Central Coast Comicon is the annual fundraising event for Regional Youth Support Services (RYSS), supporting local young people through creative and community-driven initiatives. As part of our event, we celebrate the incredible talents of artists, illustrators, and creatives—and we want to inspire young artists to showcase their skills!
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We’re excited to host the Design an OC (Original Character) Competition for 2026! This is the perfect opportunity for young artists who love drawing to get involved. The competition is open to all creative mediums, so let your imagination run wild!

Age Categories
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The competition is open to young artists aged 8 – 25, with entries judged across three age groups:
🖌 8 – 12 years
🖌 13 – 16 years
🖌 17 – 25 years

All submissions will be exhibited at Central Coast Comicon on Saturday 23rd May at The Entertainment Grounds, Gosford.

Prizes
🎨 Creative Prize Packs
🎟 FREE entry passes to Central Coast Comicon (First Place receive a Family Pass, Highly Commended receive a Single Ticket)
🎬 Hoyts Movie Tickets
🎨 Opportunity to further your design skills with a creative workshop

A First Place and Highly Commended will be awarded in each age category.
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Entry Guidelines & Terms
✔ Your OC must be an original design that you have illustrated yourself – don’t forget to sign your artwork!
✔ Your OC can be created using traditional mediums or digitally.
✔ Your illustration must be on a white background in vertical/portrait format.
✔ Upload a hi-res photo or scanned copy of your artwork to the application form.
✔ One entry per participant.
✔ We will verify the originality of all submitted artworks.

Judging and Key Dates

📅 Entries close: Friday, 1st May, 11:59 PM
📅 Winners announced: Monday, 11th May

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Social Media & Artwork Sharing
We would love to showcase some of the entries on Central Coast Comicon’s social media! However, we respect your privacy:

✔ We will only share artwork if you have provided consent on the application form.
✔ Young artists will not be tagged in posts.
✔ The artist’s first name/creative name and age will be included in social media posts and the exhibition.



We can't wait to see your designs!

If you have any questions about the competition, please email them to comicon@ryss.com.au or call RYSS on (02) 4323 2374.

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* 1. Contact Info

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* 2. What is your age

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* 3. What age category

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* 4. Do you have a creative name you would prefer to be known as? - We will use this on social media and in the exhibition. 

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* 5. Do you give permission for us to share your illustration to Central Coast Comicon Social Media Feeds?

Please note that we will not tag you and will only mention you, the illustrator, by your first name or chosen creative name and age.

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* 6. If you are 15 years and younger we will need your parent or caregiver's consent to share your illustration on social media. Please write their name and number in the box below.

Now the fun stuff! - Tell us about your OC
Please note this application is judged on your illustration abilities, not the writing of descriptions.

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* 7. What is the name of your OC

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* 8. In 100 words or less, give us a description of your OC.
What kind of character are they?
What are they like?
Do they have special powers?

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* 9. Give us a brief description of how you illustrated your OC? What mediums did you use? ie Coloured pencils, textas, digital artwork?

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* 10. Upload a good-quality image or scan of your OC illustration.

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* 11. Do you agree that you are 100% the designer/illustrator/creator of this OC illustration? - We will digitally verify if the artwork is authentic

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