Experiencing Technical Difficulties, Please Stand By

Due to some technical difficulties - the scanner I normally use is out of commission - I'll have to wait a while until I can upload new images.

But don't fret. I have a bunch of new illos and comics. So stay tuned.

Peace,
Frank

Loopity-Loop

Last week I covered the annual New York City Horror Film Fest. Over four days I watched about 50 films - features and shorts. Needless to say, I don't want to watch anything on the big screen for a little while. Hehehe.

Covering the fest pushed me back a little with my illustration and comics works. But I'll be in the swing of things by the end of this week.

Here's my piece on last year's Horror Film Fest - Bring on the Blood.

Late,
Frank

How To Create a Bloomzilla

For those of you who are curious about my working methods, here's a walk-through of my recent illustration for The Indypendent.

Keep in mind that I don't have a "fixed" system. Every assignment's different - eg. full-color versus black and white, hand-painted versus digital, etc etc. But below is an example of my general process.

1. I read the text and got a sense of the messages conveyed in the story. (Sometimes the full text isn't ready so an outline or synopsis is all I have to work from.)

With those ideas in mind, I sketched this little dinger. Usually I'll do a series of sketches - four to five or more if I can't "get it right." But considering I only had a couple of days to do this illo, I went with the first idea. (I strongly suggest doing multiple sketches before moving onto the final.)

Most of my "thinking" is done at this point. I look for strong composition and draftsmanship.

2. I plunged into pencils. I went online and used five reference pictures of Bloomberg to make sure I got his likeness. (Note: use multiple references to avoid legal troubles.)

I changed the head's angle so the reader can see his face more.

Though I did most of my thinking at the sketch phase, I still modify things as I move along the process. Surprises can be cool but too many of them can make your final look like a hot mess.

3. Using a couple of brushes, acrylic ink and a micron pen, I inked the bugger.

Any modifications at this point are nominal. Eg, extra hatching in various spots.



4. I scanned it in, cleaned up any blemishes, erased a stray line at the bottom and bumped up the contrast.

With the illo clean, I digitally added grays and sent the final to the designers.




And here it is.

Again, I don't have a "regular system" for doing illustrations. (Recently I've incorporated tracing paper into my illustrations. More on that some other time.)

But I always use the a) think and sketch, b) pencil and modify, and c) ink and finish process for my illustrations.

Hope you had as much fun placating my ego as I did. :)

Rock on,
Frank


© Frank Reynoso, Nov. 2008, All Rights Reserved

New York City Horror FIlm Festival 2008

It's that time of year again: the annual New York City Horror Film Festival. Michael J. Hein and his crew amassed a slew of movies that are sure to hit a nerve.

The fiendish festivities start tonight at Don Hill's and continue till Sunday.

Here are two of the fest's features.

Driven by biological excess, a young man and woman search for sexual fulfillment, unaware of each other's existence. Unfortunately, they eventually meet, and the bonding of these two very unusual human beings ends in an explosive and ultimately over-the-top sexual experience, resulting in a truly god awful love story. Directed by Frank Henelotter

Program 7
Saturday, Nov. 15th
10:00pm






Resident Evil: Regeneration is a fully CGI feature directed by Makoto Kamiya. The story takes place seven years after the first zombie outbreak in the US. Counter-zombie fighters fight to contain the outbreak and their own survival in a locked airport.

Program 1
Thursday, Nov. 13th
9:00pm









Photos courtesy of NYC Horror Film Fest

Bloomzilla

Here's an illo I did for the upcoming issue of The Indypendent.

Needless to say I had fun drawing our wacky mayor, who's running for a third term. And obviously he did it "legally."






© Frank Reynoso, Nov. 2008, All Rights Reserved

Venom Inked

Came out a little lighter than expected...
















© Frank Reynoso, Nov. 2008, All Rights Reserved

Geoff Vasile's Track Rabbit #3

Snarky characters, clean illustrations, and totally DIY, Track Rabbit by Geof Vasile's a choice comic.
















Track Rabbit © Geof Vasile, Nov. 2008, All Rights Reserved

Venom pencils

Last night's election kept me from posting new stuff. At any rate, here's a pencil of Venom.


If all works well, I'll exhibit at the NYC Comic Con in February. I'm still on their waiting list.












© Frank Reynoso, Nov. 2008, All Rights Reserved

Sample Panels from "Phenomenal Jock"

I've penciled additional pages for my old, unpublished comic "The Phenomenal Jock."

I plan to debut the comic at next year's MoCCA Fest.

Here are some sample panels.





















































































© Frank Reynoso, Nov. 2008, All Rights Reserved

A Few Pages from "Buenas Noches"

A while back, James Spruill and I made a comic titled Buenas Noches. We debuted it at this year's MoCCA Fest.

