual - "Certainly we felt some of the groups were not necessarily ones we thought Canadians would agree were the best choices to be representing them internationally,". Saner minds see a connection to political interference in arts funding, a la Bill C-10. The Canadian Press has the story.
  • Censorship Dept: The Alberta Human Rights Commission has dismissed the complaint against Ezra Levant and the Western Standard for republishing the Danish Muhammad cartoons. You can read the official dismissal report here (pdf file). It is a fascinating document and I urge everyone to read it. The dismissal was based on the fact that Levant reprinted the cartoons as part of a news article discussing the issue, without obvious (or at least extreme) bias (which would be a crime in Canada). The conclusion reads, in part, ""While the cartoons do, in isolation, reinforce existing stereotypes of Muslims, the cartoons placed in the context of the accompanying article, cannot be said to express deep seated feelings of hatred and contempt against Muslims." So the report concludes, "A reasonable person would not consider that the republication of the cartoons in the context in which they were republished, would expose Muslims to the very strong feelings of hatred and contempt. Again, while the republication of the cartoons in isolation would likely promote existing stereotypes, and Muslims are a relatively vulnerable group, the effect of this communication as a whole (cartoons and accompanying article) would not make it more acceptable to others to manifest hatred or contempt against the Muslims." You can read the Western Standard's own report here, Levant's press release here.

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   Friday, May 09, 2008  
This Weekend: Graphic Novel Conference, Toronto

:: Posted by Bryan @ 5/09/2008 06:00:00 AM


The New Narrative?

An academic conference devoted comics and the graphic novel, presented at the University of Toronto, May 10-11. Hilights include a talk by Seth on being a cartoonist in Canada, relative to the other visual arts, and a paper by the controversial Jeet Heer on Orphan Annie and Dickens.




Saturday 10 May

9:00 - 9:30 Registration (ongoing through to noon)
Contact: Andrew Lesk andrew.lesk@utoronto.ca 416-841-8985


Panel 1A Auto/biography UC 140 9:30 - 10:45
Chair: Tanis MacDonald (Wilfrid Laurier)

Ian MacRae (Toronto): The Progress of Love: Queering the Canon and the Odyssey of Identity in Alison Bechdel's Fun Home

Edward Hornick (Journalist - New Orleans): Evan Dorkin's Nervous Breakdown and the Hidden Comic Indies

Panel 1B Superheroes & Super ... Annie? UC 179 9:30 - 10:45

Chair: Jean-Paul Gabilliet (Universite de Bordeaux)

Felan Parker (Carleton): Batman Begins, Superman Returns: Reintroducing the Franchise Superhero

Jeet Heer (Toronto): Little Orphan Oliver Twist: The Dickensian Inheritance in Mid-20th Century Comics

Megan Kelley (Calgary): Earnest Heroes and Outrageous Villains: The Dynamics of Camp in Superman films

Panel 2A Ideologies and Ethics UC 140 11 - 12:15

Chair: Doug Stetar (Malaspina)

Doug Stetar (Malaspina): Of Rags and Riches: The Complex Ideologies of Wealth, Class and Consumption in Classic Richie Rich Comics

Doug Mann (Western): To Compromise or Not to Compromise, that is the Question: Watchmen as Ethical and Political Dialogue

J. Andrew Deman (Waterloo): Jimmy Corrigan vs. Superman: Deconstruction, Disillusion, and Social Collapse


Panel 2B
Cities UC 179 11 - 12:15

Chair: Amir Hussain (Loyola Marymount, L.A.)

kevin mcpherson eckhoff (Calgary): Dat Ain't as Funny as it Looks, See? Reconsidering the Realism of Richard F. Outcault's Hogan's Alley

Michel Hardy-Vallee (McGill): Escape from the City of Words: Finding a Better Literary Haven for Comix

Paul Atkinson (Monash - Aus.): The Graphic Novel as Metafiction

Lunch break

Panel 3A Un/real UC 140 1:30 - 2:45

Chair: David Huxley (Manchester Metropolitan)

