A new structure, bringing together all the stakeholders, takes over from the contested association, chaired by Delphine Groux.
Public funders proposed on Monday to entrust the governance of the Angoulême comic strip festival (FIBD) to a structure bringing together all the stakeholders, within which Delphine Groux, contested president of the historic association, would no longer sit.
“In order to recreate a climate of trust, we propose to professionals that the ADBDA Association, which brings together public authorities, professionals and the festival, pilots the next competition which will designate a successor to the current organizer”declare the prefecture and regional council of Nouvelle-Aquitaine, the department of Charente, the city and the agglomeration of Angoulême in a joint press release. “The seat of the historical association of the FIBD within the ADBDA will not be occupied, at her request, by Delphine Groux”they specify.
“The ADBDA will take up, in this future competition, the expectations that various stakeholders have expressed on the improvement of the Angoulême comic strip festival, in particular the defense of authors’ rights, the guarantee of display rights (copyright which allows an artist to receive remuneration when he exhibits his work, Editor’s note) the improvement of reception conditions, but also transparency in the organization”specifies the press release, relayed by The free Charente .
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Faced with threats of boycott of the 2026 edition, Delphine Groux canceled on Thursday a first selection process for the future organizer of the FIBD, by launching a new procedure, but her approach was not enough to calm the profession and the financiers who had not been consulted beforehand. “Trust is broken, said Benoit Pollet, president of the BD group of the National Publishing Union (SNE). We are expecting a strong response from the public authorities who must take the lead in proposing a solution that satisfies the various partners. Otherwise the 2026 edition is compromised and the festival will not recover. »