FLIGHT

Hey, gang. Here are the questions for the silverbulletcomics.com roundtable interview that's being put together by Jonathan Encarnacion. I'm assuming he'll need responses from the people participating by the August 27th deadline.

Kean

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Q: What do you guys feel are the unifying concepts/themes/elements to Flight?
(& what gives it a distinct flavor from other anthologies?)

Q: On the other end of the scale, Flight has a very diverse pool of creators,
coming from different sensibilities and different parts of the world, even.
What allows it to be so ‘inclusionary’?

Q: What for you are some of the notable experiences have come out of Flight?
(Be it as a creator, in regards to reception of your work, with respect to the
communal aspects of Flight [going to cons, etc.])



Q: What do you think made Flight a venture that Ballantine is willing to pick
up and put in book stores? (What gives the anthology an appeal outside of the
standard comics audience?)

Q: In what directions will you be bringing your contributions to Flight as it
continues to grow? (ie: Now that Flight will be released every six months from
the third volume on, would any of you consider doing “continuing stories” or
using recurring characters? And, of course, why or why not?)

Q: Ultimately, what are your creative goals both in and out of Flight?

_________________
keaner.net
the secret friend society

Q: What do you guys feel are the unifying concepts/themes/elements to Flight?
(& what gives it a distinct flavor from other anthologies?)

A: The unifying concept behind Flight is simply honest storytelling. It's
difficult for me to compare this anthology with any other one since I didn't
know what an anthology was before I started this project. If there's a
difference, it's probably that naive aspect of it.


Q: On the other end of the scale, Flight has a very diverse pool of creators,
coming from different sensibilities and different parts of the world, even.
What allows it to be so ‘inclusionary’?

A: The core contributors tend to have the same sensibility in art and life,
and it's something that becomes evident immediately after viewing their
work. Most of us were already friends before we even met. Heheh.


Q: What for you are some of the notable experiences have come out of Flight?
(Be it as a creator, in regards to reception of your work, with respect to the
communal aspects of Flight [going to cons, etc.])

A: This project has done so much for me. It's given me the courage to
make decisions based on what I feel is right and not out of fear of what
others think. The book's success has been incredibly reassuring in that
regard, and helped me to do my own graphic novel, Daisy Kutter, and
now has led me to where I am creating graphic novels for a living. On top
of that, I have met so many wonderful people I will always cherish as
lifelong friends over the course of making the project. In many respects,
the life I live now is founded on this book.


Q: What do you think made Flight a venture that Ballantine is willing to pick
up and put in book stores? (What gives the anthology an appeal outside of the
standard comics audience?)

A : Just as we had intended the book to reach out to the wider general
audience in bookstores, I feel that editor Chris Schuep was able to clearly
identify that vision.


Q: In what directions will you be bringing your contributions to Flight as it
continues to grow? (ie: Now that Flight will be released every six months from
the third volume on, would any of you consider doing “continuing stories” or
using recurring characters? And, of course, why or why not?)

A: It's always changing, so I'm looking forward to see where the stories go.


Q: Ultimately, what are your creative goals both in and out of Flight?

A: I have several graphic novel series I know I have to complete before I
pass away, and I intend to have a great time doing them.

_________________

Copper in Flight 1 and The Orange Grove in Flight 2 are
both from you but contrast heavily in terms of how the story is ‘unfolded’.
From the use of color to the approaches in panel layout, it seems that the
elements of the pieces are tailored to lend to the mood. Would it be right
to assume that mood is the primary motivator in your storytelling?

I think both the mood and the message would direct and guide the style.
If I don’t feel I’m communicating an idea beyond a pretty picture I feel
like I’ve failed as a storyteller.


If one were to really look for an example of how
influences you’ve cited have affected your work, it seems that McCay’s
romanticized approaches in composition is something you’ve studied in
your early work, as well as the kinetic energy found in Waterson’s in
Calvin and Hobbes strips. While you’ve joked about “covering up your
thievery”, it certainly doesn’t come off like that at all; the elements above,
for instance, are intermingled and utilized in a way that (dare we say? )
brings them to a new and different level. How important do you think it is
for an artist to seek out and be mindful of things that coincide with their
tastes as they work to develop a style that is their own?

Mimicry is an important part of the process of growing up. What begins as
directly copying an artist’s work can eventually become a way to pay
tribute to them. When I make direct references to certain works, it comes
out of love, and helps give meaning to the scribbles I make. In that
regard, I think analyzing and reinterpreting our influences is a beautiful
and important part of the process of creation.



You certainly give a lot more story per-page – is this
sometimes difficult to juggle logistically, or is it that the panel count just
results from however the story ‘wants’ to be told, and logistics don’t play a
very ‘conscious’ part in the decision?

Yep, you got it. It is a very organic process. I let the story determine its
own pacing, for the most part. The only restrictions I have are page
counts, and I try to fit what I can within my given means.


With Daisy Kutter, you’ve said that you’re working to
evolve your style to reflect the realistic and the iconic. What aspects of
realism are you hoping to achieve, and what elements of the iconic are
you hoping to retain? What are some techniques you’re currently
experimenting with to balance these two contrasting concepts?

I like to give credibility to the fantasy worlds I’m creating, to give respect
to both the characters and the readers. By putting my iconic characters
in a fairly realistic environment, it’s like me stating that the story is very
real to me. Also, I enjoy taking very cartoony elements and rendering
them with realistic lighting. If there’s a formula I tend to fall back on
every time, it’s that one.



Your next online comic, Prisoners, appears to have a more iconic
approach to its visual execution – what’re the kinds of stories you’re going
to tell with this comic?

I’m not sure if this will be an online comic, but the stories I wanted to tell
with The Prisoners are much lighter in nature. I wanted to capture the
peacefulness of comics like Krazy Kat, Mutts, and Peanuts. It’s designed
as sort of a meditation exercise, so I won’t be forcing it out any time
soon, and letting the right opportunity for the stories to present
themselves. Currently, I draw them on all sorts of things, like people’s
Flight books and James Sime’s toilet seat hall of fame, so in some
respects the story is already underway.


