Hello, everybody!

After a little rest well deserved, it is time to make a feedback about Japan Expo 2018 !

There are many things to tell, I don't really know where to start.

If you follow me on the social networks, you may have seen me grumbling before and during the convention. Indeed, this year has been a difficult one.
But in the end, the result is positive. :D

I was stressed a lot before the JE because I had trouble finishing new content for the event (not finished new comics, not sure to receive the new posters and new postcards in time and the holographic paper to make my little holocards that arrived only Friday night, at the half of the JE). So I started the expo tired from day one. ^^'

Friday was the most difficult day. Because of the very bad revenue (buddies didn't understand at all), the holographic paper that arrives late, the printer that has no ink left and one of the only cards I can make ruined, I started to doubt that I would be able to reimburse my expenses. ^^'

It was much better the other days and it's also largely thanks to the buddies who came to help me in one way or another.
I owe you a big favor and I am truly touched by your solidarity.
Thank you friends! =D

In the end, after doing the books, I realize that I did not do so badly and that I managed to reimburse all my expenses this year. It is the first JE during which I success to do it. I'm happy. x)

Making Japan Expo profitable is quite hard, so we don't really know if we'll have a stand next year, and if so, it will probably be in the passion section.

It is not easy to get people's attention in the amateur section. There is a lot of competition and we play Tetris to showcase our work on very small stands.
And Steven is posing like a bad guy. x)

All difficulties and my mood which moved on a roller coaster put aside, Japan Expo remains a nice moment because we find there a whole bunch of friends that we do not have (or not often) the opportunity to see otherwise (Ouv, Maina, Jérôme, Benjamin, Hakim, Olivia...), without forgetting all the friends of Drink'N'Draw.
It is also always an opportunity to meet and get to know new people, especially those we already knew online and that we can recognize by their nickname or their art x) (Laora and Josette) and our stand neighbours, Ange N' Ko who were very good company. :D
And let's not forget the little Saturday dinner with friends (Steven, Therry, Ouv, Jérôme, Benjamin) which was a welcome break and a pleasure. :)

About Customs

For several years now, customs have been raiding Japan Expo to track down counterfeiting on the stands, and this year it made a lot of noise.

What happend?

Customs did its job, but applied the law more strictly than usual at the request of the licenses owners.
Then rumours swelled and distorted the facts, you know the principle of the chinese whispers.
We have heard that they only attack amateurs cowardly and stories about organized theft disguised as fake customs.

As you can imagine, there are fakes in there.

The facts.
Not only amateur stands were affected. Customs seized counterfeit goods in dubious import shops. But because it is a usual fact we don't talk about it, we only mention the spectacular ones.
The amateur stands were right next to the shop stands, amateur goodies were also seized and destroyed. These are fanarts, including Pokémon (badges, stickers, keychains). But according to the customs photos, these fan products are close enough to the original to be confused by the uninitiated with official products and my sources indicates that the targeted stands had already been spotted selling their products online before JE.
I was exhibiting myself on the amateur section and I didn't see customs in our alley.

Customs also intervened on the side of passion stands. I know many witnesses. No less than 6 stands of this sector were owned by friends or at least people I know.

Who was targeted?

In the passion section, some stands doing mainly fanarts were touched but not all.
The stands that were affected were stands which offered exclusively fanarts and work copied or even traced from official visuals.
It is called plagiarism.

The fanart stands that were spared, on the other hand, offered works that were strongly reinterpreted with a personal style and new compositions and could not be confused with official products or visuals.
If the law is strictly applied, they can be prosecuted too. But licenses owners are more tolerant about artists who take the trouble to learn to draw and offer a new and personnal vision of their licences. It's still dangerous because they can change their minds overnight and decide to prosecute any form of fanart at any time. It depends on their goodwill.

So, the facts have been exagerated, people have got carried away imagining the poor little artist cowardly attacked when in fact, it is really counterfeits, plagiarists and goodies of fans marketed in a little too professionnal way that have been targeted. Things that cannot be defended.
The raiding was legitimate and dotted the i's and crossed the t's of pseudo artists who practiced unfair competition towards those who take the trouble to master their art and develop a style and a personal universe.

I hope that what has happened this year will discourage copycats and plagiarists from strutting around in this kind of event and leave more place for authentic creative people who take the trouble to bring something new. :D

I think I said everything about the Japan Expo.
As usual, it's physically very difficult, I collapsed on my bed again to take a looooonnnnnnng nap yesterday afternoon.

Now it's time to get back to good habits and a normal pace of life. I go back working on the Space Wizard McKcarell and Dragon Cat's Galaxia 1/2 pages and I'll give you a report about the progress of this very, very soon. :)

Have a good day and see you soon ! :D

Suisei - Killfaeh

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