Steven Shaviro (Wayne State): You Will Never Own a Jetpack: Warren Ellis' Science Fiction Comics

Michael Freethy (Carleton):Rotoshop, Scramble Suits and Substance D: A Scanner Darkly and the Crisis of Hyperreality

Lamia Kosovic (European G.S.): Cyberpunk K-inema: Re-imag(in)ing of the Posthuman

Panel 3B O Canada UC 179 1:30 - 2:45

Chair: Joan Ormrod (Manchester Metropolitan)

Jean-Paul Gabilliet (Universite de Bordeaux): Comics in the Cambridge History of Canadian Literature: Is Sequential Art the Future of the Canadian Literary Canon?

Kevin Ziegler (Waterloo): The Making of Riel Comic Literature: The Re-circulation of Brown's Louis Riel

Tanis MacDonald (Wilfrid Laurier): The way I've drawn the scene: History and Historiography in Chester Brown's Louis Riel: A Comic-Strip Biography

Panel 4A Social Panic UC 140 3 - 4:15

Chair: Paul Atkinson (Monash - Aus.)

Nicholas Holm (McMaster): Beneath Consideration: Reassessing Wertham and the Role of Taste in the Decline of the Comic Book

Clint Burnham (Simon Fraser): Ho Che Anderson's King trilogy: Comics, Social History, and the Zizekian Ethical Act

David Huxley (Manchester Metropolitan): Moral panics, censorship and the cultural status of comics in Britain

Panel 4B Modernism UC 179 3 - 4:15

Chair: Jeet Heer (Toronto)

Joan Ormrod (Manchester Metropolitan): A Heap of Broken Images: Countersong and Readership in T S Eliot and Martin Rowson's The Waste Land

David N. Wright (Douglas): "'kontinue kuriousity to its illogical klimax': Krazy Kat, E. E. Cummings and the Grammar of Modernism"

Glenn Willmott (Queen's): Catwoman's Pedigree

Seth speaks! (keynote address) UC 140 5 - 6


Reception Croft House @ UC 6 - 8:30

Sunday 11 May

Panel 1A Across the Ocean(s) UC 140 10 - 11:15

Chair: Nicholas Holm (McMaster)

Gokul Gopalakrishnan (Hyderabad): G Aravindan's Small Men and the Big World: Re-Defining the "Comic" in the Strip

Josh Chong (Waterloo): Impregnation of the Cyborg: Problematic Reproduction in Japanese Manga

Pierre Chermartin (Montreal): From the multiple-room set to the split scene: quarrels, disputes and altercations in turn-of-the century European comics.

Panel 1B Victorians UC179 10 - 11:15

Chair: Andrea Schwenke Wyile (Acadia)

Andrea Day (New Brunswick): Playing With the Pen and Pencil Sketches of Thackeray's singular performance: Illustrations of Dolls, Performativity, and Narrative Technique in Vanity Fair

Christine Yao (Dalhousie): Queen Victoria, Captive Despot: The Dissemination of Image and Power in Alan Moore's From Hell

Jason Frank (Youngstown): Even More Blood in the Gutters: Taking Apart Rick Geary's Narration of Jack the Ripper

Lunch break

Panel 2A Methods and Stylings UC 140 12:30 - 1: 45

Chair: Gokul Gopalakrishnan (Hyderabad)

Edward Bader (Lethbridge/Grand Prairie): Comics Carnet: Graphic Novelist as Global Nomad

Peter Coppin (Toronto) and Stephen Hockema (Toronto): Research Methods to Understand Comics and the Human Mind

Andrea Schwenke Wyile (Acadia): Which Umbrella: Comix or Picturebooks?


