From Henry Chamberlain’s “Ballard Comics”
I am heading out to Comic-Con International in San Diego this year and this is the year that we take things to a new level. With your support, we can do some exciting new things here at Comics Grinder and beyond. You can check out the new campaign, “Support A Comics Reviewer and Creator,” over at GoFundMe right here.
Filed under Comic-Con, Comic-Con International, Comic-Con International: San Diego, Comics, Comics Grinder, Comics Journalism, Crowdfunding, Geek Culture, Geeks, George Clayton Johnson, GoFundMe, Henry Chamberlain, Interviews, Jim Woodring, Mark Z. Danielewski, Media, Nerd Culture, Nerds, San Diego Comic-Con
“Third Contact” is a dark, mind-bending, surreal sci-fi thriller which has been gathering momentum after selected shows in Europe. For its final cinema event, there will be a film tour of the USA and Canada. Support the Indiegogo campaign here.
Filed under Crowdfunding, Indiegogo, movies, Sci-Fi, science fiction
Sequart, short for Sequart Research & Literacy Organization, is a highly regarded resource for all things comics. When they have a project, we comics folk listen. Right now, it’s all about SHE MAKES COMICS, a documentary film about the untold history of women in comic books, celebrating female creators and fans alike. Support this exciting project at Kickstarter. At this writing, the funding goal has not quite been reached so every bit helps. Visit the project here.
From the press release:
Help SAW continue its mission of supporting artists, putting artists and students together and offering quality, affordable education in comics/sequential art. Of course, your support is always welcome. But, right now, with the new year ahead, it is a great time to jump in with your support. SAW is holding a fundraising campaign via Indiegogo. You can check it out here.
Here are some words from SAW Executive Director Tom Hart:
We have created a grassroots form of education. Knowledgeable, intelligent, capable experts working with students to prepare them for creative challenges ahead, and enlighten and enliven their practice. We’ve had great success, having graduated 5 students from our year-long program, 40 or more from our week-long programs and hundreds from our local classes. When we help our students communicate with passion and vision and clarity, we make the world a better place.
You have helped us do that.
There’s still time to pass the word around. We are asking for support to keep things up and running in 2014. As you know, every dollar matters, but so does every click and every poke, tweet, etc.
In addition, we now have some new artwork, from Dave Lasky, and from Box Brown, and others, as rewards for the current fundraiser.
Help support SAW now by going to the campaign here.
Filed under Comics, Crowdfunding, Indiegogo
Puck Magazine, an impressive collection of some of the leading comix artists and much more, launches its crowd funding campaign today. This is truly an international collection. If you are a fan of offbeat humor and you’d like a taste of it from around the world, then this is for you. Join the campaign here. It runs from November 26, 2013 thru January 4, 2014.
What follows is an informative essay on the Apocalypse, the history of alternative comics, and how that relates to Puck Magazine:
Welcome to the Apocalypse
Historically speaking, the Apocalypse is always now. By that I mean that at every period in human history, someone somewhere was certain that the world was about to end. Whether it was the author of the Biblical “Book of Revelation” (or “Revelation to John”) — surely one of the most mischievous tracts ever written — or some Vedic bard predicting the Kali Yuga, or urban street corner prophets ranting that “The End is Nigh,” the human imagination has repeatedly fixated on the end of the universe and the end of life as we know it.
It is not difficult to figure out why this is. At some undetermined point in time, for each of us, the universe will end. Death awaits us all, whether in a sudden accident or heart attack, or in a long lingering illness. That this is so seems like a monstrous joke, and so we repress the thought or, for many of us, we project it upon the world at large, finding solace in the thought that if we must die, so must everyone else, preferably all at the same time.
And yet, life goes on. Every prophecy of the End Times is, in some sense, a false prophecy. Predicted dates come and go, and true believers’ expectations fizzle out, only to be succeeded by new expectations which will eventually fizzle out as well.
Much of this apocalyptic fervor has been driven by religion, especially fundamentalist Christianity and Islam, which share similar scenarios of a Final Judgment. But there are no lack of secular apocalypses to choose from: catastrophic climate change, nuclear war, the end of Capitalism (a particularly elusive apocalypse), an impending police state, and the list goes on.
All of which brings us to the volume you hold in your hands, a smorgasboard of personal apocalypses conjured up by a stellar crew of cartoonists from around the world. For most comic artists, apocalypse looms as the rent comes due at the end of each month, so this theme was one that the assembled artists could really get their teeth into. As you will discover, some took the challenge lightly, producing humorous strips (including the inevitable Mother In Law joke), while others dove into full-fledged horror and paranoia.
The result is a well-balanced collection of unique visions that you will not find anywhere else. The locations change from strip to strip, usually manifesting the apocalypse in the artists’ own locales. If you’ve ever dreamed of making an Around the World Tour, but know you never will, this volume is a suitable substitute, albeit with rather more demons, cannibals, black holes, and Avenging Angels than you would likely encounter in hopping from country to country.
Sadly, I am told that this is likely the last PUCK volume for years to come, so it represents an apocalypse of sorts for the whole PUCK enterprise. PUCK’s staff has beat all odds in uniting cartoonists from numerous countries in its group projects that are done for the love of free and uncensored cartooning.
The Underground Comix movement was launched in the U.S. during the Sixties and spread its influence to England, the Netherlands, Spain, France, and Italy (among others), in the following decades. PUCK has been one of the most energetic recent manifestations of the underground impulse and Ivan and the rest of the PUCK gang deserve a round of applause for keeping the torch held high.
The Apocalypse is always now. Enjoy it while you can.
–Jay Kinney
Jay Kinney was a participant in the Underground Comix movement of the 1960s and 1970s. He edited and co-edited Young Lust, Occult Laff-Parade, Cover-up Lowdown, and Anarchy Comics, and contributed to many others.
