Queen Media Collective

The 2nd Annual Afro Comic Con made its way back to the East Bay, not just one day like last year, but a three day event ! It took place on October 19- 21 at SAE Expressions Creative Media College in Emeryville, CA. This event was a mini film festival where artists submitted their short films to win prizes. The second day was the actual Afro Comic Con convention, the day I had been looking forward to since last year. Representing both Eccentric Vibes and Queen Media Collective, I attended the convention as a vendor. I set up my booth for Eccentric Vibes selling my up-cycled kente garments, accessories, and vintage clothes.  As for Queen Media Collective, I networked with many small businesses and independent artists for future collaborations and just to cheer my people on. 

All rooms were filled with people of color dressed as different characters from comic books. It was a beautiful sight being able to be in a space with people of color so they can come together and enjoy comics THEIR way!

Many guest speakers and panelists were present that played creative roles in many popular tv shows such as Static Shock and The Boondocks. Since I was holding down my booth, I wasn’t able to partake in any of the break out sessions. There were theme rooms, multimedia demonstrations, and costume themed activity workshops. Since I did leave early, I missed out on the Wakanda inspired fashion show. But I did see a few clips on Instagram and it looked like something I needed to be apart of.

The artist collaboration and appreciation is what makes this event so special. Artists talking with other artists appreciating their work as well as bouncing ideas off of ones masterpiece. I was excited to be in a room full of creatives who also appreciated my art of fashion.

The last day of the convention was dedicated to a free youth community day held in Oakland. The focus this day was on literacy, comic art, graphic novel, fine art creation, live art, and printing displays. The First Youth Annual Film Festival took place along with dance, martial arts, and performance workshops. The mission for this particular event was to open doors for youth and particularly people of color to inspire youth to produce images and begin sharing their own stories.  From the representation I saw on Saturday, I will say Afro Comic Con has fulfilled its mission.

I was asked to help think of small events to keep the momentum of Afro Comic Con going throughout the year. So if you are a comic person, please share some ideas with me!