In keeping with my tradition of untimely comics reportage here's a few notes from the Melbourne Homecooked Comics festival on the weekend of 24th-26th April this year.

I greatly enjoyed the expanded Homecooked Comics Festival this year with special guests (Dylan Horrocks, Paul Peart-Smith, Madeline Rosca, and Thomas Campi) and additional talks, exhibitions and presentations beyond the one day fair aspect. I think it was a rainy day? But there was a solid attendance of public eager to engage with the local comics scene. Some personal highlights in lazy bullet point form,

Talking to Dylan Horrocks about a grand plan for a New Zealand Comics Archive.
Comic of the show for me was Art is a Lie by Susan Butcher and Carol Wood, first title from Bruce Mutard's Fabliaux. Collecting comics originally featured in American magazine Artillery, there is no art or cartooning style these women cannot ape and recontextualise.
Hanging out with my little bro who was sharing table duties with me, nice to see a bunch of his first mini-comics fly off the table - look at his art here, Endpaper Anxiety.
Bernard Caleo
Chatting Love and Rockets with Matt Kyme
Meeting Paul Peart-Smith and chatting about my particular favourite comics of his.

A big thank you to organisers Sarah and Clea for offering me a spot to do a presentation on the career and life of New Zealand/Australian cartoonist Noel Cook.

Below a few pictures of comics people at Homecooked 2015, there were many more that I did not get to take snaps of because I'm a terrible stupid pretend comics paparazzo with barely adequate point and snap skills.

Bobby N took a whole bunch of better photos on his blog.

Claire Wilson and Michael Fikaris

Andrew Fulton

Scott Reid

Paul Peart-Smith , Thomas Campi and Dylan Horrocks

Steve Sparke

Scarlette Baccini

Frank Candiloro and Matthew Nicholls

Christian Roux, Neville Howard, and Alana Bruyn

Ben Hutchings

Darren Close

Matt Kyme

Brendan Halyday

Bernard Caleo and Sarah Howell

Bruce Mutard and Carol Wood

Dean Rankine

Marigold Bartlett

Tim Molloy

David C Mahler

Dale Maccanti

Jase Harper

Dylan Horrocks and Colin Wilson

Clint Cure

Jim Bridges of the Australian Cartoon Museum

What have been your personal cartooning/comics highlights of 2014?
My latest book Les Armes Du Seigneur Afghan , written by the RTBF ( Belgian Television) reporter Pascal Bourgaux and Vincent Zabus, has been published and awarded as Best Documentary Graphic Novel at the Belgian Book Fair. In May I've received the Spectrum 21 Gold Award in the Comics category.

What are some of the comics you've enjoyed in 2014?
Mr. Wonderful by Daniel Clowes
L' Intervista by Manuele Fior
Blankets by Craig Thompson
La technique du périnée by Ruppert & Mulot

What is something non-comics that you have enjoyed in 2014?
Receiving my Permanent Talent Visa and move to Sydney! Every time I write this I smile.

What are you looking forward to in 2015?
I've just finished page 67 of the graphic novel I'm working on, which is half of the book. I can't wait to see it finished and published, once again in the Aire Libre Collection of Les Editions Dupuis. Then I'll start working with 2 writers on 2 very different and exciting stories, that's all I can say for now.

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