Napoli Comicon Explained

Napoli Comicon
Status:Active
Location:Napoli (1998–)
Bergamo (2023–)
Country:Italy
First:1998
Organizer:Comicon[1]
Attendance:170,000 in 2023[2] [3]
Website:Comicon.it

COMICON – International Pop Culture Festival, also commonly known as Napoli Comicon, is an annual Comic book convention and pop culture festival in Naples, Italy, traditionally held since 1998 during spring season. It is one the largest and most influential comics and pop culture festivals in Europe.[4]

History

COMICON Napoli, or Napoli Comicon, is an international cultural festival, focused on comics and multi-genre entertainment, which takes place every year in Naples, Italy, for four days (three days until 2011, except in 2008, which was held for four days) usually in late April or beginning of May. The festival is located at the Mostra d'Oltremare exhibition and convention center (until 2009 at Castel Sant'Elmo,[5] except the 2000 edition, held in Villa Pignatelli). The first edition dates back to 1998.[6] In the 2010 and 2011 editions, the two venues of Castel Sant'Elmo and Mostra d'Oltremare both hosted the event.

In 2001, comics journalist and Disney expert Luca Boschi became Cultural Director of the event, taking care of the comics program until 2016. In 2006, the same organisation launched, also in Naples, Gamecon, a gaming convention.

After the 2009 edition's succes, with far more visitors than expected, the event was moved to the larger and more spacious convention center Mostra d'Oltremare. In January 2010, the organization determined that COMICON would be divided into two venues for the 2010 edition, one focused mainly on comics and cinema/TV contents, the other on video games, games, cosplay: the traditional festival venue, Castel Sant'Elmo, hosted publishers (except Panini and J-Pop Manga), screenings, talks, awards, the Imago contest and the comics related exhibitions; the trade show venue, Mostra d'Oltremare, hosted the cosplay contests, booths of games and video games publishers (including a particularly large Nintendo area, with several Wii consoles available to the audience), and the comic book stores, game or video game stores and distributors.[7] That merge of COMICON and Gamecon events resulted in a single multi-genre convention that spans a wide range of entertainment contents: comics, cinema, TV series, video games, board games, animation, cosplay. Also since that year, the winner of the cosplay competition is selected for a competitive cosplay contest in a foreign country (in 2010 : the finals of the Eurocosplay Championship, in London).[6]

Since 2011, the spin-off event Salerno COMICON has been held in Salerno, Italy, until 2015.[6] In 2012, COMICON moved the entire event to the Mostra d'Oltremare convention center. The decision was made following a survey done by the organization itself, through its official Facebook page.[8] Also in 2012 edition, the « Asian Village» area was created within the festival, as a space entirely focused on anime, manga and Asian culture.[9] [10]

In 2014 the same company started VideoGameShow, co-organized with ESL Italia, an "innovative" convention focused on gaming, creators and digital entertainment that lasted for five editions, some in Naples and others in Milan, Italy.

In late 2018, comics expert and media scholar Matteo Stefanelli was appointed COMICON's first artistic director.[11] COMICON Naples was cancelled in 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but a smaller-scale "COMICON Extra" offline and online program was held both years, followed by the return of the main show in 2022. In 2023, COMICON expanded with a second edition in Bergamo from June 23 to 25 on the occasion of Bergamo – Brescia Capital of Culture. The first edition of COMICON Bergamo was held in the pavilions of the Fiera di Bergamo.[12]

Features

The festival offers panels, workshops with authors and professionals, screeenings, previews of upcoming feature films or TV series, meet & greet opportunities with creators and/or actors, portfolio review sessions with top comics publishers, and the COMICON/Micheluzzi awards ceremony. Like most comics and pop culture festivals, COMICON features a large floorspace for exhibitors, indoor and outdoor, an autograph area, and an area devoted to fanzines and self-published comic books, Small Press Area. Among the companies exhibiting : comics publishers, retailers and sitributors ; video games publishers and retailers; esports organizers and teams ; toys and RPG companies and collectible merchants ; anime and manga publishers, retailers and distributors ; movie/TV companies and streaming services.

In the various editions, numerous artists in the industry, both national and international, have been present as guests, including Milo Manara, Frank Miller, Sergio Toppi, David Lloyd, Jim Lee and Gō Nagai.

In addition to the main event, exhibitions were also added that could be visited on days preceding and/or following the event itself, as well as other exhibitions and events (included in the so-called "COMIC(ON)OFF" program) placed in urban locations outside the main venue of the event (e.g., cultural institutes, museums, stores, galleries).[13]

Themed Editions

Some COMICON editions have had one or more countries as guests to whom part of the event's program is dedicated: several exhibitions, screenings, lectures and meetings have been devoted to artists and works of comics and animation from those countries.

