Panels for Primates

As often as possible here at the blog, I like to cover the creators and projects at ACT-I-VATE. This week, I focus upon Panels for Primates, which is “a charity anthology for the Primate Rescue Center, featuring an eclectic mix of primate stories by both well-known and up-and-coming creators”.  While the stories are free (like all of ACT-I-VATE webcomics), readers are encouraged to donate what they can to the Primate Rescue Center, making sure to credit the donations to Panels for Primates. To learn more about the ongoing project, I email interviewed the project’s editor, Troy Wilson. Be sure to visit ACT-I-VATE today, as Panels for Primates is updated every Wednesday. My thanks to Wilson for his time.

Tim O’Shea: You launched the project with a story by writer Stuart Moore and artist Rick Geary. How did you score those two unique creators for the first story?

Troy Wilson: Pretty simple. I just asked. Initially, I had Rick paired with a different creator entirely, but that person had to bow out, due to a) other commitments, and b) the fact that he just didn’t feel he was coming up with anything worthy of Rick. So then I asked Stuart if he wanted to work with Rick, and I asked Rick if he wanted to work with Stuart – and they both jumped at the chance. It’s a bit of an odd pairing, really, but the results are fantastic. They bounce off each other quite nicely.

O’Shea: When former editor John Schlim Jr began this project, it was a very different beast. Has he had chance to see what you’ve developed it into? And if so, what does he think of it?

Wilson: Well, it’s very important to note that without John, this project simply wouldn’t exist. Period. He initiated the whole thing. Way back in 2007, he recruited a number of lesser-known creators, myself included, to contribute to a 20-page pamphlet of monkey comics for kids.

As you say, it’s a very different beast now. More pages. Digital. For charity. Primates in general instead of monkeys in particular. Not strictly all-ages anymore. Etc, etc. But all those differences were either in place or under discussion when John had to leave, so the project’s present form certainly isn’t a shock to him. Awhile back, he was been kind enough to tell me that he was impressed with what I had done. Plus, the story that he’d written many moons ago for that proposed 20-page pamphlet was among the first that I posted (“Banana Cream Pie Fever”).

O’Shea: When readers are inspired to donate to the Primate Rescue Center, how important is it to note (via a comment at the end of the donation process) that it’s a Panels for Primates donation?

Wilson: This is huge. MASSIVE. If readers don’t label their donations as Panels for Primates donations, then the creators who have so generously contributed to this project won’t get any credit for raising the money.

So please, please, please label those donations, folks. Specifically type in the words “Panels for Primates”. The creators aren’t getting paid for this, so they should at least get credit for the dollars they help raise.

And while we’re on the subject of donations, I should also mention that the PayPal option on the Primate Rescue Center website is a great way to go for people who want to donate smaller amounts. And you don’t have to draw from a PayPal account to use this option; you can hit the PayPal button and still use your credit card.

O’Shea: A major creator recently turned in a script to you. Any chance you can share who that is?

Wilson: Nope, not yet. Big, though. A dream come true.

O’Shea: Also, how pleased are you to have a worldwide cast of creators to choose from–coming from Canada, Israel, Britain, and Mexico, as well as Germany and Indonesia?

Wilson: Being Canadian myself, I’m particularly proud of the rather large Canuck contingent. Beyond that, I’ve gotta say that the phrase “global effort” has a really nice ring to it.

O’Shea: How was it that you were able to get JAMES VINING to participate? I found his input of interest, considering in his bio “He wrote and drew First in Space (Oni Press), the story of Ham, one of the chimpanzees trained by the Air Force for the Mercury Program.”

Wilson: Yeah, I saw that and thought he’d be a natural fit. I did approach other creators known for their primate material, but James was the only one who said yes. And I’m certainly very glad that he did.

O’Shea: How much editing is involved with a project like this? Can you walk me through the editing process for something like DAVID PETERSEN’s unique installment? How did Petersen come to be involved?

Wilson: My approach has been to bring the right people on board and then, as much as possible, to stay the heck out of their way. When a piece is firing on all cylinders, I have no need whatsoever to get in there and suggest some inane change just to put my stamp on it. And given that these creators are doing the pieces free of charge, I’m even less likely to ask for alterations than I would normally be. Mind you, there have been a couple of cases where the creators and I spent more time going back and forth on certain details, resulting in what we all seem to agree are some great changes. But most often, I have no changes at all.

In David’s case, I spotted a typo or two, asked him to omit a word or two, and asked him to change the title from “Great Monkeys in History” to “Great Primates in History” (because not all of his characters are technically monkeys). And that’s it. He gave us a black-and-white option and a tinted option; I went with the tinted.

And how did David get involved? At the risk of sounding like a broken record, I asked, and he said yes. Most of the people involved are people that I approached directly. A far lesser number are involved because they answered a call for submissions from John (initially) or myself (later). One lesser-known-but-really-talented guy did approach me out of the blue at the end of last year about doing something, but that’s a rarity.

It goes without saying that I’ve been very impressed by the excellent work these creators have been turning in, but I’ve also been super-impressed by their generosity. Some of them came on board during the most harrowing moments of economic meltdown (and heck, the US economy is still in the tank). It’s tough enough to make a living as a creative person under normal conditions, and you’ve got these folks working for free on a project that isn’t their own during some very bad economic times. It speaks to the worthiness of the cause, but it also speaks to the worthiness of these individuals.

O’Shea: Some of the contributions are in black and white, while others are full color. Do you try to mix it up/alternate between when color and b&w installments are run?

Wilson: I do try to space out the color ones, but I’ve already run color stories back-to-back, and will probably do so again at some point. There are all kinds of factors at play regarding what I run and when – the profile of the creators, length, tone, subject matter, what’s ready and what’s not, and so on.

O’Shea: Have you had discussions with publishers about a potential collection being published?

Wilson: I would love it if a publisher put this out as a print collection. And if your readers feel the same, they should tell publishers exactly that. But right now my focus is to work like crazy to make Panels for Primates as successful as I can in the form that it’s in and at the home that it’s got. ACT-I-VATE is a great place to be, and I’m thrilled to be running Panels for Primates in such august company – and during the site’s fifth anniversary, to boot.

O’Shea: Have there been certain installments that really surprised you more than others (in terms of the creators approach or in some other element)?

Wilson: “Undercover Chimp” by Fred Van Lente and Colleen Coover. I’m sure that anyone who reads this story will have no trouble at all figuring out which elements surprised me. It’s a great piece. It’s also a great example of exactly why I run the disclaimer about our stories not necessarily reflecting the views of the Primate Rescue Center.

In fact, the Primate Rescue Center deserves an enormous amount of credit for trusting enough in that disclaimer firewall to give us such a wide berth with regards to content. Our anthology wouldn’t be nearly as eclectic if they’d been inclined to micro-manage the process. Of course, they’d have every right to micro-manage it; I’m just glad that they’re not.

O’Shea: Anything you’d like to discuss that I have neglected?

Wilson: Well, I’d like to thank the Panels for Primate creators, the ACT-I-VATE crew, the Primate Rescue Center, the readers, the donators, the commenters, the word-spreaders, the supporters (technical, moral, and otherwise), and whoever else I may have missed.

I’d also like to thank the many publishers that are going to approach me the second after this interview gets posted about taking on a print edition of Panels for Primates.

And, of course, I’d like to thank you, Tim. It’s been a blast.

As described by Cabardo: “The movie is about Jeff’s life and involves other well known comic book artists who serve as the storytellers in the movie. The film covers the period of 60s comics in NYC, and the Studio years in the mid 70s as well (Go to macabfilms.com) …  At present, we are editing the film and hope to finish a first rough cut by the 14th of next month.”

Jones has fascinated me since I met her back at a small comic convention in Atlanta in 2004. In the coming weeks, I intend to do an email interview with Cabardo, finding out the scope of the project and her progress on fundraising.

