Weekly Roundup of cool news: March 10-16, 2013

The arts scene is flourishing in post-revolution Egypt and comics are no exception! A new organization, Mazg (which means incorporation or blending), seeks to teach comics creation and establish a proper comics industry in Egypt. It was founded by four women, Mona Al-Masry, Naglaa Koora, Sara Al-Masry and Nevien Adel, who have “different experiences in cultural administration, human rights activism and art”. Their goals include bringing comics workshops to the provinces, translations of foreign comics, and establish an Egyptian comics festival.

In case you were wondering, above is the panel of Marjane Satrapi’s Persepolis that got it yanked from a 7th grade curriculum in Chicago Public Schools. The Chicago-area ALA has released a statement.

This week was a good week for crowdfunding! (If you’re trying to make a movie based on a recentish cult TV show, anyway). Two comics fundraisers that caught my eye. Graham Cracker Comics store, also in Chicago, hosts a regular Ladies’ Night, and several of its regulars have put together an anthology! They’re trying to raise $1000, and are currently over a quarter of the way there. A mere $2 gets you a digital copy and $10 gets you a physical copy as well! Also, Every/Body, a follow-up to the pro-marriage equality anthology Little Heart, is an anthology discussing body and gender, and they are just $200 shy of hitting their $2500 goal!

Also, just a reminder that I have a Crowdfunding board on Pinterest, with many other worth projects to check out!

Quick Shout-Outs:

Congratulations are in order to G. Willow Wilson for her prose novel debut Alif the Unseen being longlisted for the Orange Women’s Prize for Fiction! A good reminder to check it out, and maybe also pick up her first graphic novel Cairo, her Vertigo series Air, or her YA fantasy GN Mystic!
Cate Blanchett could be bringing New Yorker cartoonist Marisa Acocella Marchetto’s Cancer Vixen to HBO! She’d be playing Marchetto herself and co-producing as well.
Over on CBR, Josie Campbell conducted a fantastic interview with Trina Robbins and Joyce Farmer about the early days of women’s underground comix.

Bonus Art Thing:

Tonight I’m having a bunch of friends over to watch Skyfall and possibly Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace if a) they want to stay that long and b) I can convince them that QoS is actually pretty good if your watch it right after CR. So have a Kate Beaton-inspired “Ooh Mr. Bond: A Fan Fiction” mash-up.