British Academy comics and graphic novels conference comes to University of Chichester

The international conference, The Commercial Business of Comics: Transforming Authorship, Distribution, Technology, Story and Aesthetics in the Global North and South, will bring together established and emerging comics scholars from the UK, Europe and North America.  

Professor Hugo Frey, event co-organiser, said: “We were delighted to receive the British Academy Conference grant, and to be able to host this event here at the University of Chichester.” 

Presenters will respond to two key questions: What are the global comics industries? And how do changing business patterns and practices lead to new authorship, distribution, technical manufacture, and the aesthetic production and reception of comics? 

The conference will investigate the impact of new business practices on the social, economic, and political meanings of graphic narrative, encompassing print and digital comics, manga and bande dessinée.

The two-day event will delve into topics including: the economic context for making and manufacturing comics, post-colonialism and post-print comics-making; historical precedents as a model for current practice; the role of comics fandom in co-production; and the shifts in publishing sites between ‘Global North’ and ‘Global South’. 

The conference is funded by the Department for Science Innovation and Technology in partnership with the British Academy. British Academy Conferences bring together scholars from around the world to present, discuss and consolidate new research in the humanities and social sciences. 

The event is being held on May 11 and 12. For tickets, visit: The Commercial Business of Comics.