The Angoulême International Comedy Festival, the most important in Europe and which has been held every year in the southern French town since 1974, is going through the biggest crisis in its history, to the point that the current edition, number 56, which should have been held at the end of January, could be cancelled. The controversy began with the boycott of the participating authors and the publishers who publish them, who denounce the mismanagement by the organizers of the competition and the dismissal of an employee who had filed a rape complaint last year. The Government has announced a cut in public funding for the event.
“We find it more than difficult to maintain this edition (…) It is the authors, but also the publishers, who make the festival possible. Without them there is no festival, and without a competition there is no public subsidy”, admitted the mayor of Angoulême, Xavier Bonnefont, during a press conference held on Wednesday. The festival attracts around 200,000 comic book fans every year, so its suspension is a blow to this municipality, best known for its prestigious cartoon festival.
At the origin of the controversy is the company 9e Art+ (ninth art), in charge of managing the event since 2008, but criticized for years for its lack of transparency and bad practices. The culmination was the dismissal last year of an employee who had filed a rape complaint against one of the contest’s staff. This company’s contract had just been extended for the next two editions, but the authors resigned.
In a column published on Sunday in the newspaper Humanity, 285 designers denounce that “working and reception conditions have worsened in the last 20 years. Historically, women and minorities have been made invisible. Over time we have made a space for ourselves and now we raise our voices to be heard”, they write in a manifesto.
“Chloé’s dismissal during the previous edition created anger that was difficult to contain. Instead of protecting and helping her, her company, 9eArt+, fired her for serious misconduct, after having reported a festival collaborator for rape”, denounce the signatories, who claim a Me too BD (Bande Desinée, comic, in French). “It is not a unique case, there are hundreds of stories covered by silence, silence (…) There is continuity in sexist and sexual violence in our profession.” Among the signatories, mostly women, including the victim herself, there are 20 first prize winners in previous editions.
After the authors’ plan, came that of the publishers. The national trade union of the sector, which has more than 700 members, has recognized that, without the presence of cartoonists, it is difficult for it to be achieved.
Culture Minister Rachida Dati announced in the Assembly on Tuesday a 60% (around 200,000 euro) cut in subsidies for this year’s festival “due to irregularities detected in terms of transparency”, even though she was confident it could take place. The event is supported thanks to public funding. In addition to the State, the region of New Aquitaine and the municipality of Angoulême contribute, providing half of the money necessary for the construction.
On Monday, local and regional authorities published a statement announcing that they will open a new tender to entrust the management to another company, even if this decision was not enough to cancel the boycott. Nor have the situation been calmed by the resignation of the director of the 9eArt+ company, Franck Bondoux, who has long been at the center of criticism, who denies mismanagement.
The festival has experienced other crises. In 2017, several authors threatened to withdraw in protest at the lack of women on the finalist list. However, its celebration has never been more threatened. “The horizon has never been so apocalyptic. The cancellation (of the edition) in 2026 could mean its definitive demise,” he told the newspaper. Liberation Fausto Fasulo, one of the artistic directors of the International Comics Federation, the association that owns the festival.
