Post by grahamthomson on Jun 17, 2009 8:54:49 GMT
Courtesy of Titan Magazines;
[Interviewer unknown.]
When did you start drawing comics?
I’ve always drawn comics in my spare since I was a little boy. I can remember my Mum buying me the very first issue of TRANSFORMERS, back in the early 80’s, when I must have been about 5 or 6 and I would spend hours copying the art from that!
How did you get into drawing comics for a job?
I was working as a concept artist and designer in the computer games industry, but I had always really wanted to get into comics. One day I just decided that it was now or never and so I spent a summer preparing a portfolio that got me my first work for a comic here in the UK.
What comic artists do you most admire and why?
My favourite comic artist is a Japanese artist called Katsuhiro Otomo who drew the original Akira manga in the 80’s. His work is just stunning, particularly a book he did before Akira called Domu. My favourite contemporary artists are Frank Quietly, Travis Charest and John Cassaday. Frank Quietly in particular is amazing. His sense of form and composition are exemplary.
Who do you think you’ve been most influenced by?
Probably the artists I’ve just mentioned above, but as an avid comic fan, I’m constantly coming across new (or old) artists who influence my work. In the early days, Geoff Senior (who used to draw TRANSFORMERS in the 80’s) was my favourite artist and he had a massive influence on making me want to get into comics.
Is there a TRANSFORMERS character that you particularly like drawing and why?
Well, apart from OPTIMUS, who is always great to draw because he’s so iconic, I do really enjoy drawing the Twins, Skids and Mudflap, just because Simon has written them so well and they get up to so much cool stuff. But aside from that, I do love how cool and iconic G1 MEGATRON looks! I’ve always loved his massive arm cannon – it just looks so cool!
What have you worked on before TRANSFORMERS Comic?
I’m a relative newcomer to comics, but prior to TRANSFORMERS, I’d worked on several stories for 2000AD. Prior to that, I worked in the computer games industry and was the Senior Designer on the racing game GRID.
Apart from working on TRANSFORMERS Comic, obviously, what would be your dream comic job?
That’s a tough one! Probably to have a go at drawing Spiderman or Batman as along with TRANSFORMERS, they are the two comics that I used to read the most when I was young.
What was your first encounter with TRANSFORMERS?
I can remember being about 5 years old and seeing the toys for the very first time on Blue Peter. They had only just come over from Japan at that point, and you couldn’t get them in the shops yet. At the time, everyone was into He-Man or ACTION MAN, so TRANSFORMERS were this whole new thing and they looked totally awesome! Then I got the first issue of the TRANSFORMERS comic and from then on I was hooked!
If you were a TRANSFORMER, what would you be and why?
When I was young, my favourite TRANSFORMERS character was the original JAZZ. I thought he had the coolest car mode (a GT Racing Porsche) so I’d probably have to say him.
What are you most looking forward to in the new movie?
What do you think the next 25 years have in store for TRANSFORMERS?
Hopefully a continuation of the Movie series, which would be totally awesome! I think as well that once the cost of CGI effects comes down in price, fans could one day get a weekly live action TRANSFORMERS TV series, which would be amazing! I’ve just had a little boy too, so I’m looking forward to introducing him to the wonderful world of TRANSFORMERS!!
[Interviewer unknown.]
When did you start drawing comics?
I’ve always drawn comics in my spare since I was a little boy. I can remember my Mum buying me the very first issue of TRANSFORMERS, back in the early 80’s, when I must have been about 5 or 6 and I would spend hours copying the art from that!
How did you get into drawing comics for a job?
I was working as a concept artist and designer in the computer games industry, but I had always really wanted to get into comics. One day I just decided that it was now or never and so I spent a summer preparing a portfolio that got me my first work for a comic here in the UK.
What comic artists do you most admire and why?
My favourite comic artist is a Japanese artist called Katsuhiro Otomo who drew the original Akira manga in the 80’s. His work is just stunning, particularly a book he did before Akira called Domu. My favourite contemporary artists are Frank Quietly, Travis Charest and John Cassaday. Frank Quietly in particular is amazing. His sense of form and composition are exemplary.
Who do you think you’ve been most influenced by?
Probably the artists I’ve just mentioned above, but as an avid comic fan, I’m constantly coming across new (or old) artists who influence my work. In the early days, Geoff Senior (who used to draw TRANSFORMERS in the 80’s) was my favourite artist and he had a massive influence on making me want to get into comics.
Is there a TRANSFORMERS character that you particularly like drawing and why?
Well, apart from OPTIMUS, who is always great to draw because he’s so iconic, I do really enjoy drawing the Twins, Skids and Mudflap, just because Simon has written them so well and they get up to so much cool stuff. But aside from that, I do love how cool and iconic G1 MEGATRON looks! I’ve always loved his massive arm cannon – it just looks so cool!
What have you worked on before TRANSFORMERS Comic?
I’m a relative newcomer to comics, but prior to TRANSFORMERS, I’d worked on several stories for 2000AD. Prior to that, I worked in the computer games industry and was the Senior Designer on the racing game GRID.
Apart from working on TRANSFORMERS Comic, obviously, what would be your dream comic job?
That’s a tough one! Probably to have a go at drawing Spiderman or Batman as along with TRANSFORMERS, they are the two comics that I used to read the most when I was young.
What was your first encounter with TRANSFORMERS?
I can remember being about 5 years old and seeing the toys for the very first time on Blue Peter. They had only just come over from Japan at that point, and you couldn’t get them in the shops yet. At the time, everyone was into He-Man or ACTION MAN, so TRANSFORMERS were this whole new thing and they looked totally awesome! Then I got the first issue of the TRANSFORMERS comic and from then on I was hooked!
If you were a TRANSFORMER, what would you be and why?
When I was young, my favourite TRANSFORMERS character was the original JAZZ. I thought he had the coolest car mode (a GT Racing Porsche) so I’d probably have to say him.
What are you most looking forward to in the new movie?
Without question – DEVESTATOR!!!!!!!!!
What do you think the next 25 years have in store for TRANSFORMERS?
Hopefully a continuation of the Movie series, which would be totally awesome! I think as well that once the cost of CGI effects comes down in price, fans could one day get a weekly live action TRANSFORMERS TV series, which would be amazing! I’ve just had a little boy too, so I’m looking forward to introducing him to the wonderful world of TRANSFORMERS!!
