VIDiscovery!

Here's a sample of a new project I'm working on for the Rewind This! a documentary about VHS by Josh Johnson.

Prison Pit Show and more!

So I've been geeking out about Filmation cartoons from Star Trek to Bravestarr. These cartoons are really not the best things out there, but there are some qualities to these that I just have so much love for. The backgrounds are seriously well conceived and painted. There's probably more care put into those than most of the episodes. The character and creature designs are super creative. They're not Alex Toth quality, but they can hold their own. The special effects and the voice acting are pretty special too.

 original cel and background from Bravestarr copyright Filmation

Since this stuff has been swimming around in my mind, I had the desire to create my own scenes from fictional shows. I'm only going so far to be authentic though. I'm painting with gouache on 5" x 8" illustration board, I'm xeroxing the line art onto acetate and reverse coloring with gouache. So it's pretty close to an authentic animation cel and background painting.

They take a lot of work and planning, so I've only got three completed so far. I'm really excited about doing these though and I figure I can come up with millions of scenes in this format. So there will be more to come. I do a lot of illustration work on the computer and sometimes it's just too easy to make something look like something else, something hand painted or done the real way... manually. So these are really important to me because I'm really painting these and not cheating digitally.

So far I've made two homages to some of my favorite comic characters the Marvel Comics great Doctor Doom and Johnny Ryan's Cannibal Fuckface from the super inspirational Prison Pit books by Fantagraphics books.

The Prison Pit piece I based directly from a panel in book two page 27. I wanted something cool in the background to paint and also something where Cannibal Fuckface was interacting with the background. Since the original comic is black and white I had to imagine what the Prison Pit would look like in color. I imagined that it would actually take place in a huge colon, hence the pink fleshy walls and the miles and mounds of shit everywhere. 

This is the panel that I based the scene on.

The other, entirely original piece..."The Uninvited Visitor"

Grand Illusion Spook Show Trailer

Hot off the heels of the Sex Beast Attack! animation I threw together this trailer for Seattle's Grand Illusion's Spook Show Spectacular.

I used Photoshop and Flash 4.

Friends of the Nib March 8th

So I'm happy to be Friend of the Nib and this is going to be great. Insane and busy! I have no idea how anyone will be able to actually draw anything of quality, but... it should be checked out. I'd like to quote Tom Dougherty here because he has said it the best so far:
"Larry Reid* has mounted a Friends of the Nib-branded event at the Fantagraphics Store in Georgetown, South of Seattle proper. Apparently, it will be a drawing "jam" open to the public, who are all invited to participate. Space is at a premium down there, so if you're planning on being part of the "jam", I'd advise you to hightail it down there as early as your Dad will let you borrow the car. Admission is free, and there is a bar around the corner where you can get a drink or two. Seriously: arrive early and beat the crowds. Both of these guys are legendary talents, and you may be able to score a sketch from one or both as the evening evenings on. *Larry Reid is a promoter who often stops by the FON meetings at the Cafe Racer with a stack of promotional flyers for our group. He's been a Fantagraphics keystone for many years and a fixture in the Seattle "art scene" for many more years."

New! Animation!