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Love & Solidarity: A Union Yaoi Zine

Love & Solidarity: A Union Yaoi Zine is an art book featuring two mascots designed for the Animation Workers Ignited shorts created by Jellybox Studios. This project was created to promote donations to AID IA and raise awareness for major issues in the animation industry. A large team of artists was set to contribute art for a physical print version of the zine and additional merchandise.

All proceeds from our bundle pre-order period were donated to AID IA which offered aid to union members who were laid off and/or lost their healthcare. With AID IA no longer active, we are now donating all leftover merch sale proceeds to TAG Foundation- which does similar work with their funding.

This was an unofficial union project, but TAG members participated!

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Background

It all started when Alex Hirsch, creator of Gravity Falls and voice for one of the mascots, asked if the two mascots in the AWI shorts have official names over on twitter. @Starghettis, an animator for the shorts, responded saying that they do not. Alex responded by giving the mascots the names “Misterman Guyfella" and “Umbert Actually.” @Starghettis then suggested calling them “green husband” and “pink husband." @dinolich, a director and storyboard artist, then asked if anyone had drawn yaoi of them yet… thus professional animator @jess_etc_art delivered.After that, the #unionyaoi trend began on twitter, where dozens of artists participated in shipping the two mascots together- creating art, writing and videos of the two characters romantically involved and fighting for labor rights. These posts were tagged with #NoAI and #StandWithAnimation, bringing light to the issues that animators are currently facing and fighting a better contract for. The trend raised thousands of dollars for AID IA by bringing attention to the donation link’s existence.The Union Yaoi Zine's volunteering and development periods ran from August 2023 to April 2025, with production starting May 2025, and pre-orders fulfilled and shipped out in November. The Leftover Merch sale is currently open! All Leftover Merch sale proceeds will now be donated to TAG Foundation as of AID IA's inactivity.

Resources

💕ANIMATION GUILD OFFICIAL WEBSITE💕TAG FOUNDATION DONATION LINK💕ANIMATION WORKERS IGNITED LINKS