Ramona Tănase is Copyright Manager in Art Editorial Group. We’ve discussed hereabout what her job entails. In the below interview, Ramona told us how she visited Angoulême International Comics Festival, the Paris Book Market, the Children’s Book Fair in Bologna and how she wound up at the Smurf Village in Belgium. What seems impossible to achieve in a lifetime for mere mortals, happened one faithful spring to Ramona. As follows.
In just two months, you’ve been twice in France, once in Italy and once in Belgium as well. What’s your secret?
Saying yes to everything that comes your way 
and buying plane tickets. And catching the flight!
You are part of the happy few that have taken part in the Angoulême International Comics Festival. How did you end up there?
With great difficulty, and I mean that literally, because I did not manage to comply with point three of the above answer. And so, I had to book another flight for the next day (instead of the 7 hours it was initially supposed to take, it took me 12 hours with different airport connections). And so, I missed one day of the fair and some meetings, and I went out of my way to reschedule them in the remaining 2 days.
But, if that were to not have happened, the storyline would have been the following: last October I received an email from Marie Fabri, Head of Angoulême International Rights Market, asking me if I wanted to take part in the 2022 edition of the Festival as a guest. Also, they would provide financing for the round trip and accomodation, and provide a stand at the fair if I were interested in bringing a few books to present to the other participants [published by Grafic or miniGrafic, imprints of Art Editorial Group, Ed.].
Needless to say, my answer was yes 
It was supposed to be at the end of January, but because of COVID restrictions it was postponed and re-planned in March.
So, it was a rough start for the fair, it was a shame not to contribute with my coil. All jokes aside, if it wasn’t for my understanding boss and a colleague that bought me the plane and TGV tickets replacing the ones that I had lost by not arriving on time at the airport, I would have never arrived at the Comics Festival at Angoulême! I owe it to them!
How was Angoulême? Was it the same as any other book fair?
Noooo, not by a mile! It’s crazy!
For the above-mentioned reasons, let’s say it was an intense book fair. I didn’t have much time to enjoy the events outside of the professional meeting area.
But this is not why I said it was crazy. I have never taken part in an event, especially a book fair, that caused such madness around it. And here, I don’t mean just the people that work in the field, but the public, the comic book readers in France.
In the few spare moments I had, I left the meeting space and went to the other event points of the Festival. I must mention that all around the city there were tents, small halls with book launches, exhibitions and whatnot.
But what I enjoyed most was the fact that I saw the readers like never before: desperate to get to the events (running on the streets for fear of missing a workshop that was interesting or some discussion between professionals), to buy the albums, to meet the artists, to share ideas, to literally stand on the ground next to the stall or antique store they bought the album from and not get up until they finished reading it, analysing it, admiring it. And this is what I saw from dusk till dawn in all three days I was there. And there were many, many people, from children to retirees, all filling the streets, the antique shops, the book shops with the same energy. I did not hear anyone talking about something other than comic books those days.
Were you blown away by anything?
Yes, I was surprised by the extent of the BD phenomenon in France/Europe and by the large number of readers of all ages that make the trip to Angoulême just for the Festival. Their passion blew me away.
What celebrities did you encounter, real people or comic book characters?
Well, I was tête-à-tête Hergé (his bust 
), I walked on the street that bears his name, I met the icon comic book characters that were displayed on most of the walls in Angoulême (Lucky Luke, The Smurfs, Tintin, Asterix etc.).
In real life I haven’t had the opportunity yet.
Let’s stay in France, so in the middle of April you were invited to take part in the first edition of the Paris Book Market, the first international fair in France organized for book industry professionals. Who sent you the invitation and what did it entail?
I was invited by Roxanne Verron, Books and debates Project Manager at the Bucharest French Institute. The French Institute provided my round trip and BIEF (Bureau International de l’Edition Française) provided the accommodation. There I took part in meetings (previously set up in the LaBase-RendezVous platform) with publishing houses and agencies from France.
How was the mood at the Paris Book Market? Were there many participants, did you have a lot of meetings?
There were many participants, mainly publishing houses and agencies from France, since this fair was created for them in particular, the goal being to spread French culture. But there were participants from many countries.
This fair was also intense; at some point I was glaring at myself from somewhere on the outside and it seemed to me like speed dating. For this image to take shape, the space in which the meetings took place had a great contribution: a one-story building, delimited in about 5 rooms (so 10 in total), full of tables where the French publishers were seated. The guests would go from table to table and discuss with each representative. I had many meetings, yes, from 9 A.M. to 6 P.M. with just one or two breaks. I was dizzy by the end of the day.
