July 10, 2017 – Canada has a rich tradition of supporting our national arts communities with awards that recognize the achievements of our citizens in books, music, stage, television and film – the JOE SHUSTER AWARD is Canada’s national award that honours and raises the awareness of Canadians that create, self-publish and sell comics books, graphic novels and webcomics.

They are named after pioneering Canadian-born artist Joe Shuster (July 10, 1914- July 30, 1992), whose clear, dynamic style and inventive visual flourishes set the standard for graphic storytelling during the infancy of the North American comic book industry. It was Superman, a co-creation of Shuster and his friend and neighbour Jerry Siegel, published by National Periodical Productions (now known as DC Comics) that electrified the industry over 75 years ago in 1938 and, almost overnight, transformed comic books into an enormous pop-cultural phenomenon and spawned a legion of costume-clad adventure heroes and heroines.

It was the absence of Superman and his costumed peers from Canadian newsstands during World War II that would help spawn Canada’s first and last country-wide attempt at launching an indigenous, Canadian comic book industry and saw the rise of popular characters like Freelance, Nelvana and Johnny Canuck.

The end of the war eliminated these restrictions and Canadian comic companies disappeared shortly afterwards. Since then Canadian creators have been part of a larger North America-wide comic-book industry and in some cases, international publishing efforts, which is why we recognize Canadian creators who work within the framework of the larger comics ‘industry’ rather than only those creators who have successfully published their creations within Canada alone. 

The award winners will be chosen by a jury vote to ensure every nominee is given adequate consideration.

All images shown are copyright (c) and trademark (TM) their respective owners, and are used to promote the nominations.

The ceremony will take place on the first weekend of September 2017 in Toronto, ON. Exact date and time, venue & the Master of Ceremonies to be announced July 30, 2017 along with the Hall of Fame Inductees and recipient(s) of the TM Maple Award.

And the nominees are:

Webcomics Creator / Créateur de Bandes Dessinées Web

• BOUM – Boumeries
• EMILY CARROLL – Some Other Animal’s Meat
• NICOLE CHARTRAND – Fey Winds
• GISELE LAGACE AND DAVID LUMSDON – Pixie Trix Comics
• SAM LOGAN – Sam & Fuzzy
• WINSTON ROWNTREE – Subnormality
• TY TEMPLETON – Bun Toons

Writer / Scénariste

• FANNY BRITT – Louis parmi les spectres (La Pastèque)
• GORD DOWNIE – Secret Path (Simon & Schuster)
• BRENDEN FLETCHER – Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers: Pink#1-5 (Boom! Studios), Batgirl #48-52, Black Canary #7-12, Gotham Academy #14-18, Gotham Academy: Second Semester #1-4, “Predators” – Wonder Woman 75^TH Anniversary Special (DC), Motor Crush #1 (image)
• JEFF LEMIRE – Black Hammer #1-6 (Dark Horse), Descender #9-17, Plutona 4-5 (image),  All-New Hawkeye #3-6, All-New X-Men #1-3, Moon Knight #1-9, Old Man Logan #1-15, Extraordinary X-Men #1-17 (Marvel) Bloodshot Reborn #10-18, Bloodshot U.S.A., 4001 A.D. Bloodshot (Valiant)
• RYAN NORTH – Jughead #9-11 (Archie) Howard the Duck #6, The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl #4-15 (MARVEL)
• BRYAN LEE O’MALLEY – Snotgirl #1-5 (image)
• CLAUDE PAIEMENT ET JEAN-PAUL EID– La femme aux cartes postales (La Pastèque)
• CHIP ZDARSKY – Jughead #4-8 (Archie), Civil War II: Choosing Sides #5, Howard the Duck #3-11, The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl #6 (Marvel)

