San Marino is preparing to host the eleventh edition of San Marino Comics, organized this year by the San Marino Comics Association and LEG Live Emotion Group, after the successful collaboration of 2023. This year’s claim, “Believe”, draws inspiration from Frank Baum’s “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz”, underlining the importance of believing in oneself, enhancing one’s abilities and facing difficulties together.
The festival expands beyond the walls of the historic center, offering visitors an immersive journey across 12 different thematic areas. The poster image, created by Christian Cornia, reinterprets the original illustrations from Baum’s book in a modern way, with a touch of DC Comics’ “Teen Titans”. Among the main novelties of the festival we find: the horror tunnel “Toxic Train” inside the Galleria Montalecoordinated by Simone Bazzanella and Sara Franceschetti, created by a team of Scare Actors among the best in Italy; the experiential path inspired by the most famous school of Magic and Witchcraft in the world in the suggestive setting of Palazzo Graziani; the Esport area curated by Qlash; the medieval-fantasy village curated by Battle for Vilegis; the immersive experience in the Emerald City with the characters of the Wizard of Oz, to then return to Kansas and find a western landscape seen through the eyes of Sergio Leone, passing through Laser Tag and Virtual Reality with an infinite path that will end on the terrace of Piazza Sant’Agata with the Soft Air activities.
Great space for meetings with the areas dedicated to the Teatro Titano and in Piazza della Libertà in the company of numerous artists from the universes tangent to the world of Pop Culture. The many enthusiasts will be able to meet among others: Gigi and Andreaicons of the Italian entertainment world, loved by two generations of fans; Roberto Genovesiwriter, journalist, television author, director of Rai Libri and artistic director of Cartoons On The Bay; Riccardo Zara and Guiomar Serinalegendary members of the group I Cavalieri del Re, together with the curator of their biography Germano Massenzio, told by Sky TG24 journalist Fabrizio Basso.
Many events dedicated to music with the shows “Vice is Nice”, “Never Say Goku” and the amazing “Neverland” by Animeniacs Corp. fresh from their success at Italia’s Got Talent. Still on the Main Stage, we will find the charisma of Zethone and the sympathy of Pigspeed and Mr. Cartoonaka Mattia Carola. Directly from the television program “Colorado” on Italia 1, Andrea Pisani and Luca Peracino, aka “PanPers”, promise great laughter to the festival audience. More sympathy with the young and talented Japanese-Brescian stand up comedian Yoko Yamada.
There will also be the Pet & Friends area, in collaboration with Marlù, celebrating the love for four-legged friends. While the new exhibition area linked to retro games merges with the classic Vintage Games Party arcades, while the board games area promises fun for adults and children.
K-pop and Cosplay contests will liven up the Main Stagewith parades and activities organized by the associations Steampunk, Star Wars, Ghostbusters, Sailor Moon and Marvel Superheroes. In addition, participants will be able to immerse themselves in the world of Bud Spencer and Terence Hill, and celebrate 40 years of Karate Kid with special meetings.
The Secretary of State for Tourism, Hon. Federico Pedini Amati he enthusiastically commented on the initiative: “The colorful world of Comics will once again peacefully invade our Historic Center and we can only be proud of it. The event has now reached its maturity and is increasingly an Italian point of reference for lovers of the genre. Guests, artists and collateral events enrich the event and are proposed as an attraction for tourists and visitors. The Secretariat of State for Tourism is proud to support the 2024 edition of San Marino Comics which, we are sure, will be another record edition!”
“It is with great enthusiasm that we have accepted the proposal of the director of San Marino Comics, Paolo Gualdi, to deepen and structure the collaboration between the festival and our company. – declare Sandro Giacomelli, Tania Ferri and Elisabetta De Luca of LEG Live Emotion Group – We had the opportunity to meet Gualdi a long time ago and to appreciate his human and professional qualities. We and the entire LEG team have, through him and his staff, learned to know and appreciate the initiative and we hope that with our project and our know-how we will be able to contribute to the growth and positioning of the event among the most important festivals in the sector”.
