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| yna@yna.co.kr 2026-09-17 11:04:21
The "city of comics" Bucheon will transform into a festival filled with imagination and creativity centered on comics and webtoons.
Bucheon City in Gyeonggi Province said Wednesday that the 29th Bucheon International Comics Festival (BICOF), hosted by the Korea Manhwa Contents Agency, will take place from Sept. 18-20 around the Korea Manhwa Museum.
Under the theme "Comics and Webtoons Are Easy," this year's festival will offer an expanded lineup of attractions, including exhibitions, hands-on activities, cosplay events, international exchanges and industry business programs.
The opening ceremony, scheduled for 5 p.m. Thursday at the Korea Manhwa Museum, will feature a festival trailer screening, celebratory performances and award ceremonies for the National Student Comics Contest and the Bucheon Comics Award.
During the festival, visitors can enjoy exhibitions including "Murim," which highlights the appeal of the martial arts genre and features works centered on the 2025 Bucheon Comics Award-winning works, as well as an exhibition of National Student Comics Contest winners and an exhibition of comics characters from neighborhoods across Bucheon.
The Gyeonggi International Cosplay Festival, marking its 10th anniversary this year, will also add to the festive atmosphere.
A cosplay championship involving 15 teams from 14 countries will be held Sept. 19. On Sept. 20, an amateur and K-webtoon cosplay competition and a kids cosplay runway show will be held, along with one-day classes where participants can learn cosplay makeup and prop-making.
This year's festival will also host the Gyeonggi International Webtoon Fair, previously held at KINTEX in Goyang under the auspices of the Gyeonggi Content Agency. The fair will move to Bucheon and take place Sept. 17-18 at the Webtoon Convergence Center.
The industry event will bring together comics and webtoon companies and buyers from South Korea and abroad, expanding the festival's role beyond exhibitions and hands-on activities into a venue for exchanges within the comics and webtoon industry.
The special exhibition "Connection," commemorating the 30th anniversary of the International Comics Conference (ICC), will showcase 16 works from eight ICC regions.
Other participatory programs throughout the festival grounds will include "Playground," featuring free caricature sessions, a retro arcade and cosplay costume experiences, as well as an outdoor comics cafe, a comics and webtoon OST contest and comics busking performances for families and friends to enjoy together.
Bucheon City plans to foster both comics and webtoon culture and the content industry ecosystem based on the identity of "Bucheon, the city of comics" and its extensive comics infrastructure, including the Korea Manhwa Contents Agency, Korea Manhwa Museum and Webtoon Convergence Center.
Currently, 102 teams comprising 559 artists and company officials are based at the Webtoon Convergence Center and Comics Business Center in Bucheon, with combined sales reaching approximately 49 billion won in 2024.
As comics and webtoons are a key intellectual property (IP) industry that can expand into other content sectors such as dramas, films, games and characters, the city plans to support not only creative spaces but also the discovery and commercialization of promising IP, collaboration between companies and expansion into overseas markets.
Bucheon Mayor Cho Yong-ik said, "The Bucheon International Comics Festival is a major cultural festival that has grown with citizens over the past 29 years and helped establish Bucheon's identity as a city of comics. With its 30th anniversary next year, we will develop it into a platform that brings joy to citizens and creates new opportunities for creators and companies."
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