San Diego Comic Con Teacher and Librarian Programming
Thursday, July 18th
1:00-2:30 Comics Arts Conference Session #3: Teaching with Comics— Lisa Vizcarra (Carquinez Middle School) argues that, after years of teaching using comics and graphic novels, students' interest in comics is waning. Teachers interested in comics may have to incorporate gaming and other technologies to keep comics in the classroom. Jeff Brain (San Francisco State University, Del Mar Middle School) presents one possible approach to this blend, describing a classroom unit, tailored to the Childhood Internet Protection Act (CIPA), that channels current technology news stories into stories pitting student-created superheroes against teacher-created supervillains, with consistent instruction in using digital imaging, reference photos, comic book lexicon and conventions combined with character development and storytelling structure. Rob Weiner (Texas Tech University) and Carrye Smya (Texas Tech University) discuss their multimedia creation of short "text-to-movie" movies as supplements to their Introduction to Library Research class, as well as a mini-textbook in graphic novel format with some of the concepts conveyed as sequential, using both animation and comics to provide an engaging learning environment for students. Room 26AB
3:00-4:00 Graphic Novels: The Bookstore Crowd— The comics world looks at "mainstream comics" as the superhero crowd, the ones available in comic book stores every Wednesday. But the real mainstream comics and graphic novels are in bookstores and created by a whole different crowd, one that lacks, for the most part, capes, powers, and spandex. Comics journalist Tom Spurgeon (comicsreporter.com) talks to Comic-Con special guests Kate Beaton (Hark! A Vagrant!), Alison Bechdel (Are You My Mother? A Comic Drama), Brecht Evens (The Making of), Jennifer and Matthew Holm (Babymouse series), Nate Powell (Any Empire), and Jason Shiga (Empire State) about their popular graphic novels that appeal to a more diverse audience in bookstores all over the world. Room 23ABC
3:30-4:30 The Future of Superhero Studies— Superhero scholarship has exploded over the past few years. Professors Ben Saunders (CCI 2012 special guest and author of Do the Gods Wear Capes?) and Charles Hatfield (author of the Eisner Award-nominated Hand of Fire: The Comics Art of Jack Kirby) invite you to join them for a frank, free-spirited discussion of superhero studies: its history, challenges, and possibilities. What has been done in the field, what can be done, and where do we go from here? Room 26AB
4:30-5:30 Bringing Comics to Life in the Library— Five super-librarians discuss how they have reached readers of all ages through comics-based library programming. Hear about developing shared collections, get valuable resources and craft ideas, learn to schedule author visits, and more. They'll cover all the nitty-gritty of programming in school and public libraries from the inside out. Featuring Jack Baur (Berkeley Public Library, reviewer for No Flying No Tights), Jessica Lee (Willard Middle School), Scott Robbins (Toronto Public Library, author of A Parent's Guide to the Best Kids' Comics), Susan Rodgers (Palo Alto Public Library), and Eva Volin (Alameda Free Library, reviewer for No Flying No Tights). Room 26AB
Friday, July 13th
11:30-12:30 Remixed Fairy Tales and Superhero Lore— Between this year's Mirror Mask and Snow White and the Huntsman and forthcoming retellings of Beauty and the Beast and Hansel and Gretel -- not to mention recent reexaminations such as Soon I Shall Be Invincible and The Magicians -- the mythology of fairy tales and superheroes is embedded in our popular culture. But some of the characters aren't quite what they used to be. Discuss the enduring power of these archetypes and how they can also be reinterpreted with panelists Sarah Maas (Throne of Glass), Marissa Meyer (Cinder), Rae Carson (The Girl of Fire and Thorns), Paul Tobin (Prepare to Die), Tom King (A Once Crowded Sky), Michael Scott (The Enchantress), Tracy Hickman (Wayne of Gotham), and Cecil Castellucci (The Year of the Beasts). Moderated by David Mariotte of Mysterious Galaxy. Room 5AB
