Comics Podcasts

Tweeted on 2012-02-07

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 20:00 GMT

The place where they keep the remains from the 9/11 bombing is called Fresh Kills? #horribleirony #statenisland #itwasalreadycalledthat #
Thank you @davegraney http://t.co/NX4dGXPn #
Bleeping out the names from the explosive new Comic Book Funny segment called HASHTAG A.C.I.C! Slagging ahoy! #acic #burnauscomics #

That’s what dreams are made of

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 17:29 GMT

Lisa Dempster wrote a cool article about achieving your dreams. I just want to provide a short rebuttal.

1. Know what you want

I know what she means. I want lots of things. Often it's tempting to grab low-hanging fruit because it's close by (the very reason Sarah and I leave fruit in random places in our house. It goes mouldy).

My solution is to grab that low-hanging fruit and eat it. Usually it tastes great! I am actually talking about goals and tasks now, not fruit.

Fruit.

I fit the low-hanging banana tasks in around the chicken parma that is my goals. Occasionally I make a mistake and barf up a little bit of banana, then apologise.

2. Recognise distractions

Distractions are great. Being distracted by the fruit takes you away from your big stupid parma-goals, and may give you the perspective you need to realise that the parma is less delicious than you thought.

3. Be selfish

This I disagree with:

No one worth knowing will be upset with you for choosing to focus on doing things that will bring you satisfaction and happiness. (Not to mention, successful and motivated people are generally pretty damn awesome to be around, so being selfish about goal-achieving might actually make your relationships better!)

All your good friends and family will think you're an arsehole if all you do is work and talk about your parma-goal and how focused you are all the time.

If I laser-focused on my parma-goal (or on real parmas) and let nothing stop me, I'd never see my wife and she'd be justifiably angry at me. And I'd be super fat.

You do actually need to allow for time in your life when you are not being successful or motivated. I call this “ridin' the fruitscape”.

4. Be organised

No.

5. Trust the process

This is absolutely true, and otherwise known as “Don't be a bitter shit”.

In conclusion, I think I can safely say that Lisa eats far too much parma, and must really have some more fruit.

Tweeted on 2012-02-06

Sun, 05 Feb 2012 20:00 GMT

Great new http://t.co/7hP7yIXz shop promotion! Need to check with @BenHutchings if it's a good idea http://t.co/BMxVoc8r #
Reading "All The President's Men". John Belushi hasn't appeared yet. #

Tweeted on 2012-02-04

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 20:00 GMT

It's PHATSVILLE day at Squishface! Come by the studio, we'll be working on our submissions to Phatsville Comix, Brisbane's greatest export #

Tweeted on 2012-02-03

Thu, 02 Feb 2012 20:00 GMT

Smooth synthtasm for Friday arvo: Jeff Cosco & Don Mancuso / Call Of The Eagle http://t.co/jlMgxDb5 #synthtastic #guitarous #

Tweeted on 2012-02-02

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 20:00 GMT

What do you mean, "Hall & Oates And Icehouse"? I paid for Hall & Oates VS Icehouse! FIGHT #

Tweeted on 2012-02-01

Tue, 31 Jan 2012 20:00 GMT

OVERHEARD at last night's @AUcartoonists meeting: @barleyhush asking a collector if the beer mats I draw on are likely to be "archival" #
Found that "Real Belgian Pils" advertise their product with lovely drawable blank-backed beer mats. Picked up at the Retreat, Abbotsford! #
So: list of GOOD breweries supplying blank beer mats for drawing in Melb is: Real Belgian Pils, Mountain Goat, 2 Brothers #stayawayfromcub #
Everyone at Stanley Awards was invited to do a pic celebrating Ginger Meggs' 90th birthday. Here's mine #breakingbad http://t.co/2nWUPKfo #
Running late for a client meeting, Jack Davis did artwork by car headlights and sepia toned it with whiskey. http://t.co/HdlojF5i #
Recording an episode of http://t.co/cr2ICBiA soon. What do we need to talk about? #acic #fb #
Your full explanation as to why I'm suspending publication of The Bret Braddock Adventures for now: http://t.co/9AbUqJo6 #

