The Bizarre Worlds Of A Creator's Creator: Doug Tennapel

DOUG TENNAPEL is, in PLANET GRIFFIN's humble opinion, a Creator's creator... For anyone who seeks to produce their own body of work, this is certainly a guy to talk to!

I've been a fan of the bizarre worlds of Doug since the days of EARTHWORM JIM (remember SEGA, kids?), and later, my kids would become enthralled with CATSCRATCH on TV.

Outside of an already impressive workload, Doug still finds the time to crank out books... Original Graphic Novels, to be exact (y'know, those things that Joe Q. couldn't find any benefit in?). With 9 OGN's under his belt so far, (2 of my favorites I feature here) Doug proclaims his interest to continue doing a graphic novel per year till the end.

My hero.

Anyways, his philosophies and techniques in the craft of what he does is incredibly inspiring and well worth listening to, especially if you wish to learn the old school ways of traditional storytelling.

I'll admit, I was floored when I noticed that this guy inks 4 page blocks at a time! (a technique PAUL POPE talks about, and I utilize) Moreover, the simple explanation of great storytelling over 'perfection' was key in reigniting the fire under my ass to get work done!

Look, don't take my word for it, check out his work for yourself HERE. Tell me what you see. I see a reason to get back to work.

The New Marvel Motion Deal: Aniboom or Ani-bust?

PLANET GRIFFIN is back at broadcasting depth within the recesses of this popculture matrix to follow up on the recent animation posts from yesterday. Now that you're warmed up, the Planet has followed up on the recent announcement made yesterday from ANIBOOM (currently in a partnership with Marvel Entertainment), proclaimed as 'The world's first virtual animation studio'. After 6 weeks and 10+ hours of sifting through almost 8,000 animators, Marvel judges have narrowed down at least 5 finalists in their 'motion comic competition'. (The finalists receive $2,000 to expand on their submissions into a full length story; eventually competing with a 'Wild Card' finalist for a grand prize of $10,000 and to debut their prize motion comic on the Marvel Digital Network.) The winner will be announced November 16th.

The motion comic project is Marvel's campaign for its newest digital initiative for 2010. Marvel hopes to inject new life into its titles. Of course, motion comics are still in its infancy, so the jury's still out on that one. (Spider Woman was Marvel's first big step into the motion comic arena, selling it's episodes for $1.99 on iTunes. Now, you can watch them for free on HULU... Kinda tells you something, doesn't it?) Now maybe it's me, but you would think with all of the corporation's liquid assets at their fingertips, Marvel could have put out its own 'Ninja Scroll' or 'Ghost in the Shell' classic by now, much less motion comic classic. Their current animation roster alone hasn't generated the kind of buzz they had hoped--- Too many people buzzing about Green Lantern, for instance--- to really get fanboy's attention. You would think that the Mouse House couldn't have turned to powerhouse's like PRODUCTION I.G. or STUDIO GHIBLI (Disney DOES have workable interests in both arthouses). Just ask yourself: Is my money worth what I watch when I make mine Marvel?

The finalists pieces do warrant some merit, and with the finalist money, they should be able to crank out some amazing product. I guess time will tell, huh? To check out the rest of the finalists, go HERE and decide for yourself. This is PLANET GRIFFIN--- keeping your back straight and your knees clean... No bowing down. No bending over.



Watch more cool animation and creative cartoons at Aniboom



Watch more cool animation and creative cartoons at Aniboom

Hello Billy. It's Boogie.

Speaking of old school animation, I miss the depravity of underground great Ralph Bakshi. Alot has changed since the days of COOL WORLD (but we already know that)... Oh, how my head turned when I came across GUSTAVO COVA's latest animated feature, BOOGIE el ACEITOSO, based on the works of famed artist ROBERTO FONTANARROSA.

The movie tells of the misadventures of a hardened hitman surviving in the graphically violent, and comedic, Argentenian underworld. Boogie drinks, smokes, scratches his ball, and shoots alot of people in his mission to prove that he's still on top of his game despite the younger rival who's new to the scene. Originally conceived as an ironic take on Dirty Harry of the 70's, Boogie found a huge fan base in Mexico in 1979 when his adventures began running regularly in PROCESO magazine as a black and white strip.

Using cut-out animation overlapping highly elaborate backgrounds, Cova creates a parody of the various aesthetic styles from the 70's era--- Dark action film context with bursts of color. As the film debuts simultaneously in Mexico and Argentina, America should get its wake up call sometime in early 2010 when it hits DVD here. I can't wait!