CulturePOP

It’s quite likely that you’ve seen the work of Seth Kushner, even if you don’t read CulturePOP, his series for ACT-I-VATE with Photocomix Profiles of Real-Life Characters. As noted in his ACT-I-VATE bio: “Seth Kushner’s photography work has appeared in such magazines as The New York Times Magazine, BusinessWeek, Newsweek, Time, L’Uomo Vogue, and in galleries around the world. His book, The Brooklynites, (powerHouse Books, 2007) was considered ‘a terrific coffee table photo/interview book’ by The New York Times. Aside from living out his dream of writing a graphic novel based on his Schmucky past, he is working on Leaping Tall Buildings, a book profiling NYC cartoonists. Seth also co-created and co-edits the comics journalism website, GRAPHIC NYC and directs videos, including the “promo-mentary” film, (co-directed by Carlos Molina) The ACT-I-VATE Experience. Seth was born, bred and currently lives in Brooklyn, NY, with his wife Terra, his son, Jackson, and way too many comics.” I love the range of topics/people that Kushner covers in CulturePOP–and I’m glad we got a chance to discuss the project.

Tim O’Shea: How do you go about selecting your subjects for CulturePOP?

Seth Kushner: My subjects have come from many places. Some are folks I’ve photographed previously (Gymnast Olga Karmansky,  Super Sucklord, Lisa Natoli) and relished the opportunity to explore them deeper, as this format allows for. Others were suggestions from co-curator, promoter and sometime editor Jeff Newelt (Douglas Rushkoff,  Carlos ‘Mare 139’ Rodriguez, Jonny Wilson of Eclectic Method, etc.) who is great at connecting interesting and creative folks. Dean Haspiel, who has been my editor on every piece, also suggested a few subjects (Jen Ferguson, Jennie Fisk,  and upcoming subjects Tim Hall and Cynthia Von Buhler). Finally, there are people I’ve been aware of and wanted to work with. (Rachel Kramer Bussel, Caits Meissner etc.).

O’Shea: When selecting a subject, do you have to respect or appreciate their craft to consider covering them, or does that even enter into the equation?

Kushner: Choosing subjects to cover is a very personal thing. Because of the huge amount of time I put into every piece, I really have to be excited and interested by each subject. People give me good subject suggestions all the time, and I politely reject them for reasons that are purely my own. It’s difficult for me to even explain why I think someone would make a great CulturePOP subject. It’s something I have to feel.

O’Shea: On average, how many photoshoots are involved for one installment of CulturePOP?

Kushner: On average, there is one photshoot for each subject. The “session” usually consists of a recorded interview and shoot, lasting around four hours in total. Of course, that’s after our initial conversations about concept and before my transcribing, retouching and constructing the actual piece. Each finished piece takes days to complete.

There have been instances when more than one shoot has been needed. Douglas Rushkoff,  for example started with a shoot in Times Square as a means of illustrating corporatism, but when I started putting the piece together, it became obvious that I needed more. Dean suggested I also shoot Doug up in Westchester, where he lives, in order to get a contrast to the city images.

The Cynthia Von Buhler piece I’m currently working on will consist of at least two shoots, but probably more. It’s going to be a huge one, and very different.

O’Shea: Do you go into a shoot knowing what kind of shots you want to take for the sake of your narrative, or is it a more organic process?

Kushner: I go into each session with a concept in mind, which is based upon my homework on the particular subject, plus conversations between the subject and me. But, it’s all fairly lose allowing for on-the-spot inspiration.

O’Shea: How do you layout an installment, and is there ever anyone you ask “Hey look at this scene, does that work for you?” Or do you prefer to just trust your own trained eye/sense of layout?

Kushner: I’ve studied comics form independently for my whole life, but when it came to sitting down and making them, it’s a whole different thing. Dean has been my mentor. I always construct the piece on my own and then send to him for feedback. In the beginning, Dean would have a ton of suggestions, all on the money, but now he has very few. That makes me proud, because I must be getting better and more confident.

Working on the layout is probably my favorite part of the process, even more than the actual shoot. I love figuring out how to best convey the narrative and I get to use my sense of design and story and am able to cull from all of my influences. It where I feel I get to be the most creative….and, I get to make comics!

Jennie Fiske

O’Shea: Speaking of layout, how challenging is it place the text boxes in such a way that allows the narrative to flow, while at the same time not obscuring parts of the photo you want featured? As frequent collaborator Christopher Irving noted in the first installment: “I feel you’ve gotten a very strong hand on the LETTERING aspect, breaking it up into the right visual and narrative beats to draw the eye and pull the reader along.”

Kushner: That was very nice of Chris to say! I find the process works best when I don’t think of my photos as “precious art” but instead as tools for conveying a narrative. That means text must be placed strategically on my images in order to lead the viewer’s eye around the page, and it has to work in conjuncture with the images to tell the story.

Lettering was something I was very nervous about in the beginning because I understood it’s a very particular art, and often an invisible one, when done well. Dean was very helpful to me in figuring out how to best place the text boxes and now, while I’m certainly no Todd Klein, I’m feeling good about my ability to add the text elements to these pieces.

O’Shea: How intimidating was it try to convey poetry in photography, as you did with the Caits Meissner installment?

Kushner: It wasn’t very intimidating. Caits Meissner’s  piece was the second one I worked on, so I probably didn’t know enough back then to be intimidated! Caits was someone I’ve know for a while and I’ve always wanted to work on something with her. She was one of the first subjects I thought of for CulturePOP. The poem was written by a friend of her family’s and meant a lot to her, so I put a lot of thought into how I would juxtapose images of Caits with the poem. I worked on a detailed shot list, broken down by paragraph and we discussed and planned together. Caits is an amazingly creative person, so we had a very good synergy. It’s still one of my favorites.

O’Shea: What have been some of the more logistically complicated photo shoots you’ve pursued in this project? Do you ever have subjects that initially express interest in being featured, but then freeze up when the actual shooting gets under way? Given that you are documenting creative people, do you ever let them weigh in on how they would like to be documented for the story, or do you feel that impedes too much on your creative process?

Kushner: I very much appreciate when the subject wants to be involved to the point where they’re a collaborator. For example, I recently worked with writer Tim Hall on his profile, which will post sometime in January. I transcribed Tim’s interview and sent it to him to edit. Tim’s a great writer, so what I received back was a whole new piece which was heads and tails better than the original and had perfect beats and a narrative thread which had the whole piece working in a way I never expected. I was thrilled.

O’Shea: Have any of your subjects been inspired to create a unique piece inspired by being the focus of your camera?

Kushner: The one I’m currently working on with artist Cynthia Von Buhler will be a unique one in the series because Cynthia has taken the opportunity with this profile to delve into a story about her fascinating family history. There will be parts of the narrative that will “flashback” to her grandparents during the 1920s and for those sections, she is building small dollhouse sets and characters for me to photograph. This one is a true collaboration and I’m very excited to be working with such a creative person and to be bringing a new element into the series.

O’Shea: Can you talk about how the Douglas Rushkoff installment came about? Would you agree in that the collection of unique tales you have that this one was one of the most unique?

Kushner: I’m not sure the Rushkoff  piece is the “most unique.” I think they all differ from one to the other, and they all share similarities. Rushkoff’s is certainly the longest! But, I can see why you might find it different. Unlike most of the ones I’ve worked on, it’s not a personal story, but instead it’s a sort of ‘Rushkoff 101.’ I think Doug’s a brilliant guy and his theories are important and I wanted to present them in a new way. It was somewhat daunting because I believe them to be so important. The recorded interview lasted 25 minutes (Doug talks fast and passionately) and once transcribed, it was over 2200 words. The average CulturePOP has about 400 words of text. It was huge! I took a stab at editing it, but every thought seemed to lead into something else and nothing seemed extraneous. I sent it to Dean who helped to break it down into beats, but he also couldn’t find much to omit. Then Jeff did a pass and he was able to tighten it slightly. Finally, I sent it off to Doug, and he did a great job of tightening and clarifying. That was the version I laid out into the photocomix.

People have responded very favorably to the piece and it’s by far the most viewed of all the ones I’ve done.