Do you have any wow memories from the Paris fair?
I enjoyed everything, but it was wow to meet Antoine Gallimard [the grandson of Gaston Gallimard, founder of the Gallimard Publishing House, present head of Gallimard and the group it is part of, Madrigall, Ed. ] and taking part in a dinner party hosted by him at the Société des Gens de Lettres.
Did you also cross with the events from the Festival du Livre de Paris, also at the first edition and mainly in the same period, where Romania was (very) present through the involvement of the teams from The National Book Centre and Romanian Cultural Institute in Paris?
Not at all. I only saw the building in which it was supposed to take place, but it was on the day before the opening, and I was not allowed to enter (I must admit that I did try). And I was back home on Friday, the first day of Festival du Livre de Paris.
Was Paris the same as always for you?
Not really! I’ll admit I was accommodated in an area that I did not explore in my previous visits.
I found the Tower was fenced due to rehabilitation work, it was forbidden to lay on the grass in Champs-de-Mars because the lawn was resting and recuperating, a large construction was built in front of the Tower where the Salon du Livre was held this year, Grand Palais Éphémère (which is, as the name states, a temporary building, a very interesting architectural concept).
Apart from this, everything was the same, eternal Paris with its Metro and citizens (who this time seemed much more kind and helpful), with its baguettes and bistros. It also seemed quieter than I remembered, lacking the hum buzz, or maybe I was just more tolerant.
Between the two visits in France, you went to Bologna, at the children’s book fair. How did you find it there? Was it obvious it was the first time it was held live in three years?
Yes, I felt it! Although there were fewer exhibitors than three years ago, it seemed more frantic than before. A lot more happy people, willing to sit at a table and chat, rather than in front of a screen, to browse pages, not PDFs.
How many meetings did you have at Bologna and how were these types of meetings?
I can’t remember exactly. There were many, but I spent four days at the fair, so it wasn’t like speed dating. I had time to stroll around the fair, see what books were exhibited, get used to seeing experts at work again.
Most of the fair meetings follow the same thirty-minute ritual. The novelty factor was that after three years of not seeing each other, we obviously began with memories from the pandemic. A bit small talkat first, after which we would fill each other in on the outcome of our titles that had already been bought (what stage of publication they were in, if they are successful in Romania, if we would continue the series we already began etc., it depends). After which I was asked if we are looking for something specific (topic, genre, age group etc.) and, according to my answer they would present new titles and the highlightsfor each of their categories. And so the inevitable happened, we would shake hands or hug, and agree to ‘keep in touch’ via email.
You recently went to Belgium and visited the Smurf Village. Where exactly is it and how did you end up there?
The Smurf Village is called Genval, located at the border of Flanders and Wallonia, about an hour and a half from Brussels. I arrived by car. All jokes aside: In Belgium I went on holiday, nothing work-related. However, in Bologna, having met Louise (in charge of royalties for Smurfs) I told her I was going for a week in Brussels. Then, she asked me, since I was already in the area, if I would care to visit their offices and meet the entire team, and the Smurf universe? As stated at the beginning: I say yes to everything that comes my way! Therefore, I went.
What does this village look like?
The location is very bohemian, full of manors and small castles, with a very cute lake for the locals to stroll around. The kind of location where aristocrats or wealthy people spend the weekend. Very tranquil and peaceful and it seemed to have a united community, they greeted each other, stopped and chatted, they all seemed to know each other.
Of course, the entrance of the town is signalled by a circle of flowers and a Smurf statue. And in a corner of this small town lies the general quarters of the Smurfs: a large building, full of Smurfs in all shapes and sizes: books, toys, anything you can imagine has taken the shape of Smurfs. Even the garden gnomes are Smurfs there, of course!
Part of the team is a fellow that worked with Peyo [Pierre ‘Peyo’ Culliford, Belgian artist, the creator of the The Smurfs, Ed.] since the very beginning of the The Smurfs! He has the occasional anecdote for his colleagues at lunchtime.
What is your next destination?
Malta. I’ve been summoned by some Knights to help out with a matter😀.
[Photos are part of Ramona Tănase'spersonal Archive.] [Translated into English by Amalia Nicolăiță.]
