Feature Details
Interviews
ComicMix Interviews.
News Articles Featured in Interviews
Sat Oct 18, 2008 — by Robert Greenberger
Interview: Bryan Talbot on 30 Years of 'Luther Arkwright', Part One
Bryan Talbot emerged from Britain’s underground comix to become one of the most innovative creators in the UK. He’s the creator of the critically acclaimed graphic novels The Adventures of Luther Arkwright and A Tale of One Bad Rat. He remains a creative force, most recently producing Alice in Sunderland, a graphic novel released last year form Dark Horse and Cherubs!, with Mark Stafford, which Desperado released this summer.
Warren Ellis said, “Luther Arkwright is probably the single most influential graphic novel to have come out of Britain to date.” This month, Bryan Talbot’s seminal work is celebrating its thirtieth anniversary. It was first serialized in Near Myths, a British title, before being collected as a miniseries and graphic novel through the years. A new edition, using digitally remastered pages from the Czech edition, is being released by Dark Horse.
Talbot graciously agreed to chat with us about the work and its influence on graphic novels. Part one will focus on Luther Arkwright and tomorrow’s second part will explore Talbot’s career.
CMix: Bryan, thanks for taking the time to sit with us.
Bryan Talbot: Thanks for inviting me.
CMix: Do you agree with Warren's assessment?
BT: Er...yes, it probably is the most influential UK graphic novel as I can't think of another that's comparable in that respect. Most of the "Brit pack", including Alan Moore and Neil Gaiman, were fans of it years before they started writing comics professionally. Writers such as Warren, Garth Ennis, Grant Morrison and Rick Veitch have acknowledged its influence. According to Steve Bissette and Michael Zulli, it inspired them to want to draw comics.
CMix: He went on to say, "He took from everywhere - the films of Nick Roeg, head shop culture, 19th Century magazine illustrated, medieval woodcuts, classical portraiture, Sixties collage, Mal Dean and the New Worlds illustrators, anything and bloody everything, and adapted it all to work in the special environment of comics." Was there one element that started the process?
BT: Two years before starting on the graphic novel I wrote and drew a one-off eight page strip called "The Papist Affair" in my Brainstorm Comix series of underground comics. It was an excuse to do a Richard Corben-style line and wash strip and I invented the character of Arkwright for that, inspired by Michael Moorcock's Jerry Cornelius novels. Mike created Cornelius and offered him as a template hero. So that was the starting point. After finishing the strip I started to think about fulfilling a long-standing desire I had to produce what we now call a graphic novel and started to develop it based around Arkwright.
Continue reading Interview: Bryan Talbot on 30 Years of 'Luther Arkwright', Part One ›
Sun Sep 28, 2008 — by Jeff Ayers
David Mack Talks 'Destiny'
'Star Trek' Author Shakes up the Universe
David Mack, not the Kabuki David Mack, is no stranger to the Star Trek writing universe, having written several well-acclaimed novels solo and also a couple of televison episodes with former Star Trek book editor John Ordover. He dipped a toe into the Marvel Universe with his excellent Wolverine novel, Road of Bones (with a cover from the other Dave Mack). His latest work, the Star Trek: Destiny trilogy, spans several storylines that will change Trek literature forever. The first volume of the trilogy is just now hitting bookstores so we thought it was a good time to catch up with Mack who was kind enough to discuss his career and future writing endeavors with ComicMix.
CMix: How did you get your start in Star Trek?
David Mack: Long story. I first set my sights on writing for Star Trek while I was a sophomore in college. That was when Star Trek: The Next Generation announced its open-door policy for script submissions. I collected many fine rejections but never succeeded in breaking through at The Next Generation.
I continued submitting scripts through the same venue for Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, and I collected many more fine rejections. I finally got my break when a college friend of mine introduced me to Star Trek fiction editor John J. Ordover. John had the connections to bypass the slush-submission process and pitch ideas to the producers; what he lacked was scriptwriting experience, for which I had been trained at film school. So we teamed up.
Working together, John and I made a sale during our first pitch session to Star Trek: Voyager, and another a few weeks later, to Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. The Voyager story was bought but never produced; the DS9 story became the fourth-season episode “Starship Down.”