Since the 2007 edition, the central theme has shifted from nation (to which a comics school corresponds) to color, chosen from the five basic colors of letterpress printing (cyan, magenta, yellow, green and black). Each of these colors is associated with references and symbolism of various types and kinds that serve as a common thread for the various initiatives presented.[6]

Starting in 2011 COMICON inaugurated another four-year cycle that aims to link Comics, understood as "Ninth Art," with the other arts, showing in the program the interactions and mutual influences. Each year one of the arts was the protagonist in a specific way: in 2011 it was the turn of Music, while in 2012 the relationship between Comics and Literature was explored,[14] taking the place of the announced Architecture, which was the protagonist of the 2013 edition.[15] In 2014 the main theme, which closed the cycle of the interaction of comics with the arts, was Comics and Cinema.[16]

Awards

Characteristic of the event are the Micheluzzi Award (named after Attilio Micheluzzi),[17] which are awarded each year in various categories to the authors and publishers of comics of the moment, and, since the 2005 edition, the COMICON Cosplay Challenge (also with various prizes),[18] which takes place in the auditorium (since 2010 on an outdoor stage in the Mostra d'Oltremare) on the last day of the fair (Sunday, in the 2012 edition). Other fixed activities of the event include the Imago competition, a drawing contest with a social theme (each year with a different theme) reserved for elementary and junior high school students, and whose winners for the various categories are decided by the visitors themselves, through a secret ballot.

Editions

In 2020 and 2021, the convention was not held due to the global COVID-19 pandemic. Instead, a series of events, mainly online, called 'Comicon Extra'[27] were held.

A second edition of Comicon will also be held from 23 to 25 June 2023 in Bergamo, which with Brescia will be the Italian Capital of Culture.[28]

Guests

Notes and References

  1. https://www.comicon.it/chi-siamo Comicon – Chi siamo
  2. Web site: 2023-04-20 . Comicon, quest'anno sarà un'edizione da record: verso il sold out, al via il 29 aprile . 2023-09-22 . . it-IT.
  3. Web site: Le date dell'edizione 2024 di Comicon Napoli. Fumettologica. 2 May 2023 . 2023-05-02. Italian.
  4. https://www.fareastfilm.com/eng/archive/catalogue/2005/mangashi-il-fumetto-in-giappone-da-toba-sojo-a-internet/?IDLYT=31711
  5. http://www.paulgravett.com/articles/article/xiv_napoli_comicon/
  6. Web site: 22 September 2023. it. La storia di COMICON, raccontata dall'inizio. Comicon.
  7. Web site: La mappa di Comicon Napoli 2023. Fumettologica.it. 11 November 2023. 18 April 2023. it.
  8. Web site: 14 April 2012. 27 February 2012. Pagina ufficiale di Comicon su Facebook. Eccoci, vogliamo cominciare dall'argomento che ci sta più a cuore? In realtà dai commenti sembra così, ma davvero volete tutti che concentriamo le attività solo alla Mostra d'Oltremare, lasciando il Castello? Votate (e fate votare)!.
  9. Web site: 10 November 2023. 12 May 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20120512125145/https://www.animeclick.it/news/31882-napoli-si-colora-di-giappone-il-japan-village-al-comicon. 18 April 2012. Animeclick.it. Napoli si colora di Giappone: il Japan Village al COMICON .
  10. Web site: 10 November 2023. 29 March 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230329215310/https://fumettologica.it/2023/03/ospiti-novita-area-asian-comicon-napoli-2023/. Fumettologica.it. Gli ospiti e le prime novità dell'area Asian di Comicon Napoli 2023. 20 March 2023 .
  11. Web site: 10 November 2023. 18 March 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190318090907/https://fumettologica.it/2018/11/comicon-matteo-stefanelli-direttore-artistico/. Comicon nomina un nuovo direttore artistico. Fumettologica.it. 14 November 2018 .
  12. Web site: Comicon si espande: dopo Napoli nel 2023 a Bergamo. Fumettologica. 26 April 2022. 10 November 2023. it.
  13. Web site: Le mostre di Comicon Napoli 2023. Fumettologica.it. 11 November 2023. 19 April 2023. it.
  14. Web site: 22 September 2023. 20 February 2011. it. Letteratura e fumetti, in arrivo Napoli Comicon. la Repubblica.
  15. Web site: 22 September 2023. Alessandro Di Nocera. 31 March 2013. it. La primavera di Comicon: l'architettura a fumetti. la Repubblica.
  16. Web site: 22 September 2023. 25 April 2014. it. Comicon racconta i rapporti tra fumetto e cinema. la Repubblica.
  17. Web site: 22 September 2023. 29 April 2023. it. I vincitori dei Premi di Comicon Napoli 2023. Fumettologica.
  18. https://web.archive.org/web/20120501194159/http://comicon.it/cosplay_challenge.php Cosplay Challenge
  19. Web site: 15 March 2016. 17 August 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160817192528/http://www.comicon.it/sound-vision-viaggio-nella-musica-per-immagini/. Sound & Vision viaggio nella musica per immagini. live. Napoli COMICON.
  20. Web site: 2020-07-05. 5 July 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200705155439/https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/tre-allegri-ragazzi-morti/2015/mostra-doltremare-naples-italy-7beddef0.html. en. Tre Allegri Ragazzi Morti Setlist at Napoli Comicon 2015. live. setlist.fm.
  21. Web site: 13 March 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170313123744/http://www.comicon.it/calendario-presenze-ospiti-2016/. Ospiti 2017.
  22. Web site: 30 April 2017. 13 November 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20171113194434/https://cdn.comicon.it/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/LISTA-OSPITI-2017_29.4.jpg. jpg Ospiti 2017. live.
  23. Web site: 2020-07-05. 5 July 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200705215446/https://www.setlist.fm/festival/2019/comicon-2019-3bd73c70.html. en. Comicon 2019 Setlists. live. setlist.fm.

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