Panel 2B
Bodies, Pathologies, Illness UC 179 12:30 - 1:45

Chair: Tim Bavlnka (Independent journalist)

Allison Crawford (Toronto): Framing the Body-Embodying the Frame: Graphic Novels and the Representation of Illness

Marni Stanley (Malaspina): The Art of Embodiment in Graphic Autopathography

Panel 3A Endings 1 UC 140 2 - 3:15

Chair: Stephen Hockema (Toronto)

Kalervo Sinervo (Simon Fraser): Grains of Sand: Renaissance Intertextuality in Neil Gaiman's The Sandman

Aaron Kashtan (Florida): Jeepers Jacobs in the Network of Lines That Intersect: The Deconstruction of the Clear Line in Kevin Huizenga

Tim Bavlnka (Independent journalist): The Superhero Significance: The Role of the Contemporary Superhero in Literature

Panel 3B Endings 2 UC 179 2 - 3:15

Chair: Andrew Lesk (Toronto)

Anthony Enns (Dalhousie): Media, Memory, and the Metropolis in Jason Lutes’ Berlin: City of Stones

Amir Hussain (Loyola Marymount, L.A.): Representing Muslim lives: pedagogy and the comics journalism of Joe Sacco

Roundtable So, what's new?
UC 140 3:30 - 4:30

Jeff Parker, Luca Somigli, Tim Bavlnka



Closing words: Andrew Lesk 4:30

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   Monday, April 28, 2008  
Weekend News and Comment Catch-Up

:: Posted by Bryan @ 4/28/2008 12:46:00 AM
  • This article about changes at Little Sister's bookstore in Vancouver and the freedom fighters who run it includes a quote from employee and cartoonist Ken Boesem.
  • Derek McCormack writes about superhero costumes for the National Post.
  • The newspaper in Milton, Ontario, reminds us that Free Comic Book Day is coming up this Saturday, May 2, and that Milton's comic book shop is called Geekdom.
  • Quill and Quire covers the Canadian Eisner nominees (subscription required).
  • Canadian icon, columnist, playwright, and champion of liberty Rick Salutin, reflects on the Siegel legal decision in the U.S. and ponders the chicken/egg nature of creation and myth.
  • On the subject of showing the Mohammed cartoons on CBC.
  • Gary Groth and a Toronto comic buyer with a scanner interviewed by the CBC about online comics piracy.
  • Chris Butcher is celebrating 6 years of blogging. Congratulations!

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   Friday, April 25, 2008  
This Weekend: Calgary Comic Expo

:: Posted by Bryan @ 4/25/2008 01:59:00 PM

Featuring that woman from Battlestar Galactica and maybe some comic book people.

Details Here.

Saturday April 26: 10am - 7pm Sunday April 27: 10am - 6pm


See here for a schedule of upcoming conventions. Please contact us about your event.

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   Monday, March 31, 2008  
Bart Beaty vs Jeet Heer: 1950s Culture Wars Redux

:: Posted by Bryan @ 3/31/2008 12:01:00 AM


Professor Bart Beaty of the University of Calgary responds to Jeet Heer's review of David Hadju's Ten Cent Plague, from last week's Globe and Mail. The debate centers on the controversial figure of Fredric Wertham, whose Seduction of the Innocent argued that comics turned children into juvenile delinquents. Beaty's 2005 biography of Wertham, Fredric Wertham And the Critique of Mass Culture partially rehabilitated its subject as a misunderstood crusader against racism and the rights of children. Here is a bit of the back and forth between Heer and Beaty (the argument is followed up at Heer's blog):

Beaty: Hajdu asserts that the voice of children was lost in the anti-comics movement of the 1950s, but, in reality, he is talking about teenagers. Indeed, the most popular comics among children in the 1950s were not, as he contends, the crime and horror titles that raised public alarm. They were Donald Duck and Bugs Bunny.

There is an inherent slippage between teenager and child in the contemporary category of youth, and it is one that troubles both Hajdu's book and Heer's reading of it. Importantly, teens are not children, and children are not teens. Heer writes that "children need monsters and ghouls." That may be indeed be the case, but the debate in the 1950s centred around whether a child of 7 needed realistically depicted images of rape.


Heer: True, Wertham didn't favour censorship and the rating system he advocated was eminently sensible. Still, Wertham used language so inflammatory as to give aid and comfort to censors and book-burners. "I think Hitler was a beginner compared to the comic-book industry," Wertham argued. If Superman and Tales from the Crypt were more dangerous than Mein Kampf or Triumph of the Will, then it might make sense to have comic-book burnings, as happened in the Wertham era.