Tweeted on 2012-01-30

Sun, 29 Jan 2012 20:00 GMT

FYI: The Bret Braddock Adventures is on hiatus so I have time to finish all strips and put the book together for @caravanofcomics! #
Photos from Squishface Australia Day launch: http://t.co/oq947Zv4 Some video: http://t.co/Exeynxs4 #

Tweeted on 2012-01-29

Sat, 28 Jan 2012 20:00 GMT

At Squishface, writing Bret Braddock comix and failing to consider the market I'm going for #squishface #shanahanahan #

Tweeted on 2012-01-28

Fri, 27 Jan 2012 20:00 GMT

A guitar part the Beatles left out of Here Comes The Sun: http://t.co/2nMd2hTM #
I need puff quotes praising Bret Braddock vol. 2. Tweet them here. Best will go on back of book, like w/vol. 1. http://t.co/xqoO5Z7c #

The Final Countdown!

Fri, 27 Jan 2012 02:59 GMT

Come along to BATMAN PARK in Northcote tomorrow at 3pm to see us record the final ever ComicSpot radio program for 3CR.

I am moving to Tassie and am super excited that we are able to say goodbye to 3CR and Melbourne in this fashion. Can't think of a better way to go out.

Prep for the Squishface opening: http://t.co/lnZd5nUg #

Tweeted on 2012-01-26

Wed, 25 Jan 2012 20:00 GMT

Coming to the Squishface launch today? 4pm, 309 Victoria St, Brunswick. Early arrivers get cheese, beer and Marta's home baked cookies. #
Want to know about Parasitic Rebranding? Coke does it. Vegemite does it. You can too! I explain, with pictures: http://t.co/AExt9kXb #

We want your 2011 Favourites? And some news...

Sat, 24 Dec 2011 18:20 GMT

It's that time of year. Feel free to answer some or all of the following queries.

TheComicSpot facebook page. Go on... i'll be here when you get back.

309 Victoria St, Brunswick.

If you can't get along yourself you can see this video I took...

News & Stuff!!

1 - The latest episode of TheComicSpot featuring Ive Sorocuk talking comics and Ben Hutchings talking Squishface downloadable here.

2 - Other archived episodes from earlier this year have been added to the TheComicSpot arcvhives. Catch up here.

3 -Paul Gravett has a long chat with Shaun Tan. A pleasure to read both gentlemen. I wish i was as erudite and educated as PG.

4 - Into Mario cart? Bragging? Making comics? Putting down others who are crap at thumb driving pretend cars? There's soon to be a comic for you.

5 - The Beginnings Anthology raised all the money they need to print the book. Well done. Look forward to getting my copy.

6 - Have you read Academaesthetics? Shane W Smith's comic is a really engaging investigation of how comics and essays can work together. I first read it a few years ago but it's been on my mind lately. This has lingered.

7 - I just discovered Red Tails. I like what I see and hope to find out more.

8 - Filka has posted some beautiful sketches lately.

9 - Jen Breach and Arran McKenna present Emelia: Year One. Bookmark it.

That's no way to treat a lady.

10 - Toby's drawings make me want to have baby.

That;s it for now.

Also some big news to announce soon. Will do in the next week or so.

News and Stuff - 28.11.11

Mon, 28 Nov 2011 05:27 GMT

1 and 2 and a 1 2 3 4

Tim Molloy new collection. Out in Feb 2012.

1. It Shines and Shakes and Laughs! So will I when i get my hands on it.

2. Introducing Lani Fernance. A nice start on her blog and good to see more women posting comics online.

3. TRAILS is happening on December 2. Go along and draw.

4. At Lines on Paper Matt Emery clues us all in on Kiwi legend Russell Clark.

5. Mirranda Burton prints a 'self portrait with a beetle'. The residency at Dunmoochin is going well. Check out Mirranda and Dunmoochin in this article with gorgeous images.

