 In 2003, Peter Birkemoe and Chris Butcher of The Beguiling first organized the Toronto Comic Arts Festival (TCAF). Unusual in the world of comics conventions, TCAF is a free-admission event. It focuses on alternative and independent comics, but includes other creative arts besides comics. Rather than being like a traditional comics convention, it is patterned after European festivals such as Angoulême, and the American Small Press Expo. The organizers considered Toronto to be a hotbed of alternative cartooning, but were concerned that most Torontonians associated comic books with superheroes. Their stated goal was "to present the quality and prestige of ... local and international artists in a package that's respected and recognized". The festival was biannual until 2009, when in partnership with the Toronto Public Library it became an annual event. Starting that year, the festival took place at the Toronto Reference Library.
