Showing posts with label matthew hoddy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label matthew hoddy. Show all posts

Saturday, December 28, 2013

E noho rā 2013


Big thanks to all the New Zealand & Australian cartoonists and comic makers who contributed to the 2013 in Reviews. I'm signing off for a few days and will back with some galleries and interview posts on Jan 1st 2014.

I'll be trying to get my head around a few more places next year, please consider liking/following Pikitia Press in these places:

facebook: facebook.com/PikitiaPress
twitter @pikitiapress
tumblr: pikitiapress.tumblr.com/

2013 in Review survey index:

Gregory Mackay
Brendan Boughen bit.ly/JTJaic
Cory Mathis
Matthew Hoddy
Andrew Fullton
David Blumenstein
Justin Randall
David C Mahler


Ben Michael Byrne  
Brendan Halyday   
Toby Morris
Bruce Mutard  
Stuart McMillen  
Joshua Santospirito bit.ly/18Gnek2
Frank Candiloro
Richard Fairgray  
Colin Wilson  
Jason Franks  
Matt Kyme  
Anthony Woodward  
Caitlin Major  
Sarah Laing  
Sam Orchard  
Gavin Aung Than
Scarlette Baccini  
David Follett
Simon Hanselmann  
Michel Mulipola
Li Chen  
Ryan K Lindsay    
Christopher Downes  
Dean Rankine
Alisha Jade    
Theo Macdonald
Paul Mason  
James Davidson  
Tim Molloy  
Jason Chatfield

Wednesday, December 18, 2013

2013 in Review: Matthew Hoddy


What have been your personal cartooning/comics highlights of 2013?
Having the crowd funding campaign being successful and, subsequently, releasing my first book. Then taking that book with much success around the country and hanging out with all our comic making friends at home in Brisbane & Sydney & Melbourne & Adelaide. But the best part was taking the book overseas to SPX. Which was mind blowing to say the least. Meeting all the people I watch online. Seeing that they are just people like us making comics from home and with jobs. Some of which make comics from home AS their jobs.

The whole trip was memorable and inspirational. Met so many people and I can't wait to go back and see them all.

Also, honourable mention of the 24 hour comic jam I organised at Ace Comics for a few of the local creators. On the night it was pretty dang exhausting, mentally AND physically. But it went great and was a bunch of fun!

What are some of the comics you've enjoyed in 2013?
There has been so many! Spent quite a bit on comics at SPX. Some of which are Anthony Clarke's 3 Beartato books, Becky & Frank's Capture Creatures featuring Becky's beautiful water colours & Scott C's Greatest Showdowns. Just to name a few.

Ed Brubaker's Incognito was an interesting read. The Ninja Turtle 'Secret History of the Foot Clan' was really enjoyable too. Also read a few super hero comics I wouldn't usually read. Won't mention which ones (Batman Beyond).

But even more recently, Douglas Holgate & Jen Breach's 'Maralinga', cannot wait until it is finished!

What is something non-comics that you have enjoyed in 2013?  
Mostly video games. But also some animated series. Steven Universe is a really great show. Pretty recent too. Stories, colours and designs in it are fantastic. Discovered the game 'Fez' about a little 2d being that one day discovers his world has a third dimension. It's super cute and nostalgic. Which I found through one of the Humble Bundles.

The animated Batman series from the 90s has been a highlight too. Everything about it was really well done.


Two movies I really dug were Pacific Rim & Elysium. Both are sci-fi films I dug for completely different reasons.


Been playing through 'The Last of Us'. It's super creepy but super well done.

What are you looking forward to in 2014?
Taking my books overseas once again! Hopefully SPX again, but TCAF is definitely happening. We've also been accepted into Sand Diego Comic-Con. Which is going to be pretty full on and amazing.

That and making new books and releasing them into the world.
  

Monday, December 17, 2012

2012 in Review: Matthew Hoddy and Caitlin Major

 Matthew Hoddy and Caitlin Major

What have been your personal cartooning/comics highlights of 2012?


Matthew: The highlight for me was going to all the conventions. Just getting out there, meeting everyone. Both fans and other creators. It helped me feel like this is definitely the right path I should be taking. Especially after some of our more successful outings. Was some real positive reinforcement.

