The Philippine International Comics Festival (PICOF) 2026, the Japan Foundation Manila, and BLushcon proudly presents SINTA: Queer Stories Across Asia, an international comics exhibition that explores how queer stories have traveled, evolved, and flourished across the region through the medium of sequential art.
70 Years of Philippines-Japan Friendship
The theme of the 2026 Japan-Philippines Friendship Year is “Weaving the Future Together: Peace, Prosperity, and Possibilities”. It is also hoped that this project will serve as an opportunity to further deepen affinity toward Japan among a wide range of generations in the Philippines.
This project will be implemented as part of the Next Generation Co-Creation Partnership – WA 2.0, a comprehensive people-to-people exchange initiative aimed at promoting exchanges and fostering the next generation of leaders between Japan and ASEAN.
Named after the Filipino word for “beloved,” SINTA examines the evolving contours of queer intimacy through comics, bringing together creators from Japan and Southeast Asia in a vibrant cross-cultural dialogue. The exhibit traces the legacy of Boys’ Love (BL), which first emerged from Japanese girls’ comics over fifty years ago and has since grown into a global genre that continues to shape how readers imagine love, relationships, and identity.
Highlighting the cultural ties between Japan, the Philippines, and Southeast Asia, SINTA showcases how queer narratives have crossed borders, inspired new forms of storytelling, and found unique expressions in different communities throughout Asia. Through diverse artistic styles and perspectives, participating creators explore the many ways love can be expressed, celebrated, and understood.
The exhibition features more than 30 creators from across Japan and Southeast Asia, including invited artists Masaomi Ito (Japan), Ayu Yamane (Japan), antarcticbear (Vietnam), Isha Wang (Singapore), Kayraa (Indonesia), Everwetscent/Sal (Thailand), blue (Burma), Scottyiscrying (Vietnam), Tagasaing (Philippines), and Tsambolero (Philippines), alongside selected artists from across the region.
Visitors can meet the invited guest artists, and also attend special SINTA masterclasses, and on-stage activities during PICOF 2026. Festival programming will be held at the 2nd Floor Activity Center Stage, while PICOF Masterclasses will be conducted separately at the Octagon Room near Timezone.
SINTA is presented as part of the Philippine International Comics Festival 2026 in partnership with BLushCon, Japan Foundation Manila, and Komiket.
Join us at the exhibit launch on July 3, 2026, and at the PICOF 2026 event happening from July 10-12, 2026, and discover a collection of stories that give every shade of affection a voice, a region, and a name.
