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Hola Minions!
Today my guest is the Dark One, La Cosa Nosferatu, Geo Brawn IV creator of the sexy horror comic The Untold chronicles!
Raul, the lovely and vivacious Hortencia, Geo and his wife Nancy!
We talk about Halloween, what it means to us, and we let you guys in on some horror movies that don’t suck!
Geo and I remember when vampires in movies sucked blood, not c**k!
Geo reveals that the trick to telling a good scary story is to get your audience nice and comfortable. You know? Get them at ease and then POW! Knock them dead with something horrific and cool! Keep the reader on his or her toes and then scare the hell out of them.
Geo Brawn IV nominates Rob Zombie into the Man vs. Art Pantheon of awesomeness!
In Geo’s Own Words:
Rob Zombie…a musician, film director, screenwriter and film producer.
He founded the heavy metal band White Zombie and has been nominated three times as a solo artist for the Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance.
Zombie has also established a successful career as a film director, creating the movies House of 1000 Corpses, The Devil’s Rejects, the 2007 remake of Halloween, its sequel, and even entered the world of animation with The Haunted World of El Superbeasto. His next film will be the upcoming Tyrannosaurus Rex.
He even created a series of horror comics books as well.
Which leads me to how it all began for him, as a graphic designer. I think what could be most interesting about a career with such widely spread mediums is that it all began with true artistry. His design style is very reminiscent of the early EC Comics, Tale from the Crypt universe, with a blend of monsters, gore, and sex that was displayed to shock and amaze.
What could be most admired is the fact that from being an artist for various adult magazines to Pee Wee’s Playhouse the one thing that has stood true is the one thing he personally told me that rings true, “If you keep at it you’ll make it happen, Never give up and it’ll eventually happen for you.”
And because of that attitude it has led him to success in any number of arenas in the Entertainment World.
Rob Zombie for the Man vs. Art Pantheon of Awesomeness by Geo brawn IV!
Here’s something to get you into the Halloween Spirit folks! The making of a Halloween animated classic!
Mad Monster Party, a super bad ass animated feature released by Rankin/Bass Productions in 1967. These are the same guys who created all the famous stop-motion Christmas specials and the Hobbit cartoon.
Get this minions! Harvey Kurtzman wrote the script, and Mad artist Jack Davis designed many of the characters.
All the famous Universal Monsters make appearances, from Frankenstein and Dracula, to the Creature from the Black Lagoon and the Invisible Man.
Here’s a bit of trivia minions! King Kong appears in the movie, but was only called “It” due to copyright issues. But we all know it’s Kong!
2010 Dia De Los Muertos
My wife and I had a table at the 2010 Dia De Los Muertos Festival in El Monte California. We dressed up as a Catrin and a Catrina and had a great time! Javier Hernandez was there as well!
Props to Graciela Rodriguez for putting together the moving pictures gallery! She put a gallery of paintings in the back of a big u haul truck and played curator for the whole thing. Lots of people went inside, saw my paintings and bought prints, cards, and tiles Hortencia made with the images!
Hortencia and I in catrin costumes!
mucho muertos!
Raul and El Muerto himself Javier Hernandez!
Graciela Rodriguez and her moving pictures gallery!
Raul Galleria de los muertos!
Dinner and drinks with Bill Plympton before and after the Idiots and Angels Premiere!
My wife and I were invited to join Bill Plympton and Ken Mora for dinner before the big premiere of Bill’s epic cartoon Idiots and Angels!
Check out Ken Mora’s short Magnum Farce! Which he is making into a feature film!
Here Bill Plympton is holding his copy of my DVD Intro to Animation!
Raul Aguirre Jr. , Bill Plympton, Ken Mora, Dom Polcino, and friend.
I met minion and animator Jon Webb at the event! Made a new friend!
Jim Lujan, Bill Plympton, Raul Aguirre Jr, and Ken Mora after the screening having some boozes at a nearby bar! Cheers!
Raul and the Lovely and vivacious Hortencia had a blast at the premiere of Bill Plympton's Idiots and Angels! That's Jose Cabrera in the background.
Happy Halloween Minions!
Ciao!
R.
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Hola Minions!
