Zach Braff is such a likable person that we feel we know him. With his new film, “Wish I Was Here,” he plays off that familiarity and offers up a subversively genial story. Braff brings to this a masterful grasp of tone. He is not giving us a typical foray into mainstream comedy. It’s not even a typical foray into independent “cinema.” There’s more heart in this film than you might expect delivered in what one would hope is developing into Mr. Braff’s signature style. You have a common thread running from this new film and 2004’s “Garden State” and that is the universal need to love and be loved, to make sense of the world, and to rise to the occasion.
I want to thank Tom Spurgeon for his mention today at The Comics Reporter of my campaign to help sustain and grow what I do here at Comics Grinder.
It’s a pleasure to write about the comics medium and share with you my insights in various ways right here. I love writing, in general, and that’s never going to stop. And I love creating comics and that’s not going to stop. In fact, I have much more to share with you in the years to come, not less. I am hardly going away. I’m blossoming. But I’m still getting the word out there on what I do and I could use some better resources. Just like anyone building something special, it does require time and money. And so, I decided to put together a GoFundMe campaign. I hope you will take a moment to visit and consider making a donation, any bit will help this campaign along. You can find it right HERE.
And, say, later on today or the next day, you think to yourself, “Yeah, I think I will help out Henry Chamberlain continue to grow and expand all the things he does at Comics Grinder,” well, the campaign is easy to find. You can Google it. Or just remember the site’s name, GoFundMe.com, followed by my site’s name with a hyphen in between:
Crowdfunding is an essential tool these days. I could really use your help. Thank you! You can find all the details here.
Here is a minicomic I recently completed that features Smith Tower, a Seattle landmark celebrating its 100th anniversary this year. In this comic, Smith Tower is a character in its own right. We follow a number of characters who are searching for answers. Among the searchers, two main characters emerge. We can’t be sure how these two are connected but, as fate would have it, their paths become inextricably linked. Whether that is cause for celebration or concern, remains a mystery. For fun, let me wax on for a bit on this new work, minicomics, and the art process.
“The Chair” is a great example of the offbeat horror you can find at Alterna Comics. You can read my review of the graphic novel here. Both the book and the movie project have a rabid following. A lot of people want to see this movie become a reality but we’re not there yet. Check out the Kickstarter campagin in support of this movie project right here. The campaign ends on Saturday, June 28, 2014.
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.
If you are a comics creator, whether superhero or mini-comic or whatever, Comin will blow your mind. Create new work or take existing work and turn it into interactive comics. And, for comics readers, this is an exciting new place for comics.
In my interview with Jeremiah Greco, the founder of Comin, we get to talk at length about what comin is all about and what it means to you: very cool comics.
Jeremiah Greco describes how Comin has evolved:”It began as me building apps for indiviual stories. Then I developed it into an app to load any story into and that got people excited. It went on to become a whole platform, a framework for anyone to use. I wanted to make this a new standard for storytelling. That’s how Comin came about, an open standard that anyone can build software for. We have a prototype and another on the way. It’s just a matter of getting it to the finish line.”
Check out the Kickstarter campaign, now thru May 17, here.
We love to read comics. How about reading comin? Comin?
Comin means two things: an interactive comic and a brand new open media standard. The talented team at the Comin Project are experts on both comics and comin.
COMIN PROJECT offers a whole new way to experience comics. Now, hold on there, WHAT DOES THAT MEAN? Well, it means a lot. We’re talking about a revolutionary change in how comics are viewed, and created, by making them interactive in a whole new way. Think more of it as two main things: the COMIN READER and the COMIN WRITER. Both readers and creators have something to gain. Support the campaign at Kickstarter right here. Read this straight from the Comin Project team:
The project consists of two apps: the Comin Reader and Comin Writer. The Comin Reader is for readers to download and digest both traditional and interactive comics on their mobile devices or personal computers. The Comin Writer is for both hobbyists and professionals to write, layout, and publish interactive comics or convert and publish traditional comics in a way that is easily viewable within the Comin Reader.
“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.
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.
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.
