SPX programming announced

2: Kids Comics with Brian Ralph!
Brian Ralph, creator of Reggie-12, the graphic novels Cave-In and Climbing Out, and comic strips for Nickelodeon Magazine, will talk about his comics for kids and how he makes them.

3: Jules Feiffer Q+A
Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist Jules Feiffer inaugurated the contemporary weekly cartoon format in the Village Voice with groundbreaking cartoons about psychology, social mores, relationships, and politics. Feiffer is also a screenwriter and playwright, and has in recent years authored a number of award-winning children’s books. He most recently drew illustrations for The Long Chalkboard, a collection of stories by his wife, the comedian and writer Jenny Allen. Tim Kreider will ask Feiffer questions about his work and the state of the world today.

8: Tony Millionaire Q+A
Tony Millionaire’s weekly Maakies strip is traditionalist and subversive, horrific and comic, beautiful and profane. Millionaire has also written and drawn the Sock Monkey series of comic books and several children’s books. Gary Groth interviews the man whose exquisitely drawn strip about drunken animals, sea battles, and much more is arguably the most delightful comic strip on newsprint today.

SATURDAY

11:30: Graphic Novels: First Authors
What challenges face a cartoonist making a long-form work for the first time? Writer Douglas Wolk talks about problems, solutions, and methodologies with Austin English, Megan Kelso and Matthias Lehmann, all of whom have recently finished their first graphic novels.

12:00: Masters, Canons and Anti-Canons
In light of the “Masters of American Comics” show and several new books that seek to expand or challenge our notions of comics’ greatest works, Ivan Brunetti, Gary Groth and Dan Nadel will address the concept of a canon as it relates to comics, discuss its necessity and consider its possible function. Moderated by Bill Kartalopoulos

12:30: Center for Cartoon Studies: Presentation and Workshop
Robyn Chapman joins us from the Center for Cartoon Studies, a recently-founded two-year educational institution for budding cartoonists in White River Junction, Vermont. Robyn will talk about this unique school and will lead a hands-on cartooning workshop. No matter how little experience you have, you will leave this panel having drawn a comics page!

1:00: Craig Yoe: Arf Lover
Twisted archivist of the ridiculous and the sublime Craig Yoe presents for your pleasure and scandalization selections from the collection of comics, gags, and graffix which form the source for his eccentric series of “Arf” anthology books. Outrageous obscurities and eyeball-kicks are practically guaranteed! (Offer not valid where offer may apply.)

1:30: Ways of Drawing
What do different styles of cartooning mean to cartoonists? What are cartoonists trying to get across with their brushstrokes? Why draw with thick or soft lines? Is drawing style a conscious choice or does it evolve naturally? Is it pleasureable to draw? Or is it a struggle? Ben Catmull, John Hankiewicz, Megan Kelso, Onsmith and Frank Santoro discuss these questions and more with moderator Austin English

2:00: Scott McCloud Q+A
Scott McCloud has become a leading spokesman and thinker in American comics through his treatises-in-comics form, Understanding Comics and Reinventing Comics. Now he follows up his analyses with a new approach to practical application in Making Comics. McCloud will discuss his ideas with moderator Bill Kartalopoulos and answer questions from the audience.

2:30: Political Cartooning in 2006
One year ago Danish newspaper cartoons sparked deadly global riots. Earlier this year the Joint Chiefs of Staff protested a political cartoon about troop injuries in Iraq. Last month a graphic novel adaptation of the 9/11 Commission Report became a New York Times bestseller. Charles Brownstein talks to Tim Kreider, Ted Rall, Mikhaela Reid, Jen Sorensen and Rick Veitch about the interesting times these cartoonists live within and how their work responds.

3:00: Ivan Brunetti Q+A
Ivan Brunetti has drawn raging screeds against the void, gag cartoons from hell’s lower circles, sensitive biographies of dead artists, and observant slices-of-life. His cartooning style has transformed over the years from harsh and anguished to geometric and delicate. He is also an educator, editor, historian, curator, and spiritual seeker. Jesse Fuchs leads a discussion with the artist who calls his comic book “Schizo.”

3:30: How to Draw Thinking
Some say that because comics is a visual medium, it’s better suited for action and spectacle than for rumination or the internal life of the mind. Comics by Gabrielle Bell, Kevin Huizenga, and Anders Nilsen consistently prove this notion wrong. With moderator Isaac Cates, they will discuss the pleasures and problems of making pictures that think.

4:00: Brian Chippendale Q+A
Brian Chippendale co-founded the seminal Fort Thunder artists’ space in Providence, Rhode Island in 1995. His first book, Ninja, has just been published. He is also the author of numerous mini-comics, including the Maggots series, and has appeared in anthologies including Paper Rodeo, Non, and Coober Skeeber. Chippendale also plays drums and sings as one-half of the band Lightning Bolt. Dan Nadel asks the questions.

SUNDAY

10: Publicity and Media
The media has enthusiastically adopted comics as a subject for feature and review. How do books get reviewed in industry and mainstream publications? What can various forms of online coverage do for books? What is the effect of all of this attention? Heidi MacDonald, Calvin Reid and Whitney Matheson discuss.

11: Changes in Comics Publishing and Distribution
Over the past several years comics, predominantly in “graphic novel” form, have increasingly moved out of comic book shops and into bookstores. How has publishing and distributing comics changed from the perspective of publishers? What role does the “Direct Market” still play? Gary Groth, Dan Nadel and Brett Warnock share their experiences.

12: Working with Mainstream Publishers
Agent/publisher Denis Kitchen and cartoonists Scott McCloud and Lauren Weinstein will discuss the experience of working with “mainstream” book publishers. How is working with a corporate publishing house different than working in the small press? What happens when agents, contracts, and publicists enter the picture? What are the trade-offs and advantages?