My guest today on the Man vs. Art Podcast is a legendary animator whose signature technique and dazzling visuals have been tickling your animation cockles for over 25 years.
“Your Face” which garnered a 1987 Oscar nomination for best animated short.
“How to Kiss,” “25 Ways to Quit Smoking”, and most recently “The Guard Dog” He has also produced a string of awesome feature length animated films, ” The Tune”, “I Married a Strange Person“, “Mutant Aliens”, and ” Hair High”.
But we’re here to talk about his most recent project:
THE MOVIE THE NEW YORK TIMES IS CALLING “RELENTLESS AND BRILLIANT”!
“Idiots and Angels” is a dark comedy about a man’s battle for his soul.
Of course I’m speaking of the King of Independent animation, the one and only Mr. Bill Plympton! Jim Lujan and I had a wonderful time talking to Bill and we learned alot about being an independent animator. Sit back enjoy the podcast and get your butt to a screening of Bill’s latest release Idiots and Angels.
Short synopsis:
“Idiots and Angels” is a dark comedy about a man’s battle for his soul.
“Idiots and Angels” will then open at the Laemmle Sunset 5 Theater in Los Angeles on October 29. Bill Plympton will make appearances at the opening night screenings. Laemmle’s Sunset 5 is located at 8000 Sunset Blvd. in West Hollywood. Ticket prices are $11 general admission, $8 for seniors and children. Box office 310-478-3836
Man vs. Art's Raul Aguirre Jr. meets Bill Plympton.
Bill Plympton with his copy of my new DVD Intro to Animation!
Special call to duty to all Man vs. Art Minions!
Please help us spread the word about the screenings of “Idiots and Angels” L.A. – tell your friends, co-workers and people you like. Hey, even tell people you don’t like! Bill is releasing the film independently and we appreciate your support of independent animation to help us succeed with this film and future projects.
In conjunction with the Los Angeles screening, Bill Plympton will make several appearances in the L.A. area, including an ASIFA event, “Tom Sito’s Evening with Bill Plympton” on Oct. 27 at Woodbury College, a signing at Amoeba Music in Hollywood on Oct. 28 at 8 pm, and an appearance at Dark Delicacies Bookstore in Burbank on October 31, 2-4 pm.
Bill Plympton’s film “Idiots and Angels” is coming to a city near you!
Keep up-to-date with our other theatrical engagements around the country on IdiotsAndAngels.com.
“I think he’s one of the few guys who does what I say people should do, which is your own films….Bill’s a great animator.” -Ralph Bakshi
“Bill is an extraordinary animator. He has an extraordinary mind….He seems to get right to the depth of the human condition.” -Terry Gilliam
“Bill Plympton is rad.” – Kevin Cross
Ciao!
R.
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Hola Minions!
In today’s podcast I share my experience last weekend as a first time exhibitor at the 2010 APE Alternative Press Expo in the city by the bay San Francisco California.
a portion of the APE exhibit hall.
L to R Graciela Rodriguez, Raul Aguirre Jr.,Javier Hernandez, Jose Cabrera, Bernyice Talley, Jim Lujan, Michael Aushenker
Raul Aguirre Jr. APE Greenhorn.
I’m kind of new to the scene, and have only been exhibiting for a little over a year, but with the help of my wife the lovely and vivacious Hortencia and the support of my friends Jim Lujan, Kevin Cross, Javier Hernandez, Grasiela Rodriguez, Jose Cabrera, Bernyce Talley, and Michael Aushenker, it was more fun than work!
man vs. art manning the table
The Lovely and Vivacious Hortencia riding shotgun with me at the Man vs. Art Table
Let me start off by saying the APE was an absolute blast! I got to meet dozens of fellow Indy Comic and cartoon creators and got to check out some of the most unique and kick ass creations I’ve ever seen. The entire vibe of the event was of pure creativity. It was electric man! You could feel the creative energy throughout the exhibit hall!
Booth Babes!
Here we have the Project Unit 83, Man vs. Art, Ghettomation, and Laserbeamsgo booth babes!
Grasiela Rodriguez, Hortencia Aguirre, Leanne Lujan, and Laura Cross
I made an interesting observation. I noticed that when Kevin, Jim, and I goofed off, this bevy of babes consisting of my wife Hortencia, Jim’s wife Leanne, Kevin’s wife Laura, and Grasiela worked the tables our sales shot up mysteriously. I’m thinking that perhaps using hotties might be good for marketing. Hmmmm.
