Comix 35 offers a great opportunity for people how have a passion for drawing that want to learn how to use their skills in comics. It also teach how to bring the Gospel buy producing comics that will reach people in their own cultural environment. I'm a comic artist and I had the previlege to participate in teaching one of the Comix 35 seminar in Quebec. I was surprised about the professionalism and the quality of the guest artists teachers coming from around the globe to participate to this seminar. Apart from the great teachings, Comix 35 seminars are a wonderful way to make contacts with other professional comic artists and lear many tips form the industry of comics. I would defenitaly recommand Comix 35 to anyone with a minimum of drawing knowledge that would like to use their skills to draw Christian comics for the purpose of spreading the Gospel in their own country.
Comix35 is doing a great job spreading the word of Christ through graphic media (bitterly know as comics). The donations are well spent and are used to put on seminars in different Countries around the world to teach individuals how to develop and produce graphic stories to spread the word of Christ, in their own language and within their own cultural context. It is amazing what comes out of these seminars and how this ministry is spreading the word of Christ.
As a board member, I can tell the donations are very well spent.
It was through Comix35 that I developed an interest in learning to create comics for evangelism. A few years later I had the honor to help teach a few seminars with Nate and other comic artists first in Delaware 2005, then more recently in Quebec 2011. The expertise of the staff and more importantly the presence of the Spirit help equip those who are starting out wanting to create comics to those with experience in the field who would like to hone their skills. I can't say enough about this ministry; very professional and mission-minded.
Comix35 provides decades of professional experience, compassionate hearts and industry savvy expertise to Christians around the world seeking to communicate through comics. Their training seminars not only elevate their participant’s knowledge and skill in the art form, but also heighten their spirits and enlarge their vision regarding the use of comics as a potent tool for spreading the Christian message. Comix35 crosses cultures, forms community, inspires creativity and leaves enduring traces of Christ’s cross on the lives of those taught, as well as in the pages penned as a result of their teaching.
I attended a Comix35 seminar with some of my comics team. We are not proffessionals and had a projet to do comics toguetter. We didnt know were to begin and how to do so we were sitting on our project for about a year and a half. By going to the seminar, we were able to obtain all the tools to go foward and now we are ready to publish our very first comic! After the seminar comix35 made a follow up with us personnally and gave us the little push to finish what we had started. Without their help we would still be sitting on our good idea with nowhere to go...
I worked with Nate Butler to get a few comics done. All in a good day's work and there was no difficulty we couldn't work out together.
Having lived and worked in developing countries, I fully understand the significance and potential of comics literature in spreading the Word of God, as well as it's potential in the U.S. I know of no other ministry that provides the technical assistance and spirt for preparing disciples to use this medium for the glory of God. A supporter of this work for over a decade, I will continue to pray and give resources to the mission of COMIX35. Praise God!
I attended a comic conference run by Comix35 in Sydney in 2006, and not only learnt many useful things about comic creation, but also made friendships that have resulted in me being given the chance to work on Christian comic and animation projects.
I've also found the website invaluable for keeping up to date with what is happening around the world in Christian comic circles, and the website is my main source and first point of call for this information.
Comix35 is, as far as I know, unique in the way that it helps Christian comic book creators around the world to spread the Gospel through the comic book medium.
Before you read my review, please know that Nathan Butler and I got married in May 2012, so I would like to point out two things: 1) I am biased :-) and 2) I am writing in reference to my time on the Board of COMIX35 before Nathan and I became a couple. His first wife, Susan, and my first husband, Jonathan, both passed away in 2011. I am writing about the time when Nathan and I were both still in our first marriages.
Nathan asked me to consider serving God's ministry through COMIX35 seven years ago. Specifically, he asked me if I would be willing to serve as the Treasurer/Chief Financial Officer on the Board of Directors because of my accounting background. After prayer, consideration, and consultation with my husband, Jonathan, I accepted the honor.
From the perspective of an accounting-oriented and business-oriented person and not as any kind of comics artist, I can tell you that Nathan and the COMIX35 ministry are clean-cut, honorable, honest, frugal, sincere, and genuine.
During my six years as the Treasurer/CFO, part of my job was to keep an eye on the bookkeeping and banking and to be enforce internal controls. I never once saw even a penny's error or misuse in the monthly bookkeeping (income and expenses), the payroll, nor the annual non-profit tax return. Each year, COMIX35 has its books externally and independently audited, and each the auditor would struggle to find something to ask for improvement for the following year. Finally, he just gave up and admitted that he could not ask for more.
