Sonia Leong

Since my work was displayed as a standout during the first year of IMAF in 2004, I had been asked to design the official mascots of the 2005 campaign, and have been involved as a judge for the past 2 years. The competition has an US$ 85,000 prize fund, and the exhibition is held at London Country Hall.

In their very first competition held in the UK, I came second place with my entry, "Fatal Connection". This is featured in the official Volume 1 anthology, internationally published.

My entry was one of the 5 winners of this competition. A five page manga called "Power Trip". You can view this manga from my official website.

My latest graphic novel, Manga Shakespeare: Romeo and Juliet published by SelfMadeHero has received favourable reviews from several UK broadsheet dailies, including the Independent, Financial Times and the Guardian. Please visit my officila website to view the scans of the newspaper articles:
appear.html#press

I'm regularly featured in the UK's only Asian popculture Magazine, NEO. I've also made appearances in other anime-related magazine internationally (Animania from Germany) and in other art/lifestyle magazines. Please view my appearnaces page on my officila website for more details:
appear.html

I run lots of Manga workshops across the UK, and even across the Pond to the States! Get in touch with me if you are looking to run a workshop at a school, library or museum. Past/future appearances include London MCM Expo, Boston Anime 2007, Artist & Illustrators Exhibition 2004, V&A Museum, Bournemouth Russell-Cotes Museum, University of Derby Buxton Dome...

Sonia is a professional illustrator specialising in the Anime/Manga style and comic artwork. Her latest graphic novel is a Manga adaptation of Romeo & Juliet published by Self Made Hero / Metromedia UK. Her entry to Tokyopop’s first UK Rising Stars of Manga competition came 2nd place and features in the official anthology. Other competition achievements include Winner in NEO Magazine's 2005 Manga Competition and judging for the International Manga and Anime Festival (IMAF), which has a US$85,000 prize fund. Her work is appearing an upcoming British movie, Popcorn, directed by Darren Paul Fisher, starring Jack Ryder (EastEnders) and Jodie Albert (Hollyoaks). Sonia is a core member of Sweatdrop Studios, the leading UK comic collaborative. Her works with Sweatdrop include Murder on the Dancefloor (appearing in the first UK-produced Manga anthology, Sugardrops), Once Upon a Time, and Cyborg Butterfly. She works in a variety of mediums, including watercolour, pen & ink, screentone, alcohol colour markers, pencils and computer software. She has exhibited artwork in prestigious venues (London County Hall, London Cartoon Museum, Japanese Embassy), provided product demonstrations (on behalf of Copic, Letraset and Wacom) and regularly presents workshops on Manga artwork in schools and libraries. Her illustrations have been featured in several Manga-related publications, events, websites and magazines internationally.

I've recently started to pursue artwork full time as a career because my favourite art style, the dyanamic, Japanese cartooning form known as Manga (also called Anime due to the stylistic Japanese animations using this style of drawing) has become incredibly popular in the UK, and is gaining momentum.

I not only create individual art pieces and illustrations, but also create comics and sequential art. More than anything, comics are about telling a story and I find that when I read manga/comics, that is what makes me turn the pages more than anything. Pretty artwork however, is what makes you pick it up in the first place. ^_^;;

Good luck to all artists out there. And don't forget - improve.... or die. ^_~ That's mine and my artist group's motto.