ABOUT THE TORONTO COMIC ARTS FESTIVAL:
First held in 2003, The Toronto Comic Arts Festival was conceived to provide interaction between the creative community and the public, and was modeled on similar festivals around the world. TCAF 2009 will take place at Toronto Reference Library, at 789 Yonge St. just North of Bloor Street in the heart of the city. The Festival will feature over 15,000 square feet of attractions within the Reference Library complex, more than 200 cartoonists, and more than two weeks of programming and events leading up to the 2-day exhibition extravaganza!
Canadian cartoonists are recognized as among the best in the world, particularly in the fields of manga and alternative comics. TCAF is Canada’s opportunity to not only promote and celebrate homegrown artistic talent, but also to broaden its scope and showcase creators from the US and abroad, many in Toronto for the first time. This prestigious gathering of artists will attract an international and national audience.

Saturday May 9th , 10am-5pm
Sunday May 10th, 12pm-5pm
Toronto Reference Library, 789 Yonge St., Toronto, Canada
FREE TO ATTEND



Kid Koala Kicks-Off and Closes TCAF
Montreal musician and graphic novelist brings a loud party, quiet work, to 2009 Toronto Comic Arts Festival TORONTO, Canada – What better way to get people excited about The 2009 Toronto Comic Arts Festival (TCAF) than a great big indoor block party by Turntablist, Musician, and Cartoonist Kid Koala? TCAF is going to be a spectacular two-day festival celebrating all things comic book and graphic novel, and has invited back the author of 2005’s hit graphic novel Nufonia Must Fall (ECW Press) to be a part of the show with his international LOUD PARTY/QUIET WORK tour!
KID KOALA’S LOUD PARTY: Get up! Get down! Indoor block party!
TCAF Kick-Off Party!
Brought to you by Live Nation
Lee’s Palace – Thursday, May 7th
Doors 8:30pm, Show 9:30pm
Tickets $18.50 (incl. GST), General Admission, 19+
Available at Rotate This, Ticketmaster, or Livenation.com

A loud shake it loose turntable dance party at Lee’s Palace. Join us for a night of short-attention-span party rockin' and wreckin' on 4 record players with actual stacks of wax spun by Kid Koala! There will be dancing, scratching and much hoopla including the first Nufonia pillow fight and a raffle with real prizes! Bring your dancing shoes and some smiles and come on down and make some noise!

QUIET WORK: Kid Koala’s Music To Draw To... soiree
In association with the Toronto Comic Arts Festival
The Central, 603 Markham Street – Monday, May 11th
6:00pm-11:00pm, $5 Admission at the Door
Get There Early, Space is Limited!
This event will be quiet and creative… 5 hour set of quiet time tunes to work to by Kid Koala... Bring your sketchbook, yarn or that lump of clay and come on down and get some work done. Five bucks admission includes a free cup of hot chocolate and a pencil. Baked goods will be provided by Corinne, Kid Koala's wife, who dreams of someday opening a bakery in Montreal but would like to test some of her new creations first. Quiet people are invited. No dancing.

Kid Koala returns to TCAF after debuting his Nufonia Must Fall graphic novel at the 2005 Festival, which offered an unprecedented level of interaction between Koala and his fans as he spun records and drew while engaging graphic novel and music aficionados alike. In addition to the TCAF kick-off LOUD PARTY on May 7th and the Music To Draw To... quiet-time post-show chill-out, Kid Koala will be signing for fans at the Festival itself, on Sunday May 10th from 2pm to 3:30pm, at Toronto Reference Library (780 Yonge. St. At Yonge/Bloor TTC Station).

ABOUT KID KOALA:
Back in 1996, Kid Koala became the first North American artist signed to UK label Ninja Tune. His incredible skill, innovation, and performance style led him to attract attention from those outside the club community. His releases include “Carpal Tunnel Syndrome” (which featured a video game and 32-page comic book by Kid Koala himself), “Some of My Best Friends are DJs”, and most recently “Your Mom’s Favourite DJ”. He is also the author of Nufonia Must Fall, a 350-page graphic novel with accompanying soundtrack.