The New York Comic Convention is a 3-day annual pop-culture event attended by 1000s of comic/cartoon/video-game/anime/manga/graphic novel fans from New York and beyond. This is my first time attending, and I'm also chaperoning a group of 5 high school students from my Anime and Japanese after-school clubs.
It's interesting to compare the Comic Con to last December's Anime Festival (both held at Jacob Javits Convention Center at 34th & 12th in Manhattan).
We arrived at 3pm, in time for General Programs. (The morning activities were only for professionals and industry folks.) I attended bits and pieces of the following panels:
America: Through the Eyes of the Graphic Novel
a panel of white men talking about America. I (and my students) left after hearing that they were working on a bunch of projects on the "sad events following 9-11," and other projects commissioned by the Department of Defense for the repatriation of Iraq War veterans. I had been excited about this panel because it was supposed to feature Howard Zinn, who worked on People's History of the American Empire - a new graphic novel. I should have stayed and given them a fair chance, but I figured I could just read the book when it comes out.
Comics Experience: Building Your Art Portfolio
a panel of white men (one guy from Brazil) talking about what to avoid when you go in for a portfolio review and how to impress editors at DC, Marvel, etc. Here are some highlights:
- It's an interview. Take notes and look "presentable." The moderator sheepishly recognized that "It shouldn't be this way but we really look at the way applicants carry themselves, the way they look..." Apparently, you have to look "confident" but not "cocky." If the editor gives you criticism, make him feel like he is god handing you new commandments. Yeah - if you want to get in, you have to play that game, just like in every industry.
- Bring 5-6 pages with "establishing shots" (frames that set the scene for the story, convey the setting, set the mood, etc.); "action shots"; and some "character moments" (I don't really know what this means but I assume that it refers to some scenes that show the reader a little something about the character.)
- Always place newest, most impressive work at the top of the portfolio. Have your illustrations "on the right paper." "I know it's a cliche but Make a Good First Impression."
- You can bring a second portfolio with more diverse work so that you can show them your range if they like you.
- Draw good backgrounds, scenes, and realistic movements and clothing.
Beyond Shounen and Shoujo
a panel presented by a white british fellow with a pretty young japanese woman translating and clicking the space button on the slideshow. Aside from the extremely annoying and shallow presentation by the British dude, the panel was pretty interesting for anyone who has any interest in the diversity of the manga industry - the dude was representing his company, Fanfare, which is an imprint that puts out alternative manga and gekiga from Japan. I'm still not sure what "gekiga" is because I missed the first part of the panel, but it seems to be a more realistic, more intellectual medium with roots in the manga medium. Common themes are the "ordinary" (this word was used about 86 times by the dude during the presentation.) The dude had no analysis and could not speak to whether or not gekiga and alternative manga was responding to anything in "mainstream", profit-driven manga. Instead he would drivel on about "It's a stereotype that Japanese are hard workers, but it's a true stereotype. That's why this manga is about a woman coming home late from work and feeling exhausted, blah blah blah," or "Again, this is a very ORDINARY story. It's not flashy and hyperactive like mainstream manga, which is great but I prefer ORDINARY stories..."
Women in Comics
a panel of 5 white women, including a librarian at Columbia, a blogger, a comics artist and the latest successor of Wonder Woman, another graphic novel writer/artist, and an illustrator for Marvel. The panelists' analysis of feminism or sexism was as shallow as a mud puddle. When asked "Is your work feminist?" by the moderator, most panelists distanced themselves from the "label" and called it "a dirty word" although they tried to argue that "if being a feminist means that women should have equal rights as men, then everyone in this room should be feminist." The panel began with them congratulating each other on their hair.
What I did find interesting was the parallell resistance to ghettoization that I have heard from many Asian American poets and literati. They claimed that the work of previous generations of freedom fighters made America so liberal that they were able to live untouched by the concerns of feminists. I understand the frustration of being marketed by industrial forces to occupy a niche, but instead of critiquing any of that, the panelists blamed "feminists." Like the Asian American poets who are so hung up on ghettoization, they failed to present anything insightful about conversations in the industry around marginalization and representation.
Here are some initial thoughts and observations:
-The comics industry appears to be thriving - or at least everyone I listened to on the panels I attended - were very enthusiastic and upbeat.
-Every panelist I listened to was so pro-industry that it was kind of creepy.
