May 31, 2005
This past weekend was the Toronto Comic Arts Festival. It was altogether way too much fun, but it was also completely exhausting. I must apologize in advance for the large gaps in the photos, as it was the first time I’d actually seen some of the people that came up for this in almost a year, and I was just enjoying myself far too much to remember to actually take photographs of things. With that out of the way, on with the photos!
Quite a few people had flown or driven up to Toronto a couple of days prior to the festival to take in the sights, so we decided to get together for dinner at Kensington Kitchen the Friday night before the festival. It was a nice, quiet start to the festival, and a great way to just catch up (or meet for the first time) with the kids. On the way to dinner, I stuck my head into the Beguiling and found it brimming with cartoonists browsing through the shelves. Carla Speed McNeil was hanging out on the steps of the Beguiling and after a brief chat, I invited her along to dinner as well. The Horhaus boys also joined us at dinner later in the evening, and it was great meeting all of them too.
Here’s Hope Larson, Lucy Knisley, and a very blurry Matthew Forsythe having a post-dinner conversation.
More dinner table conversation, which gets the thumbs-up from Andy Runton.
Tents were set up by the hard-working employees of the Beguiling and TCAF volunteers in the Honest Ed’s parking lot (which was especially handy when it started raining on Sunday), and the next morning, the festival was underway!
The main tent.
The Scholastic Children’s Tent, where the Flight table was located.
Johane Matte and Ryan Sias (seated) working hard behind the Flight table.
Ryan North entertains Vera Brosgol with what I am assuming is a funny anecdote. Note the original watercolours by both Ryan and Vera in the sketchbook on the table!
One of the many copies of Flight 2 we signed and doodled in over the course of the weekend.
Jeff Smith during his hour-long presentation about comics and where he found his inspiration for creating his fantasy epic, Bone. Pictured here is a page from the classic Herriman comic, Krazy Kat, which was an early influence.
Speaking of Bone, here we have Fone Bone modelling one of the Secret Friend Society buttons.
I was running on precious little sleep from earlier in the week, and by the end of the first day, I was literally a walking, talking zombie. Things were happening, and people were talking to me, but barely anything was registering in my poor little brain. I think I might’ve also been pretty cranky at that point. Somewhere in between that time, Mal won one of the inaugural Doug Wright awards for his work on Scott Pilgrim, I had the most amazing power nap ever (two minutes long, which I think Jeremy captured on video), and I seem to recall there was quite a bit of alcohol and cookies consumed at some point during the evening. After crashing for a good six hours though, I was up and ready to tackle the next day, and maybe take a few more photos.
Amy Kim Ganter, Vera, Flight’s fearless leader and editor Kazu Kibuishi, and Johane during a rare break in the action.
Ben “Weatherwise” Woo won the award for best belt buckle at TCAF, hands down.
Raina Telgemeier and Dave Roman. I caught a preview of Raina’s absolutely incredible Babysitter’s Club adaptation, and I’m really looking forward to reading it. Never in a million years could I have ever imagined that I would actually say that I was looking forward to reading The Babysitter’s Club.
Throughout the festival, Matt Forsythe cranked out some truly amazing sketches for people who bought copies of his Ojingogo minicomic.
Derek Kirk Kim shows off his merch. I was a little disappointed that he ran out of his Weezer t-shirts before I remembered to grab one.
Andy Runton towers over the Top Shelf table. I stood up on a chair to take this photo, and I was still only a few inches taller than he was.
Jim Zubkavich, feeling hung over and looking very unwell. This photo is really just payback for him posting a photo of me that I would sooner forget never existed.
The ever-charming Scott Robins.
The always-cool rstevens and Sam Brown (in the red sweater). It was a real pleasure talking to Sam and his wife during the various post-festival get-togethers (albeit far too briefly, I’m afraid). They are quite possibly the nicest couple on the planet.
Jason Azzopardi and Hope Larson. Have you read their awesome free comic in Comics Festival! yet?
Rey (Sharknife) secretly plots the destruction of Mal while hiding behind a copy of Scott Pilgrim 2.
Hope, Jason and Mal hanging out. In the foreground is Hope and Lucy’s excellent new minicomic, Letters from the Bottom of the Sea.
Throughout the weekend, Rich continually expressed his love for Honest Ed’s. Here he is returning to the festival tents walking through Honest Ed’s Alley.
As the festival started to wind down, I made my last-minute rounds of the festival to say goodbye to people and make all my purchases: I had a nice little chat with Chris Pitzer of AdHouse Books, who is a seriously great guy, and of course is publishing Hope’s Salamander Dream this coming August; it was great to swap comics with Jim Rugg, and to talk to him for the first time, even if it was only for a few minutes while he was packing up to catch his flight; a quick chat and apology to James Jean for a mixup on Saturday night that resulted in his portfolio ending up in the back seat of my car (to which I worried about to no end until it was finally back in his hands); finally grabbing copies of Love as a Foreign Language from Eric Kim; and saying hello again to the wonderful Jose Villarrubia, who I had first met two years ago at the first TCAF when I was a complete nobody, and was completely surprised that he recognized me after all that time.
Kazu working in a sketchbook that was passed around for all the artists to draw in, so that it could later be given to Chris Butcher as a thank-you for all his hard work in putting the festival together.
Cartoonists goofing off on the glass floor of the CN Tower. After the festival had wrapped up, I took the Flight crew on a quick tour of Toronto and after a trip up to the CN Tower (I hadn’t been up there in ages, and I took surprisingly few photos while we were there) and some pho in Chinatown, we made our way back to Mirvish Village, where the TCAF after-party was being held at the Red Guitar (formerly the Bordello).
After the after-party wound down on Sunday night, Chris (on the left) was presented his thank-you sketchbook.
Corey at breakfast the next morning, eating the most Canadian of meals, a plate of poutine topped with chili. Needless to say, he never finished his “breakfast.”
Chris Butcher and Rich at breakfast.
Vera and Derek. In the background is Becky Cloonan, who I didn’t get a chance to have a real conversation with over the weekend. I plan to remedy this at MoCCA, which is fast approaching.
Kazu relaxing before the long drive back to New York.
Our friendly neighbourhood Spider-Derek.
And that’s about it. I just want to thank Peter Birkemoe, Chris Butcher, the employees of the Beguiling, and all the volunteers that helped put together the festival and make it the success that it was. You guys and gals all rock. MoCCA is only a scant two weeks away, and a few of us will be making the drive down to New York, so it looks like we’ll get to do this all over again in no time!
Other TCAF photo essays:
Hope’s report
Dave and Raina’s report
Ryan (Sias)’s report
Rich and Vera’s report
Andy’s report