Queenie Chan previews some new work.

6. Queenie Chan must be one of the best selling comic artists in Australia. Her collaborations with Dean Koontz fly off shelves. She shares some art from another new non Koontz work at her site. She also crochets!

7. Go and support the Beginnings Anthology at indiegogo by preordering a comic. This looks like a great initiative from the regulars from the ACT comics meet. Good luck getting the backing guys. More tidbits about Beginnings at their blog.

Brunswick will never be the same. Australia's First Open Comic Artists Studio.

8. Ben Hutchings has put his money where his mouth is and started Squishface Comic Studio. It has a shopfront too i hear. If you want an affordable studio space to draw comics in then contact Ben and find out all you need to know. Huge congrats to Ben for biting the bullet. We'll talk to him on an upcoming episode of the program and get the goss. This is a big deal.

9. Uncle Neale lets us all know about Aftershock. As the Big Issue always used to say, 'not just a good deed but a good read'.

10. David Blumenstein on the art or indeed the artlessness of shilling through social media.

11. Mumblier is having guest strips. Very good lineup so far with more to come. YAY!

12. Sam Wallmans 'Being Born os Going Blind' will be launched on Satuday 3rd Dec but if you can't make it then BUY ONE NOW. You'll hate yourself forever if you miss out on one.

13. The final 2011 Melbourne Comics Meetup is happening this Saturday 3rd Dec too. Say Fare thee well to Greg Gates before he jets off to Adelaide. You can hear TheComicSpot in conversation with Greg here too.

That's all folks.

News and Stuff.

Mon, 21 Nov 2011 02:10 GMT

1.Anton Emdin won the GOLD STANLEY!!! Well done and well deserved.

2. Other people won Stanley Awards too.

3. Bobby N faithfully records the Melbourne comic meets. Well done Bobby. The final meet for the year is Saturday November 26. Get along.

4. Food Funnies from Ben Juers. If I did eat duck I wouldn't eat Dapper.

5. Matthew Dunn has another book of his art out. Really makes me want to look at Lonely Monsters again.

6. Maude Farrugia on the way freedom is used to reduce freedom. Nicely put.

7. I've starting posting archived episodes to TheComicSpot's podomatic site again. Subscribe to the archives on iTunes for an episode every few days for the next few weeks.

8. Paul Gravett on David B. Ahhhhh.... sigh. Epileptic is a mastepeice.

Cheerio.

Weekly linkage.

Mon, 14 Nov 2011 01:58 GMT

In an effort to keep this blog regular let's start a weekly linkage list that i've come across in my virtual travels.

If you have anything of interest then leave a comment or send it to thecomicspot(at)hotmail.com.

1. NZ expat Toby Morris (whose Great Gran comic I loved) has a collection of his Amsterdam drawings back in print. Latest pics of life with a new baby here and products for sale here.

2. Sam Wallman has a new book on the way. Sign me up already.

3. FEC Comics is having a bash on 25th November. Go along to by a copy of Kranburn. And listen to the next show of TheComicSpot or 3CR on the 24th of Nov for an interview with the managing editior of FEC.

4. Bernard Caleo (Melbourne comics MC and ComicSpot co-host) is blogging of the events of the writers festival. His blog is always worth a look.

Bower Bird by Ben Juers. Visit his blog.

5. Thanks to Pat Grant I've just discovered Ben Juers. We will talk to him on the show before the year is out. Looking forward to it and his POV on CCS in particular. Thanks Pat.

And that's your lot.

Cheerio.

Course almost wrapped: normal service to resume shortly.

Sat, 05 Nov 2011 17:41 GMT

2011 has been a busy year at TheComicSpot secret headquarters. Full time study, rural placements, work and the usual dramas of life have meant I haven't blogged as much as i would have liked.

But we have kept up the regular schedule of fortnightly programs on 3CR. You can listen to the latest here. There will be more programs added to the archive here in the next few weeks for those who missed out on earlier programs in the year.