We figured the floodgates would open after back-to-back sales. They didn’t. It was three years before we sold another story to Deep Space Nine (the seventh-season episode “It’s Only a Paper Moon”). In the interim, to earn freelance money to help pay off my mountain of college-loan debts, I did editorial scut work around the Star Trek books office: reading slush submissions, compiling reference materials for the authors, organizing photo files, etc.
Sun Sep 21, 2008 — by Andrew Bergstrom
Interview: D.J. Coffman on Politics and Webcomics
Artist Discusses Life Post-Platinum
On D. J. Coffman’s blog website George Washington stares at me from behind a "star-spangled" bandana, almost daring me to challenge him. Below is a quote from another founding father John Adams "An honest man will never have any other." Our founding fathers were real hell raisers that defied the British Empire, the legal government at the time, and we should all respect these hooligans for giving birth to our nation.
The 32-year old Coffman has come a long way since 1998 when he first self-published Yirmumah, with his own brand of slapstick humor to kick his sometime collaborator Bob in the nuts and our funny bone.
In June, Coffman allied himself with the Flobots while at the same time publically estranged himself from Platinum Studios over non-payment for his Hero by Night webcomic. He suddenly became a highly public figure in the struggle between creators and the company.
Today Coffman also shows a very serious side of himself; a sequential artist, a thinker to be reckoned with, and a dreamer with a lot of fans. I caught up with Coffman recently:
CMix: How did you hook up with the politically active Flobots musical group?
DJ: Fate I suppose, and it all started with a sign. I don't consider myself in anyone's party per se, but I found myself agreeing with [Barack] Obama’s ideas of change. His quote "We are the ones we've been waiting for" made me think about hard work, and if you want something done you have to do it yourself. Back in April I created my own yard sign encouraging people to VOTE. I had seen a lot of pickups go by with rebel flags, and some even shouting out racial slurs. The ignorance I was surrounded with, and that my kids might witness, made me sick. I felt like I was the only one that was thinking about the future. Before they took off, I downloaded the Flobots’ Fight with Tools album, which I listened to continuously on the trip to and from the New York Comic-Con. While I was away that sign was stolen and my yard was trashed, right before the Pennsylvania primary. I painted another sign, and I would have continued just to exercise my freedom of speech, and not to have it silenced by any "Hillbillies." The album’s politically charged lyrics stuck a chord inside me, so I emailed the band to inquire about making a webcomic or graphic novel based on their positive lyrics. I quickly received an email reply from Stephen "Brer Rabbit" Brackett, who had heard of my work, and conversations grew from there. I told him about my sign and he replied, "It's time to paint those signs!"
Continue reading Interview: D.J. Coffman on Politics and Webcomics ›
Wed Sep 10, 2008 — by Alan Kistler
Interviews: Peter David and Mike Perkins
Creators talk 'Dark Tower: Treachery', 'X-Factor' and 'The Stand'!
Last night, Peter David and Mike Perkins did a midnight signing at the prestigious Midtown Comics in Time Square. Despite the late hour, there were several fans in attendance and
each had the opportunity to be among the very first to purchase the debut issue of the new miniseries Dark Tower: Treachery and the premiere of the first miniseries based on Stephen King's other major work, The Stand: Captain Tripps.
The Dark Tower book series is Stephen King's very popular opus. The Dark Tower comics, plotted by King's aide Robin Furth (who also wrote The Dark Tower: A Complete Concordance) and scripted by Peter David (X-Factor, She-Hulk, Fallen Angel), have been serving as prequels to the series, showing the Gunslinger hero Roland when he was a young man and revealing other secrets of his home. Treachery is the third mini-series.
The Stand is perhaps Steven King's most famous book, depicting how the last survivors of humanity cope with the forces of good and evil after a plague wipes out most of the planet. It is also a part of the Dark Tower series in that the demonic villain Randall Flagg makes an appearance in both. In fact, Flagg (also known as "The Dark Man", "The Walking Dude", and "The Man with no Face") appears or makes his presence felt in several other books and stories, earning him the title of King's "super-villain." Mike Perkins (Union Jack, Captain America) is handling the art for The Stand.
Also on this occasion was the birthday of Kathleen David, Peter's wife. Midtown Comics, being the classy people they are, were only too happy to hook up the party with a massive cake, sodas and many cupcakes.
When the signing and fan greeting was done, I sat down with Peter and Mike to ask them a few questions.