As for the conflation of children and teenagers, that's Wertham's fault. He constantly talked about protecting children, obscuring the fact the most violent and salacious comics were too wordy for pre-teens and were largely read by high-schoolers.

If I had a child, would I want him or her to see "realistically depicted images of rape"? No, probably not (although the film The Kite Runner contains a rape scene and is fine for kids as long as they have parental guidance).


It's well worth checking out this discussion and reading all the books in question (including Wertham). For my part, the most compelling parts of Seduction of the Innocent are Wertham's case histories of the kids he has talked to, like 14-year-old comic book fanatic and accused murderer Willie --the subject of Wertham's first chapter. Among his many other objections to comic books was the manner in which they were consumed. Worth tracking down are Wertham's descriptions of the "hookey clubs" where children traded comics for (gasp!) less than cover price!

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   Monday, March 10, 2008  


:: Posted by Bryan @ 3/10/2008 01:18:00 AM
Photobucket

A round-up of links to comics news stories in Canada:

  • A few reports from this past weekend's manga and anime event in Moncton, Animaritime are starting to find their way online. In the meantime, there are many links to photos and video at the Animaritime forums here and here. A video of the closing ceremonies (a charming illustrated definition of the term "amateur hour") is on youtube here.

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   Monday, February 25, 2008  
Comics 101: Is the Canadian Shield Made of Platinum?

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/25/2008 06:00:00 AM

  • The Comic Book Bin's Christopher Moshier takes a page from the Overstreet Price Guide and probes the early "Platinum Age" history of DC Comics.
  • International: in a move sure to be reflected on Canadian bestseller lists, VIZ has announced the publication of a new Naruto series, following the adventures of the titular ninja student as a teenager: the launch of the long-awaited new NARUTO manga story arc begins with Volume 28, "which is the first to feature Naruto as a teenager. The volume is expected to hit stores nationwide on March 4 with an estimated retail price of $7.95"
  • Robin Bougie and co-conspirators are interviewed on the Inkstuds podcast about the recent launch of Cinema Sewer and Sleazy Slice.

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   Wednesday, February 13, 2008  
Muslim Leader Drops Levant Complaint

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/13/2008 12:27:00 AM
The National Post is reporting that Syed Soharwardy, the man who lodged a complaint with the Alberta Human Rights Commission against publisher Ezra Levant and his Western Standard magazine for republishing the Danish Muhammad cartoons, has withdrawn his complaint, claiming that he recognizes Levant's actions as a free speech issue and that "Canadian society is mature enough not to absorb the messages that the cartoons sent."

For his part, Levant plans to sue Soharwardy for damages. As well, there is a movent underway to remove Section 13 of the Canadian Human Rights Act (the section dealing with hate speech).

Related: P.M. Jaworski at the Western Standard's "Shotgun Blog" responds.

See Sequential's coverage of this case here.

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   Tuesday, January 29, 2008  
Tonite: Extraction Book Launch, Toronto

:: Posted by Bryan @ 1/29/2008 05:16:00 PM
When Comix and Journalism Collide …

Journalistic graphic novel portrays the dirty business of global
resource extraction in the 21st century.

TORONTO Tuesday, January 29, 2008
COMIX JAM The Cameron House, 408 Queen Street West
LAUNCH 8:00 p.m. info: 416-703-0811

http://www.cumuluspress.com/extraction

Cumulus Press recently released a new title EXTRACTION! Comix Reportage.
This 'graphic novel' started with four journalistic stories about the
mining industry. These stories were scripted then handed over to four
comix artists (including 2007 Doug Wright Award winner, Joe Ollmann) to
create a multi-styled comic book about mining that, according to Joe
Sacco, "is the perfect idea for a graphic treatment."

Cumulus Press will launch this book of comix journalism within the
January edition of the Toronto Comix Jam, whose jammers will create
collective strips of journalism based on articles provided for the
evening. Here the challenge will persist between the 'give' of
verifiable facts and the 'take' of graphic interpretation, between the
'push' of fact-based details and the 'pull' of visual narrative. The
craft of comix journalism does not stem from the combination of text and
image, content and structure. It is the added meaning derived from the
interaction between the symbolic and the realistic, the literal and the
figurative that gives it strength.