O’Shea: Am I mistaken, or have all the installments been in color? Has there ever been a temptation to do one in black and white? For me, I was wondering given how you capitalized upon iconic imagery and the contrast of darks and lights in the Lisa Natoli installment?

Kushner: There hasn’t been a black and white one yet, but there could be one upcoming. Or, at least one with black and white elements. Actually, the on one designer John D’Aponte’s  history of family mustaches utilizes sepia tone in parts.

As I begin to explore different types of narrative threads, I’ve been experimenting with different “treatments” to differentiate from “real world” parts. For example, the next installment to go up, on comedian/musician Reggie Watts is about how he “riffs,” how he turns real-life situations into improve routines. So, for the parts in the story where he does his riffs, I have the imagery turn very psychedelic to symbolize and illustrate this ability, this ‘superpower’ he has.

I plan to experiment more in future installments.

For the one on aerialist Lisa Natoli, I really wanted to make the parts of her performing very theatrical and beautiful and graceful. A lot of thought went into the layout in order to bring out those elements.

Rachel Kramer-Bussel

O’Shea: How challenging was it to pull off the story within the story for Rachel Kramer-Bussel‘s Bound. You not only have the dual narrative element, but you had to pull off a story dealing with eroticism/bondage in a manner that did not get too graphic, while still being sexually charged to some extent?

Kushner: I’ve very much wanted to explore fictional photocomix narratives. CulturePOP has been profiles of real people, and as much fun and as challenging as it’s been creating these, I want to begin creating photocomix using actors and sets and shooting them like movies. I was looking for a subject who would allow me to experiment within the confines of this series and I knew a writer would be perfect. So I approached Rachel Kramer Bussel about allowing me to illustrate one of her shorts stories from her new collection. Rachel writes very visually, so it was perfect.

Rachel gave me ‘Bound,’ an edgy bondage story. I read it and knew immediately I would be able to do an adaptation. I started by breaking her story down into a proper comics script. Taking the narrator/main character’s internal monologue and breaking them into the beats which would go into the text boxes, and removing all description from the text and turning it into direction for me to cull the visuals.

In adapting the story to a comics script, I created my own edit, different from Rachel’s story, but hopefully keeping the spirit of it. Also, this was an edgy, sexual story and while her descriptions of the situations worked in prose form, I knew a straight visual retelling would come across as pornography. So I quickly decided to be somewhat obscure in what I would show. I would keep it to close-ups, reflections and angles that would all allow for the viewer to use his imagination.

Next, I had to cast to production with two “actors” to pose as the characters. I showed my shooting script to a couple of friends and they were game and trusted me to not go overboard with the sexuality and objectify them.

I did the actual production as a “green screen” shoot, basically. All of the Vegas environments came from my own back catalogue of images, and were merged afterwards.

It was a large undertaking, but I’m really proud of how it turned out and it was a good experiment for me. I will be moving more in this direction very soon.

Rachel was great, because she gave me complete free reign with her material, which she provided me, trusted me and didn’t interfere at all, and loved what I did. A perfect collaborator!

O’Shea: What creative satisfaction do you get out of CulturePOP that you don’t gain in your other photographic venues/pursuits?

Kushner: In my freelance career shooting personalities for magazines I almost always have to end up with one singular photo, which will represent a person. I stared thinking that wasn’t enough. I wanted show show more aspects of a person. With CulturePOP, the “portrait” is just a small part of it.

CulturePOP was designed to allow me to experiment with photos and comics form, and to work with and profile people who inspire and fascinate me. Yes, its completely self-indulgent, but I hope viewing these sort of visual, narrative poems will be interesting and entertaining for others as well.

O’Shea: Is there anything you’d like to discuss that I neglected to ask?

Kushner: I think the terms “photocomix” or “fumetti” are somewhat loaded terms for many people. There seems to be a long history here in the US of bady done comics with photos. I remember Vertigo putting out some OGNs done with heavily manipulated photos a while back and, while interesting, I don’t think they worked particularily well for readers. I’m looking to do it differently and (hopefully) more successfully.

I was talking with Kim Deitch recently and he said he used to collect “photo novellas” imported by Hearst from Italy back in the the early 80′s. They were soap style stories but had consistantly strong writing. He also told me both Fellini and Sophia Loren got their start in fumetti. I had no idea. He was very encouraging and said he always thought there was untapped potential in fumetti and very much liked what I was doing.

Also, someone asked me why I was doing this on ACT-I-VATE, and not trying to bring the idea somewhere else, perhaps a venue which paid. It was a good question and I think I had a good answer. Because by posting these on ACT-I-VATE, a webcomix portal, I’m stating very clearly that what I’m doing is COMICS. It’s not photo collage with words or any other possible description. It’s comics. By definition, comics are words and pictures which go together sequentially to tell a story. No one ever said the pictures had to be drawn. Yes, traditionally, drawn images seem to work best, but that doesn’t mean the medium is not open to experimentation with other forms of imagry, like photographic.

Of course, it’s also a honor and a bit of a validation to share a platform with the likes of great creators like Dean Haspiel, Mike Cavallaro, Nick Bertozzi, Simon Fraser, Tim Hamilton, Michel Fiffe and the rest. Their work, and their encouragement and support of my work, has made a huge impact on me. It feels great to be a part of the group and to be making comics.

The Comics Reporter

Eyeworks Festival 2010 trailer from Lilli Carré on Vimeo.

“The Eyeworks programs showcase a range of animation techniques, including paper cutouts, stop-motion, 3D computer animation, and a wide variety of hand-drawn methods. … Eyeworks celebrates animated moving images that express unusual vision, unusual approaches, and unusual style. …Saturday, November 6, 2010/DePaul CDM Theater, 247 S. State Street, basement level/Jackson stop, Red Line/Chicago (Admission: $5 for each program, $12 for all three)” Earlier this week, Carré was kind enough to do an email interview with me about the festival.

Tim O’Shea: What motivated the development of this Eyeworks Festival? And for those of the uninitiated, can you provide some background on the nature and appeal of “abstract animation and unconventional character animation”?

Lilli Carré: What sparked our interest in starting a festival of specifically ‘experimental animation’ was having had the opportunity to view a lot of great classic experimental film and animation pieces on film at Cal Arts and Chicago Filmmakers this past summer—works by Jules Engel, Adam Beckett, Robert Breer, Sally Cruikshank, Oskar Fischinger, etc.– and we decided that we should make a reason to show some of these wonderful films on 16mm ourselves, and to create a new venue for current work in this same vein.

We don’t feel like there is a strong festival presence particularly for that kind of work, yet there are so many wonderful films of that type that are rarely shown, as well as a good amount of current experimental and unusual animation work that is being made. There are a batch of experimental film festivals, and a good number of straightforward animation festivals, but as two animators ourselves who make work that falls into the grey area in-between the two categories, we thought it would be a good and exciting challenge to try to start up a small festival for exactly the type of animation that excites us—work using abstraction and/or more unusual or surrealistic narrative to tell stories visually.

So we decided to create this new film festival just a few months ago! We’re keeping it small scale this first time around, just a one-day event, in hopes that we can expand it in future years once we see how this one goes.

O’Shea: What was the criteria for making being a piece included in the Classic Shorts?

Carré: For the Classic Shorts program, we wanted to show animated works made by more established filmmakers, and preferably on 16mm film from the Chicago Filmmakers and Canyon Cinema film collections. We chose a selection of work made between the 70’s and the 90’s that we liked and that we thought worked well together as a program, with a fair balance between abstract work and character animation.

O’Shea: How did you go about selecting the pieces included in the new shorts program, such as Dash Shaw‘s The Unclothed Man in the 35th Century A.D? Care to divulge how many people submitted pieces for consideration?

Carré: In the spirit of trying to keep it a clean and simple process, we curated the festival rather than having a call for submissions. We contacted people whose work we liked and invited them to take part.

O’Shea: In a struggling economy like the one we are currently in, how challenging was it find festival sponsors–and how important are festival sponsors to an event like this?