Mon Aug 25, 2008 — by Van Jensen
Interview: Elizabeth Genco of 'Comic Book Tattoo' and 'Blue'
Music inspires comic book writer
The past few months have brought a swell of attention to indie comics writer Elizabeth Genco, who scored a coup by having a story included in the Tori Amos Comic Book Tattoo collection from Image Comics, and then her graphic novel Blue -- a modernization of the Bluebeard legend -- sold well in part thanks to a plug from Brian Wood.
Genco took the time out of her busy schedule to chat with ComicMix about her music-infused projects and what it was like to work with an idol in Amos.
ComicMix: Let's talk about the Tori Amos project first, since it's the book of the moment. How did you get connected to that gig? Were you a fan of Amos previously?
Elizabeth Genco: I've been a fan of Tori's for almost 15 years. Both she and her music have been hugely influential, especially in my creative life. Tori is very smart about how to create a creative career while staying true to your vision, and I learn from her. Of course, like many of her fans, her music has helped me through some dark times.
As for how I got involved, a few years ago, editor Rantz Hoseley and I got acquainted via Warren Ellis' old board, The Enginge; he and I have been pals ever since. When he extended the invitation, I jumped onboard immediately.
CMix: How did you approach the assignment? Comics is such a visual medium, it's not that common to hear creators be inspired by sound.
EG: I want to say that I'm not inspired by sound so much as I am by words -- that is, lyrics. But the interesting thing about lyrics, of course, is that they take on a completely different meaning when you add the music. I would even go as far to say that 99 percent of the time, song lyrics are incomplete without the music. (Music is a huge influence on me, and I've aspired to be professional musician at several points in my life, especially when I was very young. So I've thought about this a lot, actually.)
Music inspires my writing quite often, and the process is usually the same. A line will capture my attention, and I'll start noodling -- following the thread, seeing where it goes. In this case, I decidedon the song and then went looking for that line.
As for the song itself ("Here. In My Head"), well, I spent all this time going through Tori's catalog trying to find the right one before going, "Duh!" It's been my favorite Tori song for years, so it wasthe obvious choice.
Continue reading Interview: Elizabeth Genco of 'Comic Book Tattoo' and 'Blue' ›
Thu Aug 21, 2008 — by Karl Cramer
Interview: "Gears of War" Writer Josh Ortega
The writer of the Gears of War comic book and Gears of War 2 videogame talks with ComicMix
Gears of War is one of the bona fide hits of this generation of high-end videogames. When you want to show your friends (or justify the cost to your significant other) the difference between your Xbox 360 and your last game system, this is the disc you pop in.
Taking place on the planet Sera, Gears of War tells the story of how the Coalition of Ordered Governments (COGs) had just ended a world war when subterranean monsters emerged from the ground. Called the Locusts, the monsters have guns and weapons that rival the COG's arsenal. The plot centers on the experiences of Marcus Fenix, a military prisoner released to join a war that is not going well.
Veteran comic writer Josh Ortega (Necromancer, Frequencies) was brought onboard by developer Epic Games to work on the story and deepen the Gears universe. He’s become an integral part of the Gears of War 2 team and DC Comics has announced that he’ll be writing the Gears of War comic for their WildStorm imprint. He took a few moments to let us know how the war effort was going.
COMICMIX: For our readers who are not up on all things COG and Locust, can you tell us in your own words whom you are and your involvement in building up the Gears of War universe?
JOSH ORTEGA: I’m the lead writer for Gears of War 2, I write the comic book for DC/WildStorm, and I also consult on the Gears of War franchise. I work closely with Mike Capps (Epic President), Cliff Bleszinski (Design Director), Rod Fergusson (Senior Producer), and the crew at Epic Games to make sure everything that I write fits in with what’s going on in the rest of the Gears universe, and vice-versa.
CMix: Why is the story set on the planet Sera? Why not Earth? Is this some sort of past, future, or just an unrelated world with humans on it?
JO: Setting it on a different planet allows for a lot of storytelling freedom. If it was set on Earth, many people would draw parallels where there weren’t any, and by the same token, certain parallels that we do want to draw might feel a bit forced or obvious if we set the story on our own planet.
It also allows us to have freaky creatures like the Locust, which, to the best of my knowledge, do not actually exist on Earth.
