Attendees at the Yellow Show Floor
by Sam Adame
Now in its fourth year, the Brooklyn Independent Comics Showcase has firmly established itself as the premier indie comics festival in Brooklyn, filling in the gap once occupied by Comics Arts Brooklyn (2013-2019 RIP). With major decisions such as moving it indoors, hosting panels for the first time, and inviting a roster of out of town guests, it’s clear that this year was intended to be a foolproof effort, and it mostly was, or at least marked a step up in the right direction, according to exhibitors who have tabled in previous years.
Location
Not unlike years prior, BICS took place in the Sunset Park-based Industry City complex at event spaces 5-2-A and 6-6-A. Ignoring my strong urbanism-influenced opinions regarding Industry City as an entity, it is a vibrant shopping center of restaurants, food courts, and open-air spaces among a myriad of family-friendly amenities, making walking in and out easy. The free admission price made the event accessible to anyone, including random bystanders.
Industry City Courtyard
In light of inclement weather conditions ay 2024’s show, which blew down several vendor stands, the exhibitor’s floor was moved indoors, divided into two sections: The Yellow and Blue Show Floors. The Yellow Show Floor was located on the second floor, a short flight of stairs away from the ground floor. On the other hand, the Blue side was situated on the opposite end all the way up on the sixth floor, giving it a relatively more discreet feeling despite the signage at the entrance. However, volunteers were stationed throughout the vicinity to ensure everyone found their way, making up for the less-than-ideal location. Both sides were wheelchair accessible, but attendees reported issues with the Blue side elevator on Saturday, negatively affecting foot traffic on the vendors’ side of matters. Fortunately, by Sunday, the situation was resolved.
Panels took place at the Tom Kane Theater on the first floor, next to St. Mark’s Comics, which organizes the event along with Aynsley Leonardis.
Public transit options are aplenty. The D, N, and R train lines are available at 36th St and 4th Ave, while B35, B37, and B70 bus service can be found right outside Industry City. The train station is not wheelchair-accessible.
Programming
Panelists (from left to right): Nick Forker, Madhi Khene, Russ Kazmierczak, Whitney Matheson, and Dean Haspiel
After three successful shows of growing attendance figures and prominence in the indie comics fest scene, it was a natural step forward to begin incorporating panels to keep people’s attention. Saturday initiated the milestone with three panels held between 1 and 4 PM.
The Business of Self-Publishing Comics – Cartoonists Nicolas (aka Nick) Forker, Dean Haspiel, Russ Kazmierczak, Mahdi Khene, and Whitney Matheson discuss their experiences self-publishing comic books. My normal initial reaction to panels of this variety is one of skepticism, as I’ve seen a few too many of them, which are essentially the guests talking about their way being the objective, surefire strategy. Knowing all the panelists personally (except for the Phoenix-based Russ), however, I was more hopeful they would avoid this, and sure enough, I was not disappointed. The main focus throughout was on sharing their personal experiences with self-publishing while imparting words of wisdom. Nick easily had the best quotes:
“How can we build community within comics?”
“There’s nothing to be, you already are.”
Tia Wilson, Sami Kerwin, and Marc Jackson
Self-Care and Wellness for Creators – Cartoonist/educator Kriota Willberg moderates an intergenerational discussion about maintaining one’s physical well-being to avoid stress injuries as an artist, featuring Tia Wilson, Sami Kerwin, and British cartoonist Marc Jackson. While the subject matter might not sound the most exciting to most attendees, given the audience of only 5-7 people at most, it was certainly practical to some degree for anyone who performs sedentary work. Sami was the star of the show in memorable quotes:
“If we aren’t making art for ourselves, how are we doing it for other people?
“Having a designated place where I’m allowed to be bad [drawing] is very freeing.”
Chris Miskiewicz, Lara Antal, R. Sikoryak, Jeffery Brandt, and San Von Gorman
Carousel: Comics Performances and Picture Shows – R. Sikoryak returns with another live comics reading showcase featuring a whole new lineup, including the author of the poignant Ronan and Endless Sea of Stars, Lara Antal; writer Jefferey Burrandt; graphic novelist and actor Chris Miskiewicz; and cartoonist Sean Von Gorman. Jeffery and Sean brought spectators into a fit of laughter with their readings of the goofy Gonad the Ballbarian and The Pedestrian, respectively. Meanwhile, Chris stole the show with his exceptional voice acting, reading from his award-winning series Thomas Alsop.
Sunday had two panels happening from 1-3 PM.
Liz Frances, Lydia Nguyen, Robyn Chapman, Joeseph Illidge, and Mike Cavallero
Breaking In: Get Your Work Published – Street Noise Books founder Liz Frances moderates a talk featuring cartoonist Mike Cavallero, editor/minicomic publisher Robyn Chapman, writer/editor Joseph Illidge, and cartoonist/editor Lydia Nguyen. Like with the self-publishing panel, this one avoided the “how-to” route, instead using the topic to challenge what it means to be published. Joseph was dishing out the most direct advice here:
“If you want your story to be published, do your due diligence and do your research on publishers.”
“Build your community. They’re people who want to see you win.” -In response to a question about winning the fight against AI.
Just Get Started! Build Your Comic from the Ground Up – Comics enthusiast Will Foote moderates a conversation between cartoonists Kevin Alvir, Michel Fiffe, and Corrine Halbert. A perfect complement to the previous panel, this one was a very casual discussion about the panelists’ creative processes and influences.
Layout & Exhibitors
The difference between the Yellow and Blue show floors was almost night and day. Foot traffic was consistently high throughout the day on the Yellow end and very easy to find. The layout was your pretty standard grid floor planning with tables surrounding the edges. Each row was spaced out to leave enough room for heavy foot traffic. Meanwhile, window walls surrounded the entire perimeter. Combined together, these elements diminish the stifling feelings that come with being in such a crowded setting, creating a more accessible, sensory-friendly environment.
Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for the Blue side. Although the floor planning is the same, maintenance left much to be desired. Besides the aforementioned elevator problem on Saturday, several vendors criticized the lack of air conditioning, ventilation, and lighting, among other grievances. A cartoonist who goes by the handle elevenpurrs had the following to say:
“There were no restrooms on the blue floor/6th floor. You would have to go down to the first floor to use them, but those restrooms weren’t the greatest either. For the “women’s,” there were only two stalls, and neither of them were accessible if I recall correctly. Because I am familiar with Industry City’s layout, I opted to walk to the roomier restrooms in other areas, but obviously, newcomers would be missing this information. This is in comparison to the yellow floor, which had restrooms within the space itself, from what I saw on my one trip to the other building.”
They also had this to add:
“While the floors were finished in the yellow space, the floors were unfinished and uneven in the blue space, posing a tripping hazard.”
Lineup-wise, while there were a few illustration vendors, the spotlight was on independent comic creators/collectives. To my surprise, there were more than a few exhibitors traveling from out of state and even Canada just for the show. While the publisher presence wasn’t as large as some indie comics festivals like SPX or MoCCA, a handful of small to mid-sized indie presses were present at BICS, including FairSquare Graphics, Street Noise Books, and Beehive Books. Also, shoutout to Purgatory Comics Press and Olive Nicole for sharing their tables with me.
Despite some flaws worth acknowledging, BICS 2025 was overall a fun show and a good excuse for me to meet with friends from all over the comics community. I look forward to attending/tabling in subsequent years to see how it evolves.
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