Carré: The festival is completely out of our pockets, money-wise. We have several in-kind sponsorships, so we didn’t get any money for the festival, but we did get a reduced rental rate on the films from Chicago Filmmakers, DePaul School of CDM generously allowed us to schedule this in their theater, we were able to silkscreen our flyers and programs at the Spudnik Press printshop without studio fees, and we got access to several larger email lists for promotion. I don’t think we could have done it without that help. So we are keeping our costs pretty low, and are hoping to simply make back the money we’ve put into the festival through the admission we get, which we’re also keeping cheap, at $5 per screening or $12 for the whole festival. Everyone wins!

O’Shea: Despite the fact this is a new festival, you were able to garner festival guest David O’Reilly. Can you talk about the process of getting him to participate and what about his work made him an ideal fit for the festival?

Carré: My co-director of the festival Alexander Stewart is an Assistant Professor at DePaul University, and he had been planning for some time to fly David O’Reilly in from Berlin to be a visiting artist at the University. Once we knew he was coming, and once we had decided that we wanted to do a festival this fall, we realized that we would be crazy not to try and include O’Reilly. We asked him what he thought about being part of Eyeworks, and he said sure! We’re very lucky to have such a talented animator come to the US to show his work for these events. I think his work fits well with our festival through his sense of visual design and formal experimentation, as well as the darkly humorous emotional punch of his narratives. His work leans more toward the narrative character animation side of our spectrum, but he seems to be simultaneously exploring new territory in his visual style and with the emotional impact of the narratives. We’ve both been fans of his since we saw Please Say Something; he makes really strong and unclassifiable work. His character design seems to give a nod to the style of some early animation characters, and also seem to me to have a bit of Chris Ware influence, the latter especially visible in Please Say Something, which you can watch here.

We’re especially excited to show a preview screening of his new film The External World, which just won the Grand Prix prize at the Ottawa International Animation Festival. He’s only 25 or so, and is making such good work at an alarming rate.

O’Shea: What have been the biggest logistical challenges of organizing a festival of this type?

Carré: I don’t want to hex myself by saying this, but everything’s been going pretty smoothly thus far. I think that’s largely due to the fact that we’ve kept it pretty simple. We could do a lot more with more time and some money, but I think the scope of the festival as it is matches the amount of time and resources we have right now. We’ve been working hard to promote it in different ways, including some neat projects like working with Sonnenzimmer print studio to make these silkscreened Eyeworks posters that they designed and printed and that we animated and posted around town.

It’s been hard predicting what the attendance might be, so we’ve been trying to get the word out as much as possible. These are some great animations, and I hope people take advantage of the rare opportunity to see some of these works on film, as well as to see new work that otherwise might slip under their radar.

O’Shea: Can you talk about the looping program of silent works that will run throughout the festival?

Carré: There were some pieces that very short or that we thought would work well as looping pieces rather than being shown in the screening programs, so we compiled about 10 pieces that will be looping on monitors in the lobby from 12:30pm through 9pm the day of the fest. There will be everything from an animation of moss beating like a heart in stop-motion, to fast-paced abstracted security envelope interiors, to a classic hand-drawn animation of a 1930s cartoon that looks like it’s melting.

O’Shea: How have you and fellow co-director Alexander Stewart divvied up responsibilities on this project?

Carré: We’ve both been spending time being in back-and-forth contact with the different filmmakers for the programs, getting materials and their information, etc. Alexander’s handling a lot of the promotions as well as tech aspects of building up the film reels, making sure the videos are the proper formats, etc. I’ve been doing a lot of the design and the writing/printing/assembling of the programs and promotional materials. The day of the fest I’m sure we will both be equally stressed and excited and whizzing around. I can’t wait!

KingCon II

Coming up November 6 and 7 (plus special events the evenings of November 4 & 5), the Brooklyn Lyceum (located at 227 4th Ave at President) will host the KingCon II, an independent comic, animation and illustration convention. The cost will be $7 day/$10 weekend (kids: $3 day/$5 weekend). To get the scoop on the con, I recently email interviewed the con’s co-director Regan Jay Fishman. Also the Lyceum’s program director Eric Richmond was kind enough to chime in with in-depth details about the special panels on Thursday (November 4).  My thanks to Fishman and Richmond for their time.

Tim O’Shea: This is the second year of King Con, expanded from two to four days. As noted in the comments section of the Beat’s coverage of the announcement, the venue will be warmer this year. What other improvements or changes (adding an Artist Alley, for example) have you made based on feedback from last year’s attendees?

Regan Jaye Fishman: We have added an Artist Alley! We have also removed some risers to make for more room downstairs, Made the panels fifty minutes instead of a full hour to allow for changeover time, signings will be in the mezzanine instead of upstairs and the con has been extended by 30 minutes each day so that panels aren’t STARTING the SECOND people walk in the door.
Also, I will not be sporting a constant expression of abject terror.

O’Shea: You co-directed last year’s KingCon with Mike Zagari, but this year you’ll be co-directing with Daily Cross Hatch’s Brian Heater, in what ways do you think Heater’s contributions influenced the con’s planning so far?

Fishman: Mike Zagari was a great help to us last year, and he had fantastic panel ideas, many of which explored the how-tos of comic creation and publication, and dealt extensivley with digital media. Mr. Heater’s panels explore many of the different genres of Comic writing and illustration and his deep connection to the independent comics community helps cement the mission of KingCon, which is to give the independents, especially the Brooklyn-based ones, their much deserved spotlight.

O’Shea: The show has been expanded to four days, partially to facilitate panels. Can you talk about the panels  that King Con will host?

Fishman: This year’s Panel Programming includes:

• A Spotlight on Chris Claremont, legendary x-men writer, moderated by Fred Van Lente
• Graphic NYC Presents… a conversation with celebrated New York artist Kyle Baker (Plastic Man, The Bakers, Nat Turner)
• Zuda: What Happened? a retrospective look at the three-year life of a web-based comic
• Understanding Israel: A Spotlight on Sarah Glidden, author of the graphic novel How to understand Israel in 60 days or less
• The Daily Cross Hatch Presents: The Cross Hatch Podcast Live featuring a streamed conversation with Julia Wertz, Robert Sikoryak and Lisa Hanawalt
• The Funny Pages: Comedy in Comics featuring Lisa Hanawalt, Bob Fingerman, Michael Kuperman, Neil Swaab and Emily White
• Hips, Lips, and Pencil Tips: The Sexual Female as Feminist Focal Point a conversation with female artists Paige Pumphrey, Laura Lee Gullidge, Jennifer Hayden and Molly Crabapple, moderated by Rachel Kramer Bussel
• Kids’ Stuff: Making Comics for All Ages featuring Nick Abadzis, Raina Telgemeier, Dave Roman and Colleen AF Venable
• King Con Presents: Carousel, featuring R. Sikoryak, Emily Flake, Michael Kuperman, and more
• Pulp to the Future: the past, present and future of pulp comics with Adam L Garcia, Ed Catto, Mark Halegua, Derrick Fergusen, Chris Kalb
• Bored to Death — Jonathan Ames and Dean Haspiel (moderator Jeff Newelt) will discuss the HBO series written by Ames. The character “Ray” played by Zach Galifianakis is loosely-based on Dean who draws all the comic art for the show. Special sneak preview screening of clips from the Comic-Con themed episode that was shot here at the Lyceum in May.
• Plus Opening Party / Live Comix Reading with Dean Haspiel, Paul Pope, Jeff Newelt, Jen Ferguson, Seth Kushner, and Joe Infurnari. DJ Pulphope (Paul Pope), DJ CrossHatch (Brian Heater) + Bands til midnite!

Also, Rick Parker, a legendary cartoonist and parody artist will lead a live drawing workshop, and Papercutz publishing will give a reading of their latest Smurfs title, complete with face painting and Smurfy giveaways.

O’Shea: There’s also two panels on Thursday night. Eric can you delve into those?