Continue reading Interview: "Gears of War" Writer Josh Ortega ›
Tue Aug 19, 2008 — by Alan Kistler
Interview: Greg Weisman on "The Spectacular Spider-Man" Animated Series
The "Gargoyles creator talks about his approach to the new Spidey cartoon
Early in July, I spoke with Greg Weisman about the acclaimed Gargoyles animated series he created and the new comics that continue the storyline of that project (and feel free to check out that interview, by all means). Afterward, I had the opportunity to speak with him about the Kids WB animated series The Spectacular Spider-Man, which I reviewed a few weeks ago. Weisman developed this new cartoon series for television along with Victor Cook (Hellboy: Blood and Iron, Darkwing Duck) and which features voice talents such as Josh Keaton, Lacey Chabert, Josh Lebar, John Dimaggio, Phil Lamarr, Robert Englund, Clancy Brown, Jeff Bennett and Vanessa Marshall.
Taking place a few short months after Peter has gained his powers and learned that "with great power there must also come great responsibility," the cartoon showcases a 16-year-old superhero who is still learning the tricks of the trade when folks like the Green Goblin, Electro and Dr. Octopus start showing up. When he's not web-slinging, Peter spends his days trying to change how people at his high school view him, since his super-abilities have given him the confidence to stand up for himself rather than just be the nerd who's picked on. But it's not easy -- and even when he's surrounded by people who love him, like longtime friend Gwen Stacy and his doting Aunt May, Peter still feels alone, unable to trust anyone with the secret of his double-life.
Here's what Weisman, the series' Story Editor and Supervising Producer, had to say about the first season of the series.
COMICMIX: As Story Editor, how did you approach the development of the series and the character himself?
GREG WEISMAN: When I got the job, I went and bought the first seven volumes of The Essential Spider-Man and re-read them. I’d read them as a kid, I grew up on Stan Lee and John Romita, Sr. and later went back and read the original Stan Lee, Steve Ditko stories. So, I re-read them and took copious notes and tried to get the voice of those early stories.
COMICMIX: Of course, you're still putting your own spin on some of the origins and the costume designs.
GREG WEISMAN: Right. With the new series, we wanted to create something that was coherent, cohesive, contemporary and classic. Those are the four Cs we always go back to. We're retooling and redesigning things for the modern day but we want the characters to still be iconic. We want you to see our updated version of the Vulture and still say “yep, that’s the Vulture” and “yeah, that’s the Green Goblin.” It’s a contemporary version but the changes aren’t there just for the sake of making changes. It's still true to what Lee, Ditko and Romita did.
Continue reading Interview: Greg Weisman on "The Spectacular Spider-Man" Animated Series ›
Wed Aug 6, 2008 — by Rick Marshall
Interview: Dirk Schwieger on "Moresukine"
Online comic puts the creator's fate in the hands of readers... in Japan!
Dirk Schwieger's Moresukine is different from other series I've focused on in these weekly webcomic creator interviews for a few significant reasons -- first and foremost of which being that it's no longer updated. The last comic was posted more than two years ago, back in in June 2006. However, when I saw that the German creator was a guest of NBM Publishing at this year's Comic-Con International, I jumped at the chance to include a Q&A with him in this series.
For anyone unfamiliar with Moresukine, the 24-part webcomic chronicled a year's worth of "assignments" Schwieger undertook at the request of readers while living abroad in Japan. Fans would send him tasks to accomplish -- anything from "meeting a traditional swordsmith" to "spending a night in a pod hotel" -- and he would write, illustrate and post a new comic each week based on his experience trying to complete that mission. The aim of the project, according to Schwieger, was to make the most of his time in Japan by offering himself up as someone through which his readers could live vicariously. The title of the series, Moresukine, came from the Japanese pronunciation of "Moleskine," the type of notebook he used to record his experiences.
A few months ago, NBM Publishing announced that it would be collecting Schwieger's online comic and publishing it in print form, complete with extra material contributed by webcomic veterans James Kochalka and Ryan North. Now that the paperback Moresukine collection has hit shelves, I spoke to Schwieger about the origin of the series, his favorite assignments and what we can expect to see from the talented creator in the future.
COMICMIX: Can you start from the beginning, Dirk? How did this project happen and what did you want it to be when you first conceived of it?
DIRK SCHWIEGER: Well, I was in Japan for one year. You could say that it was a travel-logue kind of thing, but the catch is that it's not just about what I deem is important or what i want to tell, but people were invited to send in emails with requests of places that i should go to in Tokyo, where I lived, or certain people I should get in contact with. And I couldn't refuse. I had to do all of the submissions in the order of their arrival.
