Caption is a Comics Festival with a difference: no segregation between guests and attentees. We have a volunteer-run Community Sales Table where anyone can add their comics!
Community Sales Table
- Bring your Comics, Zines, Graphic Novels & Art Books
- Give them to Caption Volunteers who will take inventory and sell them for you!
- You set the price
- Be free to enjoy the festival, attend talks, panels and events, or just chill and socialize.
- Your work does not need to be professionally produced; home-made is just fine. We want to enable as many people as possible to share their stories.
- When you are ready to leave return to the Salse Table to collect your unsold comics and any earnings, less a 10% fee.
The Caption Booklet
- Each year Caption produces a Festival Booklet repleat with comic strips contributed by the community
- These comics are based on the yearly festival theme. This years is: REBIRTH!
- Read our submission guidelines and send us your art!
Talks, Panels & Workshops
Caption boasts a busy schedule of Talks, Panels & Workshops. These include:
- Six to Watch hosted by Broken Frontier’s Andy Oliver
- The Long & The Short of It discussing long-form and short-form comics, with Beck Kubrick, Paul Rainey & Lucy Sullivan.
- True Lies- The Stories We Tell, a panel on Autobiographical comics with Chris Shepard, Cara Brown, Zara Slattery and Lucy Sullivan.
Keep checking back for more!
Portfolio Reviews
- Informal, One-to-one review with an established creator
- FREE with a valid ticket
- 20 minute slots available throughout the day
- No bias or agenda
- We want to help you develop in your own unique way!
- Learn more and save your slot
Caption Art Auction
- Exhibit and Sell your work!
- Pieces should fit in an A4 – A3 document wallet
- 50% to Caption, 50% to the artist
- Generous individuals can choose to donate more to Caption, up to 100%, but it is not required or expected.
Festival Tees
- Each year we have a Festival T-Shirt to commemorate the event and show how awesomely cool you are
- The unique design is based on the festival theme: this years is REBIRTH and the design is a Phoenix.
- All profits directly contribute to the festival, so it’s a great way to support us
- We’re currently selling off our supply of Vintage Caption Tees to raise extra funds towards accessibility. Get yours here!
HISTORY
CAPTION was the longest-running comics festival in the UK from 1992 – 2017. Now it’s back with Caption “Rebirth” 2025 and (we hope) will continue indefinately.
Its founders (Adrian Cox, Damian Cugley, Jeremy Day and Jenni Scott) started Caption by donating ten quid each and running it at the Oxford Union Society. Ah, those were the days!
Since the beginning Caption Comics Festival has had a focus on Independant & Small Press Comics. It’s always been a little rebellious and disruptive, aiming to remove the barriers to ‘breaking into comics’ and value every voice.
With a long list of presigious guests over the years, it also boasts helping many new creators to ‘get their feet wet’ in comics. With a strong emphasis of socialising and community, Caption is the perfect environment for networking, exchanging advice and making friends.