Obviously, as soon as Nathan and I started dating, I resigned as the Treasurer/CFO. I planned to resign from the Board altogether, but the other Board members generously and unanimously asked me to stay.
As a Board member, I am here to tell you that God uses Nathan and COMIX35 in incredible ways! He keeps His promises, and He amazes us regularly by showing the greatness of His power. He takes this tiny, little mustard seed of a ministry and grows it exponentially into a huge vehicle for bringing people into His Kingdom. I ask you to seriously consider supporting this ministry first prayerfully and secondly financially. God uses prayer support and financial support in miraculous ways through COMIX35!!!
Comix35 has the most extensive library of comic/illustrated renderings of the Bible and stories from the Bible that I have ever seen. It has helped to translate the story of God into the language of the largest unreached people group on earth - world-wide youth. The language? Manga. The visual language of youth culture, especially in Asia. In this series of Manga Nate was both inspiration and editor. I cannot recommend this ministry more highly.
I went to the first Christian Comic Book Training in the Philippines 16 years ago, having no idea what to expect. A whole slew of comic pros who had worked on all the big names--Snuffy Smith, Archie, Superman etc--introduced us to the art and philosophy of comics making and gave us tools to use them for communication. Since then Comix35 has conducted seminars on every continent except Antarctica, and has been responsible for motivating many influential projects: Christian mangga from Japan, street child ministries in various world cities--in Mexico, South America, Russia--and prison tract testimonials written and illustrated by inmates.
This ministry is run with great integrity by CEO Nate Butler who squeezes every milli-cent of value from the widow's mite. He will not tour or buy a single souvenir when traveling for Comix35 because he is so concerned with financial and time-use integrity. This is why I consented to be on the Board for several terms. Anyone who has done missions in the 2/3 world--as we did in the Philippines--knows that comics, indeed are "the world's most popular literature."
It costs huge sums of money, all kinds of hustle, bustle, hassle and administrative expense to field missionaries. Whereas, training missionaries, emerging leaders, and talented church members to use comics for evangelism and discipleship give you a gigantic return for your donated buck.
I have known COMIX35 and Nate Butler for about 10 years and I have not only been impressed by Nate's knowledge and insight into the world of comics, but been richly blessed by his gifts and insightful help. With his encouragement and assistance we set out on a major manga project. This has been a true success and we have will always be most grateful to COMIX35 and Nate for all the valuable advice and help we have received. COMIX35 is a unique and much needed organization for reaching out to a needy world.
I worked with Comix35 and Nate Butler in Bulgaria for a training of Bulgarian editors and artists. I totally enjoyed my work with Nate - he brings passion for the work he does, he knows what he's talking about (his teaching content is not borrowed from a Google-d articles), he's practical and down-to-earth-kind-of-instructor and all the participants in the training gave a very positive feedback. If I can work with Nate again, I wouldn't think twice. I highly recommend his work and the work Comix35 does!
My wife and I have known COMIX35 for over 20 years, and I've seen how God has used this ministry to reach literally thousands around the world by training comic artists to use this medium to bring hope into people's lives. In fact, with comic books as popular as they are in most of the world, when we have been able to support Comix35 and Nate Butler, we feel that we are leveraging our gift to exponentially to reach the largest numbers of people with the Gospel of grace.
I know Nate personally to be a Christian man with a lot of integrity and compassion. I do not hesitate to recommend COMIX35 without any hesitation.
I've been involved with comix35 since first attending a conference in 1995. Since then I have become volunteered with them in subsequent conferences, most of which have been pioneering, and hope to remain connected to them for the rest of my life!
We are a collaborating ministry with Comix35.
They have produced a tract about my life and the profound changes that the Lord has made. I was an inmate for 21 years. Now I am an Evangelist that the Lord is using in the prisons. The tract was drawn by an inmate about an ex-inmate.
This tract is being used in prisons across the country and has made a real difference in so many lives.
We are so grateful to Comix35. They have done for us what we could never have done for ourselves!
www.comix35.org
I first encountered COMIX35 in 1996, and in the subsequent years I have seen Nate Butler and this ministry produce and/or package evangelistic Christian comics which help the native to reach the native with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Awareness of and sensitivity to cultural conditions and expectations are such a relief from a lot of 'one size fits all' mentality in international publishing. Additionally, Nate and his team have conducted many fine training seminars in various nations over the past 17 years where firsthand contact and instruction have greatly encouraged and inspired local Christian talent and existing ministries to better understand and utilize visual media, including comics, in evangelism.
Alec Stevens
publisher of Calvary Comics
www.calvarycomics.com