What’s the story you’ll be telling in Flight 3?

It’s the story of two childhood friends who grow up to become soldiers at war.


Would you still eventually want to try something in
filmmaking?

Yes.

_________________

Here are the responses to my personal questions... will get round to the roundtable discussion a bit later.


Is making comics a hobby originally intended to be pursued on the side, or is it a primary passion that you hope work in full time?

I honestly don't know what I was thinking when I stared making comics. When I first started my journal comic, I was looking for some sort of direction to my life, I think. At the time, I just felt that I had a need to get the comics out there, rather than worrying about whether this was going to be just a hobby or a full-time pursuit.

Nowadays, I would definitely like to pursue making comics full-time, but realistically, that's still a long way off from happening.


How would you say your online comics work – taking a story you’ve created and just putting it out there for an audience – has progressed your storytelling skills (with respect to confidence in content, style, etc.)?

It definitely helped with my confidence with making comics. I've found that in terms of learning the craft, it really is just about practice and repetition. Having a regular webcomic really helped me learn the basics pretty quickly.


When did you move from TO to HK? What were your early artistic influences there (comics or otherwise)? (Also, what did your stuff as a kid look like? )

Our family made the move from Toronto to Hong Kong when I was 5 years old. I was there off and on for a good 8 years or so. The strange thing was that living in HK, the comics that really interested me were the "foreign" ones. Comics from Japan, Europe, America... I read a lot of translated Asterix and Tintin, and Akira Toriyama's Dr. Slump and Dragonball series were a pretty serious addiction of mine as well. I would always try to get my hands on American comics, but I remember that they were ridiculously expensive to buy from specialty import stores. I do remember getting my hands on an early issue of Classic X-Men that was reprinting the Dark Phoenix saga though, and that completely blew me away. These days, I regret not reading more manhua while I was there.


Your latest influences come from the works of those such as filmmaker Wong Kar-Wai and Mike Mignola. While the immediate observation would be that they appeal to you because they also play with the relationship between timing and mood, what else about their work appeals to you? What other artist’s works do you find compelling? How has studying their works progressed your own style?

Aside from their similar sensibilities as storytellers, I think the appeal of WKW and Mignola for me are that they're both able to capture a single moment in time, so much so that I just want to get lost in them. It could be as simple as the image of a single lily, or a lamp post on a street corner, but there's something there in both their works that draws me to them.

As for other artists, Bill Watterson has obviously been a huge influence on me (Portia and Jellaby owe a lot to him), and I've noticed a little bit of Toriyama starting to sneak its way into my own comics. I've long been an admirer of Claude Monet and Dave McKean for different reasons, as well as filmmakers like Hayao Miyazaki and Yasuhiro Ozu. At the moment though, I'm actually more concerned about learning how to tell a story well, more than actually worrying about style, or even technique, for that matter.


There’s a heavy contrast in the tone of your online journal – some of it is very poetic, dramatic; and other parts are very humorous. What would you say is your influence for the pieces more humorous in tone?

Real life. Life isn't just one long dramatic story; it would be ridiculously boring if it were. I can't really say that those particular comics have been influenced by anything else. I used to watch a lot of Monty Python's Flying Circus when I was a kid, which might actually explain my sense of humour, but beyond that, I'm not sure.


You’re very honest in your autobiographical stuff. Have you ever felt any apprehension when anticipating the reactions of those you’ve placed in ‘the supportive cast’?

Oh, absolutely. I worry about what some of my friends will think about appearing in my comics more than others, but I always make it a point to ask everyone who appears in my comics if they're okay with the story and the context that they appear in. So far, everyone's been fine with it. I have some very supportive friends.


You latest online comic series, exitmusic: with the themes primarily inspired by particular songs, is the content as closely related to your personal experiences as your previous online journal, or does it lean more towards creative license?

I have tried to make the Exit Music stories as close to my own personal experiences as I possibly can. There have been instances where my memory has been a little hazy on the details, as events might've taken place many years ago -- my story in Flight 2 for example -- but I've tried to keep things as true to how I remember them.


As a “music whore” , what types of music do you prefer to adapt for exitmusic? Are there any types of music you like but would stay away from for exitmusic? What kinds of music do you stay away from entirely? (ie, the boy/girl bands :you mentioned P)

I prefer the term "music slut," actually.

I don't want to put any kind of limitations on myself when I decide I want to 'adapt' a song to comic form. I would think that the more outrageous the music is, the more interesting the comic would be. I've actually been thinking about adapting Hybrid's "Visible Noise", which is some of the darkest breakbeat I've ever heard, and I would suspect that stripping away any kind of narrative and just playing with the timing, shapes, and colour of the images themselves would be a fun little experiment.

And I've also been listening to my fair share of girl bands lately. Girls Aloud is actually really damn catchy. At this point, I'll listen to anything and everything that comes my way.


How did you come to be the assistant editor for Flight?

I just sort of fell into that, really. Kazu needed some help putting together Flight 2 (he was working on finishing up Daisy Kutter at the same time), so I basically volunteered to help him out without realizing how much work went into a project of this size. I guess Kazu eventually decided to make up some sort of official 'title' for Phil and I after that.


You’ve worked on other anthologies – what can you tell us about the stories there?

Actually, the other two stories that I have coming up in future anthologies are both Exit Music stories. "In A Lonely Place" is about a dream I had, and that's for You Ain't No Dancer (which is being released in September), and the other is "One Evening," for True Porn 2. That one has naked people in it.


What’s coming up for Portia when Jellaby returns in August?

Heaps of trouble. She's keeping a monster in her backyard and trying to keep him a secret from everyone, and then there's the fact that he keeps following her around everywhere...

And now that Hope's Salamander Dream has wrapped up, the SFS website itself is getting a makeover to make room for a new artist that we'll be bringing on board for the relaunch.


What will you be bringing to Flight 3, and what other projects can we look forward to from you?

I'm actually contributing a Jellaby short story for Flight 3 -- Portia and Jellaby get together for a little tea party that goes horribly wrong. As for future projects, the focus for me is going to be Jellaby 100% of the time. I've been having a lot of fun with the characters lately, and it's definitely a story I really want to get out there.

