The Zine and Independent Comics Symposium — or ZICS, if you'd rather — is bringing The Bedroom Philosopher, Mystery School and a slew of interstate guests to The Edge for a three-day celebration of independent comics and zines.
The event kicks off this Friday August 30 with a ticketed launch event, followed by a free comic and zine fair, workshops and panels on Saturday and Sunday.
"It’s a great way to bring together Queensland and nationwide underground creative communities to showcase the talents of people working here in Brisbane and across the country," says ZICS co-founder Jeremy Staples. "The Edge is an amazing venue in Southbank which proudly supports ZICS as a hub for community collaboration and participation. ZICS is run by volunteers and not for profit. We’re really doing this for the love of it and hopefully Brisbane falls in love with zines and indie comics too.
"This community focus also means that we need people’s help in fundraising to cover the event. We’re using a crowd-sourced fundraising campaign via Pozible.com where people can help us out by pledging some money towards the event and they will be rewarded with a great range of prizes. The whole process is exciting as it means we can retain our independent spirit."
The Bedroom Philosopher (aka Justin Heazlewood) will be a guest panellist during the weekend and perform at the launch; Mystery School will also be launching their 7" record. Other interstate talents include Melbourne's Sticky Institute and Adelaide's Format Collective, who are coordinating the Golden Stapler Awards; Sydney-based zine maker and independent publisher Vanessa Berry, who'll be launching new book Ninety 9; and comic creator Frank Candiloro.
Local artists and writers will also be showcased, including comic artists Paul Mason and Ryan Vella (illustrator of the comic adaptation of He Died With A Felafel In His Hand). Zac Smith-Cameron, founder of independent comic publishing label Ashcan, is excited to see the talent that will spring forth from the Brisbane underground comic scene at ZICS.
"ZICS is great because the community of creators here in Brisbane decided to take the lead and create an event the community wants to see," he says. "It was very proactive and independent in spirit. We’ve relied upon a great number of volunteers and this Do-It Yourself attitude really shapes the focus of the event as an opportunity to reach out more broadly to people in Brisbane, along with Queensland and the rest of the nation to make ZICS a celebration that everyone can participate and be involved in."
