Graphic Novel Adaptation of Refugee Narratives

Greetings! I am based in Tokyo and run a bilingual website, Refugee Voices Japan ([login to view URL]) from Sophia University where I am a Professor Emeritus. We publish real‑life narratives by refugees and migrants living in Japan. We would like to adapt some of our existing written profiles into short graphic novels for publication on our website. [login to view URL] The stories are already written in prose--each refugee profile is based on almost 20 hours of video recording already completed. We do not need new interviews or research; we would like a production team to create graphic stories or short graphic novel sequences based on these existing refugee profiles. Our plan is to adapt all 12–15 profiles into graphic novels in total, but we would first start with just one. We are not clear about the length or format of the graphic novel. Publication. There are two options: 1. We publish on our bilingual website and social media. [login to view URL] 2. University of Toronto has approached us about publishing this in their series, Ethno-Graphics. [login to view URL] The themes involve refugees’ suffering persecution in their home countries (usually Africa or the Middle East); their fight across various obstacles to arrival in Japan; their challenges they face once they arrive in Japan. These are difficult, often dramatic, stories. We are looking for artists and editors comfortable with serious, real‑life content. Could you please let us know: – Whether you handle this kind of adaptation project. – How you usually work when a client brings existing text. – A rough estimate and schedule for a small pilot (for example, adapting one narrator’s story into a few pages). – Your standard arrangement for rights and usage. Thank you very much for your time. I look forward to hearing from you. Best regards, David Slater, Sophia University

Project ID: 40496471