Meet Alex A., the Creator Behind MCAF’s 14th Festival Poster
A few weeks before the 14th edition of the Montreal Comic Arts Festival, we met with creator Alex A., responsible for this year’s festival poster, to learn more about his vibrant creative universe.
Montreal Comic Arts Festival: What inspires you daily in your work as a comic artist?
Alex A.: My inspirations definitely include the geek and pop culture in general: movies, video games, comics—they’ve always been major influences for me. As a kid, it was all about cartoons: Superman, the Smurfs, Star Trek. I was a huge fan of sci-fi, absurd humor, and comedy. The Simpsons is my biggest influence for humorous writing.
I’d say the three biggest inspirations that shaped my comic universe are The Simpsons, DC Comics, and the Nintendo world. Mix them together, and you get my style. – Alex. A., comic artist
Of course, as I’ve gotten older, more things inspire me. I’m a huge David Lynch fan, for example. When I discovered his work a few years ago—even though it’s nothing like what I do—certain philosophical and creative elements really resonated with me. Science too. Anything I read, watch, conversations with people, life experiences, they all feed into my pool of inspiration, and it keeps growing.
MCAF: How would you describe your visual style?
Alex A.: I’m very much in the classic American cartoon style. I don’t have any Japanese or Franco-Belgian influences and I was never hooked on Asterix or Tintin comics.
It was really the cartoon characters on TV that fueled me. – Alex A., comic artist
Japanese storytelling did come into my life through, but through video games, not manga. My style thrives on impact: as simple and expressive as possible. I love simplicity because I’m not the most patient with drawing. I like it when things are relatively quick and fun, when my characters are super dynamic and colorful.
MCAF: How has your style evolved over time?
Alex A.: I’d say the more comics you make, the more you loosen up with your style and characters, the more you own it. What evolved is how far I can stretch my characters, making them more expressive. My efficiency in execution also improved. I can now go further, do more complex things, faster. I wouldn’t say my style has changed drastically over the years, it’s just more uninhibited.
MCAF: How did you approach creating the festival poster?
Alex. A.: I really dug deep to find a simple concept like the idea of a cartoony, classic traveler in his time machine.
I tried to land on an idea that was straightforward, easy to grasp, and that captured the world of comics as a whole. – Alex A., creator of the MCAF’s 14th festival poster
Once I had the idea of a traveler journeying through different eras of comics, it let me reference many characters from Quebec comic books. I worked hard on the time traveler’s design. He has the look: the glasses, the uniform, the machine with the big clock. You look at the poster, and you instantly get it. Then the challenge was making it as lively and colorful as possible.
MCAF: What does it mean to you to create MCAF’s poster?
Alex A.: The kid from Saint-Jérôme is never far away when honors like this come along. To have a big, important festival asking me to do this, I’m like “Wow! Me, with my big-eyed, kinda wonky cartoons?” I’m happy. I feel respected in what I do, and it’s really gratifying. Above all, it’s an honor to have been chosen and I’m very grateful.
MCAF: Is there a hidden detail or Easter egg you’d like to point out in the poster?
Alex A.: I included some very, very, very old Quebecois comic characters from the 1930s and ’40s—the kind that might take a bit of research to name. The real experts might recognize them. Take a close look at all the characters and try to name them. I think it’ll keep you busy for a while.
Come meet Alex A. at the 14th edition of the Montreal Comic Arts Festival, from May 23 to25, 2025.