It's been more than the usual team effort to keep things on schedule this year. In particular i would like to thank Jo Waite for stepping up this year, doing the radio production course at 3CR and stepping in to tweak the dials and push the buttons on air when I haven't been able to be in the studio. Great big HUZZAH! to Jo.

Ben Hutchings about his gorgeous new comic Walking to Japan and to Matt Taylor about Lars the Last Viking. I recommend both of these fine works to you.

This gogeous 20 page newsprint limited edition comics is a wonder to behold. You need to go now to Milk Shadow Books and order one there or go along and get one from All Star Comics if your are in Melbourne.

Go to hutcho.net to find more of Ben's work.

And whilst you are perusing online you should go along and check out the first chapter of Lars the Last Viking here and then buy a copt direct from Matt Taylor right here. I think it'll be available at All Star Comics this week too.

Adventure bound! Lars the Last Viking.

Cheerio.

Melbourne Writers Festival likes comics.

Thu, 18 Aug 2011 01:11 GMT

Check out the comics related gigs you can go along to at the Melbourne Writers Festival!!

This from the MWF webby...

"The art of visual storytelling takes centre stage at this year's festival, as we feature some of the world's best illustrators and graphic novelists. Highlights include a graphic-novel newspaper distributed across Melbourne; Shaun Tan’s The Arrival in concert at the Melbourne Recital Centre; illustrators in residence at Fed Square’s Atrium; events on the politics and art of the drawn story; and a concert that combines live music and drawing."

A few weeks ago we spoke to Oslo about the Drawn from Life comic supported by the festival and will distributed for FREE during the festival. It looks great.

Look for this to handed out at train stations and at MWF gigs during the festival.

A hearty congrats to MWF and Metro and Copyright Agency Limited for supporting this, and congrats to Oslo Davis for shepherding all involved.

One of the highlights of the festival for me will the Martin Martini concert featuring live drawing to music and featuring TheComicSpot's own Jo Waite. After seeing Mr Martini and Bernard at Readings for the final What It Is where they mixed music and comics I know it'll be grand.

Get along.

Some Inherent Vice media links. (updatedx2)

Thu, 11 Aug 2011 22:14 GMT

The Age has quite a few interesting bits on their website featuring articles, pix and videos of the Inherent Vice crew.

Read this article on the 24 hr draw.

View this photo set.

Watch this Sarah Howell video, and this Ben Hutchings one, and this Rebecca Clements one, and this Mandy Ord one, and this Michael Fikaris one, and the Pat Grant one, there should be some more up soon featuring Michael Hawkins and Simon Hansellman. But not sure if they've made these?

Don't forget their Tumblr too.

Also check out the Lines on Paper blog visit.

Raging Yoghurt paid a visit too.

As did Bobby N with plenty of pix..
I'll be heading down there on Sunday morning to take a few pics and wave them goodbye. It's been a great residency and I hope to speak to the NGV on the show in a couple of weeks and get their 'official' view of how they think it went too.

Cheers.

Inherent Vice is ON.

Thu, 28 Jul 2011 19:14 GMT

You've got until mid August to get on down to NGV Studio at Federation Square to check out the Inherent Vice residency.

Do some research first tho...

The artists are...

Pat Grant
Mandy Ord
Rebecca Clements
Ben Hutchings
Micheal Hawkins
Michael Fikaris
Sarah Howell
Simon Hanselman (could only find the facebook)

You can hear TheComicSpot episode where Jo Waite, Bernard Caleo and I speak to the curator Beckett Rozentals here.

Check out the INVICE tumblr.
Find out more at the NGV site.

Participate in the 24 hour comic creation on 4-5th August.

*** lifted from NGV ***
24-hour Drawing Marathon
In 1990, American cartoonist Scott McCloud dared his friend Steve Bissette to draw a 24-page comic book in a single day. Since then, 24-hour comics have become a rite of passage for cartoonists worldwide, with thousands of caffeine-fuelled comic nerds taking up the challenge every year.

