Comic Con Africa with Capitec returns to the Johannesburg Expo Centre, Nasrec, in September 2026. The show runs from Thursday 24 September through Sunday 27 September from 9am to 6pm daily. It turns out you don’t have to be a geek to love Comic Con Africa’s content. You could be an art collector or buyer, someone looking to learn about the creative industries and their career prospects, be wanting to upgrade or test the latest tech and gaming equipment, a family looking for a weekend of engaging entertainment, or even someone hoping to build industry connections.
Art Collectors, Gallerists, Art Buyers, and Artists
Art collectors, gallerists looking for artists, and art buyers can meet local artists. Artist Alley is packed with artists showing their original artworks, taking commissions, and even looking for artists to collab with. Pop culture as a theme covers a ton of ground, and the art at Comic Con Africa is not only based in comics and graphic novels. While there is a lot of comic content, art afficionados and those in the business of art will discover artists with their own personal compelling styles. Artists at the festival offer one-of-a-kind original paintings and drawings, prints, digital illustrations, and more across the spectrum of artistic disciplines. The festival gives a platform to local artists who want to build a name for themselves. With tens of thousands of people walking through the con doors every day, it represents an unmissable opportunity for these artists to grow their influence, and to meet up with a massive new audience. For artists, pushing their art on social media is one thing, but meeting buyers and collectors face-to-face in real life and having the opportunity to share what their art is all about and where they’re going, is a whole new dynamic. There are also lots of journalists in attendance at the con, giving artists a chance to publicise their work in the press.
Industry and Educational Content
The con brings together educators, professionals, and industry experts who share their knowledge in panels, talks, workshops, and presentations across a number of stages in the convention. For example the Artist Alley stage specifically features content around artists, and it is a place where con-goers can listen to speakers in the arts talk about how they built their careers, sharing tips for con-goers looking to do the same. Workshops on this stage also teach con-goers how to design their own comics or Mangas. Fans can listen to talks from animators and animation studios talking about their journeys from storyboard to feature length animation. The con also brings exclusive screenings from local animators, giving huge exposure to worthy productions. Other learning material covered by Comic Con Africa’s content includes insights into structuring, writing, and telling stories, information on cyber security, making a career as an actor, turning your story into a TV series, and breaking into Indie film making. Watch out for the release of Comic Con Africa with Capitec’s full 2026 programme.
Tech Shoppers and Gaming Consoles
For those who love tech and gaming, Comic Con Africa’s dedicated gaming hall is filled with tech shopping, gaming activities, and loads of consoles and games that casual players can try out for free. If you’re thinking about buying a new console or game, before making a huge investment, try it out at Comic Con Africa first in multiple free-to-play areas. If you’re keen to upgrade your rig, there are loads of retailers at the con selling parts and accessories at huge show specials. Ever heard of esports? It’s not just for the players. Con-goers can learn about the world of competitive gaming by watching nail-biting national tournament finales with eye-watering prize pools, seeing pros battle it out in daily comps, or even sign up in daily casual competitions to win tech prizes themselves.
Families and Kids
Comic Con Africa is packed with exciting family and kid-friendly activities. In 2026 the festival is bringing back KidsCon, which is a dedicated space within the convention just for kids with its very own Main Stage and kid-focussed content. Think photo ops with Mario and Luigi or YouTube sensations Noodle and Bun, tons of toy retailers with exciting new launches and specials, gaming zones and competitions, lessons on playing fun no-screen-required tabletop boardgames, and getting creative in art and animation workshops. Loads of fun awaits kids and families at KidsCon. It’s absolutely not your average family day out.
Building Connections
Comic Con Africa with Capitec is a key forum for trendsetters, as importers and manufacturers engage in product launch validation at the festival, giving con-goers the opportunity to find out about exciting new products first before they hit mass markets. As a natural consequence of being one of the most creatively fertile and niche gatherings in South Africa, the show brings together likeminded businesses looking to work together. Comic Con Africa has been the birthplace of successful commercial endeavours and joint ventures. Think creators and crafters getting to showcase their ideas to potential investors, inventors of toys and collectibles waiting to go viral, boardgames ready to be developed for a mass audience, video games on the verge of being played by millions, and books with storylines ready to be published or produced as hit series or films. Comic Con Africa also brings JETRO to the con, the Japan External Trade Organisation, which gives local businesses the chance to meet Japanese industry. This creates the opportunity for licensing and importing of Japanese IP, bringing exciting new products to South Africa.
