A glimpse

A glimpse, just a little reminder:

Brokechella!

I'll be signing at the Fanboy Comics table at Brokechella this Saturday. I'm pretty sure Meg will be there too and Leland might even be in a crate under the table. Sneaky bastard.

The Final Hours: The Receptionist

"Margo can't remember much about how she got her new job or who her new boss is, but she remembers her last day at her old job as if it happened yesterday. She remembers that it was the worst day of her life--a day that stirred the shadows of her darkest memories and led her to the border of the City of Ash."

My illustration for the Beatrice is Dead related flash fiction by S. Zainab Williams.

Click the pic to read the rest!

Animation Insider: Interview

That's right, Animation Insider; things must be moving in the right direction! Click the pic for the interview:

Something Animal for sale at Blastoff!

Something Animal now for sale at Blastoff Comics in North Hollywood, hey that's right by my house! 

Go check them out:

Dog Leg

This blog was originally here to force me to progress with my creative projects or risk mild humiliation in front of a small audience of readers. Like telling everyone you know you're quitting smoking or trying to lose a few pounds it keeps you in check when you're depleted and your decision making skills are shot.

This risk of slight public shaming has facilitated the illustration of two fully-painted, 80 some-odd page graphic novels in the last couple of years as well as (until recently) working full time as a graphic designer. Showing mostly works-in-progress, one-off art projects and reviews with the occasional photo shoot or cute dog picture for flavor.

So my art career dog legs into Storyboarding.

Every job I've had has made me better at it's specific skill set to the point of being instinctive (as I'm sure it is with everyone). For the last ten years it's been Photoshop and Illustrator in pseudo creative jobs while working on comics in my free time or on lunch breaks.

What I haven't ever had is a job that helped me to grow skills that I actually wish to use on my free time and with my personal projects. An intimate knowledge of Photoshop is "handy" for doing art but not essential (at least not the kind of art I want to do). I've never had a job that's allowed me to always feel like I'm learning or getting better at honing my craft. In my case this craft being the drawing of pictures and the telling of stories.

Could a storyboarding job be the answer? Being forced to draw life, motion, characters interacting in their environment, camera movement, telling stories and jokes through art every single day, under pain of money, would surely make those instinctive too? When I lay out a comic book page in Illustrator it is so second nature now that I hardly need to think about what I'm doing. Is having that with visual storytelling as well too much to ask?

What else could storyboarding entail I wondered other than whatever I've done over and over in comic books all this time.

Well, I intend to find out.

Here goes:

Excerpt from The Chase, all digital (shudder).

95%

Beatrice is Dead is almost finished. I'd say 95%. Just final page layouts, a few text edits here and there, and cleaning up a few pieces of the artwork to go.

I got a lot more art done, mostly painted in color, in less than half the time it took me to do Something Animal. Safe to say I've learned a couple of things. Which is good because I've got a feeling the next one's going to be big...

It's likely the next time you see Beatrice is Dead it will be finished so here are some really rough work-in-progress shots from the last few months to keep me from getting uppity:

I heard

Painted a picture of my girlfriend this morning. I heard boyfriends are supposed to do that kind of stuff from time to time.

Acrylic.

Oh, the layout phase.

All scanned in and going through the rough layout. This will be the part were I find out how many redos I need to paint when a) I realize I can't fudge it digitally (who can?) and b) the author vetoes all my more rapey and violent interpretations of her script.

I'm hoping for single digits.

'Ween 'Stumes and Pummy Kins

Me and Meg doing some impromptu, late night modeling for her awesomely, avulsive OpenWoundFX prosthetics and both rounds of our pumpkin carving (and customary incineration).

One more night of Halloween chicanery then back to finishing the painted part of Beatrice is Dead, tarting it up in Photoshop and figuring out the best way of getting it into people's grubby little hands. SOON!

Handle.

Some artwork for the upcoming graphic novel Beatrice is Dead.

Acrylics and some photoshoppery.

Wasteland Weekend 2012

Had a slightly less-hot blast at this years Wasteland Weekend. Hogged a go kart, ate all the lamb, took some photos and even sold one of my posters to Lord Humungus.

Now back to business.

4 more pages of Beatrice is Dead to ink before I start the painting stage (where at this point I'm certain I'm going to fuck up just a little bit), a new Final Hours installment which I haven't even read yet and probably having to find a job doing storyboards/design/illustration or whatever.

The horror.

Comikaze!

Come buy Meg's brand, spanking, new comic, Identity Thief and my tired, clapped-out, old banger of a comic Something Animal at the Fanboy Comics booth (#922) today and tomorrow!

The Final Hours: The Creep

"The vicar's son takes his role as guardian of his little sister's morals very seriously. But when Rufus's sister disappears from his life, he has to find new Lizzies to feed his insatiable hunger for punishment--a hunger that drives Rufus deep into the City of Ash. "

My illustration for the Beatrice is Dead related flash fiction by S. Zainab Williams:

Acrylic.

Beatrice is Dead: Progress!

The Final Hours: Before the Fall

"Madame Dankles is a curse on the lips of young girls in the hereafter, but once upon a time she was Suzanne, living on a quiet street with her husband and a baby on the way. But that was before Mrs. Dankles set out on an unstable tightrope blinded by hope, set on regaining marital bliss. That was before the fall."

My illustration for the Beatrice is Dead related flash fiction by S. Zainab Williams:

Acrylic.

Check out The Final Hours: Before the Fall HERE!

As promised:

Speaking of

Speaking of photoshoots here's one from a few months ago. Meaghan Monster of OpenWoundFX in her scarecrow costume out in BFE:

Meaghan's OpenWoundFX designs modeled by the lovely Victoria tomorrow, stay tuned!

Before She Can Fully Rise.

Acrylic.

Wasteland Weekend Limited Edition Poster!

Here's my art for the commemorative 2011 Wasteland Weekend Limited Edition poster:

Acrylic.

Go here to get one!