They are associated with Gianluca Del Carlo, head of the company’s Pop Culture branch: “Walking on tiptoe along the path of golden bricks is not easy, so I think I have to thank, on behalf of the whole LEG, the working group that has brought San Marino Comics to be the festival we know today, both in terms of open-mindedness and demonstrated trust: the talent of the individual scores a point, but it is the team that wins the game!”
“The announcement of this new edition of San Marino Comics can be compared to Dorothy’s journey to the Emerald City in The Wizard of Oz – explains the director of the festival Paolo Gualdi – we found along the way a group of professionals who supported us, contributing to give an international twist to the project. This year the festival extends beyond the walls to the Galleria Montale, with street furniture that creates continuity between the various areas and attractions of the event. The experience of the team and the collaboration with LEG Live Emotion Group certainly guarantees a very high level of the event. We thank the Secretariats of State that sponsor the festival, in particular that of Tourism and the Tourist Office, for their support in preparing the event”.
San Marino Comics takes place in the historic centre of the city of San Marino and this year it expands outside the city walls in two suggestive new areas:
– Palazzo Graziani – Experience Area “Potterland and the Gifts of Magic”
– Montale Gallery – Horror Zone “Toxic Train”
The Galleria Montale, located about 500 meters from Porta San Francesco, will also be reachable by shuttle, available only to Flash Pass holders, departing from Piazzale dello Stradone.
There are many important partnerships for this edition of San Marino Comics: QLASH, a leading reality in gamingspecializing in organizing tournaments for players of all levels that promote inclusive gaming; United Gamesa true Italian board game institution with titles such as Carcassonne and Catan; Asmodee with the latest releases including Star Wars Unlimited, the latest TCG dedicated to the George Lucas universe; Dice and Bricksspecialized in the kidult sector; the unmissable Play: Game Festival. A big novelty will be the official presence at the festival of Ravensburger with Lorcana, the new expansion “The return of Ursula”: let’s build our deck and start fielding our favorite Disney characters in the most inclusive collectible card game ever. Another surprise for card game lovers: San Marino Comics will be an official stop of theOP Cruisewith a fantastic cruise up for grabs. To close this first roundup Echo Groupleader in the world of cinema.
Friends of San Marino Rtv and Radio San Marino will follow the festival attentively as always. The historic vintage TVs of the sector are unmissable Supersix and Junior Tv. New this year will be the media partnerships with Radio Bruno, the first radio in Emilia Romagna, and with Teleromagnathe leading broadcaster in the Romagna region, which has chosen San Marino to celebrate its 50 years of activity.
The Flash Pass is a new entry for 2024, a bracelet that will reduce waiting times to visit the festival areas by acting as a “Skip the Line”.
In addition, the Flash Pass will offer priority access to the Campo Bruno Reffi performance area by 8:30 pm for access to evening concerts.
The Flash Pass can be purchased at the San Marino Comics Info Points every day from 10.00 to 19.00 at a cost of €5.00 in a limited number of 2,000 per day.
The event will be possible in the Historic Center of San Marino using one of the following means of transport:
Train
The arrival train station is Rimini Station. From here you can take the Rimini-San Marino bus line that will take you directly to San Marino (Historical Center) in about 55 minutes.
Car
A14 Bologna-Ancona motorway; exit at Rimini Sud – Rimini-San Marino SS72 highway. Once you take the highway, you will reach the historic centre in about 20 minutes. Once in the historic centre, you can use the numerous parking lots indicated: n.9, n.8, n.7 and n.2 are the closest. On days when there is a particularly large crowd, it may be necessary to park in the spaces of P12. In this case, a special shuttle service will be active.
Cable car
Alternatively, you can park in Borgo Maggiore in the P11 and P13 car parks accessible from via 28 Luglio and via Oddone Scarito and use the cable car that connects directly to the Historic Centre of San Marino City with departures every 15 minutes. Service active until 01.00.
For further information, please consult the official website of the festival
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