A major celebration of Finnish comics kicked off in Paris today, with 12 Finnish comics artists and other industry professionals taking part in the Formula Bula comics festival over the weekend. Mikaela Wickström from FILI is also taking part in the festival.
The programme includes exhibitions featuring five invited Finnish artists, masterclasses, a zine workshop, a concert, and signing sessions for newly published French translations of Finnish comics.
The Paris event is part of Sarjakuva 2026 – Année de la bande dessinée finlandaise en France, a year-long initiative dedicated to Finnish comics in France. During the project, Finnish comics artists will be featured at seven festivals as well as at the Finnish Institute in Paris.
The year-long programme includes six exhibitions, book launches, a Finnish comics pop-up shop, an artist residency, and around 30 artist visits.
This autumn, Éditions PLG will publish Harri Römpötti’s Plein les yeux (Silmän täydeltä), the first French-language non-fiction book dedicated to contemporary Finnish comics. The book is translated by Kirsi Kinnunen and Aleksi Moine.
Festival visitors can also pick up Palapeli, a special comics publication exploring clichés about Finland. It features commissioned works by 13 Finnish comics artists and is being distributed at events throughout the project.
Finnish comics have established a significant presence in France over the past 25 years. Since 2001, 40 French publishers have published approximately 130 graphic novels and short-form comics by around 60 Finnish artists. Among the qualities that have attracted interest in France are the high standard and diversity of artistic expression in Finnish comics and their ability to cross the boundaries between different art forms with ease.
Sarjakuva 2026 was initiated and is coordinated and curated by comics expert Kirsi Kinnunen of Siksi ry, an organisation dedicated to promoting Finnish comics internationally.
The project is funded by Kone Foundation, the Finnish Cultural Foundation, FILI – Finnish Literature Exchange, Frame Contemporary Art Finland, and the Embassy of Finland in France.
Read the French edition of Palapeli here.