May 10 0 comments
Film/TV, People I Know, Ultrasylvania

Coming Soon

A chaotic splash for you all….

Ultrasylvania - The webcomic will launch before month’s end.  Expect LOTS more here and elsewhere about this.

Avengers - Loved the movie, just like everybody else.  Screaming and mayhem inside the theatre at the midnight show was the most unhinged I’ve witnessed since seeing Return of the Jedi on opening day all those years decades ago.

MorrisonCon - Yep, I’m in.  Package bought.  Will it be worth it?  Time will tell.  However, I wouldn’t have bought in if I wasn’t VERY optimistic.  Also, Isotope’s James Sime throws a mean party when it’s only a hundred people.  Eager to see what he can do with a thousand.

Much more to come….

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Apr 18 0 comments
Film/TV

Summer in the Cinema

A couple days ago I realized that I am more excited about this summer’s slate of films than any other in recent memory.  From The Dark Knight Rises to Moonrise Kingdom to Dark Shadows to Snow White and the Huntsman to Ted - there seem to be more movies coming out in the next few months about which I can say, “They have my money!”  I already have my ticket for a 2D midnight screening of The Avengers - as well as a ticket for the 3D IMAX the next day.  And as if actually living long enough to see THAT reach the silver screen wasn’t enough - Ridley Scott’s return to sci-fi after 30 years fills me with even more joy.  Prometheus - for me, this is the movie to beat this summer.  And that’s after witnessing the jaw-dropping awesomeness that is The Cabin in the Woods just the other night.  Yeah, it’s not summer yet, but DAMN if that’s not a great film.

I’m trying to temper my enthusiasms.  I’ve been burned before, and I expect one or more of the films listed above - and others that I didn’t - to let me down.  Hard.  That said, I sense more potential in the coming months of cinema-going than I’ve felt in a long, long time.  Looking forward to it!

Apr 10 0 comments
Class, Comics, Ultrasylvania

Brief Check-In + Mark Waid

Should only be a couple weeks away from releasing the first images of Ultrasylvania.  These guys are doing amazing work down in their dungeon studio, and we are all quite eager to unleash this thing upon you.

With both flight and hotel now booked for San Diego Comic Con, all that remains is the professional registration itself. This was slated to open - last I heard - in “early April”. We’re now at April 10th. When does “early” become “mid-”? Or, “late”? Or - worse - “TBD”?

Last but by no means least, I’ve been keeping tabs on - and posting a wee bit in the forums at - Mark Waid’s site, wherein he and others are engaging in what Waid himself calls a “Digital Comics Process Blog”. If you’re looking to dip your toe into creating digital comics - or, if you’re already hip deep - then you owe it to yourself to see what’s going on over there. Rest assured that others will.

Mar 21 0 comments
Class, People I Know, Techniques

Build That World

Next week’s class will focus in part on world building.  Always a fun lecture.  I aspire to draw some inspiration from this blog entry by my hyper-talented fellow writer and TA Ash Fairless.  Here’s a snippet.  Click the link to read the article in its entire.

You have your reference, and your legos, but how do they work together? Do you put the green brick with the blue brick? Where’d the yellow brick go? Did the dog eat the yellow brick? When does it start looking like Middle Earth?

how. the. fuck.

Obviously there is no set way to go about this. However like gathering your reference, this can take awhile. You may go through various drafts. You may just get so into the politics of Zagmor 89 that you write 10 years worth of backstory entirely in ballads the Zagmordians sing on Chronicle Day. You may just write out a timeline. You may write essays on the breeding cycles of the fauna and the various environments. Some people get extremely technical and make sure everything is scientifically possible, some draw everything out as reference sheets and write notes on the sides of said sheets, some people drink a lot and cry on their keyboard.

what actual writing looks like

Bad Fido: World Building 101

Mar 01 0 comments
Comics, People I Know, Uncategorized

The Image Expo That Was

Image Expo was wonderful.  While Jeremy and I did extremely well at our little table, the real winners were the attendees.  Everyone we spoke to was thrilled - easy and open access to many big name creators, lots of cool stuff from up-and-comers, so many things they wanted to buy and take home.  And breathing room.  Image Expo was a fraction of the size of Wondercon - and even smaller than APE - but everyone seemed so relieved to not be jostled by constant crowds.  One could walk, stand, look, chat, shop, take photos - all without feeling you could be mowed down at any moment by the horde, or simply worry that you were holding up someone else’s good time.

