Komiket

Komiket is a paid-admissionAnecdotes from both convention-goers and fans, as well as official announcements and press material/articles cite the admission fee being PHP50 in the first editions of said convention, with the price eventually doubling to PHP100 in later instances, owing to the rising costs of running such an event, as well as sustaining both the local comics market and various non-profit initiatives in the country. comics and art marketplace/convention held in the Philippines (mainly situated within the National Capital Region)There are a few instances in the past wherein Komiket itself is held at activity areas in malls (for example, at Bonifacio Global City, and UPTC in 2023), rendering it as a mostly free-admission event; in this case, the mall's organizing committee shoulders most of the event costs for the organization.. It is regularly held seven times per year, with each instance sometimes held in different cities and malls across the country, and with slightly modified names for some of the events (for example, the December event is generally referred to as PasKomiket or Komiketmas). It is often cited as the largest comics convention in said country.
Although its primary focus is on locally-produced, independent comics and graphic novels, other forms of creative expression are also welcome, too, as it positions itself as a main gateway for both first-time and established local (and independent) comic and art makers and enjoyers, including fanartists themselves.
Aside from providing a highly-open, accessible space where comics and art creators and readers/enthusiasts can meet up and share techniques and ideas to each other, as well as sell merch and copies of their creations, and do on-the-spot drawing sessions on-site, through seminars and booths, it also holds an annual award event for recognizing outstanding people and their own creations within this shared community, called Komiket Awards, as well as an onsite bookstore (Secret HQ) in Poblacion, Makati, and a highly-organized online version, titled as the Philippine International Comics Festival (PICOF), for the expressed purpose of bringing Filipino-made comics to the wider world, regardless of any constraints and borders.
== Posters ==
Every iteration of Komiket thus far has a specially-made artistic poster made for the convention, either created by well-known or pseudonymous creators; thus, whilst maintaing a vague sense of the Filipino comics community, these posters feature a specific art style expressed by them.
== Komiket Awards ==
The Komiket Awards are the organization, and in extension, the convention's way of recognizing the best of the notable comic makers, storytellers and illustrators within the Filipino comics and art community, be it through mastery and creative expression of the subject/s involved in such works, attention to detail and ingenuity, overall impact across general audiences and societal aspects, and so on.
Part of said awards ceremony is an accompanying annually-published compilation called Komiks Cum Laude, which features winning graphic novels and comics from each edition.
== Additional Publications ==
Aside from the aforementioned compilation publication above, which exclusively features winners of the various categories in the Komiket Awards, the organization also publishes an annual zine/booklet-style comics compilation, named Kommunity, which in turn features creative works by participating local artists/comics makers in the convention itself.
== Controversies ==
=== Komiket Pride 2023 Twitter/X Posts ===
In the days leading to the then-awaited Pride-themed edition of Komiket, simply named as Komiket Pride, which was to be held on June 16-18, 2023 at the Ayala Malls the 30th, co-founder Paolo Herras made a series of now-deleted tweets on social media platform Twitter/X that, rather than celebrating and supporting local LGBTQ+ creators within the community, appeared to confusingly exclude them from participating in the convention. Several users, especially comics and art creators who have been either gone to past events or just recently gearing up to join for the first time, were quick to point out the hypocrisy, especially the convention's overall track record on inclusivity and acceptance of said marginalized sectors.Later that same day as lou-quorice's tweet, Herras retracted the offending tweets and in their place, then put up a note-written apology on his personal Twitter page, detailing his apparent contextual mistake, and that he indeed didn't consult the rest of the organizing team beforehand:Most artists and exhibitors took this apology as genuine, although there are others who still refuse to account for the noted transgression by the convention's organizers at the time its official account published the tweets. Amidst the ensuing backlash, some are urging to support local LGBTQ+ creatives who are going and and are exhbiting their works at the convention's venue, despite the circumstancesKomiket co-founder sorry for remarks on non-LGBTQ+ artists in Komiket Pride archived version. Rappler.com. (Published June 8, 2023; accessed February 16, 2024).
== Notable Works and Creators ==
* Kikomachine (Manix Abrera)
* La Historia Komiks (Maou No Sekai)
* My Name is Agung (Ma-i Entico)
* Pugad Baboy (Pol Medina Jr.)
* Haitori (Tori Tadiar)
* Tarantadong Kalbo
== References ==
Category:Pages that need expansion
Category:Comics Conventions
Category:2015 Conventions
Category:2010s Conventions
Category:2020s Conventions
Category:2010s Awards
Category:2020s Awards
Category:Conventions in Philippines