Cartoon Crossroads Columbus (CXC) is an annual European-style festival that spans four entire days—and stretches throughout the city of Columbus, Ohio. Each year, CXC continues to do what it originally set out to do: make genuine connections between people who share a love, a passion, and a personal reason to believe in the future of cartoon art.
Our Mission
We hope to provide an international showcase for the best of cartoon art in all its forms, including comics, animation, editorial cartoons, newspaper strips, and beyond, in a city that is a growing center of importance to comics and cartooning. We also focus on helping the next generation of young cartooning talent develop thriving careers that invigorate the industry for years to come.
To do that, we strive to create an atmosphere of communication and shared enthusiasm between creators and audiences of cartoon storytelling so they can have serious (and fun) discussions on it as art, with the respect their creators deserve, as well as help an emerging generation of young cartooning talent develop careers that are both artistically and economically rewarding.
The Story Behind CXC
Cartoon Crossroads Columbus (CXC) is all about making connections between people with a passion for the art of cartoons, and that’s exactly how it all started: a conversation between friends.
As a founder and world-renowned curator of The Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum, Lucy Shelton Caswell had organized a triennial Cartoon Arts Festival in Columbus for many years. She knew it could become more, because she knew so many influential people throughout the city and the industry that shares her passion. But two in particular knew how much support Columbus institutions offered for the cartoon arts: the husband and wife team behind Cartoon Books, Columbus native Jeff Smith and his wife Vijaya Iyer.
The three of them talked about how some cities in Europe would turn themselves over to their comics festivals, and how much each festival would spend a week showing people the best of each city offers the cartoon community, and how first-class treatment of cartooning talent not only brought in industry greats, but created an atmosphere where connections between the creators and fans could be had. They approached local arts organizations that had previously done comics related programming, and CXC was born.
A Typical Weekend at CXC
For a visitor, a typical CXC weekend looks like this:
- Wednesday nght: Animation Shorts at Gateway Film Center
- Thursday & Friday daytime: Teach n Talks, panels aimed as “how to’s” for creators but open to everyone at the Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum (BILCM)
- Thursday evening: Animation at the Wexner Center for the Arts
- Friday afternoon/evening: Keynote Guest & Headlining Guests at Mershon Auditorium, as well as a welcome reception & awards presentation at the BILCM.
- Saturday/Sunday: Expo with over 100 creators selling comics & original art at the Columbus Library Main Branch. Three consecutive panel tracks run all day with general comics interest, a hands-on kids’ track, & LGBTQIA+ and BIPOC programming.
- Sunday morning: Headlining guests at the Columbus Museum of Art, and Queer Brunch.
There are afterparties Friday – Sunday, and opportunities for signings and meet & greets all weekend in a posted schedule of panels, signings, and other events–both at the festival itself and the venues of our partner organizations!
All events are free and open to all
How CXC Works
Cartoon Crossroads Columbus (CXC) is a 501c3 nonprofit organization. CXC has a board of directors governed by a Code of Regulations, as well as an Executive Committee. CXC has a half time paid Executive Director who is nonvoting but informs board decisions. CXC also has an Advisory Council made up of presenting partner organizations and interested local constituents. All CXC events are designed to be free and as accessible as possible to remove barriers of participation to as many people as possible.
Partner organizations include the Billy Ireland Cartoon Library and Museum, The Wexner Center for the Arts, Columbus Museum of Art, Columbus College of Art & Design, Hale Hall / OSU Office of Diversity & Inclusion, Columbus Metropolitan Libraries, Pop Culture Studies at OSU, Thurber House, Gateway Film Center, and Laughing Ogre Comics among others. CXC always welcomes new partner organizations to explore programming options. The programming process takes all year. Each partner organization presents its ideas for guests and programming, invitations are issued, and results brought back to committee and ultimately combined with CXC invited guests, a host of moderators, afterparties, and receptions into the full festival.
CXC operates on a budget of approximately $140,000 each year not including direct costs of partner organizations for their guests and events. Budget is allocated to honoraria, travel, and lodging for special guests, Emerging Talent Award, insurance, design & creation fees, marketing, half-time executive director, and other supply and administration costs. No board or committee members are compensated, and all guests and moderators are paid honoraria. Approximately 5-7% of CXC’s revenues each year are from expo table fees. Just under 30% of CXC’s budget is from granting organizations like the Greater Columbus Arts Council and Ohio Arts Council, the remaining funds are individual, corporate, and foundation donations.
CXC consistently seeks broad and representational participation from its constituents and actively seeks to broaden that base.