The extraction of natural resources today is a dirty business. Since
2000, most energy and mineral prices are skyrocketing. Junior mining
prospectors and unscrupulous transnational corporations rush into new
territories to suck what's hot out of the earth's lucrative veins. In
today's gas, oil and mining industries, the pace of exploration,
extraction, transformation and delivery of the world's resources is mind
boggling. The German magazine Der Spiegel speaks of a Third World War
for the world's resources. It is more like a blitzkrieg.

EXTRACTION! looks into the exploration, exploitation and extraction
gold, bauxite, uranium and oil, from a common-good social justice
perspective, in Guatemala, India, Quebec and Alberta, respectively.

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   Friday, January 18, 2008  
This Weekend: Wintercon, Edmonton

:: Posted by Bryan @ 1/18/2008 02:03:00 AM
The Wintercon anime con takes place this weekend at the University of Alberta and is sponsored by BAKA, the U of A's anime and manga club. Art, film and other events at the links below.

Wintercon
Jan 19-20, 2008
University Education building, University of Alberta, Edmonton
http://www.bakaclub.com/news.php
http://www.bakaclub.com/con1.php
more

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   Thursday, January 17, 2008  
2008 Convention Schedule

:: Posted by Bryan @ 1/17/2008 12:16:00 AM
Below is a rough draft of the 2008 Convention Schedule for all comics and comics-related conventions in Canada. Sequential will hopefully be issuing several of these updated schedules throughout the year, as well as promoting the individual events as they occur. If you have any additions or corrections, please email us. Sequential is interested in all comics-related events that take place across the country and we will do our best to link to your event, even if it is only a relatively tiny, single-day collectibles show in a small town. Please let us know.

2008 Conventions

Wintercon (anime event)
Jan 19-20, 2008
University Education building, University of Alberta, Edmonton
http://www.bakaclub.com/news.php
http://www.bakaclub.com/con1.php
more

Vancouver Comicon
Sunday, January 20th, 2008
11am to 5pm
Heritage Hall, 3102 Main Street (corner of Main and 15th Ave)
http://mypage.uniserve.ca/~lswong/Comicon.html

Toronto Comicon
Feb 3, 2008
Metro Toronto Convention Centre
http://www.hobbystar.com/hobbystar/ConventionsPoster_20080203.html

Animaritime
March 7-8, 2008
Delta Beausejour hotel, Moncton, New Brunswick
http://www.animaritime.org/index.html


Toronto Anime Con
March 15-16, 2008
Metro Toronto Convention Centre
http://www.hobbystar.com/hobbystar/Conventions.html

March 16 -- Vancouver Comicon
Heritage Hall, 3102 Main Street (corner of Main and 15th Ave)
http://mypage.uniserve.ca/~lswong/Comicon.html

Winnipeg Comic and Toy Expo
March 30th, 2008
Canad Inns Fort Garry
10am - 5pm
Admission $2.00
http://manitobacomiccon.com/index.php

Edmonton Pop Culture Fair
Sunday, March 30, 2008
10 am to 4:30 pm
Edmonton Aviation Heritage Centre
11410 Kingsway Avenue
http://www.popculturefair.com/

Toronto ComiCON Annual Fan Appreciation Event
Metro Toronto Convention Centre
http://www.hobbystar.com/hobbystar/Conventions.html
April 12-13, 2008

Montreal Toy Con
Sunday, May 4th, 2008
10am to 5pm
COURTYARD BY MARRIOTT MONTREAL AIRPORT
7000 Place Robert-Joncas
St-Laurent, QC
http://site.toysonfire.com/montreal_toy_con/montrealtoycon.html

Anime North
May 23-25, 2008
Doubletree International Plaza Hotel
Toronto Congress Center
Renaissance Toronto Airport Hotel
http://www.animenorth.com/index.php


