Lucca Comics & Games
Lucca Comics & Games is Italy’s most famous comic book festival. It takes place every year between the end of October and the start of November, and it attracts visitors from all over Italy. Lucca Comics is an international fair dedicated to animation, board games, video games, fantasy, and science fiction imagery. It is not only the most important festival in Italy but also in Europe, and it is second only to Comiket festival of Tokyo.
How it works
The festival is divided into thematic areas, pavilions containing stands related to the same category: from comics to board games, from the site dedicated to Japan to that for children. The booths are located in various parts of the city, and visitors can choose how many and which ones to see, depending on their preferences.
Cosplay fans will have the opportunity to participate in the official competitions for the Italian selections of the ECG – European Cosplay Gathering. Promoted by Japan Expo and the Lucca Cosplay Contest, the competitions will be held in the picturesque setting of the San Francesco Auditorium in the eastern part of Lucca’s historic center. All Cosplayers can upload character reference images and the audio track for the performance on the site in advance. This year the deadline for submitting materials is October 29, 2022.
The 2022 edition
The 2022 edition of Lucca Comics & Games will take place from Friday, October 28 to Tuesday, November 1, and is expected to be full of new features. We will see the presence of prestigious guests such as Nolan Bushnell, on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of his Atari and the video game industry, and Davide Soliani, the creative director of Ubisoft Milan, the main signing of the upcoming Mario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hope.
Another important guest will be Yoshitaka Amano, an illustrator and character designer who has created iconic Japanese animation characters such as Gatchaman, Tekkaman.
Last, but definitely not least, Tim Burton will take part in the festival. Burton, who’s currently one of the most iconic figures in the world of cinema, will be in Lucca on October 30 to present the European premiere of the first episode of his highly anticipated new TV series Wednesday, available on Netflix starting November 23. If you are a fan of Burton’s characters, you absolutely cannot miss this event.
Areas not related to the world of comics per se will also have their own dedicated space. You will find two great exceptional Italian artists to represent comedy: Lillo Petrolo and Frank Matano. The duo will present their new shows: Sono Lillo, the new Italian Original series dedicated to the Posaman character that will be released on Prime Video in 2023, and Prova Prova Sa Sa, a comedy show based on improvisation, available exclusively on Amazon Prime from November 2. Lillo and Frank will also present LOL Xmas Special: Who’s Laughing is Out, the holiday-themed comic show.
As is tradition every year, Chester B. Cebulski, Marvel’s editor-in-chief, will return to Lucca with Panini to conduct scouting activities in Area Pro. This space offers aspiring comic book artists the opportunity to show their work to publishers and to participate in events related to the Marvel world, including Spider-Man celebrations.
Lucca Comics & Games is definitely an event not to be missed. Take advantage of the event to visit a medieval city, birthplace of the Italian composer Puccini.