Eric Richmond: [The first panel is] The Death of Print Journalism: The needs of the many

Well, it has been nigh on two years since the print industry collapsed as we know it.

Papers closed (San Jose, Denver, Seattle, San Francisco).

Papers gone on-line only (Ann Arbor News).

Papers went to a few days a week (Detroit Free Press).

People leaving papers to form various on-line entities.

Freelancers banding together to feed the declining newspaper and the rising on-line sphere.

Small papers who carved out an on-line presence and were gobbled up by the very same publications that were collapsing of their own dead weight.

Papers went into bankruptcy.

Unions busted.

Why??? Because it was time.

The whole industry had been propped up for decades by being in a growth market and by an artificial scarcity of distribution. And whomever controlled distribution got rich… filthy rich. The internet killed both of those. Dollars were no longer growing as people could actually figure out better which half of their marketing dollars was well spent. And scarcity of distribution is a thing of the past as anybody can once again be a news and information source. Access to news and information is instant and the tools are ubiquitous. It is the best of times(for those shut out by the old way) and the worst of times (for those left out in the game of newspaper musical chairs).

Greater overall advertising dollars may be on the horizon but it will be spread much more evenly against an exponentially larger number of sources. Pay by the impression. Pay by the click. Pay by the sale. Little drips and drabs of monitored ad dollars will add up to a larger pie. But no one will ever own those markets in remotely the same way again. More players. Fewer dollars per player.

Does it level out such that more people can either make a living or cover their costs?

In some ways it is back to the 1700s or square one except that it is now nearly impossible to corner any market. Do something well? There are recent unemployed college grads by the thousands sleeping on couches in their parent’s basement in places like Philadelphia who will do it for cheaper (free) and they WILL drive you out of business unless you stay one step ahead and NEVER rest on your laurels. Think Google. Once they got a leg up they have pushed innovation and pushed many initiatives that normally and ad-machine wouldn’t bother to do except for to be involved in information means to be a shark… swim …. or die.

Those that do not rest on their laurels will pass through this test. Others will not.

How does this affect comics?

Sort-of like how Napster altered music. It is every artist for himself. Sort of….

Find out Thursday, November 4th @ 7PM.

O’Shea: The second panel to be also held on Thursday (at 9 PM), what can you tell me about it?

Richmond: [The second panel is] The Wants of the Few: Atlantic Yards, Comics and the Changing Face of Brooklyn

Was it the right place?

Was it the right time?

Was it the right process?

Atlantic Yards continues to fulfill the major media expectation of Brooklyn as a backwater where the people don’t matter.

Laws that seem pretty clear are ignored.

Captains of industry (well real estate) rule the day.

The common man is marginalized so that they an tear down middle class housing to build rich person housing while promising that they “might” throw a bit of affordable housing out there. All at the promise of more tax revenue that is clearly a bald-faced lie.

Judges make rulings that only seem appropriate if you believe everyone is already in the bag since the rulings grasp at any straw to not actually deal with the issues at hand.

Kind of make comics irrelevant if the actions of the leaders and monitors of gotham are already that much of a caricature.

And, lastly, where is the urban grit and spit in your eye that propelled comics to a position of status anyways? Will everything look like a cheap glass tower that charges ore for less?

Maybe the comic industry should start the pullout from an urban psyche if that urban core is just like Des Moines.

O’Shea: Is King Con partially aimed at focusing on local talent that might get unintentionally marginalized at larger shows like NYCC?

Fishman: Yes yes yes!! That was the literal mission statement of the first one and something I have steadfastly worked to keep correct.

I really admire the guy who saves up all year to go to SanDiego and NYCC just to be there, even as a relatively small fish in a massive pond. I want KingCon to be the the place where those folks get to feel the MOST love, the BIGGEST welcome, because they are the heart and soul of the industry. Fifty, sixty years ago stuff like Action Comics started with the same spirit. Sure people will always want the glossy mainstream stuff and the blockbuster movies it often becomes, but those who truly love Comics as an art form live for the storytelling, the heart, the touch of human hands, as it were, that can only be found in talent pools like the one be have thriving here in Brooklyn.

O’Shea: How did you settle upon selecting Chris Claremont as one of the main guests. Who are some of the guests from last year that you’re glad to see returning for 2010?

Fishman: The first comics I ever read in my natural-born life, were the X-men classics repros of the Dark Phoenix saga, purely on accident because I was like 11 and I thought the flaming lady with no irises looked cool. I was hooked for life. I cried, I told my mother I wanted fire-hair, I started wearing alot of turtlenecks. I didn’t think in a million years I could get him, but I thought, “well Its my Show! How am I NOT inviting the man basically responsible for me reading comics in the first place! Absurdity!” I mean…there was no harm in trying. Lo and behold, he’s local, he’s really nice (as is his family) and all he asked of me was real, full-sugar CocaCola (which, after, WEEKS of pleading with the management, he’s getting)

…urrrm, Jeff Newelt, Brian Wood and Dean Haspiel were (and are) instrumental in pushing the con forward, and yet again their participation has proved invaluable. Jonathan Ames, of course, is always a pleasure to have, pants or no. I am super excited about Bob Fingerman, even though he never seems to understand why, and Rick Parker manages to make me laugh like a drain everytime he shows up in my Facebook feed…
….Tim Hamilton, Simon Fraser, Mike Cavallaro, Cliff Chiang, Paigey Pumphrey…Kalman Spiegel….Josh Adams, Robert Pollack, Dave Roman, Raina Telgemeier, Bobby and Peter Timony… all wonderful people, and good friends to both myself and the Con…

OH! and OF COURSE Mike Zagari, and Matt Manning, both of whom, besides being uber-talented, knew me long before a comic-con was even a glint in my eye, (and every article of clothing I owned was pepto-bismol pink,) (ps both Matt and one of my other tablers, JT Yost, had babies this year so big congrats to that!!)

O’Shea: What inspired the development of the King Con Drawbridge Sketchbook Competition?

Fishman: Nate Schreiber had the idea, and we discussed it over drinks and a shameful amount of fried chicken after one of Dean’s signings. I was absolutley enamored of the concept. I feel like its such a natural extension of what Drawbridge is AND such a wonderful way to make folks feel excited and part of something. I kind of love the idea of art reaching out to art with no heirarchy, no ego, everyone’s got a shot. If I had to pick one thing I want this con to be about for the entirety of its lifespan, its the ‘analog file share’ of creations and ideas, and I was blown away last year by some of the art made on the spot by attendees. This borough is bursting at the seams with really gifted folks. I feel so lucky to get to spend any time at all in their presence.

O’Shea: For exhibitors, is there still space available?

Fishman: VERY VERY limited, but if you have something awesome, email Regan@brooklynlyceum.com, I’ll see what I can do.

O’Shea: Is there anything you’d like to discuss that I neglected to ask you about?

Fishman: What I’d like for dinner, and where babies come from? The answer to A: always tacos, the answer to B:…is best left to another interview.

KING CON II PEOPLE Nov 6 &7, (with accessory events Thursday and Friday evening 4th & 5th)

MARCH 3 from Jake Lodwick on Vimeo.

Tim O’Shea: Among the three main factions in this project, Jake Lodwick, The Few Moments and yourself–whom approached whom about this project. How did you settle upon the term “illustrative score” for the project?

Ira Marcks: The process began with The Few Moments making a record called “March 3″ for Jake Lodwick. At the time (2008) Jake had a record label called Normative through which he would release music by his artists in unconventional ways. The idea for this release was to have the music be accompanied by “one long, scrolling illustration”. Those are Jake’s words. It’s all the direction I was really given on the project. First thing that came to mind was Trajan’s Column in Rome. It’s covered from bottom to top in a bas-relief that scrolls around the column and tells the story of an ancient war. I imagined this project would be something of an automated version of that concept.

O’Shea: Did you define the parameters (a 50-foot long piece in total, and “animation was limited to a sliding, digitized canvas. 8 x 6 inches of illustration = 30 seconds of music”) at the outset or did the complexities and nuances get defined and/or redefined/clarified throughout the project?