Cover Artist / Dessinateur Couvertures

• NICK BRADSHAW –  Alters #1v-2v (Aftershock) Titans #6v (DC Comics) Rocketeer at War #1v, 2v, 3v, 4v (IDW), Spidey #2-4, 6 (Marvel), Army of Darkness/Xena: Warrior Princess: Forever… and a Day #3-4, Kiss #3, Red Sonja Vol. 4 #0 (Dynamite)
• MICHAEL CHO – Batman: The Golden Age Omnibus TP Vol. 1, The Flash: Silver Age Omnibus Vol. 1 TP, Suicide Squad: The Silver Age Omnibus HC (DC), A-Force #3v, All-New Hawkeye #4v, All-New, All-Different Avengers #5v, Amazing Spider-Man #7v, Astonishing Ant-Man #5v, Captain Marvel #2v, Civil War II #1v, 2v,3v,4v, 5v,6v,7v,8v Daredevil #4v, Darth Vader #25v, Doctor Strange #5v, Howard the Duck #4v, Invincible Iron Man #6v, IvX #1v, Mighty Thor #4v, Occupy Avengers #1v, Scarlet Witch #3v, Spider-Gwen #5v, Spider-Man #1v, Totally Awesome Hulk #3v, Unbeatable Squirrel Girl #5v, Uncanny Inhumans #5v, Vision #4v (Marvel)
• MIKE DEL MUNDO – Carnage #4-11, Guidebook to the Marvel Cinematic Universe  – Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD Season One #1, GTTMCU: Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD Season Three #1, GTTMCU: Marvel’s Avengers #1, GTTMCU: Marvel’s Avengers: Age of Ultron #1, GTTMCU: Marvel’s Captain America: The First Avenger #1, GTTMCU: Marvel’s Captain America: The Winter Soldier #1, GTTMCU: Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy #1, IvX #1v, Spider-Man: Renew Your Vows #1v, Spider-Man/Deadpool #1v, Star Wars: Han Solo #5v, Star Wars: Poe Dameron #1v, 7v, Vision #3-4,7-12, Weirdworld #2-6 (Marvel Comics)
• GISELE LAGACE – Archie Meets the Ramones #1, Josie and the Pussycats #1v (Archie), Jem and the Holograms #20v, 21v (IDW) Street Fighter Unlimited #4v (UDON)
• FRANCOIS MIVILLE-DESCHENES – Reconquêtes, Tome 4, La mort d’un roi (Le Lombard)
• YANICK PAQUETTE AND NATHAN FAIRBAIRN – Batgirl and the Birds of Prey  #1-5, Batman #49, Batman #7-8, Batman/Superman #28-32, Justice League #1v, 2v, 3v, 4v, 5v, 6v, 7v, 8v, 9v, 10v, 11v,  Swamp Thing #1v, Titans Hunt #5, Wonder Woman #52, Wonder Woman: Earth One (DC) Lake of Fire #2v (image)
• RAMON K. PEREZ – Betty and Veronica #1v, Jughead #6v (Archie), All-New Hawkeye #3-6, Civil War II: Choosing Sides #5v, Nova #1 (Marvel)
• MARGUERITE SAUVAGE – Archie #6v, 7v, 12v, Josie and the Pussycats #1v (Archie), Goldie Vance #1v, Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers: Pink #1v (Boom!), Spell on Wheels #3 (Dark Horse), Red Sonja #1-6 (Dynamite), Glitterbomb #2v (image), Black Panther #7v, Captain Marvel #1v, Mighty Thor #8v, Patsy Walker, Hellcat #1v (Marvel), Faith #1v, 2v, Faith II #3v,  (Valiant)

v = Variant cover

Artist / Dessinateur

• ISABELLE ARSENAULT – Louis parmi les spectres (La Pastèque)
• JEAN-PAUL EID – La femme aux cartes postales (La Pastèque)
• DAVID FINCH – Batman #1-5, Wonder Woman #48-50 (DC)
• STUART IMMONEN – Empress #1-6 (Millarworld/Marvel)
• GISELE LAGACE – Archie Meets the Ramones #1 (Archie), Die Kitty Die #2-3 (Chapterhouse),  Betty Boop #1-3 (Dynamite)
• JEFF LEMIRE – Secret Path (Simon & Schuster)
• YANICK PAQUETTE – Batman #49-50, Nightwing Rebirth #1, Wonder Woman: Earth One (DC)
• FIONA STAPLES – Saga #33-40 (image)

Cartoonist / Auteur

• KAARE KYLE ANDREWS – Renato Jones The 0ne % #1-5 Season One (image)
• CAB – Hiver nucléaire, tome 2 (Front Froid)
• GUY DELISLE – S’enfuir, récit d’un otage (Dargaud)
• TEVA HARRISON – In Between Days: A Memoir of Living With Cancer (House of Anansi Press)
• MICHEL HELLMAN – Nunavik (Pow Pow)
• COOKIE KALKAIR – Les 9 derniers mois de ta vie de petit con (Les Arènes BD)
• REGIS LOISEL – Mickey Mouse: Café “Zombo” (Glénat BD)
• FRANCIS MANAPUL – Trinity #1-2 (DC)

Gene Day Award (Self-Publishers) / Prix Gene Day (Auto-éditeurs) 

Named after the late Howard Eugene Day (1951-1982), this award honours Canadian comic book creators or creative teams who self-published their work but did not have the books distributed by a third party such as Diamond Comic Distributors, Inc. The nominees were selected from individual publications submitted for review before the deadline of May 30th, 2016.

