A couple years back they started having Canzine at the rather amazing Gladstone Hotel, a flophouse-turned-artspace in the heart of Parkdale. It was already a huge, eclectic zine fair, and now, if you had an idea for something beyond tabling your zine that needed a bigger canvas, you could get a room — and lots of interesting stuff ensued. This year, to mark the fifth anniversary of No Media Kings, I’m checking into Room 214.
And boy, do I have plans for this room! I’ll be launching my DVDzine Novel Amusements #5: The Games and Shames Issue with microscreenings; I’m hosting three very casual themed meetups for people into self-publishing books, touring, or videogame-making to chit-chat; and I’ll be moderating two more formal discussions, an indie distribution thinktank and a panel on collaboration: Are You Too D.I.Y.?
It’s all happening Oct. 30th at 1214 Queen St. W. in Toronto, check the schedule below for exact times. Everything’s free.
UPDATE: I recorded the collaboration panel: pics and MP3s now available.
1:30-2:15: D.I.Y. BOOKS MEETUP
Media magnates shouldn’t have all the fun — if you can make a zine, you can make a book. Come by and browse a stellar collection of self-published books and meet a bunch of self-publishers — and find out how they’ve met the challenges of putting out their own book. Already confirmed: poetess Monica S. Kuebler, novelist Kevin Hainey, cartoonist Matt Blackett, guidebookster Alexa Clark.
2:15-2:30: NOVEL AMUSEMENTS SCREENING
Room 101 by Sean Lerner and Steve Denheyer (World Premiere!)
Mario’s Pain by Jim Munroe
2:30-3:15: PANEL: ARE YOU TOO D.I.Y.?
Are you indie to the point where you find yourself reinventing the wheel instead of asking people for help? Want to expand what you do without turning into a boss? Several seasoned collaborators talk about the pleasures and pitfalls of working with other people, offer tips on how to meet suitable collaborators and how to structure comfortable and productive working arrangements. Jim Munroe will interview artist Sally McKay, musician Maggie Macdonald, designer Terry Lau, & cartoonist Marc Ngui, and then there’ll be a question period.
If you missed the 35 minute panel, you can listen to it in a big MP3 (35megs), or download them separately.
L-R: Munroe, Lau, Macdonald, McKay, & Ngui discuss monkey brains.
3:15-3:30: NOVEL AMUSEMENTS SCREENING
White Pumpkin by Sandy Plotnikoff
Polly Wally by Goodie Bag TV
3:30-4:15: INDIE TOURING MEETUP
The Perpetual Motion Roadshow is a monthly indie press touring circuit that sends people to seven cities in eight days. Looping the northeast half the year and doing a west coast run the other half, this two-year-old project has put over sixty people on the road. Come meet some of them, and the volunteer organizers who make it happen! Find out how to get on the Roadshow or just pick up some tips for your own tour from some veterans. Already confirmed: rapper More or Les, current coordinator Liisa Ladouceur, and two Roadshow veteran Cynthia Gould.
4:30-5:15: PANEL: INDIE BOOK DISTRO THINKTANK
Distribution for indie books (and indie projects in general) has been dealt some serious blows: Marginal being bought up, General going out of business, and the big box stores merging and making increasingly conservative orders. Come and hear some experts talk about the challenges of getting small books into bookstores and help us brainstorm some ways to help improve the situation. Jim Munroe will interview Erin Creasey (general manager of LitDistCo), Esther Vincent (formally of Marginal Distribution), Mike O’Connor (publisher of Insomniac Books), and then there’ll be a question period.
5:30-6:15: DIGITAL VIDEO & GAMES MEETUP
Not everyone in new media is looking for a corporate job: homebrew, freeware, & open source geeks are burning some new fangled shit. Come meet people who make their own videogames and DVDzines and pick their brains about indie culture 2.0. Already confirmed: Mare Sheppard and Raigan Burns (Metanet gamemakers), Benny Zenga (Winking Circle DVDzinester), Randy Chase (Electrical Tape DVDzinester).
6:15-6:30: NOVEL AMUSEMENTS SCREENING
Cube by Amy Lam & Zeesy Powers
Game Modding for the ’80s by Jon Sasaki
Yoga Deathmatch by Jim Munroe