Special Guests

Joakim Drescher is a visual artist whose practice includes printmaking, drawing, painting, writing and publishing. Born in Denmark in 1986, he has lived in China, Indonesia, New Zealand, the Netherlands and the USA, before returning to Copenhagen in 2015, where he lives and works. His most well-known graphic novel series is “Motel Universe”, published by Secret Acres. Joakim designed our fest poster!

Powerpaola is a Colombian-Ecuadorian cartoonist. She is the author of graphic memoirs “Virus Tropical”, “Por Dentro”, “Diario”, “qp”, and “All My Bicycles” (out now, Fantagraphics). Her work deals with themes of sexuality, feminism, family, and personal identity.

Tetsunori Tawaraya is a Japanese musician and artist, known as the guitarist and vocalist for the noise punk band 2up and for his graphic art. Tawaraya is originally from Miyagi, he is currently based in Tokyo, Japan. He started drawing portraits of people and musicians in San Diego, CA in the late 1990s, and prolifically created sci-fi/experimental graphic novels. His newest publication is “Frenzy”, out now from Desert Island.

Heather Loase is a working illustrator living in NY, a ‘21 graduate of SUNY Plattsburgh, and a regular contributor to The New Yorker Daily Shouts. She’s self-published many titles including “Boring Ass Autobio Trash” and her newest, “Basketball Zine”.

Julia Gfrörer is a cartoonist, graphic novelist, illustrator, and author. Her work is often transgressive, invoking occult themes within an ambience of subtly observed historicist concerns, in narratives generally characterized by “mumblecore dialogue, persistent overtones of horror and suffering, and unapologetic sexuality.” We met her in Portland, but she is now living in NY. “World Within The World” is her new collection of comics, out this Fall from Fantagraphics.

Cara Bean is a cartoonist and art educator from Massachusetts, she provides interactive workshops on creativity with people of all ages and backgrounds in various public forums. Cara is passionate about drawing and believes that the simple act of doodling on paper can lead to the investigation of complex ideas. When she is not teaching, she makes comics that delve into poetic self introspection, playful storytelling and topics relevant to teens and teaching. Her newest book is “Here I Am, I Am Me”, out now from Workman Publishing.

Mita Mahato is a Seattle comix artist and poet who assembles her panels and pages with cut and collaged papers. Her work joins fragments of used and discarded materials—old newspapers, obsolete maps, junk mail, packaging scraps—in poetic experiments that dramatize entangled processes of death and renewal, specifically within the context of ecosystemic loss under capitalism. Her new book, “Arctic Play” is out now from The 3rd Thing Press.

Sarah Leavitt is a cartoonist and educator living in Vancouver, BC. She is the author of the graphic memoir “Tangles: A Story About Alzheimer’s, My Mother, and Me . A feature-length animation based on Tangles is in production. She is also the author of the award-winning historical fiction comic “Agnes, Murderess”. Her newest book, “Something, Not Nothing is out this now from Arsenal Pulp Press. It’s a collection of short comics about grief and loss following the death of her partner.