_________________
keaner.net
the secret friend society

A lot of the work is heavily influenced by film and animation, and there’s a relatively high level of craftsmanship throughout.



It looks nice on my resume!

Honestly, the best thing about it has been the great pool of people involved, all of whom are willing to help each other out and give feedback on projects. If I hadn’t gotten involved with Flight I probably wouldn’t have met Kean, and Salamander Dream might never have existed.



It’s pretty, easy to follow, and accessible to a wide age range.



I’m gonna go with a solid “I don’t know.”



Once I finish Gray Horses I’m planning to take a break from graphic novel(las) and tackle a series (the kind with staples, not the grueling manga-size kind). I’m researching the possibilities of self publishing.

_________________
hopelarson.com
the secret friend society

ROUNDTABLE



Kazu and Hope answered this question pretty well, good art and good stories... I think most contributors to Flight have pulled these stories from deep down, Kazu and his goons (Phil and Kean in particular) really apply some well placed pressure to push for the best possible story... They arent over bearing, but they can tell when someone isnt digging deep inside,...



I think it is the storytelling, no matter what story is told, or by who, or where they are from, it is a meaningful story to them, and when one puts together a string of meaningful, honest stories, they just seem to fit together...



I am just happy that more than 20 people might read a story I produced. That was an amazing chance that Kazu gave to me by allowing me to be in Flight, I am truly grateful... Also, just sharing page space with so many talented storytellers and good people, it is humbling to me...



Obviously, Ballantine knows a good thing when they see it!!...HAHA, Seriously though, Flight defintely has an energy about it, you can almost feel the pains it took to give birth to some of these stories, they are that deep and honest. I think people are attracted to that energy, it jumps out of the book...Flight attracts people to it. The cover to cover of stunning art reels them in, then the stories hook them!



Recurring? Well, I have another Francisco Sanchez baseball story I want to tell, I need to let it simmer for a while before I tell it though, I dont think it's ready yet. Otherwise I have no interest in telling an "ongoing saga" in Flight, I think the best stories in anthologies are stories that stand alone...I want to try to tell stories under 10 pages, thats a goal I want to meet consistently at some point...



I just want to get better at storytelling and art...I think Flight has been instrumental so far, being a part of it gives me an incentive to be the best I can be, to push myself to be better than I was yesterday.

_________________
http://www.richardpose.com

Questions for Richard Pose...



HAHA…Well, Kazu has always said that “Flight” is not a theme, its just a title he liked... but if you need some connection between my story and flight, then how about its about a young man flying from his homeland, and a baseball flies far when it’s hit well…haha….




Absolutely, it is a tribute story to all the people that mentored me when I was young. My Grandfather and Uncle were both named Armando, and even though they both passed away when I was about 10 years old, I have strong memories of each of them. Also another uncle of mine, Francisco (Paco), he always believed in my artistic abilities and pushed me to be an artist… and finally my old neighbor Dan Daniels, he would call me over when he saw me playing ball outside and tell me stories about WWII and he would tell me stories about when he was a young man and what I might expect from life and how to prepare for it…I had many people take an interest in my life when I was young, I feel very blessed to have been around these people.




HAHA…well, lots of people have told me this, I think its great, I guess I did my job. Its funny, at one point, I was thinking of this character so much that he really did become real to me, he began to dictate what story I would tell. I originally wanted to show his entire life story, but this smaller segment popped out at me one day, Francisco talking to a neighbor just the way I would with my neighbor. I quickly felt that this time in Francisco’s life was the most important to his being able to persue his dream.




I need to read that book, someone mentioned it to me a few months ago…Anyways…is baseball for the young? Hmmm, well, I think it’s a sport that works best for the young at heart, it is a sport that has an outward innocence. I think that the older one gets the more cynical they become towards baseball (and life in general). Kids like watching their heroes come up to bat, they don’t think of the money or the ego’s or steroid’s or any of that. They like to go to a ball game, try to get an autograph, maybe a baseball..that is so much cooler than any other sport, you can get really close to your idols at a young age. You can have experiences that change your life.



I never played organized baseball, I was too scared. (Lesson learned: You never “ask” a five year old if they want to play, you just make them play! Sigh…) When I was 9 or 10 my cousin taught me to play catch, to not be afraid of the ball, then at age 12 I started going to the park with a few buddies from school and we would pitch to each other and hit fly balls for six or seven hours a day, everyday of the week. I became instantly obsessed. All I did was talk baseball and play at the park, it was crazy…



Yeah, I don’t know what it is about that sport, but Hispanics and especially Caribbean Hispanics latch onto baseball… My mother is Cuban and my father is Spanish, but he spent a large part of his childhood in Cuba. My Dad is a big baseball fan, he learned about it when he went to Cuba, no one played soccer there, so he had to learn baseball. He became a fan of the Big Red Machine, the Cincinnati Reds of the 1970’s, mainly because of the Cuban Tony Perez and Venezuelan Dave Concepcion. There is a pride that Hispanics have when baseball is mentioned; maybe it has something to do with the one on one aspect of pitcher versus batter, and seeing how a player from their small country can fare against the big leaguers? It might also be that Hispanics like to argue about EVERYTHING, and baseball is just another topic…haha... I think baseball has a good pace for Hispanics, they can argue between pitches.



Yes! Absolutely, Originally we were going to make Smoke a serial, but I think we both grew out of monthly books, so we plan on re-writing the entire story and doing a graphic novel, somewhere around 60-100 pages is our goal. We will be meeting later this month to iron out the story and our hope is that Josh can type up the script by the end of September, and then I can try to have the story drawn by the end of the year… we are excited to see what we can do in the world of Smoke.



I have a few stories I have been trying to nail down, but I don’t know if they will be ready for Flight 3. I have my sights set on Flight 3, but my full time job has their sights set on me working extra hours, so we will see what happens, Cross your fingers for me please.



Not that I know of. We will of course wait for word from Kazu, but as far as I know, everything is the same for contributors, our job is to put together a good, meaningful story… and make it look nice..hehe



Well, between Flight and Smoke that will take me to the end of the year… past that, I have plans, but I don’t want to write anything in stone.