12:00-1:30 Comics Arts Conference Session #6: Revolution and Reaction— Trina Robbins (Lily Renée, Escape Artist) details the art and amazing life of Holocaust survivor Lily Renée Wilheim, one of the most successful women cartoonists during World War II and Fiction House's only woman cartoonist to draw covers as well as interior stories. Eyal Amiran (University of California, Irvine) examines Winsor McCay's public side, in which he quit comics in 1914 to draw xenophobic and anti-immigrant editorial cartoons for Hearst newspapers, arguing that McCay's reactionary sense of the collapse and contamination of culture and civilization mirrors his exploration of infantile fantasies in Little Nemo in Slumberland, Little Sammy Sneeze, and Dream of the Rarebit Fiend. Matt Yockey (University of Toledo) examines the ways in which Richard E Hughes' and Ogden Whitney's Herbie ironically deconstructs the transcendent promises of mass consumerism in postwar America. In the comic's subversive take on popular culture, and its (sometimes literal) dismantling at the hands of its protagonist, Herbie allows readers a symbolic mastery and control over their own subjectivity, itself a textual construct of both civic identity and mass culture. Cori Knight (University of California, Riverside) and Sean Sagan (University of California, Riverside) present joint research on aspects of the gospel tracts of Jack T. Chick, an author whose comic-book-style evangelical tracts have circled the globe and have been translated into over 40 languages, and consider the tracts' status as sacred objects and as warnings to the world at large. Room 26AB
12:00-1:00 CBLDF: The History of Comics Censorship— Learn the shocking history of comics censorship and how even today comics and the people who make, sell, and read them are threatened. CBLDF executive director Charles Brownstein tells the sordid tale, from the public book burnings and Senate hearings that led to the Comics Code Authority in the 1950s through the attacks on Underground comix in the 1970s and retailer busts in the 1980s up to modern attacks on readers and artists. This program includes the latest research on comics censorship, including new cases developing this year. Come learn about your rights and how the CBLDF works to protect them. Room 11AB
1:00-2:00 Graphic Novel Library Awards— What goes into the process of awards like the YALSA Great Graphic Novels for Teens list or the Texas Maverick Reading List? Find out as librarians from both committees discuss establishing, supporting, and handling the day-to-day work of graphic novel library awards on both the state and national levels. Room 4
1:30-2:30 Spotlight on Kate Beaton— Comic-Con special guest Kate Beaton, the cartoonist behind the wildly popular webcomic Hark! A Vagrant and the New York Times bestseller of the same name, presents an overview of her work. Room 5AB
2:00-3:00 Spotlight on Ben Saunders— Comic-Con special guest Ben Saunders is part of a growing group of comic book scholars. Saunders is a professor of English at the University of Oregon, the author of Do The Gods Wear Capes?: Spirituality, Fantasy, and Superheroes, a founder of the University of Oregon Undergraduate Minor in Comics and Cartoon Studies, and a 2012 Eisner Awards judge. He'll talk about all that and more in this special spotlight event. Room 4
4:30-5:30 Babymouse: Inside the Bubble!— Babymouse swept onto the graphic novel scene in 2005 and now has over 1.6 million copies in print. Comic-Con special guests Jennifer and Matthew Holm discuss how they create their critically acclaimed graphic novel series Babymouse and their bestselling pond scum-green series, Squish. Q&A session moderated by Scott Robins (A Parent's Guide to the Best Kids' Comics). Room 8
6:00-7:00 Girls Gone Genre— Listen to and talk with women who write, read, game, and perform in arenas that are statistically dominated by men. What happens when traditionally "male" genres are reinvented by female writers and embraced by female fans? Sex and the City (or for that matter, Girls), it ain't. Meet the women who like to play with trucks and Barbies. And Wolverine action figures. And flux capacitors. Panelists: Marti Noxon (Buffy, Angel), Jane Espenson (Battlestar Galactica, Torchwood), Karyn Kusama (Jennifer's Body), and Angela Robinson (True Blood). Room 7AB
