In Frankfurt (Hall 4.1, stand H26), BCBF is presenting what’s in store for 2023. First off, the Literary Agents Centre - traditionally reserved for children's book agents – now becomes a new Bologna Rights Centre, designed together with BolognaBookPlus, to include general trade publishing agents and rights professionals of all exhibiting publishers.
Our booth is also hosting two exhibitions.
Curated by Accademia Drosselmeier, Out of Silence. Yesterday, today, tomorrow, narrating through wordless books brings together a series of extraordinary Italian wordless story books, one of the most dynamic genres in children’s publishing. 39 wordless picture books by both internationally renowned artists and Italy’s youngest generation of authors and illustrators, show how silent books reach beyond language barriers to children of all ages, allowing them to tell their own stories of what they see, developing creativity and an ability to read the world.
The second exhibition, A glimpse at Italian illustration. A selection from the Bologna Illustrators Exhibition, features 20 of the most outstanding Italian artists selected for the Bologna Illustrators Exhibition in recent years, who have gone on to international careers.
Guided tours of the exhibition by Grazia Gotti of Bologna’s Accademia Drosselmeier, and illustrator and critic Anna Castagnoli, a former Illustrators Exhibition juror, have been organised for: 19 and 20 October at 4 p.m., and 11 a.m. on 21 October at the BCBF booth.
Also on show, and organised together with Bologna Licensing Trade Fair/Kids, are two examples of licensing excellence in children’s book publishing, created entirely in Italy: an illustration that has become an educational game, and a book that led to an animation film. The fertile exchange in recent years between the publishing industry and the world of educational games has led to the creation of several outstanding products. In Frankfurt, two examples of this transition are on show: the educational game based on an illustration by Giulia Orecchia - awarded at the Toys Awards as Best Italian Game of 2022 -, and the animated film based on the acclaimed novel Nel Mare ci sono i coccodrilli by Fabio Geda (translated into more than 30 languages) that director Rosalba Vitellaro and screenwriter Alessandra Viola adapted using illustrations by Annalisa Corsi, and which won the Best Short Film Award at the Giffoni Film Festival. The TV special will in turn become a book, this time inspired by the cartoon images.
Giulia Orecchia, Rosalba Vitellaro and Alessandra Viola facilitate a series of informal meetings, "A coffee with" to discuss how the publishing industry can work more closely with the licensing sector to create top-of-the-range products. Roberto and Alessandra will be on hand on 19 October at 3.00 p.m., while Giulia Orecchia will be present on 20 October at 3.00 p.m. and on 21 October at 12.00 a.m.
The meeting BolognaBookPlus: A Briefing. Calling All General Trade Publishers! - 19 October at 2 p.m. - will detail BBPlus’ 2023 programme and the many exhibition and training opportunities on offer.
The international book community is invited to the Bologna Grand Tour’s networking party on the first day of Frankfurter Buchmesse (19 October, 5.30 pm) at the Italy booth (Hall 4.1, stand F31) to celebrate the many new features planned for BCBF’s 60th anniversary, and hear the announcement of the inaugural BolognaBookPlus Market of Honour.
GALLERIES
GLOBAL RIGHTS EXCHANGE
FAIRTALES
