Special Guests
Tatsuo ARAI (Consul General of Japan at Montreal)
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OTAKUTHON is where all aspects of Japanese pop culture converge in Montreal. In its 8th iteration, this festival once again reunites manga, video games, anime, cosplay and karaoke! |
Mel Gosselin
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Native of Rimouski, Mel Gosselin is fueled by Japanese animation, comics and video games. A self-declared geek, this unconventional writer loves to draw inspiration from the popular subculture, pretending to be a manga character and enjoying a good green tea while listening to the croaking of frogs. Author of the historical-fantasy novel "Cétacia", which has been critically acclaimed and won the Desjardins award for Arts and Culture in 2012, Mel is currently working on writing a completely new series which should be released in 2014 where adventure, action and suspense will be waiting for you! |
Jeff Simpson
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Jeff Simpson is a concept artist and digital illustrator currently employed at Ubisoft in Montreal, Canada. He has most recently worked on the Assassin's Creed video game franchise as well as Universal's Snow White and the Huntsman. A graduate of Emily Carr University of Art and Design, Jeff has been working as a concept artist for games, film, TV and editorial illustration for 6 years. His past clients include Universal Pictures, The Mill VFX, Wizards of the Coast and a variety of publishing houses. Jeff's personal and professional works can be seen here: http://jeffsimpsonkh.cghub.com/
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En Masse
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Montreal-based art initiative EN MASSE is best described as an ongoing exercise in irreverent, improvised collaborative drawing in black and white, involving an expanding network of artists internationally. Its diverse voices - grounded in the realms of commercial graphics, underground comics, graffiti, and fine art - weave together to build a collective vision, greater than any could create on their own. Outlets for the creative energy of EN MASSE include works in established galleries and art institutions, commercial contracts, festivals and other public events, and the pedagogical efforts of its EN MASSE For The Masses branch. The initiative began as a one-off gallery installation, at Galerie Pangée in Old Montreal in 2009. Four years later, EN MASSE has conducted installations throughout North America and beyond - Montreal and Toronto, Miami, San Diego and NYC, even Tokyo, Japan. In that time, EN MASSE has created temporary and permanent works for the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts and Cirque de Soleil, in Miami's Wynwood district for Primary Flight and at the Fountain Art Fair during NYC's Armory Week - among so many others. (Photo credit: Fred Caron) |
Jacob Grady
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Jacob Grady is a web developer from Boston, Massachusetts. In college, he studied Computer Science and Marketing and, while there, created FAKKU, now the largest English speaking hentai website in the world. His site attracts over 1 billion page views a month and over 9 million unique visitors. He now works at BioWare as a web developer on Star Wars: The Old Republic. |
Benoit Godbout & Michel Lacombe (Académie des Chasseurs de Primes)
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Synopsis of the series: L'Académie des chasseurs de primes... there isn't a better school throughout the entire galaxy and for apprentice hunters Gaël, Cacendre and Jahmal, it's the beginning of a great adventure. However, a mysterious organization has staged the fall of the Academy. This humourous science-fiction adventure series has seen its second volume see the day in 2010. A third opus is in the works. About the authors: Benoit Godbout - artist / author Born in Montreal in 1977, Benoit graduated from the school of design at UQAM. In 2004, he received the Emerging Talent Award from the Alliance for Children and Television. He is the creator of the cartoon "Blaise le blasé" which in 2008 earned him a Gémeaux for Best Animated Series. Michel Lacombe - story writer Michel Lacombe was born in 1973 in Montreal where he lives with most number of cats possible. He has written or drawn for Marvel, Dark Horse, DC and Quebec Science. |
Kyowa Quebec
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Kyowa is a publisher which allows the publishing of manga drawn for and by Quebecers. The many artists on board stand out by their entirely original comic book projects which have been offered for nearly 3 years. The first publication was completed for Otakuthon in 2009, and we're back again this year with the sequel!MUSEbasement
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Site: www.musebasement.com |
MUSEbasement is a comics/manga/doujinshi circle founded in 2005 by Simon Gannon and A.E. Prevost, who have been making comics together since 2001. The Montreal-based studio is nearly a dozen artists in number and whose collective influences and interests span Eastern and Western styles. The team works on multiple projects, both original and fan-based.Christopher MacDonald
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Christopher Macdonald was the long-time editor-in-chief of Anime News Network and is now the company’s publisher and CEO as well as a consultant for anime companies in Japan, America and other surprising corners of the planet. Despite being immersed in anime and manga politics nearly 24/7, he’s still perfectly happy spending his free time reading the latest Tony Valente
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Tony Valente is the author of the French manga series Radiant published by Ankama. He started in comics at Delcourt, working on illustration and colour for the fantasy series Les 4 princes de Ganahan written by Raphaël Drommelschlager. After this was completed, he set out solo with his own 3-volume project, Hana Attori, in which he returned to his initial influences: Japanese manga and anime. Following this, he illustrated for S.P.E.E.D Angels, a more contemporary-style series published by Soleil Manga, written by Didier Tarquin and coloured by Pop. The first volume can already be found in bookstores and three volumes are planned. In parallel to this collaboration, his personal projects have resurfaced, particularly with the debut of the first volume of Radiant. |
Presented by O-TAKU Manga Lounge