The Sunday Spotlight: The ‘I Believe In The Catastrophe’ Edition
by Richard Bruton
It’s Sunday, fancy a bit of Spotlighting? Yep, time for a quick wander through a few news and events you might be interested in…
Okay, okay, we missed a week last week. Bad me. Busy. Suddenly it’s Sunday night and there’s a nagging feeling in the back of my head. Oops. So, an extra big Sunday spotlight this week to make up for it…
THE JACK KIRBY DOCUMENTARY – KIRBYVISION!…
One of the titans of American comics, Jack Kirby‘s influence and creativity are drawn into the creative DNA of so many of the superheroes that have become household names over the decades. Yet he’s still not as well-known as he rightly should be.
Hopefully, the recently announced Kirbyvision documentary will do a little towards making that happen. Directed by Ricki Stern, produced by Dan Braun and Josh Braun, the filmmakers will be working with Kirby’s estate as well as the Jack Kirby Museum and Research Centre.
‘If there were a Mount Rushmore of 20th century pop culture luminaries, Jack Kirby should be the first one to be carved into the mountain. Kirbyvision will let audiences experience the full scope of Jack’s limitless imagination, creativity, and heart.’ – Kirbyvision producer, Josh Braun
‘SOMETHING MAGICAL IS HAPPENING’ — THE OBSERVER ON CHILDREN’S COMICS…
The Observer have a thing by Vanessa Thorpe:
All of which is absolutely true. It’s something we’ve been seeing and talking about for years now, the whole Dav Pilkey, Raina Telgeimeier, Jamie Smart axis of kids books, along with whole rafts of Manga volumes that kids are absolutely devouring.
Unfortunately, despite the Observer article starting off with good words:
‘The best route to learning to love words in print could well be pictures. This, at least, is the hope of the publishing industry this spring, as it welcomes news that sales of children’s comics and graphic novels have reached an all-time peak of almost £20m in Britain’ — we soon hop into the norm, as things carry on. ‘Superhero books have been a reliably big feature, probably boosted by all the screen superhero movies. A lot of manga series are doing very well again, and this may also be linked to screen versions. What we really need now is some deep-dive research into the impact of graphic and comic fiction as a gateway for young people into reading. We certainly suspect it’s true.’
Well, that’s from Philip Stone, media analyst at NielsenIQ BookData. Well, for starters the article, not to mention the sales data shows us that where superheroes really aren’t the comics speaking to kids. Then there’s the whole fact that, although more studies is always good, don’t postulate that we need studies to see that ‘graphic and comic fiction’ (for God’s sake, just say comics) — because we’ve already got plenty (here, here, here, and here for starters).
Still, always good to see comics being talked about in big, old media.
GO SUBSCRIBE AND READ – STEVEN COOK’S SUBSTACK & A GREAT PIECE ON STERANKO…
Steven Cook‘s best known for working as an art director/designer for 2000 AD, not to mention working at Marvel Comics, Deadline, DC/Vertigo, and designing album sleeves for the likes of Asian Dub Foundation and William Orbit.
He also writes very well about comics and much more over on his Substack – you should subscribe. Here’s a particularly great piece on Jim Steranko, his FOOM (Friends of Old Marvel) covers, and then going deep on a particular panel from Captain America #111 (1969) with art by Jim Steranko and inks by Joe Sinnott. You can see the classic image below. But it’s one where, as Steven and Tony Robertson (of the Drawings of Steranko website) tell us, the original US edition failed to have the ever-so-special blue FX left off, only for Marvel UK to get it right. Robertson even got this response from Steranko…
‘The psychotropic Dream Sequence in CAP 111 showcased several surreal special FX, including the optical shockwave behind Bucky on the second page. The color effect was achieved by means of an overlay on which the effect appeared. (The clouds on the previous page, for example, were suggested on my color guides.) Marvel press prep dropped the ball and printed the page without it; Marvel UK got it correct. Since the UK operation was only given film, rather than originals, with which to work, how they achieved the effect is a mystery–one of many regarding my material.’
Like I say, lots like this to read. Go subscribe.
