A new hall, a slew of fresh content, and renewed focus on education and empowerment were just some of the elements that cemented Doujin Market 2018’s position as Singapore’s defining pop culture arts & illustration event.
The two-day extravaganza of original and derivative fan content saw some 18,000 visitors flocking to Hall 406 of Suntec Convention & Exhibition Centre last weekend, and featured over 250 creators from 13 countries around the region including Canada, China, France, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, the US and Vietnam.
It was a weekend with seminars and portfolio reviews – a key feature of Doujin Market – coming to the fore, powered by industry players such as Wacom, 3dsense Media School and Collateral Damage Studios.
It was also the first time that celebrated veteran artist Stanley ‘Artgerm’ Lau graced Doujin Market, where he held a two-hour panel titled ‘Building Your Fanbase and Finding Your Style’, inspiring an audience of 200 aspiring creators.
This year, Doujin Market also celebrated the launch of passion projects by creators in the local scene, including artbooks, original tabletop games, game supplements and miniatures, webcomics and visual novels.
Opportunities for industry collaboration were also crystallized in Pentel’s Colour Brush Manga Contest and GameStart Asia’s Mascot Design Contest, and a networking session sponsored by homegrown illustration studio CDS and Artblovk.
“We have a responsibility to help youth artists develop not just their talents, but to refine their craft and to equip them with the skills they need to usher in a new age for comics and self-publishing in Singapore,” said Jason Koh, convention producer for Doujin Market and account director of Neo Tokyo Project. “We want them to take ownership of this creative space, to challenge the norm, the dated, to become disruptors (in the art scene). After all, they are poised to be the movers and shakers of the comic industry of tomorrow.”
Doujin Market 2018 was supported by Noise Movement, a part of Noise Singapore’s efforts which supports organisers whose initiatives encourage arts creation and participation among youth.
Next year’s Doujin Market will take place on 4-5 May 2019, in Suntec Convention & Exhibition Centre Halls 401/402.
Registration to exhibit at the event will begin early November 2018.
Further Information
For more information about Doujin Market, please visit http://www.doujimasg.com or www.facebook.com/doujima.sg
Video Highlights from Doujin Market 2018