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Our mad ramblings (and a con roundup) on a Sunday night! Find us on Twitter: @South-Afrifur, https://twitter.com/southafrifur, on Tumblr, http://south-afrifur.tumblr.com/, and on Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/southafrifur Also, for more local news, check out the Zafur forums! http://forum.zafur.co.za/

Thanks to Jako Malan/Erdwolf_TVL for the guest submission. Compare the update with a look back at Fred Patten’s South Afrifur 2017 con report. And check out the guest articles sent here by Duncan Piasecki for another voice from South African furry fandom. “An exciting tourist destination to international furries”? Lekker place, maan. – Patch

Fursuiters SAFC2019 – Thanks to @FurnixWolf (Telegram) for photo.

In 2018, the local furry convention South Afrifur – then in its second year – had the unexpected privilege of South Africa’s largest Afrikaans magazine doing an editorial on the local fandom. I did not feel it pressed on me to write an official report then. This year the local convention attracted little attention from non-furries, but in a way, I think it had reached critical momentum and I felt inspired to write about it again.

Whereas the question on every muzzle in previous years had been “Will there be another con?” and “Did we succeed?” This year, there was tangible optimism and a sense of achievement. Other questions were being asked. “How many fursuiters will there be next year?” and “How will we fit everyone into the available accomodation?”

The 80s themed convention was held from the 12th through the 15th of July at the Ekudeni retreat about an hours’ drive from Johannesburg. As with previous years, the majority of furries came from the Gauteng province – the economic and industrial heartland of South Africa. The other provinces were represented too, albeit in much smaller numbers. We were also privileged to have four international visitors – Bravura and Aninok from Switzerland as well as Kit and Trace from Nebraska in the USA.

Gardens at Ekudeni Retreat

There were many firsts at South Afrifur Con 2019. A marked increase in the number of fursuiters justified a headless lounge for the first time. There was a furry rave on Sunday evening. Measured against the number of furs who didn’t plan on attending (but did) and a noise complaint lodged by the neighboring farm, it was a success. Sketchbooks had floated around at previous cons, but they were much more prominent this year. (Locals have finally caught up!)

Yukon’s Scavenger Hunt and Pop Quiz returned and was well received. There were two panel discussions on Sunday afternoon. “How did you find the fandom” by Jessica Collie and a panel on “Diversity on the Fandom” presented by Ivic Wulfe. The latter stirred a healthy discussion and much participation from the audience.

The Artist’s Alley, which was officially held on Saturday morning, extended throughout the remainder of the weekend. It was bigger and more varied than ever before. Offerings were no longer limited to artist commissions from only a handful of local artists. There was a good selection of books, prints, stickers, jewelry… even fudge for sale. Two of the dealers had underestimated the demand and had run out of stock long before the convention was over. Sales were very good.

The social highlight was a braai at Zonki-Shebeen – a township-themed bar at the venue. Furries mingled around fire pits chatting, smoking and having drinks. Free-roaming Zebra, Springbok, Rooibok as well as other unseen night creatures watched from a careful distance as the furries talked and socialized under the southern night sky.

When time came to say goodbye on Monday morning, at least half the con’s attendees lingered – long after checkout – to help pack up Furnix’s sound system and clean the hall. The sadness was palpable. Unlike those in the other parts of the world, it would be literally a year before this particular group of friends could get together again to celebrate everything furry. In Africa.

There is talk of increasing the size of the organizing committee, with tasks needing to be delegated for the first time. Ekudeni was at about three-quarter capacity in 2019. There is talk of making use of an overflow venue (on the same grounds) should the numbers double as they did over the past two years.

The total number of attendees were fifty three. There were sixteen fursuiters (counting only full suits and partials with heads.) Though the numbers are still being calculated at this time, charitable donations to our chosen charity (Husky Rescue in Kwa-Zulu Natal) is likely to be in the early ten thousand ZAR. (About $650.)

Numbers aside, I think the 2019 convention took the first steps in bridging the gap between the different factions in the local furry community. Three times’ a charm. I think there is no longer any doubt that South Afrifur has the means, reputation and passion to pull off a successful convention.

Having silenced the skeptics, their next step would be to draw in those who’ve been actively critical of the organizing committee. There will always be clashes of personality in this fandom, but as far as furries go, there is always a greater good to account for.

A personal quest of mine would be to market South Africa as an exciting tourist destination to international furries. I’m hoping to drum up enough interest next year to fill a carriage (or bus) with furries travelling to the con from Cape Town.