Biggest highlight though was the Brisbane Supanova in November. Our first con was a year before at the Brisnova, in Nov 2011. We knew absolutely NOTHING about cons and had two issues of Space Pyrates to show off. Our wall was pretty much bare (with the exception of our banner and a couple of prints). We were offering cosplay commissions for just $10 and made absolutely no money from the weekend. BUT, we had the greatest time. Everything about it just felt right. Each subsequent convention we attended we learnt something new and put it to practice for the next con. So, to do a whole years worth of cons and come back home with all that knowledge? It felt like everything came full circle.

We've made a bunch of great new friends and discovered things I didn't even think could exist in Australia. Plus, added extra bonus? We found that Brisbane actually has a thriving comics community. Who'd have thought it, right?
 
Caitlin: I guess the biggest highlight of 2012 is the number of people that are reading Space Pyrates, whether online or in print. We've had a lot of positive feedback from our readers and the general public and it seems the amount of readers has increased tenfold since we started out in  Jan 2011. It's the best feeling in the world when someone recognises us at conventions and has read the comic online and really liked it. It feels like I'm finally becoming a real comic book artist!


Who are some of the comics creators that you've discovered and enjoyed for the first time in 2012?


Matthew: I discovered Atomic Robo this year. By Brian Clevinger and Scott Wegna. Both are from the US. The tone, writing and artwork just speak to me. Burned through all 6 published trades and have been buying the single issues of 'The Flying She Devils' as they're released. I've never really been into buying the singles and usually just buy the collected editions if they look interesting. But this series? Man, it has got it claws into me something fierce.

I mean, one of the villains is a time travelling dinosaur scientist that uses sub machine guns and can talk. Plus, it's owner created. Which is exactly the sort of thing we'd like to do. So I look to creators like that for inspiration. Overseas and at home.
 
Caitlin: I've been seeking out other female comic artists this year and I've really been enjoying Hope Larson's comics. She's got a great art style and a real knack for storytelling, and I love a character driven story as much as the next person! I've also been reading Jane Mai's autobiographical comics online (I'm still waiting patiently for my copy of her printed comic to arrive in the mail) they're really cute and funny.


What is something non-comics that you have enjoyed in 2012?


Matthew: Something non-comic related? Oh man... I don't know... Feels like I've been neck deep in comics this whole year and can't remember anything else! Paranorman was a great stop-motion film from the studio 'Laika'. We do a bit of animation ourselves, and that movie in particular I appreciated a great deal. Dredd was really cool. LOOPER, oh man, that was a great sci-fi film despite it's plot holes (albeit time-travel related).

Did see Bill Bailey live. That was a hell of a lot of fun too!

Caitlin: I've been enjoying Gravity Falls a lot lately. It's like the new Adventure Time! Cute and funny and awesome and I absolutely love the art direction. It's probably the best thing to come out of Disney for a long time.

Have you implemented any significant changes to your working methods this year?


Matthew: The whole process of making Space Pyrates has been about learning. It's taken two years to get the this point and we're not even done! While I could draw before, albeit crudely compared to now, just pushing my artwork has been the biggest change. Thinking about it more critically and looking at what I could do differently to make thing better. Streamlining the whole process on my end anyway, from thumbnail sketches to finished & inked page. I've been watching a bunch of artists and trying to learn their tricks. Still need to learn a whole lot more though!
 
Caitlin: I wouldn't say significant changes, but I'm constantly trying to improve my work and I am always inspired by other artists to try different styles or techniques. Space Pyrates was intended as a learning exercise, to experience creating a comic and get my head around the production process and best practises.

What are you looking forward to in 2013?


Matthew: Finishing this story arc of SP and having it printed. Then? Touring around to all cities for conventions to promote it. Looking at relocating from Brisbane at some point too. Depending on work. Also looking forward to starting something new comic-related and promoting the hell out of that. Big plans!

Caitlin: We're releasing the collected edition of Space Pyrates next year so that's very exciting, I can't wait to have that tome in my hands! We've got a lot of conventions planned to promote the book and it's always fun going around and talking to people about comics. I'm also starting to work on a solo comic project, which is slightly different in tone and style to Space Pyrates, so looking forward to that too!