_________________
http://www.richardpose.com

And here are my roundtable responses:


Q: What do you guys feel are the unifying concepts/themes/elements to Flight?
(& what gives it a distinct flavor from other anthologies?)

Hope and Kazu said it best: well-crafted stories.


Q: On the other end of the scale, Flight has a very diverse pool of creators,
coming from different sensibilities and different parts of the world, even.
What allows it to be so ‘inclusionary’?

I think the Internet has played a significant role in that. Most of the artists do have a high level of quality in their work, and certainly forums like the Drawing Board (which was how many of the artists became involved with Flight) give them a place to gather together to talk shop. I love the idea that Flight is a book done mostly by people from outside the comics industry, with a large group of artists coming from the film & animation industry, mingling with illustrators and fine artists... all drawn together by a love for comics. That's what I love so much about it.


Q: What for you are some of the notable experiences have come out of Flight?
(Be it as a creator, in regards to reception of your work, with respect to the
communal aspects of Flight [going to cons, etc.])

Obviously, the exposure that Flight has provided my work has been great, but what I've really got the most out of this so far is that I've basically used the Flight community as a giant learning tool. I've spent countless hours harassing various artists (and especially artists that I respect and admire) about their technique and process, and it's definitely helped me to grow and learn a lot of things in a relatively short period of time.

And like Kazu said, they're all such a great bunch of people, and I'm really glad to be able to hang out with this group of crazy kids.


Q: What do you think made Flight a venture that Ballantine is willing to pick
up and put in book stores? (What gives the anthology an appeal outside of the
standard comics audience?)

Like I mentioned before, I think it has something to do with the fact that the artists working on Flight come from such diverse backgrounds, and so they aren't particularly locked into the "comic book" [superhero] art style. The art is different from other comics, and I think that's what might appeal to a non-comics reader. It's also what Ballantine likely sees: a way to reach out to a new audience that's looking to get their feet wet with comics.


Q: In what directions will you be bringing your contributions to Flight as it
continues to grow? (ie: Now that Flight will be released every six months from
the third volume on, would any of you consider doing “continuing stories” or
using recurring characters? And, of course, why or why not?)

We're already starting to see some ongoing stories being told through Flight already, with Khang's, Michel's and Neil's work, which have been fantastic. For me, I personally prefer to work on self-contained short stories (it certainly requires a different sensibility compared to long form works), but I'm not going to rule out anything in the future.


Q: Ultimately, what are your creative goals both in and out of Flight?

Just to keep learning and growing as an artist. It might be nice to one day get a graphic novel of mine published, but I'm not holding my breath right now.

_________________
keaner.net
the secret friend society

Oh, and one other thing...


Nah, you know you would've totally got Salamander Dream off the ground with or without ever meeting me. A great book is a great book.

_________________
keaner.net
the secret friend society

Attached my responses to the questions. Roundtable first then my personal ones.

(man it took me all day to hit a response about Australian comics i was happy with. Prone to ranting i am.)

Q: What do you guys feel are the unifying concepts/themes/elements to Flight?
(& what gives it a distinct flavor from other anthologies?)
Telling good well crafted heartfelt stories.

Q: On the other end of the scale, Flight has a very diverse pool of creators,
coming from different sensibilities and different parts of the world, even.
What allows it to be so ‘inclusionary’?
Despite the differences i think at the core...we're all really coming from a similar place. Especially in regards how we feel about the power of comics to communicate and the potential of the medium to be more than disposable rubbish.

Q: What for you are some of the notable experiences have come out of Flight?
(Be it as a creator, in regards to reception of your work, with respect to the
communal aspects of Flight [going to cons, etc.])
Personally it's been great to have a concentrated group of great people to bounce ideas and concepts off of. Probably the greatest resource an artist can have is a smart group of peers to keep you on your toes.

Q: What do you think made Flight a venture that Ballantine is willing to pick
up and put in book stores? (What gives the anthology an appeal outside of the
standard comics audience?)
I think the exposure and reception it's recieved so far from the comic community and comic reading public has proven that great stories well told can appeal to everyone.
That energy and interest is slowly overflowing to non comics readers and it's slowly getting through that comics can be and ARE more than just chaps in tights running around popping each other in the nose. With things like From Hell, Blankets and Bone, Sin City etc breaking the book market I think Ballantine can sense the begginnings of something new and successful.

Q: In what directions will you be bringing your contributions to Flight as it
continues to grow? (ie: Now that Flight will be released every six months from
the third volume on, would any of you consider doing “continuing stories” or
using recurring characters? And, of course, why or why not?)
I've thought about using some recurring characters, especially in future books...but i think it depends on if the stories are there or not. Or if the character is giving me more than one story.


Q: Ultimately, what are your creative goals both in and out of Flight?
I'm currently a fulltime freelance illustrator but it would be great to get to a point where i'm supporting myself with my own graphic novel projects and the like rather than work for hire. Also i'd like a penthouse on the moon lots of girls, some sort of naked trampoline party and a cannon that fires kittens at the earth. Cause that would be rad.

Personal Questions -

Q: What is it that drew you into the illustrative field? (In you interview with Christian Read, you talked about how you were trained in plant and wildlife illustration...)
I tried my hand at lots of different things when i first started the University course i attended. Painting, sculpture, photography etc. And while they all gave me skills and experience that i still use today the illustration course was more in tune with the direction i wanted to head in. Not specifically the scientific illustration as thats even more of a niche than comics...but more the skills and attitude to deal in a commercial illustration.

Q: (An extension of the first question ) What drew you into the comics medium?
As a young kid i'd always been exposed to comics and cartoons. Asterix, Tintin, Peanuts and sunday cartoon strips. English weekly kids comics like Beano and Buster...and then discovered American comics as a teenager...comics have always been a big part of my life. So it was always a pretty natural thing to eventually be a part of.