Jim Lujan tied up with Wonder Woman's Golden Lariat which forces you to tell the truth. I don't remeber exactly what Jim said. I think it was about him sporting something or other. She drop kicked him.
I went from table to table, introduced myself, and gave my elevator pitch and back story to almost half of the exhibitors at the Expo. It was great! They were all very nice and more than happy to tell me about their work! I guess you could call it networking right? I prefer to call it making new friends and expanding the Man vs. Art universe. I was pleasantly surprised to find that quite a few of the creators had heard of me and Man vs. Art! It was great! So thanks to some legwork, coupled with some suave charm, and genuine curiosity, the pool of potential Man vs. Art guests got a whole lot bigger.
One of the characters I came across was Erich Origen creator of the comic book Unemployed man!
Erich Origen Creator of Unemployed Man!
Then I had the pleasure of talking to Erich’s little boy Truman the Pirate! He was going around helping his Dad promote the book! Check the podcast for the mini interview I did with this awesome little mini Minion! He does shtick folks!
Truman the youngest Man vs. Art Minion. Also the funniest.
I was like, “Hey, we’re all independent creators here, we all love making comics and cartoons right? Since nobody is helping us, we should help each other!” Every single person I spoke to grinned from ear to ear and totally agreed with me on that!
What can I say? Other than I do it for all you Minions out there. Because the Man vs. Art Minions deserve nothing but the best!
And Speaking of Minions…
Raul, Minion Chris Kawagiwa, Kevin Cross
Kevin Cross, Minion, and Raul
I even had a few Minions come up to the Man vs. Art table to say “Hi.” and purchase some swag! That was really cool! Despite it being my first time at the APE I wound up doing well. Much better than I thought actually. I managed to cover my costs! Hey, in this sad sack economy, I consider breaking even a triumph!
Personally for me, the highlight of the event was when I finally got to meet Ghettomation Podcast co-host, fellow artist, and cartoon addicionado Kevin Cross!
This marked the first time in the history of the universe that all three knuckleheads from the Ghettomation podcast were in the same room! For Jim Lujan, Kevin Cross, and myself, it was a gushed chonie moment!
For the first time in the same place the Ghettomation.net Podcast crew.
Somebody call security! How did these 3 get in here?
Kevin is originally from San Francisco and brought his entourage of Punker artists and buddies as well as his lovely wife Laura along to the Expo!
Raul with Kevin Cross and his Possee.
After hours we tore it up and partied at a kick ass dive bar called Dirty Thieves! Rest assured we all drank responsibly. No one spilled a drop.
Raul Aguirre Jr and Kevin Cross partying like punk rock stars.
What can I say? I love this gal!
Kevin and Laura Cross.
Man vs. Art Travel tip numero uno!
Here is a nickel’s worth of my two cents when it comes to partying when you travel. Party where the locals party! Screw the touristy places. If you really want to experience a new place for real-real and not for play-play, go to where the locals eat, drink, and are merry. The prices, quality, and fun factor are guaranteed to be aces! Trust me on this one kiddos.
Taco Snobbery
Everyone knows that yours truly is a taco snob, right? I’ve mentioned L.A’s King Taco so many times they should be paying me. Bar none, King Taco is the best Taco in L.A. Well thanks to Kevin, I got to sample the FINEST tacos in San Francisco at a little hole in the wall taco shack called “El Farolito” or Little Lighthouse. Caramba! This is genuine Mexican food! Not a single Fajita within miles to offend the eye. The authenticity and taste of the tacos at El Farolito gave King Taco a run for it’s money. Almost as good, but not quite. That being said, El Farolito’s garden of taco delight made it to my top 3 taco joints list which I am about to share with you for the first time.
But first some pictures of starving artists after eating.
- L to R Jim Lujan Graciela Rodriguez, Javier Hernandez, Kevin Cross, Raul Aguirre Jr. Michael Aushenker
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Friends, food, and fun!
Tacos make everyone smile!
Hortencia, Grasiela, Javier, and Raul walking the Streets of San Francisco
The Man vs. Art Pantheon of Taco Awesomeness.
