A group has formed in San Francisco to discuss bringing a comics festival to SF, currently bereft of comics event with the move of WonderCon to Anaheim and soon APE to San Jose. The group has called for a town hall meeting on Monday, October 20th:
Many of us were saddened by the news that the Alternative Press Expo will be relocated to San Jose in 2015.
San Francisco has the unique opportunity to imagine a new comics-centric festival from the ground up. Are we looking for another big hall convention with rows and rows of exhibitors? Or is SF more suited to host a multi-venue festival of comics? From tech to tradition, how can we leverage San Francisco’s strengths as a city to continue to make it a destination for comics professionals and enthusiasts alike?
Please join us for a town hall meeting to discuss the possibilities, challenges, and realities of establishing a new and exciting comics festival here in San Francisco.
Comics retailers, artists, writers, and industry professionals are all welcome to participate in this important discussion.
Directions to Timken Lecture Hall, 1111 8th Street, San Francisco:
https://www.cca.edu/about/directions
The meeting was formed by The California College of the Arts which offers an MFA n comics. The main organizer seems to be Matt Silady. and listed as attending are a bunch of Bay Area comics mainstays.
Without much knowledge of the local scene, the main factor would seem to be costs, as usual, as SF is currently one of the most expensive places in the US. Of course it is also one of the birthplaces of world comics culture, and still home to a few doughty souls who make a living in the funnies, and as well as some of the best known comics shops. Image Comics is nearby. There is certainly a vibrant scene there. Is there room for another CAF on the scene? Show up Monday to help find out.
Such a typically San Francisco attitude that anything south of the airport requires a passport and a check of your vaccination record. Of course it would make perfect sense to set up a competing event to the few events left in the Bay Area ( and yes, San Jose is part of the Bay Area).
But I guess that’s why I did not get invited to their meeting.
Hey Dan,
There was no slight meant by not sending you a personal invite. The forum was announced via a public Facebook event page and all are welcome. We attempted to spread the word via social media. It definitely isn’t an invite-only talk. The goal for this forum is not to plan a competing SF event, but rather to have an open discussion to see what folks in SF event even want out of a comics festival within the city limits. We’re really interested in hearing if a Litquake-style, multi-venue festival might be worth considering. It’s just a public discussion and an attempt to think outside the box.
Again, we sincerely hope you can attend!