Marcks: I felt it was necessary to give the project some very strick dimensions. Not only to keep it from overwhelming me and my budget, but to guarantee that the illustrations were queued up with the music.

O’Shea: Did you listen to the music for inspiration as you worked on the project? Would you have done the project if you had not liked the music?

Marcks: The lyrics create a narrative in a similar way to Neutral Milk Hotel‘s album In the Aeroplane over the Sea. There are characters that act out of motivation but a traditional plot line never reveals itself. The best way to approach it, I felt, was to use the illustrations to create something of a parable to the music and words. I used related shapes, colors and objects to convey the mood and themes of the album.

O’Shea: The piece is defined as “A visual companion devoted to enhancing the elements of a song.”–but would it be wrong to say vice versa as well–that the song also enhances the art?

Marcks: If the project was successful, they two should feel like a whole piece. I wanted the visuals to be a animated equivalent of an album cover. Something, once seen, is inseparable from the music. Each of them complimenting the other.

O’Shea: When we first discussed this piece, you wrote to me “the method of my illustrative score is a small part of my over all philosophy on sequential art”. So let’s talk about the method and your philosophy. First off, could you attempt to describe a typical day (if there was such a thing as a typical day) when creating this illustrative score? Secondly, how did you arrive at your philosophy on sequential art?

Marcks: The initial planning of the project was done in a storyboard format much like any conventional animation. I established the over arching theme and characters and then broke it down by song, giving each track a different motif (12 songs in all). Once I a concept for a song I used a gridded template to sketch out the track. At this stage I end up with something that looks like a equalizer of the song. Then I start drawing the designs over that. Next it gets inked and colored. It’s difficult to really put an hourly rate of production on this. Some parts came easier than others.

I believe that sequential art has the potential to help people exercise their storytelling muscles in ways that are not found in other mediums. Being a teacher who works in a variety of circumstances and often on a shoe-string budget; the medium is great for many reasons. Two important ones being: It’s cheap to produce and it’s a universal language.

My first test audience for the project was a fifth grade art class. About 15 students sat through the whole 45 minutes. Touching the screen, investing in the characters, being genuinely engaged. I also showed them the original art work. They spent only a few minutes flipping through these images. Their difference in reaction to the different presentations of the images is part of why I’m so invested and curious to experiment with sequential art.

O’Shea: At some points in the piece, your backgrounds are quite intense and complex, then at other points you opted for no background, allowing the eyes to focus on the foreground art. Creatively, how did you decide what needed (or did not need) a background?

Marcks: This approach emerged from the listening to the textures and density of the music. It became part of the method as I got deeper into it. The loud and complex sections of the album usually generated more dense and complex ideas.

O’Shea: The project generated a great deal of discussion at Scott McCloud’s site. Were you pleased at the variety of responses it generated (and the fact that it clearly caught McCloud’s interest)?

Marcks: Certainly. Like most comic artists my age, Scott’s work has been a big influence on the direction my work has taken.

In fact you jump in on the discussion, writing of the project “The reason I decided to imply it is comic-like was that I never thought anyone would sit and watch it like a film. I expected it to be shown as a minor accompaniment to the music at a party or something. I envisioned people looking at it occasionally, seeing a ‘panel’ and turning their back.” When I looked at it, I treated it as I would when I go into a music shop, sidle up to the listening station and scan a cut or two on the CD–I hopped around and looked at different aspects of the piece. Honestly I think I would be overwhelmed if I tried to experience all the art in one 45-minute sitting.

O’Shea: When creating a project of this scope, how hard is it to realize people may only focus on a “panel” or so in a viewing–or do you not worry about how it is viewed?

Marcks: I wouldn’t say I worried. Nothing depended on the success of project as a watch it from A to Z video. I think it is successful because it can be approached and viewed in many different ways. I actually like the idea of skipping around. It makes it seem more like a tiny universe. A place that leaves an impression but isn’t fully experienced by a single person.

O’Shea: What was the largest logistical challenge for you on this project? What creative lessons did you take away from it?

Marcks: I learned to loosen up. I’ve done lecturing on experimental sequential art and I push my students to approach things in new ways. But I often find my personal work comes off as fairly conventional. I become tied up in over developed story-lines and the interlocking details of a narrative. The ‘art’ of the piece sometimes suffers. With this collaboration the story was already built in. There are reoccurring themes that I attached, but for the most part I worked from a stream of consciousness.

O’Shea: Do you hope to do more work with either Jake Lodwick or The Few Moments? Have you had other musicians express interest in collaborating with you? Have you attempted anything along these lines with RESTYS, the folk rock project that you are a member of?

Marcks: Jake and I are old friends. We get along because we are very curious about how people respond or relate themselves to the world around them. We keep in touch and I wouldn’t be surprised if we find something to do together again. I have no commitments to do another such project at the moment. I’m currently focusing on a print collection of my comic strip, WITCH KNOTS.

As a song writer in the band RESTYS, I like to keep a mostly conventional approach to creating music. I’m by no means an trained musician, but I love the tradition of song craft and performance. We play within the genre of ‘folk rock’ and at the moment it’s satisfying to work towards the goal of being simply a great band who puts on a great show.

O’Shea: Can we talk a little bit about your site, Morning in the Atelier? How do you decide what you’re going to post on a given day?

Marcks: I post whatever is my current focus. I’m most productive from 8am to noon. I teach in the afternoons so I have the morning to focus in my studio. Sometimes the images are things I’m drawing at the moment, sometimes they’re notes on new ideas. Other times they are pictures of reference materials or artifacts from past art projects. I spent over four years on a graphic novel that’s been put in suspended animation. The grimy and smudgy sketches that pop up are from days I consider getting back into the book. Again, it’s something I overwhelmed myself with. It’s hard to see the end of that project.

Then today, I email interviewed Esther Pearl Watson on Unlovable.

And in between, I talked a little bit about what I’m currently reading in terms of sequential art. Fatagraphics’ Blazing Combat features a few stories from the late Alex Toth (as well as many other talented artists).  Who is Toth? Well among his many accomplishments, he’s the fellow that designed the look for Hanna Barbera’s Space Ghost and Super Friends.

Tim O’Shea: Beige is partially inspired by your initial move to Los Angeles. While the novel is not your story, of course, I’m wondering if when writing a novel like this do you find you learn a little about yourself in the process?

Cecil Castellucci: While no novel is biography, there are always elements of myself and where I’m at or where I’ve been. Sometimes it’s a look back, sometimes it’s a reflection of now, sometimes an imagined path not taken. So, I think that I learn a little bit about myself from every novel I write. For Beige, I was inspired by moving to my particular neighborhood in Los Angeles, Silverlake, and dealing with all the punk in Los Angeles. Everything was so punk rock here and I felt like an outsider looking in, even though I had moved here to put out my first CD on No Life Records. I was working at Epitaph Records and I was this little indie rock girl who sang Twee music. I suppose in this case I learned about the essential roots of punk, which are pretty much the essential roots of being an artist in the world. Ask questions. Pay attention. Think for yourself. When you do that, it’s all good.

O’Shea: One of the main characters in Beige, Katy’s dad (The Rat) is a recovering addict. In writing a young adult novel, how hard is it to touch upon subjects like that (addiction/recovery/impact on the family) without either getting too adult with the topic or talking down to the audience?

Castellucci: I don’t think it’s too hard to talk about anything in Young Adult literature. That’s the great thing about it. There’s room for all kinds of stories, all kinds of conversations. I think you can touch on anything, any subject, as long as you do it with empathy, heart and honesty. In this book, it was important to me to talk about recovery and redemption, rather than the more typical way that drugs and addiction are presented in YA. A lot of times there are very grave consequences, characters end up dead, lives ruined and don’t get me wrong, I’m not condoning drug use or abuse, I am just saying that once you’ve made that mistake, there is life after that. The Rat and Sam Suck all paid dearly for their choices. It ruined their lives and the lives of Katy and Lake’s moms and greatly affected how Katy and Lake are brought up. In the end, they got through it. Well, most of them. In my life, along the way, I have met many people, who are in recovery for drug or alcohol abuse and they were (are) amazing people. Talented, brilliant, kind, generous, human. I feel privileged to have met the ones that I call friends and acquaintances at that time in their life, while in recovery, after they had gone through all of that dark stuff and come out the other side. I got the best of them. With The Rat and Sam Suck and Katy’s Mom, I wanted to write a book that reflected those people who got sober and gave themselves a second chance.