3. El Farolito in San Francisco California.
2. King Taco in East Los Angeles. Numero Uno in the USA.
King Taco fiend Hillary Clinton
1. Tacos El Caminero in Mexico City. The tacos are served with melted Oaxaca cheese. Mexico’s version of Monterrey Jack! OMG is right! Deliciously decadent!
Best Tacos in the multiverse. Just sayin'.
Post APE Adventure.
Before heading back to L.A. the lovely and vivacious Hortencia and I decided to take in a little more of San Francisco’s splendor. We managed to tick off three more of those “places you have to see before you die” from our list.
First up, The Legendary Lombard Street. The crookedest, steepest and most beautiful street there is. I mean whoa! Look at all the flowers!
Then we got up close and personal with the one of the most popular Super Hero movie, cartoon, and comic book disaster locations in the world. I’m not talking about Sam Rami’s writing room. I’m talking about the majestic Golden Gate Bridge! We found the dead hooker dump site from the Dirty Harry movies! I truly believe that the Golden Gate Bridge is the perfect combination of engineering and aesthetics!
Sketching the statue of Liberty
A little sketch done in ink wash.
Our last stop was at the San Francisco City College where we got to see Diego Rivera’s Pan American Unity mural that he was commissioned to paint back in the early 1940′s. At that time The USA was fearful of Mexico, Central, and South America siding with the Fascist Nazis! That’s why Walt Disney made those goodwill trips around Latin America and produced Saludos Amigos and The Three Caballeros! North America really worked hard at sucking up to its’ neighbors to the south!
Diego Rivera masterpiece Pan American Unity
This Mural blew my mind!
So Diego came in and painted this Gorgeous and Epic mural showing the deeply cultured Latin American indigenous peoples joining forces with the USA’s Industrial Might. The stone and wood tradition from the South met in the middle with the modern steel and innovation of the North. Together the Americas could unite to stop fascism. Truly a remarkable work of art.
In fact one section of Diego’s mural in which he depicted his wife the Lovely and Vivacious Frida Kahlo inspired me to paint the centerpiece to the Dia De Los Muertos Altar that Hortencia and I created for the 2008 Hollywood Forever Cemetary Day of the Dead Celebration.
Phew! What a weekend!
What’s this? Another event? Oh yes!
Join us for the 2010 Dia De Los Muertos El Monte Celebration!
Animated Promo courtesy of Grasiela Rodriguez!
Saturday, October 30, 2010
1-5 PM
at El Monte Valley Mall
3754 Santa Anita Ave El Monte, CA, 91731
This is a free event at El Monte’s Valley Mall. There will be Entertainment by local folklorico dancers, Azteca musicians, and more!
Plus there will be Day of the Dead Arts & Crafts, Apparel, Ofrendas (altars) display, and Man vs. Art’s very own Raul Aguirre Jr. all in celebration of the Day of the Dead. This event is presented by the Nuvein Foundation in collaboration with the City of El Monte Cultural Commission, the Downtown El Monte Business Association, and the El Monte-Chamber of Commerce.
See you there!
For more info check out Nuvein!
So until next time dearest Minions! Keep those pencils sharp and keep those sketchbooks flipping!
ciao!
R.
Man vs. Art episode 32! Indy Comic Book Creator Grasiela Rodriguez Plus Man vs. Art goes to the APE!
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 56:52 — 52.1MB) | Embed
Grasiela Rodriguez Woman vs. Art!
Animator, Artist, Writer, Cartoonist, Graphic Designer, and Chalk Artist!
Grasiela Rodriguez enjoys Pop Art which is an art movement and style that had its origins in England in the 1950s and made its way to the United States during the 1960s. She likes focusing attention upon familiar images of the popular culture.
She is also a huge fan of Lowbrow art, an underground visual art movement that arose in the Los Angeles area in the late 1970s. It is also often known by the name Pop Surrealism. Lowbrow art often has a sense of humor – sometimes the humor is gleeful and other times it’s a sarcastic comment.
Grasiela Rodriguez began drawing at an early age and painting when she attended Mt. San Antonio College, where she received an Associates degree in Animation and Digital Media. After that, she attended the University of La Verne’s Computer Science and Engineering program where she received my Bachelor’s degree in E-commerce.