May 25 -- Vancouver Comicon
Heritage Hall, 3102 Main Street (corner of Main and 15th Ave)
http://mypage.uniserve.ca/~lswong/Comicon.html

July 6 -- Vancouver Comicon
Heritage Hall, 3102 Main Street (corner of Main and 15th Ave)
http://mypage.uniserve.ca/~lswong/Comicon.html

Paradise Toronto Comicon
July 12-13, 2008
Holiday Inn on King Street
http://torontocomicon.com/

Montreal Comicon
June 15, 2008
http://www.majorcomics.safeshopper.com/ - site may be down? [google cash and myspace]
mtlcomiconATyahoo.ca

Fan Expo Canada
August 22-24, 2008
Metro Toronto Convention Centre
http://www.hobbystar.com/hobbystar/Conventions.html

August 24 -- Comix & Stories, Vancouver
Heritage Hall, 3102 Main Street (corner of Main and 15th Ave)
http://mypage.uniserve.ca/~lswong/Comicon.html

September 7 -- Vancouver Comicon
Heritage Hall, 3102 Main Street (corner of Main and 15th Ave)
http://mypage.uniserve.ca/~lswong/Comicon.html

Montreal Comicon
Sept 13-14, 2008
http://www.majorcomics.safeshopper.com/

VCON
Vancouver’s Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Gaming Convention
October 19-21
Radison President Hotel, 8181 Cambie Road, Richmond, BC
http://www.vcon.ca/

November 16 -- Vancouver Comicon
Heritage Hall, 3102 Main Street (corner of Main and 15th Ave)
http://mypage.uniserve.ca/~lswong/Comicon.html

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   Tuesday, January 15, 2008  
Western Standard Mohammed Cartoon Controversy, part 20

:: Posted by Bryan @ 1/15/2008 12:06:00 AM
Ezra Levant, the publisher of the now-defunct Western Standard magazine, appeared before a closed hearing of the Alberta Human Rights Commission last Friday. The hearing was ostensibly to determine if the complaint against the Standard and Levant (publishing hate literature) warrants a further hearing. Levant published the controversial Danish cartoons depicting Mohammed in 2006.

Dirk Deppey does a very nice job of rounding up what actually transpired at Friday's hearings, mostly because Levant has posted video of the day. (The videos are also available on youtube.) The actual hearing involved Levant and his lawyer sitting across a table from Shirlene McGovern, who is identified by Levant as an agent and human rights officer with the Alberta Human Rights Commission, an agency of the provincial government of Alberta.

Despite Levant's hyperbole (he describes his interrogator and the entire process as an example of "the banality of evil") and grandstanding (if you can call calmly reading a statement in a tiny meeting room grandstanding), this is an important case. Levant essentially manufactured this debacle by tinging his reporting/reprinting of the cartoons with his usual schtick in order to challenge the hate crime/speech laws. Does a Canadian citizen have the right to complain to the government if someone publishes a cartoon that seems to violate a religious article of their faith? And does the government then have the right to punish the publisher (or even to subject them to any legal or judicial process)? It's hard to see past Levant's U.S.-style conservatism, but the issue of freedom of speech, a freedom not exactly enshrined in Canadian law, is important and an ongoing source of controversy in this country. For the record, the hate laws in Canada carry a punishment of up to 2 years in prison. A conviction may result if it can be proved that the cartoons were abusive enough to incite violence against a person or group or if the cartoons only "promoted hatred.". This is our law.

Anyway, center-right columnist weighs in with his pro-censorship rant here. The left-wing rabble.ca site has some more-or-less coherent discussion at their boards.

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Alberta Writer Pens Joe Sinnott Bio

:: Posted by Bryan @ 1/15/2008 12:01:00 AM
80-year-old cartoonist and inker Joe Sinnot has a new biographer in the person of Red Deer, Alberta writer Tim Lasuita. Brush Strokes with Greatness profiles U.S. artitis Sinnott's long comic book career. Sinnott is perhaps most famous for the slick line he gave to Jack Kirby's pencils on the 1960s Fantastic Four comics. Sinnott also enjoyed a long run on Treasure Chest comics.

