Sawt Falasteen - Governance and rape allegations threaten famed French comics festival

The Angouleme International Comics Festival, held in January-February in the southwestern city, hands out annual prizes that are among the most coveted in the industry.

But it has been embroiled in a governance scandal since its most recent edition and faces allegations that an employee was fired after lodging a rape complaint.

After a boycott call earlier this month from major comics figures including "Maus" creator Art Spiegelman and 2025 winner Anouk Ricard, French publishing heavyweights issued a stark warning on Wednesday.

"Given this large-scale (boycott) movement which they understand, publishers believe that the 2026 edition can no longer take place," the French National Publishing Union (SNE), which represents 24 major publishers, said in a statement.

On Tuesday, the French government withdrew 200,000 euros ($231,000) of public subsidies for next year's event, putting a major hole its finances before the scheduled start on January 29.

Culture Minister Rachida Dati said she wanted to avoid the festival "becoming a disaster starting with the 2026 edition."

- Boycott calls -

At the heart of the scandal is the management model of the festival, which was first created in 1974 and has helped turn Angouleme into a centre of European production and comics expertise.

It is run by a non-profit association presided over by Delphine Groux, the daughter of co-founder Francis Groux, but has been organised by a private company, 9eArt+, since 2007.

The 9eArt+ director, Franck Bondoux, was the subject of an investigation by left-wing magazine l'Humanite before this year's event which accused him of mismanagement and an increasingly contested style.

It also reported that the company had dismissed an employee shortly after she reported being raped at the 2024 event.

"It is high time to turn the page on 9eArt+ so that the festival can regain, with new operators, the values that helped build its international reputation," read an open letter on November 10 signed by 22 former winners of the festival's top prize.

The company recently had its contract renewed beyond 2027, causing a backlash that led the managing association to reverse course under pressure.

The Angouleme festival is no stranger to controversy. In 2022, it had to cancel an appearance by French author Bastien Vives who faced criticism for his graphic novels depicting incest and sexualised children.

Other major international festivals include the Lucca Comics and Games event in Italy and Comiket in Japan.

R.AbuNasser--SF-PST