Other than that, many discussions were had, plans were made, hands were shook.  There will be follow-ups.  The future is wide.

Mar 01 0 comments
Film/TV

They Live

843_they-live1

I watched John Carpenter’s They Live for the first time in ages the other night.  What an amazing, bizarre, and half-ass picture that is.  It’s also one of the most subversive pics to come out of Hollywood in my lifetime.

If you don’t know the film, here’s the gist: Homeless drifter finds a pair of sunglasses that allow him to see the world as it truly is - a black-and-white dystopia, painted with subliminal messages aimed at enslaving the populace.  Oh, and the overlords?  They’re the 1%.  The wealthy elite.  They’re also aliens.  Yes, aliens.  And that’s certainly the gimmick that got this movie made.  Carpenter couches his social commentary in the guise of an alien invasion flick.  He wasn’t the first - Invasion of the Body Snatchers and The Day the Earth Stood Still likely top that list - but he shrouds his story in the thinnest veil.  Take away the latex masks - seen only when someone’s looking through the aforementioned sunglasses - and it’s a tale of how the rich control society, oppress the weak, and use the police to enforce their collective will - all in the name of increased quarterly gains.  On this level alone, They Live is a masterpiece.

That said, the picture suffers from some serious issues.  The star is Roddy Piper, a wrestling champion of the period.  While he’s believable as a tough guy - he and co-star Keith David engage in the longest fist fight in movie history (no joke!) - he’s no lead.  One imagines what frequent Carpenter player Kurt Russell would have brought to the role.  Or, Jeff Bridges.  But, the fault is not all on Roddy.  The script - for all its brilliance of ideas and accusations - takes a loooong time to get going.  Yes, we see through the sunglasses soon enough, but it’s nearly an hour before we get to something resembling Act 2 - a point where the characters are actually trying to do something.  When you consider the movie is only about ninety minutes long, that means the actual journey the characters take is pretty damn brief.  Imagine if something like Avatar took two and a half hours before putting the wheelchair guy into the alien body and you get the idea.

I dig because I love.  And I do love They Live.  It’s become a cult classic because of the very flaws listed - and a few more.  And maybe those flaws are part of the reason it got made via the studio system in the first place.  Would we see such a biting satire if it were remade today?  Or, would there be added CG and 3D effects, coupled with BOO!-scared-you tricks on the audience instead?  Time will tell.

Feb 22 0 comments
Ultrasylvania

Waving the Flag

After handing off the final script for Ultrasylvania to Jeremy Saliba and his class of talented lunatics, I came to a strangely sobering realization.  This is the first time in five years that I haven’t been working on a writing project.  It feels very weird indeed.  (Initially, I bemoaned to others that I wasn’t involved in a creative project.  Dan Wilson promptly - like, within seconds of my posting on Twitter - reminded me of my continued activity with Radiostar Improv.)

I should point out that I’m not bereft of ideas or suffering any kind of writer’s block.  Those don’t tend to afflict me.  I’m just entering a very different role on Ultrasylvania, that of PR Man.  While Jeremy guides our crew, I will be busy behind-the-scenes, looking to stoke up interest, curiosity, and - possibly - buzz.  I’m no huckster, and would have made a horrible schiller of snake oils from the back of covered wagons in days gone by.  But, I truly believe in this story and the gifted abilities of those bringing it to life.  When I tell people about the project, I don’t feel like I’m bullshitting or - worse - “trying to sell something”.  What makes this new job easy is the fact that nearly everyone I talk to about this gets noticeably excited - and is eager to see how it turns out.  I’ve seen the earliest artwork.  It’s stunning - and this isn’t even what will hit the page!  They’re just warming up….

Feb 21 0 comments
Comics, Worlds Apart

Image Expo

image-expo

This weekend, Image Comics seeks to fill the convention void left by WonderCon with their first ever Image Expo.  No one really knows what to expect.  Will it be jammed with desperate comic pilgrims, looking to sate their con needs at this oasis in downtown Oakland?  Or - to continue the metaphor - will it be a mirage, a desert littered with indie creators both established and on the rise?

