Autoptic 2021

Alex Mitchell chats with Bob Algeo, Assistant Professor at the Minneapolis College and Art and Design, to discuss how COVID-19 has changed comics education in the short term and to share their thoughts on how our recent adventures into remote learning will continue to effect student cartoonists in the future, even when they eventually return to the classroom.

Odin Cabal sits down with Autoptic’s Pete Faecke to discuss his current work in progress Captain Beard and Koala. They discuss Odin’s process transitioning from slice of life comics for an adult audience to working on a fairy tale aimed at a younger crowd, and how the narrative rules change when you start working in the fantasy genre. Follow @odincabal on instagram for progress shots, and to get the book when it comes out!

Camilo Aguirre reads an excerpt from his comic, What Remains, which explores Colombian politics and life through social research, historical accounts, and personal experiences. Follow Camilo on Instagram: @camil0_aguirre

Sean Knickerbocker sits down with cartoonist Audra Stang to talk about, comics, print making, and comic shops. Then Audra reads an excerpt from her new serialized comic Tunnel Vision. You can check out more of Audra's work at https://www.audrastang.com and you can read Tunnel Vision parts one and two in The Rust Belt Review at https://www.rustbeltreview.org.

Cartoonist Jose Pimienta and Random House Graphic Senior Editor Whitney Leopard talk with Autoptic Festival's Robert James Algeo about the relationship between author and editor. Jose and Whitney go deep on how to navigate the lines between reader, fan, and editor, the challenges posed by bringing pre-existing material to the book market, and their specific experiences working together on Jose's new graphic novel Suncatcher.

Cartoonist Craig Thompson and his brother Phil Thompson talk comics with the Autoptic Festival’s Alex Mitchell. The brothers chat about Ginseng Roots, a memoir/travelogue-comic published by Uncivilized Books, about their shared childhood helping farm ginseng in rural Wisconsin.

Cartoonist M. S. Harkness talks comics with the Autoptic Festival’s Peter Faecke. Harkness chats about her comics—Tinderella and Desperate Pleasures—published by Uncivilized Books. The interview digs deep into the nuts and bolts of making comics, with some frank conversation on the challenges and pitfalls of working in autobio.

Cartoonist Rumi Hara talks comics with the Autoptic Festival’s Sean Knickerbocker. Hara chats about her book Nori, published by Drawn & Quarterly, but the conversation moves from her childhood in Kyoto, to the beaches of Hawaii, to the coast of Georgia, and the sci-fi inspiration of the Mojave desert.

Cartoonist Julia Gfrörer talks comics with the Autoptic Festival’s Sean Knickerbocker. Gfrörer chats about her recent comic Vision, published by Fantagraphics. The conversation covers horror, zines, poetry, and how to make a sort of peace with the chaos of 2020.