He has since been a magazine publisher, book author, and antiquarian bookseller. Recently published is: Anarchy Comics: the Complete Collection (PM Press), a retrospective anthology of the hard-to-find four originals issues, plus never before published strips and sketchbook pages.
Caption for Mavrides-Kinney Armageddon panels…
The “End Times” erupt in “Armageddon Outtahere” by Paul Mavrides and Jay Kinney in Anarchy Comics #4. This story and all others from the comic series can be found in Anarchy Comics: the Complete Collection (PM Press).
Press release follows:
Filed under Comics, Comics Anthologies, Comics News, Comix, Crowdfunding, Zines
There’s a good chance you’ve at least heard of couchsurfing. It’s actually a pretty old concept used by college students, tourists, and all sorts of artists and bohemians. You stay on a friend’s couch temporarily, maybe a day or so. And then, depending on your plans, you move on to another couch. It’s that free-spirited act of sharing that has evolved over time. Consider the Occupy movement and all the questions it has helped raise. We have reason to question plenty, don’t we? We are forced to even question things that seem so fundamental. Can we continue as we’re going in our capitalist society? That’s something we’ll talk more about. For now, let’s consider couchsurfing and sharing in general. That’s what filmmaker Alexandra Liss does in her new documentary, ONE COUCH AT A TIME, which is being distributed by Devolver Digital Films.
ONE COUCH AT AT TIME is an eye-opening documentary that will take you places you may have not fully considered. I look forward to viewing this in full. It already speaks to me on many levels. I am a firm believer in sharing what you have, seeking out help when you need it, and not being bashful of making new connections with your fellow human beings. My graphic novel, ALICE IN NEW YORK, is about the wonders and magic that are possible when you put your trust in the right places and allow yourself to have an adventure. Interestingly enough, that book will be published thanks to crowdfunding. There’s really no limit to what you can do and this documentary helps to demonstrate that.
Press release follows:
Filed under Crowdfunding, Documentaries, Sharing Movement, Travel
This campaign is on fire! There’s been a flurry of activity and things just keep heating up!
Within only a small span of time, I have ten new backers to welcome. Everyone who has backed the project will, of course, get a special mention in the book.
And, earlier today, I got a ReTweet from author Hugh Howey! I cherish those ReTweets even if some people might think they don’t actually bring about interest in pledging to a Kickstarter project. You just never know.
Nope, it wasn’t a ReTweet that inspired my recent support. It was just me and my project. Which is how it should be, right? Absolutely! However, ReTweets are still nice. You gotta love ’em. A Kickstarter campaign is made up of many, many components so you’re best to go with the flow, make your own opportunities, and be very grateful. Always be grateful!
Perhaps a ReTweet from Hugh Howey will lead to more people considering my project. You can’t beat that, right? Well, sure, I keep it perspective, no doubt. As they say, those who have ridden the mighty Kickstarter wave, it’s all about the project. At the end of the day, people are interested in whatever the project is, whether film, book, what have you. Ah, but the campaign is just as much about connecting with your prospective backers and getting them to consider your project in the first place. It’s truly fascinating. If Hugh Howey chooses to lend a hand, yes, I’m very grateful.
That said, I welcome you to consider my project, a quirky collection of comics in the spirit of the original television series, “The Twilight Zone,” to put it in a nutshell description. Check it out HERE.
Filed under Alice in New York, Art, Books, Comics, Crowdfunding, Hugh Howey, Kickstarter, Marketing, Media, Publishing, Social Media, Twitter
There are crowdfunding gurus analyzing the phenomenal success of the Veronica Mars Kickstarter campaign and concluding that it’s okay if you’re a big fish going after the same dollars all the little fish are going after. I don’t see a problem with it. It’s all relative. Zach Braff is considered a big fish by you and me but maybe not so big compared to Hollywood wheeler dealers. In the end, people are going to back whatever they find compelling. If Zach Braff wants to jump in and be the next Veronic Mars success story then so be it. That’s exactly what he’s doing in his Kickstarter campaign to raise funds for his next movie, “Wish I Was Here.”
You should check it out just to marvel over the tote board. I swear, as you settle down in your seat, suddenly Zach just got a couple more backers. As you scratch your nose, three more backers. As your jaw goes a bit slack, five more backers.
What’s the lesson for those of us who are conducting our own Kickstarter campaigns? I think it’s something like: Embrace your pathetic little life and dream big! You too can be Veronic Mars if Zach Braff doesn’t take all the money first! No, wait, that’s not it. No, it’s something like: Veronic Mars for Everyone! There’s room for all creative spirits in the big Kickstarter melting pot! Yeah, something like that.
Well, I invited Zach Braff to do an interview with me. I know, it’s just a big obvious ploy to try to win over some of his fans to my own cause, right? Well, yes and no. Actually, I’ll side more with a really big No! I like Zach Braff and I was a fan of “Garden State.” So, it’s all good. Who isn’t a fan of Zach Braff? He’s a likable guy. I’m a likable guy too. So, it just makes sense to have two likable guys sit down and chat for a bit over a friendly interview. Noting wrong with that.
Yes, you guessed it, as my Kickstarter campaign gets closer to its last stage (it ends May 6), I’m pulling out all the stops: absurd humor and very blatant comparisons to Zach Braff. There’s no end to it. One big difference, however, is that his project is a movie and mine is a book of comics, A NIGHT AT THE SORRENTO AND OTHER STORIES. In fact, if you love Zach Braff and his sense of humor, well, there’s a really good chance you’ll enjoy my book!
Catch Zach Braff over at Kickstarter here. And catch my Kickstarter campaign over here.
Filed under Comics, Crowdfunding, Kickstarter, Zach Braff
