'Bucheon International Comics Festival' Opens on the 4th of Next Month... Online Fan Meeting and Webtoon Showcase Prepared

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Hyesook] The program and lineup for the "24th Bucheon International Comics Festival," held from the 4th to the 12th of next month, have been revealed.

Various non-face-to-face programs will be presented, ranging from a unique opening ceremony produced with diverse digital technologies to fan events communicating in real-time with popular webtoon artists.

Under the theme "New Normal, New Connection," the Bucheon International Comics Festival will grandly open with an opening ceremony, congratulatory performances, and the 2021 Bucheon Comics Awards ceremony, all produced through digital technologies such as holograms, augmented reality (AR), and virtual reality in a virtual space.

The opening ceremony will take place at 2 p.m. on the 4th at the Korean Manhwa Museum screening room. Anyone can watch it via live streaming on the official YouTube channel of the Korea Manhwa Contents Agency, "All about Korean webtoon."

Along with the comics festival opening ceremony, the "5th Gyeonggi International Cosplay Festival" opening ceremony will also be held. Through the awards ceremony of "Cosplay@home," an international cosplay short-form video contest, viewers can enjoy dazzling and unique cosplay videos from top cosplayers in 10 countries worldwide.

Especially during this festival period, online fan meetings and webtoon showcases will be held, enabling meetings beyond time and space among popular artists, readers, and domestic and international industry stakeholders.

Through the online fan meetings, attendees can communicate with popular artists across various genres and generations, including HUN and Jimin, creators of "Navillera" (September 5), Choi Junhyuk and Rantan, creators of "Independent Comics" (September 6), OSIK, creator of "Civilian Control Zone" (September 7), Shin Ilsook, creator of "Armean’s Four Daughters" (September 8), Dogado, creator of "Tough Guy" (September 9), Ma Youngshin and Lee Hyunjung, creators of "Plus Minus Zero" (September 10), and Kudangtang, creator of "James on the Hill" (September 11).

The webtoon showcase is designed to provide an enjoyable time with "Yumi’s Cells" creator Lee Donggun, including updates and quiz events.

The "Webtoon OST Concert," where attendees can enjoy live performances of the OST from the popular drama "Itaewon Class," based on a webtoon, will also be held at 2 p.m. on the 11th. The concert will be hosted by actor Yoon Heeseok and feature popular singers Gaho, Kyungseo, and Moon Jeho.

In addition, various online conferences and seminars involving comics industry professionals, such as Korea-France cartoonist dialogues, comics and webtoon industry development seminars, comics forums, seminars on webtoons for the disabled, current comics talk shows, and comics and future education seminars, can be accessed via YouTube live streaming.

Kim Hyungbae, the operating committee chairman of the Bucheon International Comics Festival, said, "In daily life where offline activities are restricted, we aim to showcase the dynamic world of comics through various connection methods," adding, "We hope everyone enjoys the festival online and gains both comfort and strength through comics and webtoons."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.