6:00-7:00 Are Digital Comics Expanding the Market?— Digital comics are the hottest trend in publishing today, exploding onto the screens of iPads, tablets, and phones everywhere. How is digital distribution transforming the industry and the market? Is digital opening the medium to a vast new global audience, or is it the death knell of comics as we know them? Author and futurist Rob Salkowitz (Comic-Con and the Business of Pop Culture) leads a provocative, no-holds-barred discussion with the leaders of the digital comics revolution: comiXology co-founders David Steinberger and John D. Roberts, Dark Horse publisher Mike Richardson, and IDW publisher Ted Adams. Room 9
8:00-10:30 Syfy Presents the Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards— The 24th annual Eisner Awards (the "Oscars" of the comics industry) honor comics creators and works in 28 categories. Presenters will include British talk show host/comics writer Jonathan Ross, actor Phil LaMarr (Futurama, Family Guy, Pee Wee's Playhouse), and special guests Robert Kirkman and Charlie Adlard (The Walking Dead), Lynn Johnston (cartoonist, For Better or For Worse), Eric Powell (The Goon), Sergio Aragonés (cartoonist, MAD), Bill Morrison (creative director, Bongo Comics), Michael Uslan (movie producer, Batman films), plus some special surprises! Other prestigious awards to be given out include the Russ Manning Promising Newcomer Award, the Bob Clampett Humanitarian Award, the Bill Finger Award for Excellence in Comics Writing, and the Will Eisner Spirit of Comics Retailer Award. Indigo Ballroom, Hilton San Diego Bayfront
Saturday, July 14th
10:30-12:00 Comics Arts Conference Session #9: Comics Theory: Sequential Artistry— Jade Hidle (University of California, San Diego) examines how GB Tran's Vietnamerica uses the comic book genre to provide counter-memories to historical narratives about the U.S. war in Vietnam. Hidle explains how Tran uses the evolving form of the graphic memoir to provide border-blurring, non-linear spatio-temporal frameworks to construct such counter-memories. Keegan Lannon (Aberystwyth University) argues that the dichotomy of words and images is more elastic than theorists such as McCloud, Kunzle, and Groensteen conceive it. Lannon forwards the concept of the grapheme as a way of conceiving of words and pictures as two variants of visual communication. John E. Ingulsrud (Meisei University) and Kate Allen (Meiji University) employ the sociolinguistic concepts of "footing" and "stance" to analyze the many functions of "caricaturization" (the simplification of character images) in manga. Scott McCloud (Understanding Comics) provides a response to the scholars' ideas. Room 26AB
1:00-2:30 Comic-Con How-To: Graphic Novels from Idea to Finish— Artist Brian Haberlin explains how to create a graphic novel, using his soon-to-be-released book Anomaly as a test case. Subjects discussed include idea to script, page format, panel layout, art style, distribution, and much more. Digital pioneer and guru to much of the graphic arts/comics community, Haberlin is also the tutorial creator for international magazines such as 3DWorld, Imagine FX, and Photoshop User, and owner of Digitalarttutorials.com. Room 2
1:00-2:00 Comics Arts Conference Session #11: Pioneers of Comics Scholarship— Randy Duncan (The Power of Comics) leads a discussion with some of the scholars who laid the foundations for the field of comics studies: Paul Gravett (Graphic Novels: Stories to Change Your Life), David Kunzle (History of the Comics Strip), John Lent (Cartooning in Africa; Cartooning in Latin America), and Joseph Witek (Comic Books as History). The Pioneers discus how they began researching comics, the contribution they feel they have made to the field, and how comics studies should continue to develop as a field or discipline. Room 26AB
2:00-3:00 Will Eisner and the Graphic Novel— Moderator Paul Levitz (writer, 75 Years of DC Comics, Legion of Super-Heroes, former Eisner publisher), Klaus Janson (artist/inker, Daredevil, The Dark Knight Return, comics educator, SVA), Denis Kitchen (artist, author, publisher; Eisner's agent and longtime friend), Charles Kochman (editorial director, Abrams ComicArts), and Diana Schutz (comics educator; executive editor, Dark Horse Comics; Eisner's editor) explore the pivotal role Will Eisner's evangelism of the comics artform plays in the evolution of the American graphic novel, followed by a short Q&A period. Room 23ABC