It started very mundane. There is a webcomics portal in Germany, where I come from originally, and it's called Electrocomics.com. I had some stuff up there and they said, "Oh, you're going to Tokyo. Maybe you should do some sketches regularly." So they created this blog. I never had a blog before, and never intended to have one. I was kind of naive about the whole thing... but now I know. There are interesting blogs.
At that time, it was very important to me to get around the navel-gazing thing. This was one of the reasons to invite others and have this community effort of exploring the country -- to have me sort of remote-controlled from outside the city.
Continue reading Interview: Dirk Schwieger on "Moresukine" ›
Tue Aug 5, 2008 — by Chris Ullrich
Interview: Jamie Bamber on the End of "Battlestar Galactica" and "Pulse 2"
"Apollo" speaks!
Actor Jamie Bamber has had a diverse and successful career, gaining noteriety playing Lt. Archie Kennedy in the Hornblower series of TV movies, working in HBO's Band of Brothers and guest appearances on the series Cold Case and Ghost Whisperer. However, Bamber's career rocketed into the spotlight when he took the role of Lee "Apollo" Adama in the re-imagined Battlestar Galactica television series -- which is soon to broadcast its final season on the Sci-Fi Channel.
During the recent San Diego Comic-Con, I had a chance to speak to Bamber about his upcoming direct-to-DVD feature film Pulse 2: Afterlife and Battlestar Galactica. We discussed what made him interested in Pulse 2, how he feels about the end of Battlestar Galactica and what moments from the show were his favorites.
COMICMIX: Jamie, what can you tell us about Pulse 2: Afterlife?
JAMIE BAMBER: It's like Kramer vs. Kramer in an armageddon backdrop, featuring a dad who is trying to put his life back together. He's working on his relationships and putting them back together in the aftermath of an Internet-fueled apocolypse zombie scenario.
CMix: What made you take on this film?
JB: I had time. I liked the character and I could relate to what he's going through. I can understand and empathize with a dad and his fear for his child in a dangerous world.
CMix: Having been on such a strong ensemble show like BSG, playing the lead in a film must have been appealing...
JB: I liked the idea of fronting a movie on the quiet, which as an actor is quite a useful thing to do without it being everywhere. This is also a straight-to-DVD project, which also appealed to me.
CMix: You've finished shooting on Battlestar now, right?
Continue reading Interview: Jamie Bamber on the End of "Battlestar Galactica" and "Pulse 2" ›
Fri Aug 1, 2008 — by Jami Philbrick
Interview: Geoff Johns on "Final Crisis: Legion of Three Worlds" and his Favorite Projects
Bringing back the Legion and thinking about the past...
Back in June, I spoke to superstar writer Geoff Johns about the return of Brainiac in Action Comics and all things Superman. With this month's release of the first issue of Final Crisis: Legion of Three Worlds, I spoke to the writer about bringing back one of DC's most beloved superteams, The Legion of Super-Heroes, as well as some of his favorite projects.
COMICMIX: What can you tell us about the Final Crisis: Legion Of Three Worlds miniseries?
GEOFF JOHNS: It’s a really complex, big story. But the simple premise is that it’s Superboy-Prime and The Legion Of Super Villains vs. Superman and The Legion Of Super-Heroes. Superboy-Prime is foreign to the future and through what happens when he first gets there he makes an attempt to destroy everything that Superman has inspired while utilizing the Legion Of Super Villains. So the Legion Of Super-Heroes, who are struggling to come back together, who are almost obsolete at this point in the eyes of a lot of the United Planets, have got to come back and rally together for this challenge.
I’m trying to focus in on character here. I’m trying to introduce these characters to people that don’t know them and for those that do, to see them go through new experiences and new challenges. My main goal in this series is to tell a gigantic, epic story that centers on Superman and The Legion Of Super-Heroes. It’s just like when I worked on Sinestro Corps War, I wanted to do an epic Green Lantern story. There is a lot of emotion behind everything in this. That’s what I’m trying to focus on: the emotion of the characters and what they’re going through. Why should you even care about a character like Lightning Lad, Sun Boy or Dawnstar? What makes these characters compelling? Why are they worth following? Why are they worth learning about? My main goal is to, by the end of it, have people say, “I love Dawnstar! I love Sun Boy! I like Lightning Lad" or "I like Cosmic Boy!"