Shaolin Cowboy Shall Ride Again

A mysterious, former monk-with-no-name travels the barren wastelands of the earth with a bounty on his head, accompanied by a talking mule named Lord Evelyn Dunkirk Winniferd Esquire the 3rd. A bizarre cast of characters pervades the weird visual world of THE SHAOLIN COWBOY.

GEOFF DARROW, co-creator of BIG GUY and RUSTY THE BOY ROBOT and HARD BOILED (along with Frank Miller), as well as the conceptual designer of the MATRIX trilogy for the WACHOWSKI BROTHERS, has finally announced that he will co-direct SHAOLIN COWBOY as a traditional animated feature along with a soon-to-be-named Japanese director. While he says the film will remain truthful to his highly detailed style (i.e. trash-strewn, corporate labels everywhere, etc.), the real draw of the announcement lies in his decision to go with traditional, hand-drawn animation versus the current trend of CGI . As a fan of his style, I champion the idea that old school is not dead, and that despite the incredible advances of digital animation, it only works when real talent is the motivation behind the tech.

Of course, realizing how long it takes for Geoff to illustrate a page, one can only hope that it doesn't take twice that to animate.

Next 100 Alum Gets The CNN Spotlight And Black Dynamite

Good morning all! Welcome to another round of PLANET GRIFFIN and THE WEEKEND EDITION! Today, the PLANET spotlights fellow NEXT 100 alum, JAY POTTS, the creator of " The #1 Blaxploitation Webcomic" The WORLD OF HURT, on the CNN interview highlighting the debut of Michael Jai White's BLACK DYNAMITE and the Blaxploitation genre in general. You can check out the interview with Lisa France HERE.


For those of you who may be sleeping on Jay's site, now's the time to wake up and smell the coffee, cuz' this cat's selling Starbucks, if you get my drift.
(Good grief! BLACK CAESAR himself, FRED WILLIAMSON, praises this guy's work! ) Jay's current story arc, THE THRILLSEEKERS, is drawing closer to it's end, soon to make way for an even harder installment to come--- THE BLACK FIST!

PLANET GRIFFIN urges you to check out the incredible art style Jay's grinding out over there in the World of Hurt... After the trade editions start rolling, I wouldn't be surprised if the new 'House of Mouse' starts blowing up his phone! (Something they should've done LOOOOOOOONG time ago!) Oh yeah, while I'm thinking on it, stay tuned to PLANET GRIFFIN for the return of the NEW NEXT 100 for 2010--- which is another way of saying 'Now you'll start paying closer attention, for the future's trying to speak to you right now...'

I Remember When The Devil Came To Olde Victorian Towne...

"It's a bit of a mystery and a mortality play, an action-horror title that lets me go crazy artwise with the designs of the devils and the setting. But above all I hope the story will have readers surprised and entertained along the way."
- Guy Davis

Reaching back into the comic longboxes, PLANET GRIFFIN remembers the classics. One title that had a particular impact on me was GUY DAVIS' graphic novel opus, THE MARQUIS. From Caliber Comics in 1997 to Oni Press to Dark Horse, Guy has kept this character consistently strange for over a decade.

For those unfamiliar, THE MARQUIS tells the twisted tale of Vol De Galle, a former inquisitor of the Tyrant Ministry-turned-Demon hunter, dedicating his life fighting the escaped souls of Hell in a fictional 18th century... Of course, you're never quite sure if the 'demons' Vol encounters are even real--- is the Marquis an avenger blessed by the saints, or a homicidal maniac?

Badass since his introduction in DANSE MACABRE, the Marquis has since returned in a new collection THE MARQUIS: INFERNO, and THE MARQUIS and the Midwife by Dark Horse. If you haven't picked up a copy of this title, you're missing out on a storytelling feast, in suspense and action-horror! While you're at it, check out the hypesite for it here ---Another reason to keep the pencil burning into the night, for sure!

Take That NBC: All Hail The Panic Face King!

Ah yes, Japan... A country where the phrase 'cutting edge' is part of the cultural zeitgeist instilled at birth. I mean, any country where you can purchase teen panties from the local vending machine, fish-flavored soda, and custom-made-to-order kink fetishes to accompany your order of Soba noodles, then you must agree that you're now looking at a place that's free in all the ways that we are not! Take television, for example... Japanese TV programming is considered the most violent programming in the world (Kids! Now you can get samurai decapitations during primetime!), and when it comes to their 'Must See TV' list, no other show is getting more play than THE PANIC FACE KING, a Candid Camera type show that goes to unusual extremes to scare the wits out of there unwitting participants... It's something you have to see to believe!