3:00-4:00 A Wrinkle in Time— "To boldly go where no man has gone before" is the phrase that has greeted many of us who have looked to the heavens in awe. From the far-flung reaches of the Milky Way to the mind-bending possibilities of time travel, let the authors of speculative fiction tell you what they see when they venture to other dimensions. Board a starship to the future with David Brin (Existence), Deborah Harkness (Shadow of Night), Michael Cassutt (co-author of Heaven's Shadow trilogy), Charles Yu (Sorry Please Thank You), Phil Hornshaw (co-author of So You Created a Wormhole), Peter F. Hamilton (The Nano Flower), Orson Scott Card (Earth Unaware, Ender's Game), and Hope Larson (A Wrinkle in Time graphic novel), captained by Maryelizabeth Hart of Mysterious Galaxy. Room 23ABC
5:30-7:00 Comic-Con How-To: Figure Drawing: Transposing Reality into Fantastical— Ron Lemon's explores the figure in art and how it has been designed for specific storytelling purposes. He looks at several artists and how they have used the human form and designed it, and how one can approach drawing not by taking from someone else's style but by examining what makes their art what it is through the artist's design choices. You will be given many exercises to help explore and create a more cohesive and unique template for your figures/characters in whatever project you are working on. Ballroom 20
5:30-6:30 Transforming Super-Powered Comic Book Readers into Comic Book Writers— Panelists discuss the skills and rituals used to produce graphic novels and how educators can guide comic book readers to become comic book writers. Panelists include Joe Kelly (Deadpool, Uncanny X-Men, Action Comics, JLA, I Kill Giants), Jimmy Gownley (Shades of Gray, Amelia Rules), Jennifer and Matthew Holm (Babymouse, Squish), John Hogan (editor, Graphic Novel Reporter), Dr. Katie Monnin (University of N. Florida, Teaching Graphic Novels); Dr. James Bucky Carter (UTEl Paso, Building Literacy Connections with Graphic Novels, Super Powered Word Study), and led and moderated by Dr. Meryl Jaffe (Johns Hopkins University Center for Talented Youth OnLine division, Teaching Content Area Graphic Novels). Room 26AB
6:00-7:00 Archaia: How to Tell a Better Story Through World Building— Are you an aspiring storyteller? Want to know the keys to world building and telling a good story? David Petersen (Mouse Guard), Jeremy Bastian (Cursed Pirate Girl), and Royden Lepp (Rust), three accomplished storytellers who have published or are publishing books through Archaia, present an informative, entertaining panel to show you how world building can help you write and/or draw a better story. From character development to settings and environment to deciding on the right era, this panel will impart valuable insight into what goes into crafting a better story. Panelists will showcase rarely seen sketch art, concept designs, and models to enhance their presentation. Room 9
7:00-8:00 The Future of Graphic Novels— A look at the not-so-distant future of interactive graphic storytelling -- Moderator Harry McCracken (editor at large for Time's Techland and founder of Technologizer) will discuss with panelists Steve Yatson (senior director of productivity and graphics / product manager of motion artist, Smith Micro Software), Doug TenNapel (creator of Earthworm Jim), Brian Haberlin (co-creator of the Witchblade franchise and style), Olivia d'Abo (known as Star Sapphire in Justice League: Doom), Mike Norton (known for his work on Runways, Gravity) and Daniel Cooney (comics writer/illustrator of Valentine and professor at the Academy of Art University), exactly what's next in the evolution of comics, the technology behind it and what it means for the comic industry. Room 4
Sunday, July 15th
10:30-12:00 Comics Arts Conference Session #13: Super-Bodies: Overcoming Disability Through Superheroism—Scott Daniel Boras (Arizona State University) examines the abject bodies of popular depictions of mutants, monsters, and aliens as they emerge in relation to key historical events, and also dominant social tensions that play out on the body. Ultimately, these bodies are depicted as being both utopian and dystopian at the same time, highlighting how even our greatest heroes are also often monsters. Rachelanne Smith (California State University, Sacramento) makes the case that the superhero is directly linked to the classic literary tradition of the flawed hero. The defects in the hero are the means through which we can better relate to and accept him. Using Professor X as a case study, Smith explores the relation between the strength of the hero and his or her corresponding flaw or disability. José Alaniz (University of Washington, Seattle) examines how Marvel's The Human Fly -- "the wildest superhero ever-because he's real!" -- flouts the genre's usual conventions, possessing no superpowers but overcoming a devastating injury through sheer willpower, and simultaneously challenges and reaffirms accustomed notions of both superheroism and disability. Room 26AB