Thu Jul 31, 2008 — by Rick Marshall
Interview: Ryan North on "Dinosaur Comics"
It's stomp-a-licious...
Canadian webcomic creator Ryan North's Dinosaur Comics is another one of those projects that defies the norm in the comics world and succeeds despite all of the very good reasons why it shouldn't. I mean, come on, folks: A series in which the art never changes, and readers just get day after day of a pair of dinosaurs chatting about heady subject matter in mid-stomp? Back in the day, no one would've predicted a comic like that would be around five days, let alone five years.
But that's exactly what it's done -- Dinosaur Comics has not only survived, but thrived, in its five-year existence. It's done so well, in fact, that North has been able to develop a complex history for his small cast of characters while also having his creation named among the Web's best comics in one award after another over the last few years. Not content to simply make comics on the 'Net, North has also lent his considerable programming skills to Project Wonderful, a robust online ad-serving system that allows users to bid on placement of their ads on participating websites. Much like Dinosaur Comics, Project Wonderful is a new approach to a long-established system that has left countless others slapping their foreheads and wondering why they didn't think of something similar.
I had the opportunity to chat with North recently about Dinosaur Comics, Project Wonderful and a variety of other topics, including his recent experiments with online photo-sharing site Flickr and the multitude of other projects he manages to juggle on a regular basis.
COMICMIX: Before we even get started, what were you up to when you sat down to answer these questions, Ryan?
RYAN NORTH: I'm disgusting, man. Sunday morning, I haven't showered yet and I'm covered in stink lines. I'm wearing the clothes I wore yesterday. I've just eaten a burger with bacon built into it, and I have crumbs on my chest. I am the sexiest man, Rick. Tell your readers.
Continue reading Interview: Ryan North on "Dinosaur Comics" ›
Tue Jul 29, 2008 — by Arthur Tebbel & Christopher Toia
SDCC Interview: Mike Mignola on the Hellboy Universe
A short Q&A with the creator of the Hellboy franchise
Mike Mignola, creator of Hellboy has certainly been a star in the comics scene for some years but the spotlight must be shining a little brighter now that his franchise includes two hit movies. We were lucky to get a chance to talk to him briefly at the show this year about the future of his book, the impact of the movies on his own storytelling, and the difficulties of letting go of the art chores on the book.
"If I get hit by a bus tomorrow, I don't know what's going to happen to the book," said Mignola about the notion of passing the book off to other creators. He said he couldn't imagine letting go of the character the way Todd McFarlane has let other people work on his most popular creation, Spawn.
When asked if, given that, it was hard to stop being the artist on the book, Mignola said it was at first -- but he really likes the look of the book these days and he's fond of the work Duncan Fegredo has done for the book. "Besides," said Mignola, "if I was still doing the art it would take forever."
Readers of Hellboy are undoubtedly aware of the way Mignola uses real-world mythology, so we asked him what we should be brushing up on for his upcoming books. He said they were going to be doing a take on some British mythology and that the content would be similar to the second film in a few ways.
We also asked if he was concerned that Guillermo del Toro's film franchise seems to be building to a very different conclusion than his comics are. "The only thing that worries me is that the third movie will come out too soon," said Mignola. Adding that he had a very firm plan for the comics and that this plan might take 15 years to be realized in the comics.
Tue Jul 29, 2008 — by Chris Ullrich
SDCC Interview: Robert Englund on Horror Films and 'V'
'Freddy' talks about the future of horror movies and the new 'V' TV series
Unless you've lived a very sheltered life for the last twenty years or so, you know all about Robert Englund and his most famous character: the knife-fingered Freddy Krueger of Nightmare on Elm Street fame. The films featuring the iconic villan were some of the most successful of all time and spawned several sequels including a cross-over film featuring not only Freddy Krueger, but another well-known and popular character and star of a hugely successful franchise: Jason Voorhees of Friday the 13th fame.
More recently, Englund has taken turns both in front of and behind the camera with roles and directing gigs on films such as 2001 Maniacs, Jack Brooks: Monster Slayer and Zombie Strippers, which also features the acting talents of former adult film actress Jenna Jameson. ComicMix's Matt Raub and I caught up with Englund during San Diego Comic-Con and talked with him about, among other things, how hard it was to get to the convention, his latest projects, his involvement in the new V television series. and what he thinks about the future of horror films.