Lasuita was introduced to Sinnott while working on another project about Tom Gill, who drew The Lone Ranger for more than 20 years.

Sinnott, a student, had assisted Gill on his freelance work for nine months before striking out on his own. His enthusiasm, energy and magnetism during the interviews for Gill’s project left a lasting impression on Lasuita.

"Everybody has a favourite uncle — that’s Joe," he says. "He’s talented and humble, all at the same time."

Once his book on Gill was off to the publisher, Lasuita approached Sinnott about doing a book on his remarkable career. Sinnott, 80, jumped at Lasuita’s offer to leave something behind for his family.

Upon reflecting, he was amazed to discover just how much work he had done. Sinnott’s ledgers suggests he pencilled more than 2,700 pages for various romances for Charlton Comics alone, in addition to his copious output for Marvel.

"And that was after supper," he says.

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   Friday, January 11, 2008  
Weekend Links

:: Posted by Bryan @ 1/11/2008 12:00:00 AM
Comics-related news and opinions from across Canada:

  • Western Standard ex-publisher Ezra Levant goes before the Alberta Human Rights Commission today to "defend his former magazine's 2006 publication of a series of Danish cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad," according to this article from the Calgary Herald. This court (really an interview to determine if the charge warrants a full hearing) is in session because the head of Islamic Supreme Council of Canada filed a complaint about the cartoons.

  • No Bookstores for Sim: Dave Sim talks about his new comic book series Glamourpuss, insisting "that brick-and-mortar comic book stores be the only environments to profit from my work.
  • Shuffleboil interviews Jeff Lemire about his graphic novel Essex County 2: Ghost Stories.
  • As Kevin Boyd notes, the first draft of a list of all eligible artists, writers, and cartoonists who produced work in 2007 is up at the Shuster Awards site. Any additions should be emailed to them pronto.
  • Madeline Ashby explains why manga is better than U.S. superhero comics

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   Tuesday, December 11, 2007  
Tonite: Julie Morstad MILK TEETH Book Launch

:: Posted by Bryan @ 12/11/2007 12:15:00 AM

Lucky's Comics in Vancouver is hosting the launch of MILK TEETH, by Julie Morstad, part of the Drawn and Quarterly Petits Livres series of small art books.

Tuesday, December 11th, 6:00 PM
Book launch and etchings on display

Lucky's Comics
3972 Main Street
Vancouver, BC


Milk Teeth
is a collection of illustrations by Vancouver artist Julie Morstad. Morstad spins fairy tales infused with dreamlike innocence and a touch of the macabre. Milk Teeth's universe, populated by animals, flowers, peculiar objects and disembodied heads, has a sensibility reminiscent of Marcel Dzama's surreal drawings, Jeffrey Eugenides' haunting novel The Virgin Suicides, and Peter Weir's classic film Picnic at Hanging Rock. See a preview at the D+Q site here.


Morstad is a 2004 graduate of the Alberta College of Art and Design. She has done illustrations for The Globe & Mail, Warner Brothers Records, Bust, and The Walrus. Her work has been shown in galleries, featured on the cover of Neko Case's 2006 album Fox Confessor Brings the Flood, and developed into a line of patterned wallpapers with a distinctive nostalgic quality. Morstad lives and works in Vancouver and divides her time between drawing, illustration, animation and design.

Lucky's Comics: 604.875.9858
D+Q: 514.279.0691

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   Monday, November 05, 2007  
News Roundup

:: Posted by Bryan @ 11/05/2007 01:00:00 AM

What's new in comics, graphic novels, and cartooning in Canada? Sequential has the links!

-Heath McCoy profiles Calgary cartoonist Riley Rossmo about Proof, a new X-Files style series from Image Comics.

-Michel Rabagliati is one of the guests of honour at the Salon du livre de Montreal, according to the Montreal Gazette

-Tyson Durst reviews Zombies Calling by Faith Erin Hicks for the University of Alberta's Gateway student newspaper.

-"Luz: Girl of the Knowing" by Claudia Davila is the latest addition to Transmission X's daily schedule of free webcomics.