Jeremy Saliba and I will find out.  We have a table.  210, to be precise. I’ll have books.  He’ll have prints.  If you’re attending, do stop by.  If you weren’t planning on it - or, if this is the first you’ve heard about this Image Expo Thing - it’s not too late to change your mind.

Feb 20 0 comments
Class, Comics, Projects, Ultrasylvania

Ultrasylvania

Been off the map for a while working on this comics project.  Ultrasylvania was the most challenging story I’ve yet written, requiring months of research and planning before I even started on the script.  I’ll tell you what I can about it….

In the late-19th century, the former Count Dracula now rules an Eastern European empire. He’s not the brooding, long-sequestered Count, seemingly self-entombed in a run-down castle in the heart of a bankrupt Transylvania. He’s the benevolent despot who has held the Ottomans at bay and led his nation to thrive and expand. He is both feared and revered - by both his own people and those of other nations. There are those who would seek alliances.  Others conspire for his downfall.  Still others who would play both sides against each other. Allies and enemies, both within and without. And not all of them human….

Now, if you think I’ve given away too much there, trust me - I haven’t.  And I’ll even tell you something more, something about how this is being created….

Ultrasylvania is being illustrated by a team of talented, hand-picked students from the Academy of Art University here in San Francisco.  The Academy and the Director of its School of Illustration, Chuck Pyle, sanctioned the creation of a collaborative class, wherein these third and fourth year students will ferry this project from script to finished graphic novel over the course of fifteen weeks.  The course is overseen by my good friend and frequent collaborator Jeremy Saliba, serving as a mix of art director and editor.  To our collective knowledge, no other school has done anything of this kind, and thus everyone is excited at the prospect.

What will come of it?  Well, allow me to be a bit coy here.  I will say that we plan to launch the completed story first as a free webcomic.  I’ve half teased those involved with the idea that we’ll push a Big Red Button on the last day of the class, rather like smashing a champagne bottle on the ship.  However, as they’re working on multithousand dollar Cintiq workstations, I presume the Academy would prefer we not bring a bottle of anything anywhere near the room.  We do have further plans - and there is the possibility that the class and the story will continue in the fall - but they must remain somewhat tentative and flexible.  Things happen, you see.  Sometimes, good things.  Time will tell.

Sep 28 0 comments
Uncategorized

News/Updates/Teases

Been a while.  I’ve been looking to, well, fix the place up a bit here.  So, it’s not as though I haven’t been thinking about site-related things.  Two things I hope to change around here in the weeks ahead: the overall look of the site - while it’s nice and sleek, it hasn’t altered since the original launch - and the way the comics display on mobile devices. Both of these are WIP.  Now, on to business….

APE - the Alternative Press Expo - is this weekend in San Francisco.  I’ll be pushing the Worlds Apart deluxe edition from Table 343.  Jeremy Saliba will be there as well, selling his own prints and sketchbook - and encouraging me along in my daytime drinking.  Yes, APE has a BAR.  For those who want it, here’s a treasure map that points directly to our Den of Creativity:

ape

Beyond this weekend, there are a few projects in the works - as there always are.  And - again, as usual - I can only say so much at this junction.

There’s this screenplay of mine that will keep me up exceptionally late tonight as I polish it to a fine luster for a production company that’s requested a read.

There’s also an ambitious, on-going comic class that Jeremy and I are looking to launch in the spring.  More on that as the bureaucratic process moves forward.  Suffice to say that - if it gets approved by the Powers That Be - there’s nothing else out there quite like it - both in terms of concept and execution.

Then, there’s the long-gestating Untitled Space Opera comic….  Expect to see this in one form or another in early 2012.

And, White Tower…?  Some time in ‘12.  Ideally.  There’s actually a page for it over at Committed Comics.  So, it’s r-e-a-l.

Last but not least, with Wondercon 2012 now relegated to Anaheim, I’m not sure where I’ll make another con appearance before San Diego.  Might bite the bullet and head to SoCal anyway.  Might try Emerald City.  Perhaps somewhere else.  Too soon to tell.  Will update again when I’m a bit more certain.