COMICMIX: So have you had a chance to check out the Con?
ROBERT ENGLUND: Not yet. We got messed up with the traffic. So many accidents, closures, people throwing themselves in front of trains, it took us forever to get here.
I think Comic-Con is jinxed. [Laughs]
CMix: So what brings you to the Con this year?
RE: I'm here with the company Anchor Bay which really responds to the kind of horror-comedy kind of stuff that people like Sam Raimi with the Evil Dead films used to do. I don't know if it's a response to the number of big-budget horror failures of late or that there's so much homemade stuff on YouTube now, but fans really seem able to watch something like a Hellboy 2 or a Dark Knight, which I love, but they also have room for movies like the ones I've been involved with lately such as Zombie Strippers, Jack Brooks: Monster Slayer or Hatchet.
It seems they can tune into a big $200 million blockbuster film one day and then also enjoy a little $2 million film we made mostly for fun. They're what I like to call "cheap thrills." I think there always has to be room for cheap thrills. I don't know if its political or if there's too much CGI or something but maybe that's what movies like Saw or Hostel are tapping into -- people's need for something more simple and fun.
Continue reading SDCC Interview: Robert Englund on Horror Films and 'V' ›
Mon Jul 28, 2008 — by Chris Ullrich
Interview: Wil Wheaton on Storytelling, Technology and the Internet (Part 3)
The final part of our three-part interview with writer/actor/publisher Wil Wheaton
Previously on ComicMix, I brought you the first and second parts of my interview with writer, actor, publisher, tech guru and all-around nice guy Wil Wheaton. In the two previous installments, we discussed a variety of topics from writing and acting, to technology and comics.
In this third and final installment, we cover still more topics, including politics, what piece of tech Wheaton feels is the most important of the last ten years and to him, what makes a good story.
COMICMIX: Okay, Wil, as a writer and reader of comics, what makes a good story to you?
WIL WHEATON: Comics are a visual medium, so the artwork is extremely important to me. There are tremendously talented writers who occasionally get paired up with artists whose art I don't like. And I won't read those books.
There are artists and writers who collaborate together. Matt [Fraction] gives Casanova artist Gabriel Ba as much credit for Casanova being awesome as people give Matt for making Casanova awesome. Ed [Brubaker] does the same thing with Criminal. And I think that says a lot about the importance of a good team-up. I'm lucky.
I've gotten to work with some great artists when I've done manga for TokyoPop.I don't know if the stories I've written would have the same emotional impact with the reader with different art. That really, really important combination of peanut butter and chocolate is really important to making comic books great.
A lot of it also has to do with pacing. When I write comic scripts I just write them as I would write a film script and I just know that instead of putting the camera on the dolly or whatever, that's what I'm going to ask the artist to draw... what the reader is seeing, you know? So I think pacing is really important.
Continue reading Interview: Wil Wheaton on Storytelling, Technology and the Internet (Part 3) ›
Sun Jul 27, 2008 — by Chris Ullrich
SDCC Interview: Exec. Producer David Eick on 'Caprica' and the End of 'BSG'
The talented writer and producer talks about the end of 'BSG' and the new 'Caprica' spin-off
Producer and Writer David Eick has one of the best jobs in television. Each week he gets to work alongside Ron Moore, Mark Verheiden, Jane Espenson, other talented writers, a brilliant cast and a superb crew to produce one of the best shows on television: Battlestar Galactica
I had a chance to sit down and talk with Eick during the Battlestar Galactica press event at the San Diego Comic-Con. During that time we discussed the show, its Caprica spin-off and his feelings now that Battlestar is coming to an end. There were also a few other collegues at this particular event, so any questions not mine are in italics.
COMIC MIX: You're probably not going to be able to answer any of my questions are you?
DAVID EICK: No, no I'm good.
CMix: You showed some footage from Caprica during the Battlestar panel today? How's the new show going?
DE: We finished shooting on the pilot which is now in post and we're breaking stories for the first batch of episodes that hopefully we'll have a reason to produce. We're excited about it and so is the network. The truth is that even more so than with the original Battlestar mini-series, we're hopeful and anticipating a successful series run with this.
CMix: But there's no "official" series commitment from Sci-Fi as yet?
Continue reading SDCC Interview: Exec. Producer David Eick on 'Caprica' and the End of 'BSG' ›
