Special guests

Maya and Yehuda Devir, are a family of Israeli, comic artists, creators of the popular
webcomic “One of Those Days”.

More than 9 million people around the world follow Maya and Yehuda’s lives on social
media – a standard Israeli couple with two children who share the tribulations of their daily
lives.

In their popular webcomic “One of Those Days,” which they post once a week on their social
media pages, Yehuda and Maya share everyday situations in an honest, funny and
empathetic way.

In addition to the webcomics that have earned them millions of fans on social media, the
two have also published a book series, “One of Those Days,” and their comics have been
featured numerous times in publications such as The Huffington Post, BuzzFeed, and Bored
Panda. In 2019, Yehuda and Maya won the “Most Creative Content Creators” award at the
prestigious international competition “INFLOW GLOBAL Awards” in Istanbul.

Social Links:

• https://www.facebook.com/JudeDevir/
• https://www.instagram.com/jude_devir/?hl=bg
• https://www.instagram.com/oneof_thosedays/?hl=bg
• https://www.instagram.com/maya_devir/?hl=bg
• https://www.youtube.com/user/yehudadevir

John Howe presents:

“Imagining Middle-Earth: from The Hobbit to the Rings of Power” exclusively on 08.07

John Howe’s unique style is recognizable around the world, most notably through his role as lead concept artist on Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit trilogies. He has also worked as a concept artist on “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe”, “The BFG”, “Batman vs Superman: Dawn of Justice”, “Mortal Engines”, the upcoming feature animation “THE WAR OF THE ROHIRRIM” and many others.

He has organized solo exhibitions in the USA, Europe, China and Japan. His work has universal appeal, with admirers of all ages attending his exhibitions and book signing sessions. His children’s and illustrated books have received critical acclaim and have been published in over 30 languages; his work is regularly featured in the Spectrum Yearbook.

He is also the narrator and consultant for three documentary miniseries produced by the Franco-German cultural broadcaster ARTE: Searching for the Hobbit (5 26-minute episodes, 2014), Dragons (4 episodes, 2017) and The Origins of Fantasy (in production). Several documentaries have featured his life and work: John Howe: There and Back Again (52 minutes, 2006), Lord of the Brush (56 minutes, 2006) and From One World to Another (26 minutes, 2017).

There will be an opportunity for Q&A immediately following the presentation, and John Howe will be available for autographs at the Artline booth afterwards.

Neda Malcheva is one of the most popular artists on social networks.

There is hardly anyone who has not come across the work of this crazy mother with even crazier children and apparently… patient father. The talented artist has been sharing stories inspired by family life – the good, the bad and especially the funny – for years, and her page now has over 60,000 fans! Neda has painted the illustrations in “How to Survive in Bulgaria” by Brato.bg, “Mama Ninja”, “The Daily Life of a Dad” by Kaloyan Yavashev, as well as a whole series of “Bulgarian Knowledge” by Viktoria Petkova. For almost two years she has been teaching classical and digital drawing to children in Ruse.

Neda will be with us on both days of the festival, where she will have her own booth to meet fans.

“Tony Pateto” is a comic project by Anani Borisov and Martin Petrov, launched in 2016, bearing the working title “Sexyboy Igracho” and inspired by the native reality, with the main character – a typical young Bulgarian from the countryside. Created as a joke, Tony Patetto became a serious title with thousands of fans who 7 years later still support the idea.

Anani and Martin continue to work actively as comic authors and develop new series. They’ll be with us on both days of the festival and will give us a first-hand account of exactly how “the game is played” and what’s new with our beloved Tony and company.

“Bulgaroznaiko” by Viktoria Petkova is the series that has travelled all continents of the Earth with the mission to tell amazing stories about Bulgarian traditions and culture to Bulgarians all over the world.

The hero travelled with polar explorers to the coldest place on earth – Antarctica and became part of the “ice library” on Livingstone Island. He flew into space on Elon Musk’s Falcon 9 rocket with the messages of Vasil Levski and the secret code of Bulgarian embroidery.

Its creator, Viktoria Petkova, is also the author of the Magic Sunbook, an innovation in drawing that turns anyone into an artist through the power of the sun’s rays.