Q: One thing that a lot of people don't know is that the Australian comics community is small, but very, very intense with respect to passion. What would you say are the defining attributes of the Australian comic community, and of Aurstralian comics in particular?
It's hard to pin down one because it's an odd little scene with a lot of juxtaposition and a lot of factors that determine output of work. But I would say that diversity is
probably the key defining attribute. Quality, consistency and regularity aside...we can hang our hats on the fact that we have no baggage when it comes to what subject matter our comics cover.

Q: In terms of the storytelling, what brings a heavier level of inspiration to your work? The technical compositional theories? The works of other creators, be it in the comics/illustrative field or otherwise (such as film, perhaps even music)?
I think a bit of everything. I've loosely played around with some compositional theories, mostly geometric theories like the Golden Section...but to faithfully apply it to comics just got completely unweildy and was detrimental to the story rather than anything else. So i think reading these things, learning about them and absorbing them is important...but something more to have in the back of your head as a guide than a gospel. I've become a lot more aware of film makers and how they compose scenes and characters...especially the likes of Stanley Kubrick and Wes Anderson. Animators like John K and Chuck Jones for characters and comedy are also big inspirations and constant points of reference.

Q: You've talked about how you came upon the toy gig by accident, and how sometimes you have to look really hard to find a creative outlet in designing toys that already have an established look to them. Would you say that's more of a challenge or a burden? Is there anything beneficial that's come out of that process for you?
A challenge...but a pretty mechanical one. Mostly determined by budgets and the like.
The biggest benefit definetly is improving my concepting skills and creating a discipline in me to sit down and produce a steady amount of good work in a short period of time. Being a freelancer you have your good days and bad days where it's hard to get motivated. But knowing that i am capable of doing the work in a pressure situation even on a bad day kind of takes away the excuse.

Q: A lot of your visual concepts certainly lean towards the fantastic - the creatures, the 'worlds' you create have a sense of the 'outlandish' and are a lot of fun to look at and follow. How do you go about 'building' these? (And what would the inspirations for these be?)
A lot of it is intuitive. I very rarely do much in the way of preliminary sketching or design...i should probably start...but most of it is in my head and it just builds as i go along. One of the main points i always try to include though is that i enjoy drawing them and being involved in them. If it's feeling boring and a chore...i'll usually stop and rethink it. I'm kind of of the opinion that if i'm finding it dull to look at and draw...the reader will too.
If i'm stuck...i'll put on anything by Miyazaki. His worlds always take my breath away...and constantly get my head ticking over at how i can push something that little bit more.

Q: What will you be bringing to Flight 3?
I'm actually reworking a 24hr comic i did just recently for the Ozcomics 24hr challenge. A turn of the century paranormal adventure. Lots of moustaches, hats, cups of tea and dandy romantic poets.

Q: Any other upcoming projects you'd like to plug?
I've got a lot of things in the works. Comics wise a few things i can't really talk about yet...but freelance wise i'm slowly but surely plowing through illustrating a couple of series of kids novels.

Here's my roundtable responses:

Q: What do you guys feel are the unifying concepts/themes/elements to Flight?
(& what gives it a distinct flavor from other anthologies?)

A: It all boils down to story...and there’s an honesty in the tales I’ve seen my fellow Flight crew create. I wish I could nail down a definitive answer, but there’s just an air of genuine honesty.
We just want to tell you a story. Hahaha….that’s my take, anyway.

Q: On the other end of the scale, Flight has a very diverse pool of creators,
coming from different sensibilities and different parts of the world, even.
What allows it to be so ‘inclusionary’?

A: We all seem to share so many common artistic and creative heroes...It’s as if we all were all brought together by a singular dream magnet.
Jokingly, we’ve mentioned that Flight was always there and was going to happen, and we just fell together to complete it.
And we have the internet to thank for it.

Q: What for you are some of the notable experiences have come out of Flight?
(Be it as a creator, in regards to reception of your work, with respect to the
communal aspects of Flight [going to cons, etc.])

A: I’m kind of a sideliner, of sorts. I’m just kind of skating across the surface of the comics world.
Being at San Diego last year for the release of Volume 1 was just crazy…It’s so nice to see everyone come out and support us.
I was also present at the Alternative Press Expo, where Volume 2 hit. I’m so glad and happy that the readers get what we’re doing.
Don’t even get me started about all the incredible friends I’ve made along the journey!

Q: What do you think made Flight a venture that Ballantine is willing to pick
up and put in book stores? (What gives the anthology an appeal outside of the
standard comics audience?)

A: Even back when we were considering self publishing, we’ve always had our eye on the book store, and our work on their racks.
Not that we’ve turned our backs on the direct market by any means….but if you just look at a typical city, it might have one or two comic stores (which may or may not carry the Flight books).
That same city will have several book stores with an ever increasing selection of original graphic novels. I think that Flight has a high standard of art and storytelling…not to mention the accessibility of the material within.

Q: In what directions will you be bringing your contributions to Flight as it
continues to grow? (ie: Now that Flight will be released every six months from
the third volume on, would any of you consider doing “continuing stories” or
using recurring characters? And, of course, why or why not?)

A: I “may” be doing a continuing storyline with fellow Flight contributor Nicolas Seigneret (AKA Bannister) http://www.bannister.fr/ . We’re teaming up for a story in Volume 3, and we’ve left it open ended….we’ll see where we go from there…

Q: Ultimately, what are your creative goals both in and out of Flight?

A: My goals are fairly simple: I just want to be a better artist and storyteller. And being in the Flight school, I know it’ll be a fun ride!

And here's my set of standalone questions:

Joel Carroll interview questions for silverbulletcomics.com Flight Week

Q: How did you get mixed up in all of this Flight business?

A: I had just happened to write an email to Kazu praising his work the same week he was putting the groundwork together for an anthology featuring his close friends. It’s been told that I was the first “outsider” invited in…hahaha.
The contributor list exploded rather quickly….we all kind of knew each other’s work form various web-boards and what not. The anthology was just a needless excuse for us to virtually hang out with each other.

Q: What were your guidelines in coming up with a piece for the book?

A: Moebius’ Arzach stories were definitely a main ingredient in my “story stew”. Whenever I think of flight and comics, Arzach came to mind. I wanted to try and capture that strange dreamlike sense of exploration that those stories captured perfectly.