On a very personal note, I was privileged enough to experience fursuiting for the first time this year. Basil Caribou was kind enough to lend me his Doug Ramses (ala Zootopia) suit. It is a well-made, good looking suit, but not one well suited for extended wear anywhere outside of Antarctica. I had a good sweat walking around with this uncooled padded ram. I participated in the Fursuit Games (organized by YoteFox) and posed for a group photo, too. Though early to say it was an awakening, it was definitely special. Also was seeing ElectroCat (EC) for the first time in about ten years and commissioning him to do a picture of me, my wife and my two kids.

Sadly, all cons come to an end. The venue was (eventually) cleared and the sweaty fursuits hung out to dry. As I crossed the Great Karoo by train on my way back to my mundane life back home, I was left with fond memories, bruised ribs (from excessive hugging) and massive amounts of inspiration my own writing. I can’t wait to see what Visionary-In-Chief Ivic and his team have in mind for next year.

– Jako Malan

Like the article? These take hard work. For more free furry news, please follow on Twitter or support not-for-profit Dogpatch Press on Patreon.

The things that people will come up with to write… You have to wonder about that when you see a book series called Two Dogs In A Trench Coat. It’s written by Julie Falatko and illustrated by Colin Jack. “Sassy and Waldo are good dogs. They spend the day keeping their house safe. Has a squirrel ever gotten inside? No! But every day their boy, Stewart, comes home from this terrible place called school smelling like anxiety and looseleaf paper. Sassy and Waldo decide to save Stewart. But they don’t let dogs into school. So Sassy and Waldo decide to get creative. They put on an old trench coat, and now everyone at Bea Arthur Elementary thinks they are a new student named Salty from Liver, Ohio. Well, everyone except Stewart.” The first book in the series, appropriately called Two Dogs In A Trench Coat Go To School, is available now in softcover from Scholastic. Two more volumes are out already as well. Woof!

image c. 2019 Scholastic

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Link Roundup:

• Merriam Webster: Words We’re Watching: ‘Furry’ and ‘Fursona’
• Changed trailer
• An insight into the furry fandom: Surrey Live reveals what it’s like to be a ‘furry’
• Rocko’s Modern Life: Static Cling Trailer | Netflix
• Adam Savage says his fursona would be lion
• Nutaku’s Hentai Is Art Popup Art Exhibit
• A Wearable Robotic Tail Turns Anyone Into a Furry With Improved Balance
• TVアニメ「BEASTARS」第3弾PV
• Telegram Update

News:

• Frogs, Bats and Lizards in US Salads
• Chernobyl Vodka
• HIV Vaccine in Final Trials
• Florida Man Takes Golf Cart On Wild Ride Through Walmart
• EPA Introduces Cyanide Bombs
• A Bear Falls onto a Police Car then Fire

Emails:

• Kaylee – “No Subject”
• Neth – “I’ve never been to a con, and want to make FE my first one”

[Live] Riddle Me This

Tell us: Do you trust your housecat? Well along comes another book series looking to make you look askance perhaps. How can you miss a title like Klawde: Evil Alien Warlord Cat? Well that’s the new series of science fiction novels by Johnny Marciano and Emily Chenoweth (featuring art by Robb Mommaerts). It starts like this: “Klawde had everything. Sharp claws. Fine fur. And, being the High Commander of the planet Lyttyrboks, an entire world of warlike cats at his command. But when he is stripped of his feline throne, he is sentenced to the worst possible punishment: exile to a small planet in a quiet corner of the universe… named Earth… Raj had everything. A cool apartment in Brooklyn. Three friends who lived in his building. And pizza and comics within walking distance. But when his mom gets a job in Elba, Oregon, and he is forced to move, all of that changes. It’s now the beginning of summer, he has no friends, and because of his mother’s urgings, he has joined a nature camp. It’s only when his doorbell rings and he meets a furball of a cat that Raj begins to think maybe his luck is turning around… ” Three books in the series are available now from Penguin Random House. Fft Fft!

image c. 2019 Penguin Random House

 

I work in IT and I have had this happen to me more times than I care to think about.   It's best to just fake an extreme illness and run out of the room and never speak to them again.
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Paws on fire is a Eurofurence one on one improv dance contest with one winner left. Man, I gotta say this is one of the best filmed of this sort of things I've seen so far.   Bravo.
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The 2nd furry convention in Jakarta, Indonesia with the theme of the Urban Jungle occurred and it looked like they had a blast.  It just still stuns me how far furry has gone and it makes me very happy.  
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Please, Team Tumult ... make this an actual series. "This animated short is edited at breakneck speed and introduces kickass characters in a fake intro for a fictional TV-series. The film was made for the 50th anniversary of the Swiss Animation Group and is currently in the festival run."
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Welcome to Sha of Red Furros — the Spanish language furry news site out of Mexico City, founded in 2009. Some articles will be translated for other readers to enjoy, with light editing to make it smoother. – Patch

Here’s an addition to our articles about Ironclaw, the anthropomorphic role-playing game in it’s 20th anniversary. Recently, Ironclaw’s “The Book of Monsters” was presented at Anthrocon. It’s a bestiary for the base game.

