Tokyo BD Festival 2026 Explores the Creative Connection Between Manga and European Comics

Event dates: 2026-10-31 – 2026-11-01

Where: Lycée Français International de Tokyo, Kita, Tokyo, Japan

Genre: Comics & Manga Exchange Festival

Tokyo BD Festival 2026 runs October 31-November 1, free admission, 11am-5pm, at the Lycée Français International de Tokyo, exploring the creative exchange between Japanese manga and French/European bande dessinée (BD), with 20+ confirmed guest artists.

Article

Tokyo hosts a rare two-way conversation between Japanese manga and European comics this Halloween weekend.

A Free Weekend at Lycée Français International de Tokyo

Tokyo BD Festival 2026 runs October 31-November 1, 2026, free admission, 11am-5pm (last entry 4pm), at the Lycée Français International de Tokyo.

Manga Meets Bande Dessinée

The festival's own framing: manga is hugely popular across France and Europe, but bande dessinée (BD) - despite its high artistic value - remains little-known in Japan. Tokyo BD Festival introduces BD to Japanese audiences while marking how the two traditions have influenced each other over decades.

20+ Guest Artists and a BD Marketplace

More than 20 confirmed guest artists and authors take part in talks and signing sessions (booking required), alongside a bande dessinée marketplace featuring Japanese and French publishers, French food and regional products, and exhibitions covering Belgian comics and international manga collaborations.

Ask Marine

Want to know more about bande dessinée or which guest artists are appearing? Ask Marine.

More About This Event

This Year's Highlights

• Explores the creative exchange between Japanese manga and French/European bande dessinée (BD).
• 20+ confirmed guest artists and authors, with author talks and signing sessions.
• BD marketplace, French food, and exhibitions on Belgian comics and international manga collaborations.

Tickets

Free admission and autograph sessions, 11am-5pm (last entry 4pm).

Access

Lycée Français International de Tokyo, Kita ward, near Itabashi Station (Toei Mita Line / JR Saikyo Line).

What To Know

For manga fans who've never encountered bande dessinée, this is a rare, curated introduction to an entire European comics tradition that actually shaped and was shaped by the manga they already love.

Bande dessinée is a genuinely major, art-respected comics tradition in Francophone Europe - its relative obscurity in Japan despite manga's huge popularity in France is a real cultural asymmetry this festival is explicitly trying to correct.

Easy Japanese

東京で、10月31日と11月1日に日本のマンガとヨーロッパのコミックを紹介するイベントが開かれます。入場は無料です。

Marine's View

マンガとバンド・デシネ、お互いに影響し合っているなんて知らなかったです。日本の皆さんにもBDを知ってほしいですね。