Taipei, Oct. 26 (CNA) The Ministry of Culture unveiled the winners of the biggest comic awards in Taiwan on Thursday with the Grand Prize going to "Helena and Mr. Big Bad Wolf" (海倫娜與大野狼先生) by Bliss (布里斯).
The 14th Golden Comic Awards & Connection+ (GCA) ceremony was held at the Taipei New Horizon and saw the winners of 11 awards being announced, led by Bliss and the other five winners of the Comic of the Year Award.
Bliss gave her biggest thanks to fans who have believed in her capability and supported her along the way, saying that she took "Helena and Mr. Big Bad Wolf" (hereafter referred to as "Helena") as an experiment in which she tried to come up with something the readers have not expected but can enjoy.
An alumni of Ming Chuan University's Department of Digital Media Design, Bliss said she started creating fanfiction when she was still a student and has been a full-time creator for six to seven years, but it was only by chance that she became a cartoonist.
Despite her wish to become a professional manga artist, she had no idea how to do it, and even after a publisher reached out to her, she could not finish her original story due to her lack of experience.
"It felt like no one really knew what Taiwanese manga was at that time. I kept exploring in the beginning and have learned a lot [through the process]," she said.
Bliss said "Helena" is a story about creation, which is also the fruition of what she has worked on along the way.
"Helena" was one of the six winners of the Comic of the Year award; the others are "Formosa Oolong Tea 5" (異人茶跡5: 茶路綿延) by Kiya Chang (張季雅), "The 207th bone" (二零七之骨) by Lin I-chen (林奕辰), "Console, 2073" (2073年的電子遊戲) by Ding Pao-yen (日安焦慮), "The Banana Sprout vol. 1" (芭蕉的芽1) by Zuo Hsuan (左萱) and "YAN3" (閻鐵花3) by Chang Sheng (常勝).
Kiya Chang got emotional when delivering her speech, recalling the long path she has gone through with the love and support of her readers.
Over a decade ago, no one held a positive view of Taiwanese manga, Chang said, adding that it was the fans spreading their love for Taiwanese manga that has enabled it to come this far.
The biggest winner next to Bliss was "Bla Bla Song" (芭樂歌) by Peter Mann. The work was awarded the Cross-media Cooperation Award and the author won the Best New Talent Award.
Better known for her efforts in animation, Peter Mann, in addition to drawing "Bla Bla Song," organized the creation of an anime music video, the production of the original soundtrack vinyl record, for her work, which was appreciated by the judges.
In addition, Hung Teh-ling (洪德麟) received the Special Contribution Award in honor of his long-term dedication to studying Taiwanese manga and spreading his knowledge of it.
Meanwhile, Chu Yen-hung (朱晏紅) was named Best Editor based on her editorship of "Island Rhapsody: Listen to the Voice of Taiwan" (島嶼狂想曲：聽台灣在唱歌), a manga work that has its roots in the Golden Bell Awards winner "Listen Taiwan Sing" (聽!台灣在唱歌).
Chu thanked the 10 manga artists who contributed to the work and hoped all the cartoonists and manga industry workers at the scene could find themselves one step closer to their ideal works each day in the future.
Also on Thursday, the Ministry of Culture said the National Comic Museum is set to open in December in Taichung, and the GCA ceremony will be held in the city in central Taiwan next year.