11:00-12:00 Kids Read!— Listen to four great graphic novelists read from their latest works. With authors Jorge Aguirre (Giants Beware!), Jimmy Gownley (Amelia Rules), Raina Telgemeier (Drama), and Colleen AF Venable (Pet Shop Private Eye). Moderated by Scott Robins (A Parent's Guide to the Best Kids' Comics). Room 11AB
11:00-12:30 The Secret Origin of Good Readers— Comic books can be used in the classroom as an innovative and highly motivating cross-curricular teaching tool. Panelists Paul Levitz (DC Comics), Bill Morrison (The Simpsons), Nancy Silberkleit (Archie Comics co-CEO), Karen Green (Columbia University), Anina Bennett (Boilerplate, Frank Reade), and Mimi Cruz (Night Flight Comics) discuss specific ways you can use comic books and graphic novels to engage a variety of learners while promoting reading and literacy. Q&A and breakout sessions with panelists will follow the group discussion. Get your free 70-page The Secret Origin of Good Readers companion resource book [PDF] and other fun, useful materials at www.night-flight.com/secretorigin, courtesy of XMission.com. Room 23ABC
12:00-1:00 Comic-Con How-To: The Art of Writing with Gregg Hurwitz— Actor, author, and award-winning audiobook narrator Scott Brick talks to author Gregg Hurwitz about his work. Hurwitz's books include The Crime Writer, Trust No One, and You're Next. He's also written for comics, including Marvel's The Punisher MAX and Wolverine and DC's Batman: The Dark Knight. Room 2
12:00-1:00 Kids Draw!— How do comics get made? Find out in this interactive program where kids create their own characters that four graphic novelists will integrate into a story. With authors Zack Giallongo (Broxo), Dave Roman and John Green (Teen Boat!), and Rafael Rosado (Giants Beware!). Moderated by Cecil Castellucci (LA Review of Books). Room 11AB
12:30-1:30 Secret Origin of Good Readers Breakouts— These breakout sessions feature practical tips on how to use comics in your classroom setting. David Rojas (education consultant) will demonstrate how analogizing Batman as Hamlet, or Bruce Banner/The Hulk as Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, can ignite new interest in classic literature. Nancy McCann (Comics Unlimited) and Jesse McCann (New York Times bestselling children's book author) will consult on choosing the best comic books for your classrooms and libraries. Anina Bennett (Boilerplate, Frank Reade) will discuss how best to utilize historical fiction to teach real history and inspire critical thinking. An all-ages comic book goodie bag for your classroom (limited to 50 packs) will be available for participating educators after this panel. In addition, a free online 70-page The Secret Origin of Good Readers companion resource book [PDF] and other fun, useful materials are available at www.night-flight.com/secretorigins, courtesy of XMission.com. Room 23ABC
1:00-2:30 Comics Arts Conference Session #15: Politics, Economics, and Ideology—Marc Singer (Howard University) examines representations of corporations and branding in Grant Morrison's comics, looking at the shifts in Morrison's depictions of corporate power and identity in The Invisibles, Marvel Boy, Seaguy, and Batman Incorporated as well as Morrison's work as a corporate consultant and "brand guru" and his controversial comments about corporate-owned superhero characters and creators' rights in Supergods. Jason Tondro (University of California, Riverside) examines the Superman of Morrison's Action Comics as a liberal superhero. Is this Superman liberal, and is the project successful? Karma Waltonen (University of California, Davis) argues that Mark Millar's Red Son asks us to consider whether a superhero (or by extension a supersoldier or superweapon) should ever be in a national hand, subject to any prevailing ideology or border-defined grudge. The book's ending blends both the USA and the USSR into a utopia, giving the majority of the world's citizens an amalgam of socialism and capitalism, and combines Luthor and Superman, exploding the dichotomy of hero and villain as the planet is aligned in a post-structuralist, post-nationalist paradigm. Room 26AB
