The Angoulême comic book festival, “in full drift”, according to an investigation by L’Humanité Dimanche

“Need for immediate profitability”, “neglected authors’ policy” or dismissal of a manager who “denounced a rape”, the L’Humanité Dimanche investigation questions the “new direction” of the Charente event.

Is the Angoulême International Comics Festival (FIBD), as our colleagues at Humanity Sunday, “drifting” ? In an in-depth investigation published Thursday January 23, 2025, the newspaper mentions a “toxic management”and “commercial shift”and “controversial partnership” and above all, according to the newspaper, the “dismissal of the communications manager after she reported a rape”. The magazine throws a wrench into the pond one week before the opening of the festival and questions the functioning of the event.

The deputy for culture at Angoulême town hall, Gérard Lefèvre, affirms that he “discovers this issue of rape that no one, to my knowledge, had heard of.” He assures that the city will remain determined to obtain “all the information”. “We need to know what happened”he insists.

In her investigation, our colleague from HumanityLucie Servin, begins with the description of the circumspection of the audience during the traditional press conference presenting the festival, on November 21. That day, Franck Bondoux, the general delegate of 9ᵉ Art+, the festival managing company, announced the name of the new main partner of the FIBD: the fast food chain Quick. According to the newspaper, the announcement of the name of the brand does not convince the local authorities any more for whom the choice is even “difficult to digest”.

Within the urban community of Grand Angoulême, the opposition questions the shift “mercantile” of the festival. Raphaël Manzanas, opposition elected official (citizen list, PS insert), recalls that “the public partners finance half and we have no control over the image that [ce type de choix] can have on our city”.

The investigation of Humanity Sunday describes this shift at length “mercantile” which, according to a former artistic director cited in the article, is due to the fact that for Franck Bondoux the FIBD “is a brand” Who “adopts behaviors modeled on those of major brands”. According to the newspaper, the 2025 edition would even be “guided by a need for immediate profitability”which would explain the “25% increase in ticket office entry prices, except for priority audiences”.

We discover these managerial questions. We are going to ask for the answers we have the right to expect.

Gérard Lefevre

Deputy for culture, Angoulême town hall

The newspaper also states that if “the independence of artistic choices may be officially claimed, but the programming seems more and more imposed, and without any real guidelines.” The investigation thus describes a “abandoned authors policy” and exhibitions, some of which, according to the newspaper, “seem to respond to the logic of promoting editorial products”.

Finally, the survey reveals a managerial policy “toxic”. The newspaper mentions “cases of exhaustion and burn-out”public humiliations… “We also discover these managerial questionsassures Gérard Lefèvre. We are going to ask for the answers we have the right to expect.”

Raphaël Manzanas, for his part, believes that the time has come to imagine “another agreement with the FIBD to clarify our links with the operator responsible for organizing the festival”. For him, it is no longer necessary “write a blank check to a private partner”.

When requested, the president of the FIBD association, Delphine Groux, could not be reached this evening to provide a comment.

In a press release, the organizers indicate “reaffirm our commitment against all forms of inappropriate behavior and violence at work. The cultural world to which we belong must carry values ​​of respect”.

In a second article published this Friday, Humanity is interested in private sponsors and public partners and talks about a “financing not very clear for the Angoulême festival”.

In the city of Angoulême, the slogan is that the festival takes place in the best conditions” and above all, “in complete transparency”. This seems to open the way to a possible renegotiation of the partnership agreement which expires in 2027. “The end of the convention was discussed in the municipal council”recalls Gérard Lefèvre who adds: “A big meeting between public partners was held in November on the end of the convention. Each community will have to take a position.” For his part, the elected official specifies that “we are not hostile to more transparency”, nor to “competition”.