-Heidi MacDonald links to a preview of Dramacon 3 by Svetlana Chmakova.

-Comics con maven Kevin Boyd reflects on the U.S. exchange rate.

-Chris Butcher has photos of last month's Word on the Street.

-Publishers Weekly previews Julie Doucet's 365 Days: A Diary, coming from D + Q in December.

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   Tuesday, October 09, 2007  
Quick Links

:: Posted by Bryan @ 10/09/2007 12:01:00 AM
1. BC cartoonist Sandra Lamb is teaching art classes.

2. The Edmonton Journal profiles comics and sci-fi fans at the University of Alberta.

3. The exhibit devoted to girl-centred manga continues in Burnaby BC.

4. Drawn and Quarterly opens its bookstore with the aid of a special federal grant.

5. Quebec cartoonists at Russian comics fest. (courtesy Michel Viau)

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   Friday, September 28, 2007  
This Weekend: Calgary Comic Con

:: Posted by Bryan @ 9/28/2007 03:59:00 AM
The Calgary Comic and Toy Expo

Fetauring J. Torres, Pop Mhan, and others.

McMahon Stadium
Red & White Club
1817 Crowchild Trail
Calgary, Alberta

SEPTEMBER 30, 2007
10:00AM - 5:00PM
FREE PARKING!!!
EASY C-TRAIN ACCESS
COSTUME CONTEST
SILENT AUCTION
ARTIST ALLEY

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   Friday, July 27, 2007  
Chuckle Bros expands to U.S.

:: Posted by Bryan @ 7/27/2007 12:08:00 AM
The Chuckle Bros, a comic strip by writers Brian & Ron Boychuk and cartoonist Ronnie Martin, has been picked up for U.S. and worldwide syndication by Creators Syndicate. The strip is syndicated in Canada by Torstar Syndication Services, a division of Toronto Star:

The cartoon currently appears in 36 newspapers in Canada, including the Toronto Star, Ottawa Citizen, Victoria Times Colonist, Regina Leader Post, Calgary Herald, and Edmonton Journal.

Chuckle Bros is the collaborative work of Brian Boychuk, a violinist with the National Arts Centre Orchestra in Ottawa, his brother Ron Boychuk, originally from Regina, and illustrator Ronnie Martin, also from Ottawa.

"With Torstar Syndication Services covering the Canadian market and now Creators Syndicate on board for both U.S. and worldwide distribution, the stage is set for one heck of a ride," said Brian Boychuk. "The Chuckle Bros are as ready as we'll ever be."

"The fabulous success of the Chuckle Bros launch was a great beginning, as editors found out what we already knew: this is a terrific little comic that people will love because it consistently delivers a solid punch line and outstanding art," said Robin Graham, Managing Director, Torstar Syndication Services. "Eight months later, we are still adding a steady stream of new customers."

"Chuckle Bros will make a great addition to our line-up and we're so excited to have them on board with their zany humour," said Margo Sugrue, National Sales Director, Creators Syndicate. "I first saw the panel in an editor's office at the Ottawa Citizen, and knew immediately that I'd love to have it."

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Everett Soop Exhibit

:: Posted by Bryan @ 7/27/2007 12:01:00 AM
The life and work of Everett Soop, an aboriginal cartoonist who co-founded the Kainai News newspaper, is featured in a new exhibit at University of Calgary's Nickel Arts Museum. According to the U of C's Gauntlet,

Soop used humor to point out social ills and to suggest things needed to be changed. From the time of his youth Soop lived with muscular dystrophy. As his disease progressed Soop focused less on journalism and became more of an activist in the aboriginal disabilities community and was awarded a Meritorious Service Medal posthumously in 2001.


Nickel Arts Museum
2500 University Dr. N.W.
Calgary, Alberta
403-220-7234

July 6 to Sept 29

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   Monday, July 16, 2007  
Weekend Round-up: The Weekend Papers

:: Posted by Bryan @ 7/16/2007 12:45:00 AM
News from hither and yon:

1. The Winnipeg Free Press reports on Lynn Joh