Bio

The ASSOCIATION OF COMIC ARTISTS (SINGAPORE) (ACAS) is a non-profit organisation, ran by part-time enthusiasts. The group is many things to many different people -

Since 2008, there has been a splitting of ACAS into three basic segments:

• Member Publishing

• Education

• Commissions

   

ACAS has to date published numerous comics and graphic novels, some of which have been optioned overseas. ACAS original syllabus weekend and midweek comic art & writing courses have been running since 2009 to the present, and commissions have been produced for many major brand names. www.acas.org.sg

 

During this time, they have spearheaded and managed MDA and Skills Future initiatives, as well as conduct numerous workshops and courses in various schools and colleges -

 

First and foremost, it's a place where Members collaborate to get their short stories published within compilations - writing, pencils, inks, colours, tones, letters - these are all jobs that stories need to be executed, and are best shared. Second to that, ACAS teaches and lectures on the artform at their own Goodman Arts Centre HQ, in schools and colleges, which include names such as Raffles Institute, Dunman High School, NUS Gifted Students Programme and many more, and at various pop culture events and venues. They teach & share both traditional and digital techniques, and digitally speaking, are a specialist Celsys Clip Paint Stdio trainers (Japan's #1 manga software). ACAS arranged and hosted a one day seminar for Ministry Of Education Heads of Department, where they were instrumental in educating the aforementioned in the grounded study of comics and visual storytelling.

 

ACAS executes a wealth of art demonstrations and strives to cover Member time and effort whenever there is available budget. Caricaturing is another great fund raiser for the group. There is no pressure for Members to be very active or otherwise - ACAS leaves it up to the Members to do what they can, when they can. This also includes commissions and workshops aimed at the professional sector - clients include names such as Procter & Gamble (P&G), VISA HSBC, Unilever, Toyota, Luis Vuitton, People's Association, Accenture, Fastbooking, Duke NUS and many more.

 

 

Major Achievements

ACAS assisted three Members in producing and getting published their graphic novels, with one later being optioned by US based publisher, Caliber Comics, and the others by Asia based publisher Marcosia. ACAS also assisted in the launch of Singapore's first ever superhero all colour comic, SupaCross.

 

ACAS co-conceptualised and partnered with the Media Development Authority of Singapore to create the First Time Writers & Illustrators Publishing Initative (later rebranded IGNITE! Inaugural Graphic Novel IniTiativE).

 

They have conducted numerous workshops in schools throughout Singapore, and its weekend classes & courses at their Goodman Arts Centre has been continuous since their 2011 residency, teaching both Traditional and Digital disciplines. Many external students from schools and tertiary institutions turn to ACAS for assistance with projects, and ACAS is delighted to mentor them in informal and adhoc ways - they have received letters of thanks from many.

 

With publishing and teaching being major passionate goals, a keen eye is also kept on ways of raising funds to enable the Association to move forwards and upwards. So corporate assignments and workshops have been pursued with great results - P&G had a range of cartoon strips written and compiled for them in an effort for them to maintain good internal working practices. HSBC VISA used a very creative ACAS created Manga  approach to the upselling of Debit Cards. Unilever recruited ACAS to produce three lush pieces of art to promote a range of new perfumes. Toyota had ACAS produce a 34 page comic, demonstrating to the reader just how effective their customer service programs are.

 

 

Remaining in the public's eye...

The origin of Comic Books come from court jesters who were described as being COMIC-al. Their antics were illustrated and these became known as caricatures and then single panel comics and striop cartoons. Many have heard comics referred to as, 'The Funny Books' - this historically is where the terminology comes from.

 

So the origins of ACAS really does stem from comedy. This historic relationship means a lot to the Association, so on the last Friday of each month, we open our studios for a night of stand up comedy and portfolio viewing - Stand-Up Comics at the CASTLE (Comic Association's Studio for Teaching, Learning & Execution). It's proven to be a very fun and creative way to spread awareness for the Association, as well as raise funds.