• MITCH COOK, KEITH GRACHOW – Saltwater #1 (Kika Mika Comics)
• JOHN FLEMING, COLETTE TURNER – Badassical #1 (Dapper Drone)
• MICHAEL CHRISTOPHER HERON, ANDREA FORT, SAM BECK – Songs for the Dead #1 (Necromancer Press)
• JAMIE MICHAELS, EVIN COLLIS – Canoe Boys (Dirty Water Comics)
• NUNUMI – Sky Rover
• VARIOUS – Toronto Comics, Vol. 3 (Toronto Comics Anthology)

Harry Kremer Award (Retailers) / Prix Harry Kremer (Détaillants)
Named after the Harry Kremer, the original owner of Now & Then Books (in Kitchener, Ontario). The CCBCAA maintains a list of active comic book stores and a database of recommendations, referrals and secret shopper reports. A separate Retailer Award Committee overseen by Scott VanderPloeg (Comic Book Daily) reviews the data and selects a short list of stores that have shown merit in a variety of categories. For inquiries please contact Scott at: kremerretailer@comicbookdaily.com

• CYBER CITY COMIX (NORTH YORK, ON)
• DRAWN & QUARTERLY (MONTREAL, QC)
• GOLDEN AGE COLLECTABLES (VANCOUVER, BC)
• L’IMAGINAIRE (LAURIER, QC)
• TIMEMASTERS (ST. JOHN’S, NF)

The Dragon Award (Comics for Kids) / Le Prix Dragon (Bandes Dessinées pour Enfants)
This award recognizes the works which capture the attention and fascination of young readers, and help to create a passion for life-long reading. Works considered for this award are comic books and graphic novels by Canadian creators that are targeted at readers 14 and under. Nominees for this award are selected by a team of educators led by Jennifer Haines, MA, B.Ed., who is also the proprietor of Guelph, Ontario’s The Dragon comic book shop.

• ALEX A. – Les experiences de Mini-Jean tome 1 (Presses Aventure)
• FANNY BRITT, ISABEL ARSENAULT – Louis parmi les spectres (La Pastèque)
• SCOTT CHANTLER – Three Thieves Vol. 7: Iron Hand (Kids Can Press)
• FAITH ERIN HICKS – Nameless City Vol. 1 (:01 First Second)
• ERIC ORCHARD – Bera the One-Headed Troll (:01 First Second)
• GUILLAUME PERRAULT – Le facteur de l’espace (La Pastèque)
• J. TORRES, SEAN K. DOVE – Brobots Vol. 1 (Oni Press)

The T.M. Maple Award / Prix T.M. Maple
The T.M. Maple Award will go to someone (living or deceased) selected from the Canadian comics community for achievements made outside of the creative and retail categories who have had a positive impact on the community.

The recipient(s) of the TM Maple Award will be announced on July 30, 2017.

Canadian Comic Book Creator Hall of Fame / Temple de la renommée Créateur Canadien de Bandes Dessinées

The inductees to the Canadian Comic Book Creator Hall of Fame will be announced on July 30, 2017.

2017 Sponsors:

Current sponsors include:
The Dragon
All New Comics
The Comic Legends Legal Defense Fund (CLLDF).

About The Joe Shuster Awards

Established in 2004, The Joe Shuster Awards are Canada’s national award recognizing outstanding achievement in the creation of comic books, graphic novels and webcomics. The awards are named after pioneering Toronto-born artist Joe Shuster who, along with writer Jerry Siegel, created the iconic super-powered hero, Superman. The name is used with the approval of the Estate of Joe Shuster – Michael Catron, Estate Agent.

The Joe Shuster Awards are assembled by the Canadian Comic Book Creator Awards Association. For more information please contact Awards Director Kevin A. Boyd at kevin@joeshusterawards.com