O’Shea: Who was your editor on Beige? After writing a novel, how painful (or painless) is it to endure the editorial process?

Castellucci: I’m so glad you asked! Kara LaReau was my editor. She had edited my two previous novels Boy Proof and The Queen of Cool so we already had a shorthand. I would say that the editorial process with her is a fantastic experience. Not that I don’t get frustrated and beaten down by the process of making a novel. I weep sometimes. I curse my clumsy sentences. I eat bon bons in despair and beat my chest dramatically. But she makes it a lot easier. She’s a big cheerleader and a great sounding board. She also sometimes says one thing about the story, one sentence that just blows my mind and clicks everything together in the story for me. Basically, in our process together, we have long talks about the heart of the book. This book was a bit more layered than my other books, there were more words! So there was a plot chart that was made so we could quickly look at the beats of the narrative broken down chapter by chapter. I love when I give my book to Kara and then we talk. She pulls the best stuff out of me, she has this magical way of just tweaking things just so and then I’m off and running. I love when I get her notes and then I revise. Revising is fun. First drafts are hard.

O’Shea: Who was your favorite character to write in Beige? Now that it’s been a few years since you wrote the book, have you gained a greater affection for other characters in the book?

Castellucci: Oh, picking favorites is always difficult! But in writing the book I loved writing The Rat! He is so fragile and great. He’s trying so hard! He’s really making a go at his second chance. These few years later, I now have a super soft spot for Garth Skater, who wears his helmet all the time because he’s so beautiful, who makes Katy the punk primer cd mix that make up the chapter headings. And of course Katy and Lake, well, their hard blossoming friendship was a treat to write.

O’Shea: When you do a book like Beige, with a certain set of characters–do you ever have the temptation to revisit the characters in another novel?

Castellucci: Beige is the only book where I knew what would happen if I ever got to write a sequel. I knew where I wanted it to go. As a matter of fact, the first draft took place over the summer with the rat and then continued through the whole next school year. Kara LaReau, my editor and I had a long talk and decided to cut out the second half of that draft and just concentrate on the summer. Other than that, except for the Plain Janes, I haven’t really had the temptation to revisit characters. My books are usually pretty stand alone.

O’Shea: Back in 2007, when Beige first came out, you started a blog discussing favorite punk songs in honor of the book’s release. At the blog you run a photo of yourself giving the one-finger salute. The book finds its roots in punk music and the punk attitude, so the picture (in the right sidebar under “This is Cecil”) makes sense to me (and is funny). But do you ever worry that as a contemporary YA writer some potential consumers might be turned off by the photo?

Castellucci: Oh, the one finger salute! I try not worry about stuff like that. I think that as long as you are an excellent adult, honest, true to yourself, full of heart and good deeds, then it’s all good. That is the most important thing to show kids. How to be an excellent person. I try to be an excellent person. It’s a process. I would say that a better way to think of people being turned off by the photo or other things that make consumers (I’m going to venture that would be parents) uncomfortable, whether it be my smiling punk picture or the content of a book, any book, is that those are great opportunities to engage in an open conversation with kids. My feeling is that any entry into dialogue with kids is great. I bet if they sat down and talked with their kids about that picture, Why am I giving the finger? What is punk? then they would likely come to the same conclusion that you do, that in context, the book Beige finds its roots in punk music and the punk attitude. That’s a good dinner table conversation. I’m all about good dinner conversations. So I’m not going to worry about being shown with the finger as a YA author because I know that pretty much every single person has given the finger at some point. And I’ll probably give the finger at some point in the future about something. It happens.

O’Shea: With the Beige is Punk blog, what’s been some of your favorite songs that you’ve been introduced to through the blog?

Castellucci: Well, I finally watched the movie Ladies and Gentlemen, The Fabulous Stains. Which is FANTASTIC! Also, I rediscovered a bunch of songs. I was actually surprised at how many songs I had known already and adored. But pretty much everything Douglas Wolk picked! He’s got such great eclectic, underground, wonderful taste and I hardly knew any of them.

O’Shea: Did anyone punk veterans happen to read the book (albeit not your target audience) and give you feedback on the book?

Castellucci: I wish!

O’Shea: When your career expanded into the world of graphic novels, did you find that coverage helped to expand consumer interest in your YA novels?

Castellucci: I think so! I think everybody finds out about you and your work different ways. I mean, I have some people who read a book of mine because they used to like my band. Or some people read their first graphic novel because they liked my YA novels and vice versa. I’m sure it all goes around. I think some people will like all of what I do with my different ways of telling stories, and some will only like one part. That’s cool. I’m going to keep telling my stories in all kinds of different ways and I’m sure people will come and go.

O’Shea: 2009 is the year of short stories for you. How did this creative decision come about? And while it’s only March, how is 2009 going so far–any pleasant or unpleasant creative surprises?

Castellucci: The fact that I only have short stories coming out in 2009 is a weird fluke! First, I co-edited an anthology about Geeks and the Geek Observed called Geektastic with Holly Black. Then I was asked to be in a Vampire anthology, The Eternal Kiss and that was so fun to write. The story is called Wet Teeth and it’s totally creepy and wretched! Yeah! Then I have a story called The Long and Short of Long Term Memory coming out on the Interstital Arts Foundation anthology Interfictions II. That story is special to me because it’s my first story that is not a young adult story, although it’s perfectly suitable for teens. The most interesting thing is that I feel like these short stories have given me a chance to explore a new literary voice. The stories have informed the new work in progress that I’m working on, which is a novel, which is going to be something very, very different for me. So it’s been enormously wonderful and completely surprising to write these short stories. I feel very lucky that these new pieces in this new voice have been so warmly received and that my efforts to grow as a writer are going to be published. It’s encouraging me to be braver in my work. I love that!

O’Shea: Given that The Long and Short of Long Term Memory (A quite engaging title, I must say) is allowing you to explore “a new literary voice”–I’m curious to hear in what ways has the new voice allowed you to venture into new territory–and how soon into the writing process did you discover you’d tapped into this new voice? Was it in the midst of writing it, or later–when you were revising it?

Castellucci: The new voice question is tricky. I think I had been starting to toy with a new voice, but it wasn’t really fully present yet. Previously I had written a novel (unpublished) (and totally secret cause it was so different from anything else I’d done) called The Cherry Tree, which I am going to finish now that the new voice has sort of settled in my body and I feel stronger about what I’m doing. My editor, Kara read it and remarked at how different it was for me. She encouraged me and even said that she thought that this was the voice I was meant to write in. But I was so nervous, so unconfident and I didn’t know what it was. It seemed that maybe because I had written more contemporary YA that people would think my new ideas would be too weird or something. Then, through a stroke of luck, my new editor at Candlewick, Deborah Noyes was editing an anthology of weird stories called Sideshow. When I found out, I was bummed that I wasn’t the kind of author that would be asked to be in weird anthologies like that. I mentioned to her that I would like to try to write something like that one day. A week later, one of the authors in the anthology had dropped out and Deb asked if I wanted to take a stab at a story. I wrote this story called The Bread Box and she was surprised at what I had done. That gave me a little boost, but I was still feeling too nervous to really try something like a novel or something for adults. The Long and Short of Long Term Memory came from watching my dad, a neurobiologist give a lecture on memory while I was in Montreal recovering from a psychological trauma. I came home that afternoon and wanted to write a story about someone who was trying to remove a specific memory from their mind. That day the new voice really took hold of me. I’m really proud of the story and now, hopefully, it’s more like I’ve just added some kind of je ne sais quoi to my work. I suppose it’s opened me up to even more kinds of story telling, and more possibilities for myself as an artist, which is a bonus. I am working on a novel now that is combining what I hope will be the best of my old voice and elements of the new, so fingers crossed that it blends beautifully.

