Photo by Marcus Loke on Unsplash
The BD Comic Strip Festival returns from 26 to 28 September in Brussels at Tour & Taxis’ Gare Maritime.
The poster for this new edition has been designed by Alix Garin, the award-winning Belgian writer and illustrator of the graphic novel Impénétrable.
The novel is on the shortlist of two categories for this year’s Atomium Comic Strip Prize: the Citizen Comic Prize and the new Graphic and Design Prize.
It’s a wonderful, and well-deserved, way to honour this young and talented author.
After the world premiere of the new Smurfs feature film, the capital of the ninth art will welcome the BD Comic Strip Festival and all its colourful characters from 26 to 28 September.
On the programme: activities, exhibitions, signings, talks and the unmissable giant balloons, much to the delight of comic book fans and enthusiasts. This year, in addition to the manga space, the spotlight will be on Flemish comic strips and an exclusive competition allowing visitors to win their weight in comics awaits the public.
This latest edition promises to be truly delightful. A new poster by Alix Garin, a talented young Belgian author, who’s graphic novels have won multiple awards. Alix Garin was born in Belgium in 1997.
While still a student, she won the Young Talent Prize at the Quai des Bulles Festival in Saint-Malo in 2017. In 2021, her first graphic novel Ne m’oublie pas was published by Le Lombard, earning five awards and being translated into 15 languages. In 2024, her second graphic novel Impénétrable was released by the same publisher, impressing readers with its precision and power. It notably won the Prix du Public award at the Angoulême International Comic Festival in 2025.
Through a delicate and sincere style, she explores intimate and universal themes: the passage of time, desires, identity and the quest for freedom.
As is tradition, the BD Comic Strip Festival will showcase a number of comic artists through exhibitions across the site and the city. Visitors will be treated to an exclusive preview of the Nature exhibition by Wauter Mannaert, which opens at the Comics Art Museum on 4 October 2025.
Another exhibition will be dedicated to the heroine of children’s series Brume by Carine Hinder and Jérôme Pélissier, published by Glénat. Léonard turns 50 this year, a milestone worthy of celebration, which Le Lombard will mark with an educational and playful exhibition trail that fans will not be forgetting anytime soon.
To celebrate its 50th anniversary, Fluide Glacial magazine will reveal its most controversial covers! The public will also be able to immerse themselves in the world of La Guerre des Lulus by Régis Hautière and Hardoc, published by Casterman.
The works of graduates from ESA Saint-Luc Brussels and LUCA School of Arts in Brussels and Ghent will also be in the spotlight. It’s a wonderful opportunity to showcase their work for the public and publishers seeking new talent. Independent comics will also be highlighted: Léa MKL and Pig Paddle Mannimarco explores the struggles of friendship in a way that is somewhat desperate and extremely funny in equal measures. Other, “off-site” exhibitions will also be held in several galleries and locations across Brussels.
The very first edition of NEUVIEME ART will beheld just steps away from the Festival, in the Hôtel des Douanes de Tour & Taxis. It will welcome professionals, art lovers and the general public to discover the first European art fair dedicated to the ninth art, with themed and exclusive exhibitions of original works, as well as a series of talks. The micro-publishing and printed image festival Bords Perdus will also make its long-awaited return to LaVallée, providing an opportunity to discover the talents of illustrators from near and far.
In addition to the iconic Standaard Uitgeverij, the BD Comic Strip Festival is putting Flemish authors in the spotlight. A collective stand of independent publishers will be present at the festival, in collaboration with Stripgids and Grafik. A Jeremy (Jommeke in Dutch) school workshop will also be offered to the public and Dutch-speaking schools in Brussels. An exclusive programme and competition!
From September, almost a month before the festival, comics fans will be able to pick up a copy of the programme from around thirty Brussels bookshops. But that’s not all! It will feature around ten blank spaces to be completed with stickers featuring well-known comic characters in Brussels settings. Much like the famous “Panini” albums, visitors can collect the stickers by visiting partner shops, where they will be distributed free of charge.
Once the album is complete, visitors will have the full festival programme and will also be able to register on the festival website to enter a competition to win their weight in comics! Signings and activities Publishing houses will, once again, be offering exclusive signing sessions and activities for all.
The public will also be able to admire the famous giant balloons of comic characters displayed on the festival site. The International Pavilion will return to delight travel and discovery enthusiasts.
A new space will be dedicated to digital techniques and drawing. In collaboration with Alix Garin and Cartoonbase, staff will offer the public a real-time experience. Visitors will, for example, be able to see themselves dancing on a giant screen in an original costume.
They will then have the opportunity to take their ephemeral creations home and share them on social media. Last but not least, in collaboration with Grafik bookshop, budding artists will be able to take part in an exclusive Drink & Draw, indulging their passion to the rhythm of lively beats.
The 2025 Atomium prizes and winners to be revealed on 26 September For several years now, Brussels has been awarding the Atomium Comic Strip Prizes as part of the BD Comic Strip Festival, in a bid to support creativity and authors. The majority of these prizes are awarded in cash to enable the winners to finance their work. This year, nine prizes will be awarded.
Two new prizes having been added to the list: the Catherine Schoemann Atomium Prize for Heritage, which rewards a work that honours and supports efforts to preserve and promote European comic strip heritage, and the Atomium Prize for Graphic Design, which rewards a work of outstanding visual and graphic excellence.
More information about the activities and Atomium Prizes can be found at bdcomicstripfestival.brussels