This book originally began its Kickstarter on Aug 21th, 2018 where it quickly reached its funding goal.

It’s a collaboration between Tempe O’Kun (Windfall, Sixes Wild) as the writer, and Ursula Vernon (Digger, Dragonbreath series) for illustrations.

For Sanguine Games Book Of Monsters, Tempo and Ursula reimagine the world of Ironclaw with the premise that in a world where animals can talk and form societies, why wouldn’t plants be able to walk and hunt?

Imagine a tree that can walk and transform into any other character, or fungi that attacks using toxic mist. These imaginative scenarios can make for very funny situations (like being chased by a maniacal, murderous onion), to very creepy ones with a tree-clone of a recently-deceased loved one following you around.

Ironclaw is a very immersive game, more focused on the diplomatic side, that invites you to interact with the civilized world around you (even when it’s about animals). However, this new expansion adds more interesting enemies and adventures that some of the critics of the game found lacking.

While I was reading this book, I couldn’t stop thinking of the Ghost of a Tale videogame, and the excitement I felt scurrying around as Tilo, in a dungeon filled with rat guards.

I think Ironclaw, and this new expansion, are a great way to play a bit more interactively with fursonas that are a bit reminiscent of the old Furcadia MUCK.

Ironclaw is a game with a difference from other pen-and-paper games. It doesn’t use the hitpoint system, and it’s more based on placing status onto other characters based on successful dice-throws. This may be a bit confusing or off-putting at first for old-school players of more complex games like D&D, but it quickly becomes fun and immersive due to it’s complex societal and diplomatic relationships and stories.

I think it’s the perfect games where RPG veterans can introduce newbies to the RPG world, in a way where they also have to manage more complex stuff (like the gifts or managing the status hierarchies.)

The design of the interior is pretty good and has a nice continuity with the base Player’s book. The cover art might benefit from a more modern look since it looks a bit dated even when it’s just been released. However, that part also helps to keep that feeling of continuity with the entire series.

Ironclaw is a game by furries for furries. (And not just for furries, of course). It’s very well made and very fast to start playing as it doesn’t take a lot of setup to start from your character sheet (it even has some pre-made) to begin the adventure itself.

You can get your copies of Ironclaw and “The Book of Monsters” on DriveThruRPG.

– Sha

Like the article? These take hard work. For more free furry news, please follow on Twitter or support not-for-profit Dogpatch Press on Patreon.

♪ What a glorious feeling I'm happy again ♪ "At dusk, a frog named Gene finds a cocktail umbrella drifting on the surface of a pond. Suddenly inspired, Gene breaks into a dance. The umbrella is soon coveted by other creatures. But Gene is determined to be the star of the night. That is, until a salamander named Judy catches the umbrella...."
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Are they always the boss battle? Are they always punching and jumping on buildings? Talking about macros and the micros in video games. As well, artist spotlights and the next round of Macro Madness. Episode 27: "Video Games" (2019-08-05)

We literally came across this book on the shelf at a local coffee house! Never heard of it, but wow… Sunborn Rising is a new fantasy series for young folks by Aaron Safronoff, lavishly illustrated in both black & white and full color. “The Great Trees of Cerulean are dying. Infected with a mysterious blight, time is running out. Join Barra, a willful, resourceful and adventurous young Arboreal and her two friends, Plicks and Tory, as they journey down into the forgotten heart of their world in a desperate attempt to save it.” The first book in the series, Sunborn Rising: Beneath the Fall, is available now in several formats. The official web site has lots of background information and several videos about the making of the series. (Honestly, this looks like an animated movie waiting to happen!)

image c. 2019 Neoglyphic Entertainment Inc

It's summer and too hot! Even for spiders.
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on YouTube: https://youtu.be/hPhqomH_Czk for all things Dragget Show -- draggetshow.com support us on Patreon! -- www.patreon.com/thedraggetshow all of our audio podcasts at @the-dragget-show You can also find us on iTunes & wherever you find podcasts! Dragget Show telegram chat: telegram.me/draggetshow Dragget MD 4 With Fox Amoore! - on YouTube: https://youtu.be/hPhqomH_Czk for all…

