STUDENTS AND INSTRUCTORS ATTEND POP CULTURE CONVENTION

BY MCKENZIE SAUDER

Comic book and pop culture fans visited the RBC Convention Centre for the annual Manitoba Comic Con on April 14 and 15 for a small taste of what October’s Central Canada Comic Con (C4) has to offer.

Many fans were attracted to this year’s special guest: Game of Thrones star Richard Brake, who plays the chilling Night King. But many came to appreciate and purchase the wide range of artwork for sale.

Among other artists, Red River College instructor Christopher Chuckry attended to sell prints of his art.

“This is the first time I’ve been to this convention in six years,” Chuckry said.

Christopher Chuckry, an RRC instructor, sells prints of his work at Manitoba Comic Con on April 14, 2018. / MCKENZIE SAUDER

Chuckry sat behind his table, which was covered with the portfolios of artwork he brought with him. In front of him was a picture of the character Ryuk from the popular manga, Death Note, that he’d drawn.

“I see a couple students every year that have an interest in comics,” Chuckry said. “Sometimes they continue with it, and I’ll see them here.”

Chuckry teaches a class in Digital Media Design (DMD), instructing students in drawing shapes and figures. On the side, he runs Frogrocket Illustration and freelances as a colourist for comic books. In the past, he has worked as a colourist for both Marvel Comics and DC Comics.

Mitchell Harder, one of Chuckry’s DMD student, was wandering the aisles of the convention.

“I’m here for classic game stuff, like for the Nintendo consoles or harder to find stuff that people might not normally see,” said Harder. “I’m also looking at picking up some posters here. There are some really good artists, like Chasing Artwork.”

Chuckry’s cousin, colourist Lovern Kindzierski, was also in attendance, selling and signing issues of X-Men that he had worked on and his recently published comic, Hope.

Lovern Kindzierski (left), comic author, talks to patrons that stop by his table at Manitoba Comic Con, April 14, 2018. / MCKENZIE SAUDER

Like Chuckry, Kindzierski has worked for Marvel and DC. He currently works with Dark Horse Comics. 

“I always ask people if they have something for me to sign,” said Kindzierski. “I like these smaller conventions, because it gives me some extra time to talk to people. You sometimes see some artists charging for signatures, but those guys tend to get long lineups.”

Manitoba Comic Con is significantly smaller than its autumn counterpart, C4, drawing around 6,000 attendees in 2017 compared to C4’s 70,000 in 2016. It shares several attractions with C4, including LARP (live-action roleplay), medieval armour and sword retailers, guest speakers, board game tables and anime paraphernalia.

Chuckry said he will also have a table at FanQuest on June 23 and 24 at the Red River College Exchange District Campus.