The winners of the 2017 edition of the Embassy of Japan‘s Manga Jiman competition were revealed at a reception hosted at the embassy earlier this month. The contest, now in its 11th year, continues to go from strength to strength, celebrating the talent of manga creators living in the UK.
The first prize was taken by Shangomola Edunjobi, with his entry “The Dream Catcher”. Shangomola is a second time entrant to the contest who was the runner up in the 2016 edition of the competition. The judges commented that this year saw his story telling more refined, and his artwork matured. In particular, the uniqueness of his style impressed the judges, with them all agreeing that he was a deserving winner.
The runner up was Alex Brennan-Dent, with his entry “No Matter What”. The judges thought that the manga was created in a style that speaks directly to the heart of the reader, commenting that this is the mark of a truly gifted storyteller.
Third prize was taken by Pamela Lohkun, whose entry “Dream Job” wowed the judges with its beautiful artwork, which had been thoughtfully laid out to emphasise and compliment the content of the story.
The judges also commented that all of the shortlisted entrants should be incredibly proud of their achievement in making it this far in the competition. The large cross section of styles of the shortlisted artists is a tribute to the exciting world of creation in the UK today.
The full list of winners is as follows.
1st The Dream Catcher – Shangomola Edunjobi
2nd No Matter What – Alex Brennan-Dent
3rd Dream Job – Pamela Lokhun
4th Dream a Little Dream: A Manga – Andrew Attwell & Matthew Robinson
5th The Haircut – Daniel Byron
6th The Dreamwalker -Ben Ho
7th Dreaming Through Life – Richard Jeferies
8th The Fisherman – Jenna Clark
9th For What Reason Do I Live? – Lorelei Khan-Robinson
10th Dream – Benjamin Makinson
The Youth Prize was won byFelicity Neal for “Lonely Dreams” and the Yonkoma Manga winner was Winner Imogen Hughes for “When a Cat Dreams…”
All the winning entries can be read in full at the Manga Jiman Winners’ Exhibition which is on now at the Embassy of Japan. Pages from all of the entries to the 2017 contest will also be digitally displayed and the Embassy’s Manga Wall, which gives you the opportunity to have a go at drawing your own manga character,
• The Manga Jiman Winners’ Exhibition, runs until 29th March 2018. Open 930 – 5.30pm weekdays, closed weekends, The Embassy of Japan, 101-104 Piccadilly, London W1J 7JT. Note: the exhibition will be closed on 21st March 2018. Admission is free, but photo ID is necessary to gain entry to the Embassy | Web: www.uk.emb-japan.go.jp/itprtop_en
• For further information and updates on the competition, visit the competition’s Facebook page or follow the competition on Twitter @mangajiman
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The founder of downthetubes, which he established in 1998. John works as a comics and magazine editor, writer, and on promotional work for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He is currently editor of Star Trek Explorer, published by Titan – his third tour of duty on the title originally titled Star Trek Magazine.
Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine, Babylon 5 Magazine, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics. He has also edited several comic collections, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”.
He’s the writer of “Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies” for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs” with Dave Hailwood.
Categories: British Comics, Comics Competitions, downthetubes Comics News, downthetubes News, Exhibitions