Comics x Games Speakers at TCAF 2018!
Logo by Cory Schmitz
The seventh annual Comics x Games is coming your way for TCAF 2018! We’ve got two amazing panels lined up, both at 1:30 PM in the Learning Centre in the Toronto Reference Library. These talks will offer a glimpse of comic artists and publishers venturing into the world of digital and tabletop games. Gain insights about the creative vision and development process behind two different but complementary disciplines, and meet contemporary artists forging new paths through the Comics x Games scene.
- SATURDAY: Tea Dragons Spotlight: Comic Publishers Getting Into the Game
- SUNDAY: From Panels to Pixels: 3 Comic Artists Making Videogames
If you have any questions, please contact cxg@handeyesociety.com (all e-mail will be forwarded to the CxG/HES Logistics team: Amanda Wong, Ken Cho, Alanna Predko and Sagan Yee).
Tea Dragons Spotlight: Comic Publishers Getting Into the Game
Saturday, May 12
Toronto Reference Library, 789 Yonge St.
1:30 PM, Learning Centre
FREE
“Everything fit the lore so perfectly, and it felt so magical and special to have such a thoughtful game based around the world I had made built by talented game designers! It feels so true to the spirit of the story, and I hope that when people play it and raise their Tea Dragons, they’ll make their own memories to share with friends and families.”
-Artist Katie O’Neill on The Tea Dragon Society Card Game by Oni Games and Renegade Games
Meet the game designers and artists who are working together with comics publishers to create playable worlds! VIZ Media has recently partnered with Portland-based Rose City Games to create original videogames, starting with supernatural teen adventure The World Next Door. This year, we put the spotlight on The Tea Dragon Society, a card game adaptation of Katie O’Neill’s charming webcomic published by the Oni Games division of Oni Press. Discover how artists, publishers and game designers collaborate to form unique partnerships bridging two communities, each with their own challenges and rewards.
PANELISTS:
- Steve Ellis – Game designer, Oni Press/Oni Games; Tea Dragon Society: The Card Game
- Katie O’Neill – Comics artist and illustrator; Tea Dragon Society
- Moderated by Rachel Kahn – Illustrator and designer of comics and tabletop games (she’ll be showcasing Pocket Dungeons in the CxG arcade on the 2nd floor!)
From Panels to Pixels: 3 Comic Artists Making Videogames
Sunday, May 13
Toronto Reference Library, 789 Yonge St.
1:30 PM, Learning Centre
FREE
Three indie comic artists are taking their creative vision to the interactive digital world, with eye-catching results. Explore the shifting boundary between indie comics and videogames with three projects in different stages of development: Tropical Depression Tendency, a visual novel where a seemingly flawless paradise masks deep trauma; Spinch, a psychedelic, fast-paced sensory experience; and Bravery Network, a Pokemon-for-adults futuristic fighting game with a hand-inked visual style. Learn about the diverse roles of the artist in the indie game dev process, from DIY development to collective creation.
PANELISTS
- Iasmin Omar Ata – Comic artist and game designer; Tropical Depression Tendency
- Jesse Jacobs – Comic artist on various Koyama Press titles; Spinch
- Kelly K – Cartoonist and illustrator, now working on Bravery Network
Panelist Bios
Iasmin Omar Ata
Iasmin Omar Ata is a Middle Eastern / Muslim / epileptic comics artist, game designer, and illustrator whose work revolves around the themes of coping with illness, understanding identity, dismantling oppressive structures, and Arab-Islamic futurism. Their recent graphic novel, Mis(h)adra, is a searingly honest and vivid account of epileptic lived experience that has resonated with readers and reviewers alike; while their comic Zenith and game Being address identities and futures with a genuine and hopeful voice. They thrive on dedication, dreams, and hard work — and believe wholeheartedly in the healing power of art. Their newest game, Tropical Depression Tendency, is a free-to-play episodic survival horror/RPG about overcoming trauma and depressive states.
Jesse Jacobs
Jesse Jacobs is the author of the comic books By This shall You Know Him, Safari Honeymoon, and Crawl Space (Koyama Press). He has recently transitioned into the world of video game design, and his first project, Spinch, will be available Summer 2018. His drawings have appeared in The New York Times, The Pitchfork Review, McSweeney’s Quarterly, and Le Monde Diplomatique. He currently lives in Hamilton, Ontario with his partner Jinette and his dog Desmond.
Katie O’Neill
Katie O’Neill is an illustrator and graphic novelist from New Zealand, and author of Princess Princess Ever After and The Tea Dragon Society, both from Oni Press. She mostly makes gentle fantasy stories for younger readers, and is very interested in tea, creatures, things that grow, and the magic of everyday life.
Kelly K
Steve Ellis
When Steve isn’t working on a game you might find him at his store or at a gaming event helping others foster communities around their own Friendly Local Game Store. Steve also enjoys disc golf and curling (yes, that strangely hypnotic game on ice).
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