ANDERS NILSEN’S TONGUES TOUR CHICAGO STOP TRANSFORMS INTO COMICS SUPERGROUP SHOW XLAOOC- 25 MARCH…
Anders Nilsen is on tour for his new book, Tongues, published by Pantheon on 11 March. For the Chicago stop, it’s become a bit of a supergroup of comics makers, Nilsen, Charles Burns, Chris Ware, Kevin Huizenga and more, all benefiting Doctors Without Borders and the ACLU.
XLAOOC (Extra large and out of context) will be an exhibition of ‘giant-sized prints of comics originals.’ Nilsen will be reading a little from Tongues, then be in conversation with Jason Hammel.
Tongues is Nilsen’s GN retelling the Greek myth of Prometheus, described as, ‘Set in a version of modern Central Asia, Tongues is a retelling of the Greek myth of Prometheus. It follows the captive god’s friendship with the eagle who carries out his daily sentence of torture and chronicles his pursuit of revenge on the god that has imprisoned him.’
UNOFFICIAL ARCHIVE OF ALAN MOORE INTERVIEWS THROUGH THE YEARS – alanmoore.org…
Want to read an incredible selection of interviews across the years with Alan Moore? I know I do. Well, the site alanmoore.org has you covered. Interviews from a huge variety of outlets, from the ’80s to the 2020s.
L’ALLIANCE, NEW YORK PUTS ON ITS FIRST ANNUAL COMIC ARTS FEST – 28-30 MARCH…
The French Institute Alliance Francaise in New York announced its first annual Comic Arts Fest taking place from 28-30 March. It opens with a screening and Q&A of Art Spiegelman: Disaster is My Muse The weekend includes workshops, screenings, conversations, an artists alley and bookstore.
Guests include Aleksi Briclot, Loui and Gigi Murakami, Delaf, Loui, Paul and Gaëtan Brizzi, Adrian Tomine, and Francois Mouley.
Amongst the highlights will be a screening of Paris, 13th District, the film based on Adrian Tomine’s stories, followed by a talk with Tomine. Francois Mouley will be talking about going ‘From Indie Comics to The New Yorker’, whilst Québécois artist Delaf will be interviewed about taking up the mantle of the genius André Franquin to bring new life and new strips for Gaston Lagaffe.
More info here.
YET MORE GREAT IRISH COMICS FESTIVAL NEWS – DUBLIN COMICS ARTS FESTIVAL – 6 APRIL…
Join Dublin Comics Arts Festival (DCAF) at a new venue this year — The Complex — Sunday, April 6th.
Poster created by Lisa McHugo (@lisamchugo.bsky.social). Their application form is now live at dublincomicarts.ie/links.
CHRIS WESTON SIGNING PARANOID GARDENS AT GOSH! LONDON – FRIDAY 25 APRIL…
Another signing now, for the Gosh! exclusive bookplate edition of Paranoid Gardens, the latest comics work from Gerard Way, Shaun Simon, Chris Weston and Dave Stewart. Artist Chris Weston will be at Gosh! on Friday 25th April 2025, from 6-7pm.
Here’s a little about the book collecting issues 1-6 of the series – an excellent book indeed…
‘An all-new surreal comic book experience that’s ER meets Dr. Who… on acid.
‘Loo is a nurse at the most bizarre care-center around. The staff are not entirely human, and the cases downright unearthly. Aliens, ghosts, superheroes, and more creatures plague its hallways as both doctors and patients and the hospital itself seems to be somewhat self-aware. Loo believes that despite a recent failure at her job she’s been given some sort of higher calling in this mysterious place, and decides to rise to the challenge. Along the way she must fight her way through corrupt staff members, powerful theme park cults, and her own personal demons and trauma to meet this challenge and discover what secrets the gardens hold.’
Details here. And you can see the bookplate available below…
JUDGE DREDD: JUDGEMENT CALL FAN-MADE FILM…
Finally for this week, I think I saw this when it was released back in 2023, but it’s been doing the rounds again on the socials and I thought it was about time to share with you… Peter Pedrero‘s trailer for his short Dredd film…
