Special Events + Off-site Programming
There's more to TCAF than just the main event at The Mattamy Athletic Centre on June 6 & 7 - TCAF organizes and plays host to many other incredible comics-related events in surrounding neighbourhood in the days leading up to and during the festival.
Wednesday, June 3 7PM EST
Still Zine: CCOLxTCAF 2025 Launch
In 2025, TCAF collaborated with Canada Comics Open Library on a zinester and DIY space, including an invitation for people to contribute a single page to a very special edition of the Still Zine diary/journal zine project. Join us for a very laid back potluck launch as we gather and celebrate the heartwarming, the strange and, most of all, the comic-loving pages of Still Zine: CCOLxTCAF 2025.
Accessibility: This event is taking place on a second floor level store without access to an elevator, staircase to get into the space. Bathrooms on the same level, no accessibility rails in the bathrooms.
Net Plaza/The Canada Comics Open Library
267 College St ⋅ 2nd Floor
No registration required.
Friday, June 5 6PM EST
TCAF 2026 Kick-Off Panel: 20 Years of TCAF
Panelists: Battan (2026 Main Poster, with Jocelyne Allen translating), Chris W. Kim (2026 Toronto Variant Poster), Maurice Vellekoop (2013 Poster), Jenn Woodall (2022 Poster)
Moderator: Amie Wright, TCAF Executive Director
Streetcars and city skylines; strange worlds and stranger characters; speech bubbles and pages and panels and gutters. Every TCAF poster is a lodestar to the imaginative worlds of zines, comics, graphic novels, and the minds of the iconic artists who create them. Come and celebrate this kick-off of the 20th in-person incarnation of the Toronto Comic Arts Festival, with a selection of our incredible poster artists as they explore the importance of comics communities in these strange and scary times of ours. And don’t forget to grab a poster!
Jet Ice Lounge ⋅ Fourth Floor
Mattamy Athletic Centre
Friday, June 5 6PM EST
Drink’N’Draw
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Join us at Mick E. Fynn’s for a laidback evening of drawing, pub fare, and booze, within stumbling distance of the Mattamy Athletic Centre. Bring your sketchbooks and your friends, and we'll see y'all there!
Accessibility: This event is taking place in a first floor level bar space that is fairly accessible, although may be a tight fit for motorized wheelchairs and larger mobility devices, tight space to access the bathrooms on the same level.
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Mick E Fynn's
45 Carlton St
No registration required, 19+
Friday, June 5 7PM EST
TCAF 2026 Kick-off Mixer
Want to grab a drink with your favourite comics connoisseurs in a laid back pub environment just a sketchbook’s throw away from the Mattamy Athletic Centre? Swing by Mick E Fynn's for a casual social gathering following the kick-off panel.
Accessibility: This event is taking place in a first floor level bar space that is fairly accessible, although may be a tight fit for motorized wheelchairs and larger mobility devices, tight space to access the bathrooms on the same level.
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Mick E Fynn's
45 Carlton St
No registration required, 19+
Saturday, June 6 6-8PM EST
Queer Mixer
Join us for a cozy, community-driven Queer Mixer at the beloved Café Pamenar, right in the heart of Kensington Market and around the corner from The Beguiling. This gathering is a warm welcome for 2SLGBTQIA+ creators, readers, organizers, and allies to connect, vibe, and celebrate the queer stories and voices shaping comics, illustration, and visual storytelling.
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Whether you're tabling at TCAF, launching your latest work, or just here to soak in the joy and creativity of the fest, this mixer is a chance to meet kindred spirits, swap stories, and unwind with good drinks and even better company.
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Accessibility: This event is taking place in a first floor level bar space that is fairly accessible, although may be a tight fit for motorized wheelchairs and larger mobility devices, the bathrooms are down a flight of stairs in the basement.
​Cafe Pamenar
307 Augusta Ave
No registration required, 19+