Seriously, We are everywhere. "The Playgrounds of Our Furfriends. There lived a creatures who danced, show off and do tons of funky stuffs everyday!"
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FF34

在同人圈裡有名氣的同人展 “開拓動漫祭（Fancy Frontier）“，近日於7/27~7/28在花博爭艷館舉辦 “FF34″；其中不少獸繪師也來共襄盛舉，其中”Zanakil 魔法少女”也是其中一位。

當天 Zanakil 魔法少女 的攤位宣傳圖

Zanakil 魔法少女 的攤位位置剛剛好在 監視器死角 的P排
據當事人 Zanakil 魔法少女 表示， 竊盜事件是發生在最後整理攤位的時候 ；當時場面凌亂，以及他們當時在攤位上直接計算當日營收，忘了自己的錢袋放在凌亂的桌上還沒有收起來 。當時他們正在忙碌的計算，所以也沒有發現竊賊的蹤影。
兇手想必是看準行兇時不會被監視器照到，所以才會如此大膽 的行竊。

現場狀況及當事「包」

錢袋裡面裝了近期生活所需的錢，這讓 Zanakil 魔法少女 相當著急，畢竟吃飯錢及住宿費都在錢袋裡面。 但還是有許多熱心的朋友願意給他一臂之力；有朋友願意借給他錢， 讓他晚上能夠吃飯跟住，他事後也在臉書發了一篇感謝文，來感謝這些陪他度過患難的真朋友。

最後Zanakil 魔法少女呼籲，貴重物品真的要收好而且注意四周啊!

這期當然也有眾獸期待的訪談拉！這次我們請到了CK Studio的二位成員，肌肉線條繪製的栩栩如生的「骨凱 Canyne Khai 」和以無線繪、特別畫風聞名的「 小塯犬 Liu Moon Eater 」進行訪問，也希望能夠透過這個機會讓更多人認識這兩位繪師。

兩位是什麼時候開始接觸獸的呢？

小塯犬 ：
在高中前就畫獸人，但不知道有一個圈子
有著其他同好。 我是後來在高中時期認識了
前男友才透過他認識到有這麼一個圈子的存在。

骨凱：
國中時期某天在電視看到貓狗大戰２電影裡的主角德國狼犬從此著迷
，之後在網路上找尋關鍵字就找到狼之樂園的討論版而加入獸圈的吧～

▲第一次在2017年2月
FF29上所販售的挪威監慾

請問兩位當初是怎麼從認識到合作的？

小塯犬 ：
當初是在其他獸友的公開G+認識的，認識後經歷了一些事情才開始交往。
一開始只是交往，創作方面各自往不同方向發展，直到後來骨凱決定要試試看在場次上推出商品才開始了合作。
其實也不是一開始就這麼明確，分工、收入的分配等等也是經過許多次的討論與協調才達到平衡。
目前非常開心能跟骨凱合作，雖然偶爾還是會摩擦，但重要的是在於溝通，未來還想繼續創作下去。

骨凱：
在某G+認識，經歷一些事就再一起了～
剛開始只是交往關係，當時我自己就有在接觸場次販售原創商品的部分，那時候小塯只會偶爾提一下自己的想法跟建議。
直到前年合作出的R18漫畫挪威監慾才有我們各自收入抽成的分配。

這六年來 骨凱的畫風明顯轉變很大，試問中間究竟下了多少苦工練習畫畫呢？

▲此圖為骨凱2013年的作品

小塯犬 ：
他總是很努力的在繪技方面做提升，從認識以來都是如此。
但有時候我個人會覺得創作不是只有在繪技方面，多看多感受、學習也非常重要。 所以總是常常得拉他出門，另一方面是自己無法總是只待在螢幕前畫圖（苦笑
近年來他的轉變真的很有感，無論是在繪技或是觀念上。
未來希望我們能夠踏出同溫層繼續學習與進修 。

▲此圖為骨凱2019年的作品

骨凱：
在我從小有記憶以來，就會經常拿筆把自己喜歡的東西畫下來
在國小國中高中的時期，我幾乎不讀書，上課不是睡覺就是畫圖 對於畫圖會比較有動力去研究、摸索，花費的時間當然也是相當龐大
中間這段時間除了不斷有畫圖，時間下來也多了各式知識量，才能完成現在的畫面構成。

