Bloomington Alternative Media Fest
Saturday, December 6th, 2025
Harmony School (909 E 2nd St)
Bloomington, Indiana
https://bamfzinefest.wordpress.com/

This year’s Alternative Media Fest is Saturday December 6th, 2025. BAMF is a fundraiser for us! Come mingle, peruse a bunch of cool media, zines, and creations and help celebrate local independent publishing all in support of the Bloomington Anarchist Black Cross.

This Saturday at Harmony school from noon-5pm! It benefits us, plus there will be sooooo many cool writers, artists, and more! Come through Indiana!

We are all very excited. We have close to fifty people/organizations tabling from all over!

And we just got word that the Harmony High School will be selling veggie/meat dogs as a benefit for their class.

We will also be hosting a raffle with some very cool prizes. Okay, we think they’re cool, but hopefully you will to. The money raised will also go to Bloomington ABC.

A couple of things that exist this year:

A “Hang Out” Space. Right outside of the gym doors we plan on having a chill zone to read, color or order a hot dog (prominently veggie options) from the students of Harmony High School.

Raffle prizes! This year we have raffle prizes from IU Cinema, Vulture Video, Time & Tide Tattoo, Rabbit Rabbit, Monarch Apothecary, Hannah’s Ceramics, Madison Rose, Art Remains, and more!

And we also have cool new shirts and totes!

What in the hell is BAMF?

BAMF stands for Bloomington Alternative Media Fest. We started as Bloomington Zine Fest but wanted to include other media other than zines. Our hope is to include other forms of media like books and comics. And we encourage video screenings and workshops throughout the day. For those who thought BAMF stood for Bad Ass Mother Fuckers, you are also correct. BAMF is just a cool name, don’t you think?

What is Bloomington ABC?

It is the local chapter of the world-wide organization the Anarchist Black Cross. ABCs focus on support for political prisoners & those facing state repression for liberatory activity. The Bloomington ABC hosts monthly letter-writing nights and sends money to 4 people in prison each month. It puts on various events to raise both money and awareness for prisoners’ cases, prison rebellion, and movement self-defense. The BABC has been active since 2014.

See more at BloomingtonABC.noblogs.org

I’m tabling, anything I should consider?

Stick to media (zines, books, comics). We very specifically don’t want you tabling crafts. A small amount is fine, but we keep it 75% media. You may want to bring a sheet or some sort of table cloth.Please make sure you aren’t bogarting space on your shared table. You will be called out on it if you are. Be considerate of your surrounding neighbors.  Absolutely no back displays or anything that goes on the floor (boxes under the table are fine if they are on your side).

Is the Harmony School Gym wheelchair accessible?

Yes. There is an access ramp to the elevator on the south entrance of the parking lot (around the corner from the main steps). Once inside it can be a little tricky to navigate so please holler at someone on the BAMF team if you are afraid of getting lost. 

Can I bring stickers and pins?

That is totally fine. But we want 75% of your table to be print media (books, zines, magazines, comics). This is a media fest and not a craft fest. There are a good number of craft fests that happen in Bloomington throughout the year and I’m sure they will be happy to have your wares. We recommend The Affordable Art Fair

Should I bring cash?

Absolutely! If you are attending or tabling, cash is king. 

I have some “adults only” material. Can I put that on my table?

Yes. But this is an all-ages event. Please mark that material as such so no little babies get to it.

What about AI generated art?

No.

I’m very sensitive to strong smells like perfumes. How can you folks help me with that?

We have asked our tablers to keep the strong scents to a minimum. 

What’s up with the masks?

The Covid 19 pandemic is still showing little speckles of its ugly head. And since our event is in the winter, we are trying our damndest  to keep it from spreading. Let’s nip that crap in the bud, folks! 

What are food options the day of the event.

We will have some small snacks and coffee out for donation. And we are attempting to get some sort of food truck. There is a veggie friendly Chinese food place a few blocks away called Dragon Express (1400 E 3rd St A, cash only) and a corner store called Village Pantry across the street. And this year (2025), students from Harmony School High School will be selling veggie dogs and hot dogs in the out of the kitchen. It will be a benefit from their class. Neat huh?

And as always, Hopscotch Coffee has supplied us with free coffee for the tablers and volunteers.

Bloomington has a plethora of great food-spots downtown if you’re looking for a place to go before or after the fest.

I am very enthusiastic and like doing tasks, how can I volunteer at BAMF?

Email us. bamfzinefest@protonmail.com

Bloomington Alternative Media Fest: Celebrating independent publishing in southern Indiana and beyond
https://bamfzinefest.wordpress.com/

Date
Dec 6, 2025 12:00 - Dec 6, 2025 17:00