Of the Field

Bologna Children's Book Fair 2026

T

he Bologna Children's Book Fair (BCBF) is the world’s leading trade fair for the children’s publishing industry, featuring a convergence of professionals, illustrators, authors, and rights managers to exchange copyright across publishing, multimedia, licensing, illustration, and animation. The 2026 edition includes BolognaBookPlus—focused on general trade p…

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14Voices
2Underwriters
0Exhibitors
6On the bill · sessions
11Companies · in total
§I

The Voices

Programmed at Bologna, in alphabetical order.
Andrea Baricordi
Editor, writer · Italy
Aušra Kiudulaitė
Illustrator · Lithuania
Ayami Moriizumi
Researcher, Independent Curator · Japan
Caterina Spezzano
MIM
Chiara Bertolini
Coordinamento nazionale dei Corsi di Laurea in Scienze della Formazione Primaria · UniMORE
Donatella Lombello
Gabriela Quiroga Alarcón
Coordinator, Programa de iniciación al cultivo para niños y jóvenes · Colombia
Ieva Babilaite
Illustrator · Lithuania
Juan Sebastián Montoya Vargas
Editor, Editorial Siete Gatos, Director, Programa de iniciación al cultivo para niños y jóvenes · Colombia
Keiko Ichiguchi
Manga artist, writer · Japan
Licia Cianfriglia
ANP
Luisa Marquardt
CNBS-AIB-UniRomaTre
María José Suárez
Research coordinator, Programa de iniciación al cultivo para niños y jóvenes · Colombia
Mark Backler
Founder, SketchBook Games · UK
§II

Underwritten By

The houses behind the program. Tiers as disclosed.
Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation
Italian Trade Agency
§III

The Programme

Selected from 6 sessions on the bill.
  • 12 April, 13:30 - 17:30

    How to Sell Rights and Understand Licensing in Children’s Books

    BOLOGNABOOKPLUS / EVENT HIGHLIGHTS
  • 13 April, 09:00 - 13:15

    Formazione iniziale e in servizio per chi si occupa della Biblioteca scolastica

    Il Convegno si propone di individuare le possibili modalità di formazione iniziale delle future e dei futuri insegnanti della Scuola dell’Infanzia e della Scuola Primaria in merito…

    TALKS & PRESENTATIONS
  • 13 April, 09:30 - 09:55

    Working with IPs in Games

    Mark Backler, Founder of SketchBook Games, explores the creative and commercial potential at the intersection of literary IP and interactive entertainment.

    BOLOGNA LICENSING TRADE FAIR/KIDS / INTERNATIONAL KIDS LICENSING & MEDIA DAYS
  • 13 April, 09:30 - 10:20

    Chigüiro: Ivar da Coll's Influence on Children's Literature

    We will explore the creative universe of Ivar Da Coll through his Chigüiro series, examining how a nearly wordless character has transformed storytelling for children in Latin Amer…

    THE NEXT CHAPTER CAFÉ
  • 13 April, 09:30 - 10:20

    Japanese Manga in Italy

    Examining the introduction of Japanese manga in Italy and BCBF's role in making this possible. The first in a series on Manga, Comics, and Picture Books.

    COMICS CORNER / THE CONTENT CAFÉ
  • 13 April, 09:30 - 11:00

    Live Painting Workshop - Forest Patterns

    Live painting session with Lithuanian illustrators.

    THE ILLUSTRATORS SURVIVAL CORNER
Intermission
Part the Second · For the Buyer

An audience of 11 companies, parsed from the program.

Eleven companies in attendance.

The numbers below are derived from the speakers, sponsors, and exhibitors on this page — cross-referenced into one ledger. They are the only thing here that 10times.com cannot tell you.

01Fig. 01 — Composition of the House
0All threespeak · spons · exh
2Sponsoringsponsor only
0Exhibitingexhibitor only
9Companies Speakingspeaker only
02Fig. 02 — The Voices, by Seniority

14% of the speakers carry senior titles — C-suite, Founder, VP, or Director-level.

  • Founder / Owner17%
  • Director / Head of17%
  • Research / Science214%
  • Other roles1071%

Of 14 on the bill · classified by free-text title

03Fig. 03 — The Heaviest in the Room
  1. 01Colombia3V
  2. 02Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International CooperationSp
  3. 03Italian Trade AgencySp
  4. 04Japan2V
  5. 05Lithuania2V
  6. 06ANP1V
  7. 07CNBS-AIB-UniRomaTre1V
  8. 08Italy1V
  9. 09MIM1V
  10. 10UK1V
  11. 11UniMORE1V
04Fig. 04 — By Tier
unspecified2
100% of 2