二位身為職業畫家 請問當初為何會選擇這條路呢？

小塯犬 ：
其實從大學時期我也從事過不少打工，大多數為餐飲或者服務業居多，甚至也在學校的文創中心任職過。
小時候天真的自己總是想著自己要成為畫家，漸漸長大後經過社會的洗禮，想成為藝術家雖然沒有改變，但是慢慢地意識到要能夠生活才能談創作，於是開始從事其他並非自身專業的工作或兼職。
其實一直以來要發展創作維生都並非易事，連我也是如此。
我也經歷過迷惘期，對自身的能力或技巧、自我價值、生活與理想的拉扯與存疑等等… 說真的，直到去年九月我才正式下定決心要做這件事情。
支持我的信念就是「人生是只能夠走一趟的旅程，既然如此，說什麼都要讓自己自在，做自己」。
也許途中會出現許多令自己動搖的聲音，但我認為只要我還擁有自己，就不是一無所有。

骨凱：
在創作上有很多事想完成，也許創作收入不會特別多也可能不穩定，但在創作的過程是幸福的，能把興趣當作工作，我想比起其他人都來的還要自在快樂。

明黎：
喔哇嗚，我感覺我的人生被啟發了 。

二位的作品在台灣算是頗有名氣，那二位有沒有考慮過將作品授權給國外代理來做販售呢？

小塯犬 ：
這問題的答案是肯定的，我希望我們的作品能夠讓更多同好看見。
其實一直有來自國外的邀約，但目前我們二人都還在進修，骨凱的大學學業也還未畢業。
目前我們的重心會先放在進修上，我們堅信深潛是為了蓄積再次躍出海面的能量。

骨凱：
有，能讓作品被更多人看見當然是很樂意的。

兩人相處了一段時間，想必過程中會有許多趣事，方便與我們分享幾件嗎？

小塯犬 ：
我很常看著他挖鼻孔，而且有時候他完全沒有察覺到有人在看他挖。
他有時候很愛聞東西的味道，尤其是他自己的體味，還記得第一次見面時，他對我做的第一件事情就是靠近然後聞我身上的味道（我一直在等他親我） 還有他其實有時候很木頭（苦笑

骨凱：
小塯時常在心情好的時候會扭動手跟身體跳舞，很可愛。
小塯騎車載我出門吃飯或買東西，回來找摩托車經常都會看到鑰匙忘記拔，但都沒被偷，覺得很有趣也很被保佑而感到快樂。
突然要想其實也想不太到其他的，不過因為幾乎每天都相處在一起，有趣的事時常發生，但也沒特別去記住xD

骨凱所繪製的藏瑪然特

寶可夢劍盾的直播推出不到一天，骨凱便畫出藏瑪然特(神獸) 請問像這樣的作品大約需要多久能夠完成呢？

骨凱：
一兩小時邊畫邊研究，有畫４足的版本
獸人版花有間斷的零碎時間完成的，粗估4～5小時 。

那麼訪談就這邊結束拉！感謝兩位繪師願意撥出時間讓我們進行訪談，也請各位期待下期的訪談囉！你們覺得下期的訪談會是誰呢？不訪在我們Facebook的粉絲專業底下的留言區進行討論喔~

胡塗小塯犬 粉絲專頁:https://www.facebook.com/1026dog/
CK Studio 粉絲專頁:https://www.facebook.com/canynekhai.studio/

This gets dark quickly ... and seriously weird. "On the night of a lunar eclipse, we uncover the sweet, salacious, and spooky secrets of a small town. From a pigtailed psychopath to naughty nuns and everything in between, this stop motion animated film conjures a comforting thought: that weird is relative."
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And another from the Festival of Books — in a similar vein, perhaps. This is the Isle of Misfits series of novels for young readers, written by Jamie May and illustrated by Freya Hartas. The first book, appropriately called First Class, goes like this: “Gibbon is a gargoyle who has been unable to sit still for hundreds of years. One day, he leaves his post from the castle he was meant to be guarding, and a person sees Gibbon, he panics and runs away. As Gibbon is sadly walking back, he meets three gargoyles who bring him to an island filled with other legendary creatures. There, he goes to a special academy that will train him to go on missions to protect all sorts of mythical creatures who are in trouble. Excited to go and happy that he won’t be lonely anymore, Gibbon is also nervous to go some place where he doesn’t know anyone. Will he be able to make friends in this new place? Find out in this new and exciting creature-filled series, complete with a hilarious cast of characters such as a clumsy dragon, an ill-tempered fairy, a griffin with poor flying skills, and a yeti with a manbun!” Four books in the series are available now from Simon & Schuster.

image c. 2019 Simon & Schuster