The Comics Cultural Impact Collective (CCIC) – an independent collective of professionals from the UK comics community that aims to amplify awareness of comics’ cultural and economic impact – is today calling on the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) for £1.5m worth of funding to make most of the “untapped potential of the comics industry”.
The CCIC, founded in February 2023, has released a report based on extensive consultation with comics creators, booksellers, events, publishers and agents to back up its call for the funding, which the organisation says would turns the comics industry into a “thriving cultural sector for the UK”.
According to the CCIC’s report, the UK Comics Fund is projected to generate millions in revenue, create up to 300 jobs a year, and deliver a £3 to £5 return for every £1 invested.
The report proposes a UK Comics Fund in the model of the UK Games Fund, which the CCIC says would create “robust opportunities for comics makers and businesses, […] unleashing the potential of comics as a valuable component of the UK’s creative industry”.
For the report, the CCIC consulted “extensively” with grassroots and professional comics artists, agents and publishers, festivals and booksellers.
The report has so far been supported by Charlie Adlard, Dave Gibbons, Posy Simmonds, Alison Sampson, Jamie Smart, Emma Vieceli, the Beano, the Cartoon Museum, DACS, the Society of Authors, the National Literacy Trust, the Royal Society of Literature, Thought Bubble Festival, The Wellcome Trust Collections and LDComics, among others.
Hannah Berry, ex-Comics Laureate and CCIC co-director, said: “This fund is about levelling the playing field. Comics already punch above their weight culturally – now it’s time they did so economically. With the right support, we can turn a hugely talented but under-resourced community into a sustainable, revenue-generating industry. It’s a chance to retain UK-owned IP, boost exports and create real jobs. Most importantly, it shows that Britain values – and supports – its creators.”
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