-I wish I had spoken up, to show my students that there is resistance and counter-narratives do exist, that not all resistance has been co-opted.
Maybe I will find some gems in the next two days!
It's interesting to compare the Comic Con to last December's Anime Festival (both held at Jacob Javits Convention Center at 34th & 12th in Manhattan).
We arrived at 3pm, in time for General Programs. (The morning activities were only for professionals and industry folks.) I attended bits and pieces of the following panels:
America: Through the Eyes of the Graphic Novel
a panel of white men talking about America. I (and my students) left after hearing that they were working on a bunch of projects on the "sad events following 9-11," and other projects commissioned by the Department of Defense for the repatriation of Iraq War veterans. I had been excited about this panel because it was supposed to feature Howard Zinn, who worked on People's History of the American Empire - a new graphic novel. I should have stayed and given them a fair chance, but I figured I could just read the book when it comes out.
Comics Experience: Building Your Art Portfolio
a panel of white men (one guy from Brazil) talking about what to avoid when you go in for a portfolio review and how to impress editors at DC, Marvel, etc. Here are some highlights:
- It's an interview. Take notes and look "presentable." The moderator sheepishly recognized that "It shouldn't be this way but we really look at the way applicants carry themselves, the way they look..." Apparently, you have to look "confident" but not "cocky." If the editor gives you criticism, make him feel like he is god handing you new commandments. Yeah - if you want to get in, you have to play that game, just like in every industry.
- Bring 5-6 pages with "establishing shots" (frames that set the scene for the story, convey the setting, set the mood, etc.); "action shots"; and some "character moments" (I don't really know what this means but I assume that it refers to some scenes that show the reader a little something about the character.)
- Always place newest, most impressive work at the top of the portfolio. Have your illustrations "on the right paper." "I know it's a cliche but Make a Good First Impression."
- You can bring a second portfolio with more diverse work so that you can show them your range if they like you.
- Draw good backgrounds, scenes, and realistic movements and clothing.
Beyond Shounen and Shoujo
a panel presented by a white british fellow with a pretty young japanese woman translating and clicking the space button on the slideshow. Aside from the extremely annoying and shallow presentation by the British dude, the panel was pretty interesting for anyone who has any interest in the diversity of the manga industry - the dude was representing his company, Fanfare, which is an imprint that puts out alternative manga and gekiga from Japan. I'm still not sure what "gekiga" is because I missed the first part of the panel, but it seems to be a more realistic, more intellectual medium with roots in the manga medium. Common themes are the "ordinary" (this word was used about 86 times by the dude during the presentation.) The dude had no analysis and could not speak to whether or not gekiga and alternative manga was responding to anything in "mainstream", profit-driven manga. Instead he would drivel on about "It's a stereotype that Japanese are hard workers, but it's a true stereotype. That's why this manga is about a woman coming home late from work and feeling exhausted, blah blah blah," or "Again, this is a very ORDINARY story. It's not flashy and hyperactive like mainstream manga, which is great but I prefer ORDINARY stories..."
Women in Comics
a panel of 5 white women, including a librarian at Columbia, a blogger, a comics artist and the latest successor of Wonder Woman, another graphic novel writer/artist, and an illustrator for Marvel. The panelists' analysis of feminism or sexism was as shallow as a mud puddle. When asked "Is your work feminist?" by the moderator, most panelists distanced themselves from the "label" and called it "a dirty word" although they tried to argue that "if being a feminist means that women should have equal rights as men, then everyone in this room should be feminist." The panel began with them congratulating each other on their hair.
What I did find interesting was the parallell resistance to ghettoization that I have heard from many Asian American poets and literati. They claimed that the work of previous generations of freedom fighters made America so liberal that they were able to live untouched by the concerns of feminists. I understand the frustration of being marketed by industrial forces to occupy a niche, but instead of critiquing any of that, the panelists blamed "feminists." Like the Asian American poets who are so hung up on ghettoization, they failed to present anything insightful about conversations in the industry around marginalization and representation.
Here are some initial thoughts and observations:
-The comics industry appears to be thriving - or at least everyone I listened to on the panels I attended - were very enthusiastic and upbeat.
-Every panelist I listened to was so pro-industry that it was kind of creepy.
-I wish I had spoken up, to show my students that there is resistance and counter-narratives do exist, that not all resistance has been co-opted.
Maybe I will find some gems in the next two days!
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