Jewish Comics Experience (JewCE) Announces Award Categories, Nominees, and Judges

New York, NY (June 1, 2023)

Celebrating Jewish culture and its impact on the world of comics and pop culture, the event will hand out nine awards to some of the most prestigious names in the world of comic books and illustration.

Today, creators of JewCE – the Jewish Comics Experience – announced nine award categories and a prestigious list of eleven judges for November’s upcoming convention, dedicated to celebrating Jewish culture and its impact on the world of comics and pop culture.

The convention was created by – and will be held at – the Center for Jewish History, home to the world’s largest and most comprehensive archive of the modern Jewish experience outside of Israel. Slated for November 11th and 12th, it will bring together fans, creators, and industry professionals to explore the rich history and contributions of diverse Jewish creators and characters in the comics medium.

The convention will recognize artists and creators in nine categories as part of its “JewCie Awards.”’ The first ceremony ever held in celebration of Jewish comics, the JewCie Awards will support JewCE’s mission by honoring the creators of Jewish comic book narratives, themes, and characters. The awards will serve as a platform to acknowledge and celebrate the unique contributions of artists, storytellers, and creators who have invested their talents and passion into Jewish storytelling through the medium of comics.

“As we get closer to our upcoming convention in November, we are thrilled to see the outpouring of excitement from creators and artists to everyday comic book fans around the world,” said Dr. Miriam Mora, Director of Academic and Public Programs at the Center for Jewish History and Co-Creator, JewCE. “This event is designed to involve fans and creators from all walks of life and across diverse communities. The recognition and celebration of major contributions to Jewish comics not only validate the artists’ work but also inspire others to explore and express their own Jewish identity and experiences through the comic medium. We are honored and humbled to have secured this panel of distinguished judges and look forward to the selection process over the next few months leading up to the convention.”

“It wasn’t until I sat down and looked at the JewCiE Awards nominees lists that I fully realized just how many amazing Jewish-themed comics and graphic novels there are out there,” said Danny Fingeroth, Chair of the JewCiE Awards. “I hope the nominations and eventual awards bring much-deserved attention to these important works and to Jewish comics in general.”

The final determination of awardees in each of the categories is expected sometime in October, a few weeks before the convention.

The nine JewCie awards are:

  • Macherke Award for Career Contributions to Jewish Comics
  • JewCie Artist Honoree of the Year
  • JewCie Writer Honoree of the Year
  • JewCie Book Award in Diverse Jewish Representation
  • JewCie Award for Historical Narratives
  • JewCie Award for Autobiographical Content
  • JewCie Award for Contemporary Topics
  • JewCie Award for Fictional Narratives
  • JewCie Combating Prejudice Award

This year’s JewCie Awards Committee of Judges includes:

  • Brian Michael Bendis – An award-winning comics creator and bestselling author, he is the co-creator of the “Jessica Jones” series on Netflix.
  • Jeremy Dauber – An author and professor of Jewish literature and American Studies at Columbia University, Dauber also served as director of its Institute for Israel and Jewish Studies.
  • Danny Fingeroth (chair) – A writer and editor, who has served as an editor of Spider-Man at Marvel Comics.
  • Karen Green – The first curator for comics and cartoons at Columbia University.
  • Ken Krimstein – A cartoonist, author, and educator whose work appears in The New Yorker, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, and The Chicago Tribune.
  • Paul Levitz – Former president of D.C. Comics (2002-2009).
  • Chari Pere – An illustrator/storyboard artist and content creator who has written for The Washington Post’s “The Lily,” and Mad Magazine.
  • Alexander Rae – Comic Talen Coordinator for ReedPop, an event, website, and video content creator.
  • Arnon Schor – An Israeli producer and director, best known for “The Pirate Captain Toledano,” “Man of Action!,” and “Glimpse.”.
  • Julian Voloj – A writer who focuses on forgotten heroes and hidden figures, Voloj has been published in The New York Times, Rolling Stone, and the Washington Post, among others.
  • David Walker – The creator and publisher of The Hated, BadAzz MoFo, Discombobulated, and One Fall, Walker also co-created Bitter Root and Naomi.

Artist Honoree of the Year Nominees:

  • Rutu Modan
  • Chari Pere
  • Typex
  • Terri Liebenson
  • Liana Finck
  • Erez Zadok
  • Jorge Miguel
  • Jules Feiffer
  • Asaf Hanuka
  • Rachel Petrowicz

Writer Honoree of the Year Nominees:

  • Jules Feiffer
  • Dani Colman
  • Typex
  • Jordan Gorfinkel
  • Neil Kleid
  • Dan Goldman
  • Alisa Kwitney
  • Jules Feiffer
  • Asaf Hanuka

All other categories and nominees can be seen here.

JewCE is created and hosted by the Center for Jewish History in New York City, which provides a collaborative home for five partner organizations that comprise the world’s largest and most comprehensive archive of the modern Jewish experience outside of Israel. The collections span five thousand years, with more than 5 miles of archival documents (in dozens of languages and alphabet systems), more than 500,000 volumes, and thousands of artworks, textiles, ritual objects, recordings, films, photographs, and even comic books.

About the Center for Jewish History

The Center is the collaborative home of five in-house Partner organizations (American Jewish Historical Society, American Sephardi Federation, Leo Baeck Institute, Yeshiva University Museum, and YIVO Institute for Jewish Research) whose collections comprise over five miles of archival documents in dozens of languages and alphabet systems, over 500,000 volumes of books, 9.1 million digital items, and thousands of artworks, objects, textiles, and recordings. Significant scholarship is regularly published using these materials, including award-winning studies that would have been impossible to write without access to them. The Center opens the collections to the public and democratizes access to them through exhibits, events, fellowships, and a host of free public archive and library services—including the archival preservation efforts of its laboratories.