Q: Your story in Flight Vol. 1, "Wing," was a wordless tale. Did you go into it initially wanting the pictures to tell the story, or was it something that evolved while doing it? It did add a layer of mystery to the whole thing.

A: Again, the Arzach stories were a direct influence. “Wing” is actually a much edited version of a longer story called “The Last Leg”. That original story was going to have dialog, but in an alien language between multiple characters.
In a lot of ways, I don’t think I was ready to create the whole story as I saw it in my head, but “Wing” forms the guts of the former story and just gets to the meat of what I was trying to convey.

Q: Was the "Wing" story your first foray into comics?

A: I’ve been dabbling from time to time, semi-professionally. I did the artwork for a mini-comic called “Jet Pack Jenny and the Threat of the Cyber-Girl” for my good friend, Jerry Stanford (http://www.carpaltunnelpress.com/ ). But Flight is my first foray into the Direct Market, as it were, past some pin-ups here and there.

Q: The visuals, both line work and color in Wing, are striking. Did you have an idea in mind, then develop the visual style for it? Or were there designs that you created a story for?

A: I did a fair amount of concept work for “The Last Leg”, and those designs carried over to “Wing”.
I knew that I wanted the wing vehicle to be a nice homage to both Arzach’s mount, and Nausicaa’s Moeve glider ( from Miyazaki’s Nausicaa and the Valley of Wind ).

Q: After all the acclaim Flight Vol. 1 got, Vol. 2 seemed almost inevitable. How do you like the second volume compared to the first? As both a reader and a creator on the first volume.

A: I’m still amazed at the size of Vol.2! I saw a good portion of the stories when they were being put together, and I’m still finding NEW things in Vol.2 each time I look at it.
Little nuances and cameos here and there….it’s great! Right when you think you know everything that’s supposed to be going on, you peel another layer of this strange living thing…

Q: What do you have in store for the third volume of Flight? Is it related in any way to the "Wing" story from Vol. 1?

A: I’m teaming up with fellow contributor Nicolas Seigneret (AKA Bannister) http://www.bannister.fr/ for a cool little sci-fi story. I don’t want to say anything more at this point…

Q: Are there going to be even more stories crammed into Vol. 3? These are some hefty books...

A: Last I checked, Vol.3 is going to be pretty sizable….

Q: As far as future volumes go, do you plan to continue contributing to "Flight" as much as possible? Or just pop in once in while?

A: I really regret not being able to contribute to Vol.2, so I’m going to be contributing to as many volumes of Flight as I can from now on.

Q: How long to you see a concept like this lasting?

A: As long as people like reading cool stories, I hope. I think most Flight crew are of the same mindset, that being that we’re going to do this for as long as it’s fun, and for as long as we’ve got stories to tell!

Q: On the bio page of your site, we can see you've been a video game player for a while. How'd you get involved in making them?

A: I’d had a growing interest in video games during college, and we had several recruiters from the big development houses visit. After teaching grade school art, I dipped into the industry for about six years.
I now teach game design at a private college called Full Sail www.fullsail.com

Q: Have you always been a comics fan? Any particular favorites growing up?

A: Oh, since the beginning. Since before I can even remember. I was a fan of certain artists and I’d follow those people through their careers.
Out of all the books I’d read, collected, ect., one standout would have to be Howard Chaykin and Jose Luis Garcia Lopez’ Twilight (a series which re-wrote the old DC sci-fi characters from the silver age).
Twilight was the big book that hit all my creative buttons all at once!

Q: Would you rather fly with wings, Hawkman style, or through some inexplicable thrust like Superman? Where to jetpacks fit in to all of this?

A: Yeah, I’m thinking just pushing through air like a jet would....no messy wings. I’d have to buy a ton of weird shaped shirts.

Q: Who are some of your artistic influences? (Not just comics)

A: Man, I could go on for days....and some of my biggest influences are my fellow Flight guys.
You know who you are...
I've always followed the work of Masamune Shirow, Mike Mignola, Steve Purcell, Peter DeSeve, Shane Glines.....the list would just keep going....

Q: The theme of "flight" isn't as literal or even existent at all in many of the stories, especially in the second volume. Is that a trend that will continue in the third? If so, what does the title "Flight" mean to you?

A: With the exception of the team-up story I'm doing with Bann, ALL of my stories will have flight in them....whether it's a main component or not.
I really like having the theme of "flight", and I'm sticking to it.

Q: If you could only choose one superpower would it be... flight? If not, what? And, of course, why?

A: It’d probably have to be invisibility. Or any type of astral projection thing….and no, it wouldn’t be to spy on girls.
Okay, yes…I COULD spy on girls...but I'm a gentleman.
A wannabe invisible gentleman.

Q: Aside from "Flight," do you read other comics? Any particular favorites?

A: Well, nowadays, it seems like all the comics I read are from people I know. I’m mr. popular.
I could write out a list, but it’d go on for days…

Q: Do video games influence your comic work and vice versa?

A: Everything you see is an influence. It’s all in moderation….

Q: Do you have any plans for publishing comics outside of "Flight"? Any stories or series on the horizon?

A: Yeah, I have waaay too many projects that I’m waaay too far behind on. I’ll have some stuff ready to unveil at APE 2006.

Q: On the art section of your site, there are some very cool renditions of some familiar superhero/comics characters (particular favorites are Hellboy and Catwoman). Would you be interested in drawing for more mainstream, superhero kind of book? Or are you more interested in working on your own creations?

A: I just have no many of my own projects to tackle. I guess I could do a “mainstream” book…..it’d really have to depend on the character or property….like Power Pack….I could do a Power Pack story…hahahah.

Q: Could we see a brother to this anthology, like, say, "Strength" with stories about internal and external strengths? Or maybe "Sassy"? With... I don't know... smart alecky, sassy stories? If either of these happen, I demand a cut...

A: Aw, there’s room for strong and sassy stories in Flight….can’t create too many offshoots….we’d weaken the brand!

Thanks for taking the time to answer these questions (especially the nonsensical ones)! Loved "Wing" and can't wait to see what you have in store for Flight Vol. 3!

