France’s Angleme Festival (FIBD) is one of the most important calendar events in global comics – has been immersed in a growing crisis since January. Following growing pressure from the authors and publisher groups, the festival’s owner Association Fibd has announced a call for proposals from alternative organization partners to set the widely unpopular Franck Bondoux and his company 9e Art+ for an October deadline.
Angouleme 2025 – ©Dean Simons
Started in 1974, Angoulême is one of the world’s largest comic events (only beats Japanese Comiket and Italian Lucca). Today, the event in late January attracts over 250,000 visitors to a small French city about 75 miles from Bordeaux in southwestern France. Spread primarily in the heart of Anglemet’s old district (cobblestone streets and medieval architecture), the event includes numerous large marquees. We are holding a large professional exhibition featuring original comic art. Additionally, a dedicated professional market where the language rights of books around the world are bought and sold by publishers and agents. The festival and its award coverage makes it in every French newspaper, and national politicians often appear as related to the brand. The festival led to the development of the city itself, hosting art schools, animation studios and workshops. Archives of dedicated museums and artforms. More than 50 years later, it is more than a French comic event, widely recognized as the public interest both inside and outside the industry (and around the world). There are many cartoon festivals in France, but there is only one Angarem.
And now the agency is still caught up in the biggest controversy. The first flashpoint of the festival’s latest crisis took place on January 23rd, with a publication of articles questioning the management of the festival by Frank Bondor and 9e Art+. In that allegations, the article cited the false misconceptions of subcontractors, employee burnout, nepotism (via insertion into the key role of Bond’s daughter, Johanna Bondor), widening commercialization, and most surprising, the rape of contractors at the 51st Festival in 2024.
Franck Bondoux – ©Alistair Dabbs
Unusually, the festival issued a press conference on the day of publication, trying to deny the allegations, paying attention to the article in question. Open letters from major publishing groups denounced the situation and called for changes. The original was the alternative publisher Syndicate (SEA) on January 27th, and the National Publisher Syndicate (SNE) on January 28th. At a passionate press conference on February 2 (Sunday of the festival itself), Bondor appeared to have denied all the fraud and engaged in the victim’s accusation in the case of contractors.
Bondoux has been participating in the Angoulême Festival since 2003 through his company partnership consulting, mainly with the aim of expanding the event’s financial capabilities with additional sponsors. In 2006, he envisions operations management starting with the 2007 edition of the newly formed private company (owned by Bondoux) 9E ART+, a non-profit owner, Association Fibd, to maintain the event’s independence from the city administration. Interesting details reportedly came from outside the world of comics and art events where Bondo was previously involved in sports marketing. Before establishing a consulting company in 1999, he cut his teeth as an infamous Swiss international sports and leisure employee that collapsed in 2001 and linked to the FIFA corruption scandal that was later revealed.
The timing of the January exposure was not arbitrary. Since 2006, Bondoux and his company have been holding festivals. Previously unpopular 9E ART+ automatically renewed its contract in 2015 to 2026 (cancellation deadlines were overlooked). Many critics acknowledge that he brought some degree of professionalism to the event during his tenure, but his leadership style, commercialization of cultural equipment and allegations of strange financial maneuvering have shaken him. He also made some very embarrassing (and nautical) public gaffs during the rage that exploded in 2016 over the absence of women. This year, decisions regarding the renewal of 9E ART+’s 10-year contract were scheduled to continue to run the event. If you do not reach the decision by May, 9e Art+ will automatically renew your contract for an additional 10-year period until 2036.
Some believe that Bondo is operating to control the festival from the Association FIBD, a nonprofit organization formed by the founder of the festival (the nonprofit organization that FIBD is an acronym for the festival itself – Festival International Delavan Dessine). Today’s membership includes surviving founders, appointed heirs and other festival stakeholders. The declaration by Bondo at a closed door meeting with the publisher in early April and the town hall recorded with the city government imply that 9E Art+ and the association’s FIBD (or at least its chairman Delphine Grue) will enter the joint venture and turn the festival into a private company. Pushing down from partners, including funding civic institutions, appears to have resolved that plan. 44% of the festival’s estimated budget of 6 million euros is sourced from public institutions.
Petition website, as of August 5th
With increasing frustration, the authors’ union Syndicat des Travailleur.euses Artist-Auteurs (STAA) and campaign group Metooobd began petitioning on April 17th. Currently, among the 2,300 professional signatories were Chris Ware, Posy Simmons, Art Spiegelman, Emile Ferris, Allison Beshdel, Vencucher, Urilast and Joe Sacco. Many Angoulême winners and Grand Prix winners have signed the signing, and the creators of the festival’s mascot Fauve, Lewis Trondheim, were also the signers. Perhaps more embarrassing was the signature of Fabcaro, the current author of the Asterix series, the hottest selling book in France, but usually shifted millions of copies in the months with new releases.
The signatories ended the term of 9E Art+ at the end of the contract period and requested public calls for others to take over the running of the festival. All signatories said they would boycott the 2026 festival, which puts pressure on publishers. In a big draw for publishers on display at festivals (and selling so many books to the public), it is that it exists to sketch and sign authors. Also, if the publisher attends despite a boycott of the author, it could affect their relationship.
An excerpt from the open letter of the petition published in Humanité was declared (translated via Deepl):
“For months, we, the comic book industry, authors and other workers in this field have been calling on the Angouleme International Comics Festival Association (FIBD) to address the harmful nature of the contract with the company 9E ART+, which has been running for nearly 20 years.
“On April 3, the FIBD Association raised the possibility of termination of its contract with 9E Art+, but did not express its desire to submit management of the festival to a fair call for proposals, and on the contrary, it hopes to finalise its plans to merge with 9E ART+.
Conclusion:
“Faced with this blindness and stubbornness, this excruciating diversion, and the light emptying shown in our repeated appeals, we, comic book workers, do not decide to notify the FIBD Association and all its public partners, formally end this contract and issue proposals for proposals at the festival, we will grow for the festival in 2026, for the festival, for the festival, for the festival, we will grow. Let’s become an empty shell!”
The latest twist on Saga is that on August 3, the association’s FIBD will launch an open call for participation in the festival from the 2028 edition, with the deadline for the proposal on October 17 at 12pm and the selection process for November 8th to complete the remainder of the contract for another two years. Meanwhile, Frank Bondor filed a notice after the 2027 event that he would retire as a general representative of the festival, and possibly from his company, but he remains skeptical that he would pull it out. This sudden change will occur several weeks after the 2026 event exhibitor application is launched.
Angouleme 2025 – ©Dean Simons
Vocal critics are cautious about this move. For one, Bondoux can easily change his mind, build a reason to post/return as a general representative, or if he wins a contract renewal, he can continue running the company through a proxy. Additionally, transparency in the bidding process has not yet been revealed. And he is involved in Bondoux’s own bidder selection.
The crisis is not over and the publishers and authors hope for positive results as they prove the economic situation of the French cartoon industry in 2025 is surprisingly difficult.
Dark Times in Fauve ©Dean Simons
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