Here are the first few pages.










































For more of my comics: comicspace.com/illjodienda/

© Frank Reynoso and James Spruill, Nov. 2008, All Rights Reserved

"Sock the Vote" Comic

Here's my one-page comic response to voting.

Forward far and wide. :)















© Frank Reynoso, Oct. 2008, All Rights Reserved

Obamania Cover of The Indypendent

Back in August, I illustrated this cover of The Indypendent.















© Frank Reynoso, Oct. 2008, All Rights Reserved

Werewolf Pin-Up Inked

Here's my fully inked werewolf pin-up - as promised in the subject line.

Digital prints will be available at my next comic con appearance.










© Frank Reynoso, Oct. 2008, All Rights Reserved

"Adding Fuel to the Fire" Cover of The Indypendent

Looking through The Indypendent's online archives, I came across this cover I illustrated in May 2007.














© Frank Reynoso, Oct. 2008, All Rights Reserved

Pencils of Werewolf Pin-Up

So I fixed up the moon and tightened up the ground in the lower left hand corner.

Digital prints of this pencil will be available at the next comic convention I attend as an exhibitor.














© Frank Reynoso, Oct. 2008, All Rights Reserved

Pencils of Superman Versus Darkseid Pin-Up

My first public display of superhero pin-up. (I'm not counting the numerous Batman drawings done with crayons back in the first grade.)

I'll have digital prints of this pencil at the next comic con I attend as an exhibitor.













© Frank Reynoso, Oct. 2008, All Rights Reserved
Superman, Darkseid characters © DC Comics, 2008

Mark Millar and Tony Harris at Midtown Comics

Some months ago, after waiting on line for over two hours, I met the talented comic creators behind the new series War Heroes, Mark Millar (Wanted) and Tony Harris (Ex Machina). Their stop in Midtown Comics, NYC, was part of their international tour promoting their new limited series, published by Image Comics.






Considering this a rare treat - Millar lives in Scotland and Harris in the South - I asked my girlfriend Irina to snap some picts. Here they are in chronological order.















Mark Millar (l) and Tony Harris (r) talking with fans and cracking jokes. And if you look closely, that's me in the far left, waiting on line and hoping that the pictures come out well.















Millar and Harris autograph a fan's recently taken-and-developed picture of themselves at this event. Very meta moment.















I asked Millar if it's cool to have a picture taken with him. As I was about to ask Harris if he'd mind getting in the picture, Millar smiled and Irina hit the button. Harris tried to get out of frame but apparently it wasn't far enough.















That's my nervous, goofy smile. (Yeah, I was a bit nervous meeting them, which is highly uncommon for me. I guess it's the fact that I have lots of respect and admiration for these guys and their work.)

I asked Mr. Harris to get into the picture - my initial intent was a picture of us three - and above is the result.


Thanks to Midtown Comics for hosting this special event and making sure everything ran smoothly. And thanks to Mr. Millar and Mr. Harris for staying well after their agreed upon time, being fun guys, and creating great comics.

© Frank Reynoso, Oct. 2008, All Rights Reserved
War Heroes cover courtesy of Image Comics, War Heroes © Mark Millar and Tony Harris, 2008

A few Pages from "The Phenomenal Jock"

A couple of years ago, I made the short comic "The Phenomenal Jock." Not happy with the story, I put it aside and never published it. Fast forward to SPX 2008, on the darkened bus ride from Washington DC to NYC. While everyone snored and farted in their sleep, I came up with a few extra pages of material that should really fatten the story out.

If all works well, this comic will debut at next year's MoCCA Arts and Comics Fest in NYC. (And New York Comic Con, if I get a table in artist's alley.)

I'll post the newly penciled pages as soon as they're done. For now, check out the first couple of pages of this minor epic.














































© Frank Reynoso, Oct. 2008, All Rights Reserved

Skull Tendrils Inked

With a couple of brushes, black acrylic ink and a micron pen to ink, I plunged into the Lovecraftian looking skull and came up with this.




















This is a color sample to get an idea of tones. I plan to color this digitally.





















I plan to make a bookmark or a mini print from this image. If all goes well, I'll get an artist alley table at next year's New York Comic Con where you can see the prints. (I'm on the waiting list.)

© Frank Reynoso, Oct. 2008, All Rights Reserved

Geoff Vasile's "A History of Increasing Humiliation"

With expressive art and playful narratives, Geoff Vasile's autobiographical mini-comic is a funny gem that too many people overlooked at this year's Small Press Expo (SPX). A History of Increasing Humiliation stands as an outstanding example of DIY comics.
















© Frank Reynoso, Oct. 2008, All Rights Reserved except image which is © Geoff Vasile, Oct. 2008, All Rights Reserved