--d.j.

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JOELCARROLL.COM

Q: What do you guys feel are the unifying concepts/themes/elements to Flight?
(& what gives it a distinct flavor from other anthologies?)
Honestly, I don’t really know…

Q: On the other end of the scale, Flight has a very diverse pool of creators,
coming from different sensibilities and different parts of the world, even.
What allows it to be so ‘inclusionary’?
I think we share a common vision of having fun making comics spontaneously.
Honnest stories, well told, all ages, forging a bright sequential future for our youngest readers ? Stories and art made with the heart, essential.


Q: What for you are some of the notable experiences have come out of Flight?
(Be it as a creator, in regards to reception of your work, with respect to the
communal aspects of Flight [going to cons, etc.])
In one year, my english improved by ten. I made wonderfull friends. I talked to people I thought it would never been possible. Thanks Internet !
More seriously, Kazu ‘s and other contributor’s advice have been really helpful, it really freed me as an artist. Sometimes it was hard because you’ve always got to reconsider your work ,and I wasn’t use to that before. Contributor’s comments are often really really helpful and interesting. For the Cons, I'll wait till newt year, to meet them all. I hope so anyway.



Q: What do you think made Flight a venture that Ballantine is willing to pick
up and put in book stores? (What gives the anthology an appeal outside of the
standard comics audience?)
Because it’s not just comics I think. Flight is in some way, the symbol of a « new wave » of young artist who wants to do things differently. I think.

Q: In what directions will you be bringing your contributions to Flight as it
continues to grow? (ie: Now that Flight will be released every six months from
the third volume on, would any of you consider doing “continuing stories” or
using recurring characters? And, of course, why or why not?)
I don’t really know, I’ll do the stories I have fun to tell. The more fun have, the more you final « product » is good.

Q: Ultimately, what are your creative goals both in and out of Flight?
Drawing.
Pay the bills with my art.
Making comics.
This is for next year, afterwhile, I really don’t know.

_________________
Bannister.

Bannister personnal Questions:



What came first, your interest in drawing or your interest in comics?
(And how did your interests in both develop?)
Drawing, definitely. I think I’ve always drawn as far as I remember. Comics came later, during my early teen years.

Was Félicité Bonaventure your first comic work? How did you land the gig?
Yes. Actually no. I mean, it was my first published book. But I’ve been making (french) comics for the youth press since the early ‘90s.
A friend called me to know if i was interested into beeing part of a big project, already signed in a publisher. So I left my current job and went for it.

What is Félicité Bonaventure about?
It’s a Sci-Fi story about a pregnant girl who can’t recall her past. It was a really sensitive and humanist story into a sci-fi context. It was planned to be in 9 part, and she would have given birth at the end of the ninth book. Unfortunately, art wasn’t very good (first big work, no much time) and it didn’t sell at all. We had some problem with the publisher too, so the serie was definitively stopped. I’m very sad about it, because I love this story and it would have been a hell of a good serie. Those things happens.

Emotional expression is important to you – how would you say your abilities have progressed to capture that in your style? (You’ve talked about progressing from a Manga style to a hybrid of Manga and European – What is it about your previous styles that made them more limiting with respect to emotional expression? What are some aspects of emotional expression that you’re still looking to capture?)
Due to my friend Nykko, who wrote Félicité Bonaventure, I learn to apprehend strong emotional expressions. I wasn’t used to that, and and I loved it. Translating expressions, feelings, whatever it is, is really important for me. Much more than making action sequences. I was really into action stuff before Félicité.
I grew up reading french comics and US comics. Manga came in my late teen years. I’ve never been a good story writer, so I try to put as much emotion as I can in my stories, to hide the fact there is no real story, haha. I try to put in my stories what I loved into comics, movies, novels. But it’s really hard to build something that make react people, like crying, laughing, etc. Most of people don’t cry or laugh while reading books or comics. There’s no such things as crying while reading, haha, I like it. There must be some trick to make people cries or laugh, but I don’t know them, everything I do is kind of improvised. Direct from the heart (at least i hope so).

Being primarily an American audience at silverbulletcomics, what can you tell our readers about the manner in which comics are received in Europe? (With respect to the readership it attracts, the way the ‘business side’ of things are handled, how they’re generally perceived, etc.)
Most of comics in france for 30 years now are guys in Spandex or stuff like that. Since 10 years, we start having “independant” comics, more personnal stories, but there’s not a lot of them. I don’t think comics readers here think about the business thing, just like manga. I stopped reading “super heroes” comics when i was 18 or something like that, to swith to manga. Now I’m reading comics again since the ‘90s, but mainly “indies” ones.

Being influenced by Manga and European works, what do you feel are the best components of each? How do you hope to reflect those aspects in your own storytelling? (Also, are there any American influences on your work?)
From manga, I’ll take way they take time to make the readers feel the instant emotion. It can take 20 pages just to watch a girl go away under the rain, and it’s cool, you really have time to get into it. I’ll take the dynamism too, for instance, I love Otomo and Toriyama (nothing new) Otomo make manga like he makes movies, same angles, same cutting. Toriyama do the opposite, he do sequentials, and try to push it as far as he can. It’s a real pleasure to red them both but I consider myself closer to Toriyama, in my way of making sequentials. (i don’t know if it’s really clear).
For the comic stuff I’ve taken the black&white work, and some “magic and poetry” sort of things. Like jeff Smith, or Will Eisner.
And for the European books, it’s hard to tell because it’s been all my life for so many years, it’s part of me, I can’t even tell what inspired me. Maybe the inking of Janry, and the amazing talent of Franquin.

Dust on the Shelves, your first piece on Flight – what was it inspired by?
It’s my life. It’s the way I met my actual girlfriend, 11 years ago. I would’nt have the talent of writing such story. I tell you, I can’t write...

What other anthologies has your work been found in?
I’ll be in YAND 1&2, Flight 3&4 and a couple of others not officially planned yet.

There’s a secret project you’re working on, some pics of which are on your site. What can you tell us about it?
I’m on 5 secret project actually. Overseas and France based.