1:30-2:30 What's Cool in Graphic Novels?— Six authors with great new graphic novels discuss their inspiration, creative process -- and their new books! Authors Zack Giallongo (Broxo), Kazu Kibuishi (Amulet: Prince of the Elves), J. T. Petty (Bloody Chester), Thien Pham (Sumo), Doug TenNapel (Cardboard), and Raina Telgemeier (Drama) are joined by moderator Calista Brill (First Second Books). Room 8
1:30-2:30 Spotlight on Alison Bechdel— The award-winning graphic novelist and Comic-Con special guest Alison Bechdel talks about her work, from Dykes to Watch Out For through Fun Home and her latest, this year's smash Are You My Mother?Room 23ABC
2:30-3:30 Comics Arts Conference Session #16: The Culture of Comic-Con: Field Studies of Fans and Marketing— Comic-Con offers students of popular culture an amazing venue to study how culture is marketed to and practiced by its fans. Stephen Cunningham (University of Central Arkansas), Regina Gasser (Wittenberg University), Alexa Gygax (University of British Columbia), Kamuela Kaneshiro (Hawaii Pacific University), Lisa Kaplan (Bowling Green State University), Margo Morton (Wittenberg University), Kallie Stahl (Capital University), Catherine Thomas (University of Delhi), Michael Tornes (University of Oklahoma), and Chad Wertley (University of Nebraska-Lincoln) present initial findings from a week-long ethnographic field study of the intersection of fan practice at the nexus of cultural marketing and fan culture at Comic-Con 2012. Matthew J. Smith (Wittenberg University) moderates. Room 26AB
2:45-3:45 Heroes for the Middle-Grade Reader (And You, Too!): Middle Grade Books That Will Rock Your Socks Off— Everyone loves a hero-from the depths of the ocean, to outer space and other worlds in the present and future, these authors have adventurers and unexpected champions that we can all cheer for. Get heroic with authors Nathan Bransford (Jacob Wonderbar series), E. J. Altbacker (Shark Wars series), Cornelia Funke (Ghost Knight), Lisa Yee (Warp Speed), Brandon Mull (The Beyonders series), Tony DiTerlizzi (The Search for WondLa series), Emily Janice Card (Laddertop Vol. 1), and Derek the Ghost (Scary School), as they converse with moderator Maryelizabeth Hart of Mysterious Galaxy. Room 5AB
3:00-4:00 Making Comics for Kids— Want to know what it takes to make super-awesome comics for kids? Hang out with the guys and girls who are the creative forces behind some of the coolest kids' comics around: Neo Edmund (writer/editor for Silver Dragon Books), Joe Lefavi (editorial director for Jim Henson Co), Tim Beedle (Fraggle Rock), Paul Morrissey (editor of Eisner award-winning Mouse Guard), and Adira Edmund (JumpStart's Windy Hollows). Room 11AB
3:00-4:00 Publishers Weekly Comics World: Serious Pictures: Comics and Journalism in a New Era— What better way to bring information to the public than the judicious combination of words and pictures? Comics offer the ability to attract attention and focus it, while making a complex journalistic narrative both lively to read and, as studies have shown, easier for readers to comprehend. This panel offers historical and contemporary examples of the use of comics as a journalistic tool and shows how the wedding of comics and nonfiction reporting is a match made in media heaven. With Susie Cagle, Andy Warner (Cartoon Picayune), Stan Mack (Taxes, the Tea Party, and Those Revolting Rebels: A History in Comics of the American Revolution), Jen Sorenson (Slowpoke), Ed Piskor (WizzyWig), Dan Carino (Cartoon Movement), and Chris Butcher (The Beguiling.) Moderated by PW Comics World co-editor Calvin Reid. Room 32AB
3:30-4:30 The Nerd in the Classroom: Sci-fi as an Educational Tool— With a decade of experience teaching science fiction as literature to high school and graduate students, Patrick Murphy (Fremont High, Weber State University) discusses science fiction as a device for improving reading comprehension, critical thinking, and enjoyment. The presentation will include the scope and sequence for a year-long course, unit breakdowns, costs, and discussions examining core standards and end-of-level testing. Room 26AB