O’Shea: Are your days of playing in band in your rearview mirror–or do you see yourself doing some musical projects at some point down the road?

Castellucci: Like Cher. There is always room for a musical comeback.

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Tim O’Shea: Do you think you could have been able to do the Weeks book without Tom Field’s involvement? Were you afraid that because Weeks and Field were such old and close friends it might make it harder for Field to ask tough questions in the process? Or due to the nature of these books (which intend to honor modern masters) is there ever a need to ask tough questions, per se? (feel free to tweek this question if need be).

Eric Nolen-Weathington: Yes, I do think I could have gotten Lee without Tom’s involvement, as I know several artists who are friends with Lee. And Lee was already on my list of guys I wanted to cover at some point. What Tom’ pitch really did was move Lee off the “sooner or later” list and onto the actual schedule.

Tom had already done a book for TwoMorrows on Gene Colan, Secrets in the Shadows: The Art and Life of Gene Colan, which I feel is one of the best books TwoMorrows has published. That was all I needed to know that he would do a good job with the interview. And having known Lee since childhood, I think Tom knew exactly where that line was of what he could ask and what he shouldn’t. The result is one of the most honest, open interviews of the series thus far.

O’Shea: So many artists (Colan, Miller [of course] and Mazzucchelli) have had distinguished runs on Daredevil–do you think to a certain extent because of that Weeks’ run may be underappreciated?

Nolen-Weathington: You didn’t even mention that he had to follow a long run by John Romita, Jr., which happened to be the turning point of J.R.’s career. No pressure there. So, yes, I think there is a little of that which Lee’s work has to contend with. But I think the biggest factor in why he may be underappreciated is that he was only on the book for a year and a half or so — and that remains the longest run on a book of his career. He has moved around so much from special to mini-series to fill-in, that fans can’t really associate him with a particular character. That is what really leads to his being somewhat overlooked.

O’Shea: Weeks is the third creator that indulges in magic that I can think of (Alan Moore and Jim Steranko being the others). What do you think is it about the allure of the slight of hand that attracts folks that are also good artists?

Nolen-Weathington: What are comics to a kid, if not magical? They’re really part of the same realm of fantasy and escapism. It’s the same reason so many comic book fans also play role-playing games and are TV and film enthusiasts. I remember reading a book about Houdini (twice!) when I was a kid, and I think I even checked out a book of simple magic tricks from the library. I doubt I’m alone in that. Lee just took it to that next level.

O’Shea: What surprised you most about delving into Weeks’ career?

Nolen-Weathington: I think the biggest surprise for me was in realizing just how much of his work I had in my collection. With the exception of one mini-series and a few short stories, I already had everything in my possession before even sitting down to start work on the book. It goes back to what I was saying about him jumping around from project to project, you just don’t realize how much work he’s done and how brilliant his work is until you sit down and think about it.

O’Shea: What aspects of Weeks’ work to date do you now have a new appreciation for?

Nolen-Weathington: I’d have to say his Spider-Man work, particularly the Death & Destiny mini-series. I’ve always loved his DD work and especially Batman Chronicles: The Gauntlet, but taking another look at Death & Destiny — it’s a very powerful story. And the cover to issue #2 (which I was able to run full-page) is just incredible.

O’Shea: What was the hardest aspect of doing this book?

Nolen-Weathington: I can’t really think of anything that was even remotely difficult. This book came together very easily for me. Lee sent me a ton of great art to use, which gave me a lot of freedom in the layout stage. And Lee really got involved with the book, much more so than is typical of the artists I work with. This book really was a lot of fun to do, and I think that shows in the final product.

On Nick Cardy: Behind The Art

O’Shea: How did this project land at TwoMorrows, given that the first 2001 book was published by Vanguard?

Nolen-Weathington: I first met Nick in 2000 at Heroes Con, when I bought a copy of the Art of Nick Cardy book from him. The book was originally self-published in 1999 by the author, John Coates, with a print run of 1,000 copies (they were also signed and numbered — I have #742). It’s a great book, and I highly recommend it, by the way. I’ve always been a huge fan of his work, going back to when I was just starting to read comics in the early ’70s, so at every following convention I made a point of going by and talking with Nick for a few minutes before the doors opened. Over time we got to be pretty good friends, and would occassionally talk on the phone in between cons.

One day he mentioned to me that he had several paintings that he would like to get in print someday. Many of them were shown in the Art of Nick Cardy book, but some ran in black-&-white, and some of them were shot from poor reproductions. Well, that got me thinking, but at the time I wasn’t sure how to go about getting them in print. I didn’t want to do another “Art of…” book, as that had already been done and done rather well. The paintings wouldn’t really fit any of our magazines, either.

A couple of years passed and Nick mentioned the paintings again. But this time he also mentioned that he had tons of preliminary sketches and such he had drawn in the process of making the paintings. That was the spark that led to Nick Cardy: Behind the Art, where we focus not on his career, per se, but his working process. I talked it over with Nick, and he loved the idea. So I pitched the idea to John Morrow. Again, the key was that this book is not repetitive, but rather complementary to the previous book. Yes, there are several images in Behind the Art that were also in the previous book, but thanks to technological advances and a different focus, I was able to run more accurate, and larger, reproductions of the artwork. And where the previous book was black-&-white with a 16-page color section, Behind the Art is entirely full-color. The previous book has a great interview with Nick covering his career, while Behind the Art has Nick’s commentary on his favorite pieces of art — sometimes it’s technical information on how he approached the piece, sometimes it’s a funny anecdote. As I said, I think the books are very complementary, and if you’re a fan of Nick Cardy, you’ll want them both.

O’Shea: To say Cardy is an industry legend is an understatement, what was the most enjoyable aspect about discussing his craft with him?

Nolen-Weathington: Just talking with Nick is a pleasure. He’s a very upbeat guy, and a great storyteller. And does he has stories to tell! But he really is a fine artist at heart. He has as much, if not more, technical knowledge of the various forms of art as anyone else I’ve known. He can discuss the Classical artists — and enjoys doing so — just as easily as comic book artists. And he keeps up to date with current trends, too. He’s a fan of Miyazaki‘s work, for example.

O’Shea: This book is a departure for TwoMorrows to a certain extent, because so much of Cardy’s 1970s work was for film and other commercial illustration. What new challenges did you encounter working in this new area of coverage–or have you had other TwoMorrows projects that have delved that heavily into commercial (non-comics) art?

Nolen-Weathington: The only real challenge was in making the book accessible enough to the general comic-buying public. They are the ones who are going to be buying this book. Nick just didn’t spend enough time in those other fields to become a really big name. Now if he had gotten into doing movie poster illustration in the ’60s rather than the ’70s, perhaps he could have become another Bob Peak, who knows? So I had to make sure the book contained an equal measure of superhero artwork. But really, I just focused on making an art book that Nick could be proud of.

O’Shea: What pieces were the biggest “finds” to include?

Nolen-Weathington: All the preliminary art. Just tons and tons of sketches on tissue vellum. The art process has always intrigued me.

O’Shea: Typically TwoMorrows opts for the soft cover editions of books, but this book is a hardback. What made you opt for this format?

Nolen-Weathington: Given the nature of the book, I felt it was the only way to go. Luckily John agreed with me. At this point we are not even considering doing a softcover version, and I doubt that will change.

O’Shea: How much fun was it to be able to work in full color (given that your Modern Masters books are black and white books)?

Nolen-Weathington: Oh, you have no idea. There was a definite temptation to just go crazy with the color, but it would have hurt the book, I think. I wanted this to be a refined looking book to fit the subject matter, and I think I achieved that. It comes down to suiting the needs of the book. But I can hardly wait to do another full-color book.