Grid Talk 2
Sometimes, artists decide to try writing.
Oh noes.
This is an ongoing conversation via the interwebs about work experience, professional opinion, and just plain doucheity. This is what came off my good friend Karl Slominski (aka Kid Reverie) and I just shooting the shit after pulling all-nighters laying out our respective projects. Come look.
Amor: I have this habit of not doing the layouts for an entire book in one go. I send the approval thumbs in 5-10 page sets, and I feel it works for me coz it breaks the story into little manageable chunks… vignettes almost… and I don’t need to be too painfully mindful of page 20 as I’m still inking page 3. Is it the same for you?
Slominski: Lately I’ve been laying out a whole book right after I go through the script the first time. Then I’ll reread the script and punch up the spots in the roughs that could pack a bigger punch- I’ve found that drawing out the final pencils takes less time when you already know exactly what’s on those pages. I’m much more comfortable when I know what the workload looks like down the road- that way I can plan accordingly. It seems that aside from doing the final inks though, tweaking layouts usually takes the longest time.
Amor: I actually feel the same way about knowing exactly what’s in the page and what comes next, it definitely makes it feel like the hard part’s done and all that’s left is just the actual drawing of the page. Know what I mean? Like… the comic is done and now it’s just a matter of drawing it. Hahaha! I just realized how retarded that sounds. It helps, sure, but it’s a double-edged sword for me coz I’m of the impression that while it’s not put down on paper yet (thumbnail or otherwise) I haven’t fucked it up yet. Coz it’s a bitch when a lousy “first stab” at a thumbnail directly affects later attempts.
Slominski: That’s the worst! I usually hit a bad spell around the middle of the book where I’ve got a killer thumbnail and I’ll spend hours trying to get the same vibe on the actual page. I’ve broken that bad habit by blowing up the original thumbnails on a photocopier and lightboxing said thumbnail. I had to do that today actually. But you’re right, as fucked as it sounds- once you nail the flow and format of the book the easy part is actually drawing it.
Amor and Slominski
Amor: Now I love drawing comics. And I love drawing. But wouldn’t it be awesome to get signed on to just do thumbnails a coupla times?
Slominski: Haha I’d actually pass on that job offer- I’d much rather be involved in a project from start to finish. Do you remember throughout the early 90’s how half the books out there had 2 artists working on them? I remember a lot of old X-books or Youngblood crediting someone for layouts and someone for “finishes”. Personally, I think that kinda takes away from a narrative artist’s credibility if someone else is doing the layouts for you. Sure you can draw eye-catching pretty pictures, but part of being a comic book artist is the craft of storytelling.
Amor: Agreed.
Slominski: I’ll always get more stoked about good storytelling than good art, but you know you’re doing your job a solid when you can deliver on both.
Amor: Well put, Holmes. Sure you’re an artist if you can draw… but you ain’t a comic artist till you bring it with sequentials that are all your own. And daily, I might add. Swish! Time to hit the desk…
- - - -Tags: comic shoptalk, karl slominski, kid reverie
very enlightening. if john is in a gangsta pose, you can never go wrong.
Nice article guys. Interesting reading your two different methods of tackling the roughing out stage. Thanks for sharing this.
hala!! kita lagi ko ni tyke sa background!! hahaha!! nice post john..next time i want john amor and TIM SALE..exchanging inking techniques!!..YEAH!!!