Doing what artists do best. Besides creating. Chugging!
Currently Grasiela works as a Graphic Artist in the county of Los Angeles and serves on the Board of Directors for the Nuvein Foundation in the San Gabriel Valley which is a 501 c 3 organization that raises funds for scholorships for high school students who reside in the San Gabriel area to take classes directly related to the arts. She currently resides in the San Gabriel Valley/Inland Empire area in California, where she paints, writes, animates, and draws and in her spare time enjoys rock and roll, watching movies on lazy Sunday afternoons, and hanging out with like-minded colleagues, animators and other artists.
Grasiela just self published her first comic book Lunatic Fringe available at Indyplanet.com.
Check out some samples of the book and prepare to gush your chonies!
In other news…..
We have a new entry into the Man vs. Art Pantheon of Awesomeness courtesy of Minion David Vallejo!
That’s right! David has nominated the one and only MR. ROGERS!
And here’s why!
Hello Raul, To start off, I just wanted to let you know that I really enjoy Man vs. Art, especially the podcasts. Such a wealth of information! One of the things I really like is your overall message to artists to just “man up” and get things done that need to be done. I don’t think that philosophy is emphasised enough in the universities and art schools.
Here is my nomination for the Pantheon of Awesomeness (along with a pic attachment).
At first glance my nomination for the Pantheon of Awesomeness may seem like an unlikely candidate. Soft-spoken and straight-laced, his contributions to education, children’s television programming, and creativity are often overlooked.
Here are some things that I admire about my candidate:
He confronted the U.S. Senate advocating the use of government funding for children’s education television rather than the Vietnam War. He was successful in earning $20 million for public television.
Having earned a degree in music, he wrote all the music for his television programs.
He paved the way for future children’s programs by exposing kids to the world around them to increase their awareness and understanding. Furthermore, his approach was very open, honest, and non-judgmental. He would discuss anything from Picasso to steam engines. Creativity, intrigue, and wonder (attributes that are very important to any artist) were common ways that he would share information to kids.
If today’s teachers (and definitely art teachers) were anything like my nominee, there would probably be more appreciation and passion for creativity, critical thinking, and the uniqueness of the individual.
I therefore nominate Fred McFeely Rogers, or simply, Mr. Rogers, for the Pantheon of Awesomeness. Thanks for your consideration.
David
Mr. Rogers for the Manvs. Art Pantheon of Awesomeness by David Vallejo
MAn vs. Art Goes APE Sh*T!
Yours truly, the Man vs. Art shall be attending the 2010 APE this weekend! That’s Right the alternative press expo in San Francisco Califas! I’ll be sharing a table with Man Vs. Art Sub Commandante Segundo Kevin Cross!
I’ll be selling my just released DVD Intro to Animation! So take a stroll into my store and click the pic to order your swag! If you can’t make it to the APE then show your support for the Man vs. Art podcast studio store here!
Click the pick to go to the store and order your gear!
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| ANIMATION INSTRUCTION DVD
Occasionally brooding, deeply passionate, In the second segment he lists the skills Learn to flip, roll, key out, breakdown, and 74 minute color DVD ©raul-vision |
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RAUL AGUIRRE JR. SKETCHBOOK A magazine sized book with 20 Get into the head of the artist creative process tHE RAUL AGUIRRE jR. sKETCHBOOK MAGAZINE SIZED |
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| CODENAME: SPARROW
Codename Sparrow is a the highly original International Playboy and Gentleman Thief Eddie Rather than rot in prison he accepts an offer Their mission: To save the world from itself! Codename: Sparrow TM and © Raul Aguirre Jr. Standard Comic |
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| CITIZEN SANCHEZ
The Latino Family guy…..Only funny. You’ll laugh your ass off and gush your Specifically it’s the Illustrated in bold expressive brush and Mini Comic
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| The official Man vs. Art Minion button pin! Series 2!  That’s right! Get your pin and show your support for the MAn Vs. Art Podcast! Hosted by the Alpha Artist himself! Raul Attention Artists!! It’s the premiere place on the web for It’s a different kind of art podcast. Here we like keeping it Raul! 1 1/2 inches wide! |
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