This August, the NGV invites cartoonists, comic art ninjas and compulsive drawing fanatics into NGV Studio for a 24-hour drawing marathon as part of the Inherent Vice residency. The key principle of the marathon is to encourage quick thinking and loose drawing by forcing artists to work to a serious deadline.

From 10am on 4 August to 10am on 5 August, the eight Inherent Vice cartoonists will work on a collaborative anthology, with guests encouraged to choose their own projects and do whatever it takes to finish them by morning. Artists under 18 years of age will be welcome between 10am and 6pm for a shorter marathon.

*** end cutting and pasting ***

SO...

Go go go go, Gallop run shuffle, Jump giggle cycle your way there. (points for picking the reference in that one)

Jase Harper has and was chuffed to see his board.

Cheers.
J

Some Kiwi comics bits bro!

Mon, 18 Jul 2011 00:23 GMT

The Kiwis continue to pique my interest on the comics front.

First there was Ant Sang with "Shaolin Burning". Then there is Chris Slane and Matt Elliot's "A Nice Day For A War". Two graphic novels well worth your time.

Arriving in my letterbox this last week were two new comics Kiwi related.

Posted from Germany this mainly NZ based anthology is a cracking little number.

First up, Issue 6 of the Radio As Paper anthology. We've spoken to editor Jerome on TheComicSpot previously about how this anthology came together and how it still came to published whilst Jerome is in Berlin. This is a great anthology featuring new comics from a raft of creators. Head to the website and order your own copy.

Also winging it's way across the globe from the Netherlands was NZ expat Toby Morris' wonderful 'Great Gran' comic in tabloid newspaper format.

Pic lifted from Toby's www. Go and order it.

This comic is gorgeous to behold. Vibrant colours and the extra large format bring this moving and charming ode to Morris' Great Gran to life. It really makes me want to read more comics printed in this large format. The art breathes and what might have otherwise been a small tale of family transforms into a wider commentary on the way we engage with our elders. I found this comic very touching.

But that's not all...

At the Auckland Writers and Readers Fest recently there was a panel on Graphic Novels, Comics and Cartoons that you can watch below.

AWRF2011: Graphic Novels, Comics and Cartoons from Auckland Writers & Readers Fest on Vimeo.

To keep up with what's happening over the Tasman you should make sure you keep up with the From Earth's End blog.

Cheers.

TED Fest

Tue, 12 Jul 2011 23:15 GMT

Recently i got back into the swing of looking at TED videos.

There are quite a few of them related to teaching and education. It is in fact these themes dominating my thoughts this year as i turn to be a teacher. But there were a few that i saw as having relevance to comics too.

This one in particular. It is essentially another type of e-book but one where I can see someone like TheComicSpot's own Jo Waite using to brilliant effect as she journeys around and creates her imagined land of Mavishem. The possibilities are thrilling.

Mike Matas on TED.

As to the other videos I found interesting.

Check out...
- Salman Khan on Khan University. Using video so children can take lessons at their own pace. I've started an account with them and are working through a bunch of maths lesson at the moment.
http://www.ted.com/talks/salman_khan_let_s_use_video_to_reinvent_education.html

- Hans Rosling on the power of the washing machine. I saw this first hand when i was living in Papua New Guinea years ago. There were some women from a village visiting the university i was working at and they were totally enthralled by the washing machine and maybe by the fact that I was hanging the washing on the line too.
http://www.ted.com/talks/hans_rosling_and_the_magic_washing_machine.html

- AnnMarie Thomas using play dough to teach electronics and pasic science.
http://www.ted.com/talks/annmarie_thomas_squishy_circuits.html

- David Christian on the history of the universe, complexity, and everything. I love these sorts of huge histories.
http://www.ted.com/talks/david_christian_big_history.html

- The hidden power of smiling.

- How to better tie your shoes.

- Create a new habit.

- Create world peace.

TED Talks are fun!