What are you contributing to Flight 3?
A story about an invading tripod and a Kid, in collaboration with Joel Carroll who was in Flight 1. I draw the kid, he draws the tripods, he’s very talented and we have great fun. Corentin is coloring it (he made the colors for Dust... and Félicité). I’m also on a story much more in the style of Dust... all about emotion and feelings. It’s quite short and I hope it’ll work well in the end.

_________________
Bannister.

Hey there,

Jonathan Encarnacion from silverbulletcomics.com here – thanks for doing an interview for our “Flight Week” event! I hope the line of questioning does well to cover your work both in and out of comics; if there’s anything I’ve missed that you’d like to add, please feel free to do so!

In regards to artwork for the interview, would it be cool to grab some of the stuff from your site for Urban Observations and Silent Kimbly? Also, could we get something from Blip Pop and whatever you can give from your animation design work?

Yes, how big do you want? I can send you still from BFC, and blip pop….. And you can take whatever you want from UO and kimbly….. What would be most use full to me personally is links to kimbly. that’s the site I’m trying to push most right now…



Ryan Sias:

First off, a background q: what got you to start drawing, and how did you follow and pursue illustration to the point where it’s now a career for you?

I started drawing when I was 3, then I just keep drawing. It was all I knew how to do, so I went to collage for it. Then after collage, I was an art director for 5 years. I was directing all the in-store videos for chuck-e-cheese. Then I moved up to NYC, worked on blowing for columbine, which got me the job at blue sky working on robots. After that a lot of door opened. So I’ve been doing cartoon boards and comics for Mad and nickelodeon.

What are your primary influences with it comes to illustration and design?

I guess my biggest influences on my drawing style were Dr.suess, and the Muppets.

What was the first illustrative gig you landed?

Most of my work has been in studios. Only now have I started to try and get illustration jobs. Most of my work is storyboards, with the occasional comic job.


You’ve worked on a number of high-profile projects for TV and film, including Conan O’Brien’s 10th anniversary show, “A Brief history of America” for Bowling for Columbine, and the film Robots. What have been the most exciting “high points” of these experiences, and if at all, what (if you don’t mind telling) were the most nerve-wracking points?

The answer to both is Bowling for columbine. When I first got the script, all of my friends said I should don’t it. If you think about that cartoon, the words seems kinda crazy if you don’t know the attitude of the dialog and funny images to go along with it. Everyone thought I was making a bad career move. I was a fan of Michel Moore, so I went ahead and worked on it anyway. It’s now the thing I’m most asked about. Winning the Oscar really jumped up its visibility, and it’s amazing to have worked on a film that won an Oscar. That was great! The only thing that’s come close to the “cool” factor is having work printed in “mad” that gets a lot of peoples attention also, but Bowling changed my life.


Although they do have their similarities, is there anything about working in storyboards or comics that sometimes makes you prefer working in one versus the other?

I prefer comics, cuz I can do my own stories. Storyboards pay the bills. I’ve never made any money off comics. In fact I’ve only lost money in comics. So that’s not good, but I get tired of drawing other peoples stories, so comic is kinda my creative outlet.

When tackling a project, do you try to tailor the visual designs to the story you’re telling? (Urban Observations, Silent Kimbly, Blip Pop, and your work on A Brief History of America all have very distinctly different designs to them. Do you prefer not to be anchored to a particular style, or is there actually a style [or set of styles] you prefer to draw from?)

BFC, that’s what Michael wanted. I was trying to make it not so southparky. But that’s what he wanted so that’s what he got. I’d say Blip pop; UO and kimbly are all the same style. My style just shifts depending on what the story needs. Blip pop need city stuff and big clouds… where as Kimbly is a much simple place. Blip pop I was trying to show off. Most of the time I’m just trying to get kimbly done quickly, so I can do other stuff.

What will your story in Flight 3 be about?

I don’t have a story for flight 3, I spent the summer pitching TV shows, working on my kimbly graphic novel, and trying to make some money. But hopefully I’ll have some thing ready for flight 4!

Are there any avenue(s) of illustration do you hope to dabble in that you haven’t yet?

Kids books, that’s also something I’m working on now. I have about 3 books dummies that I’m showing around. I’d really like to be writing and illustrating my own books.

Where would you say your artistic aspirations lie primarily? (Somewhere in animation? Design? Comics?)

Probably some of all of above.. All my book ideas, usually tie into books. Whenever I work on a new “concept” it’s usually for books, but then in the process for creating the book, it becomes a TV show pitch also. My main goal is to be doing my own work; whatever field is in is fine with me.


What do you guys feel are the unifying concepts/themes/elements to Flight? (& what gives it a distinct flavor from other anthologies?)

Good fun creativeness. Artist getting a chance to tell a story with no restrictions. That’s a rare thing.

Q: On the other end of the scale, Flight has a very diverse pool of creators,
Coming from different sensibilities and different parts of the world, even.
What allows it to be so ‘inclusionary’?

That same thing. Because so many creatives work on the book, it feels like anyone and everyone can be part of it. It’s amazing.

Q: What for you are some of the notable experiences have come out of Flight?
(Be it as a creator, in regards to reception of your work, with respect to the
communal aspects of Flight [going to cons, etc.])

Saying your in flight had made me cool at the comic book stores, and to people in the field. Cons have been fun, great to get out and meet the fans and some of the flight crew.



Q: What do you think made Flight a venture that Ballantine is willing to pick
up and put in book stores? (What gives the anthology an appeal outside of the
standard comics audience?)

Because of our great product, word of mouth, and fantastic sales.


Q: In what directions will you be bringing your contributions to Flight as it?
continues to grow? (ie: Now that Flight will be released every six months from
the third volume on, would any of you consider doing “continuing stories” or
using recurring characters? And, of course, why or why not?)

I plan to bring the same thing, fun, creative stories.




Q: Ultimately, what are your creative goals both in and out of Flight?

Flgith is a great outlet for my short story ideas, and it due to the success of everyone in the book it brings attention to work. So creative freedom and it’s gets noticed? I think that’s what every artist wants.

_________________