Manga Artists :: Part 7: Amy Reeder Hadley from Anime Banzai

Hah, it's been over a month now since I promised to post this stuff; how lame am I? But I am super happy to finally get all my notes up from the con.

Amy had two panels, both of which I attended. The first was on drawing, the second in getting into the manga industry. I'll post my notes and them my comments about each of the panels.

I do want to comment that Amy was super nice, which surprised me for some reason. I've read other articles, myspace/website posts, and/or comments by other emerging american artists, and their attitudes range from smugly superior to bff-next-door, aw-shucks goodness. So I didn't know what to expect, but Amy was great, very open about her skills and her progress. She was a teacher for a while, and I think that helped her panels be informmative, structured, and helpful. I had to attend a LOT of art seminars in college, in which the presenters NEVER showed you their earlier portfolio stuff, probably because it is embarassing to them now. But how does that help the students? If the students feel that good design and art springs from their head like Athena, fully formed and awesome, they will never be able to improve. So I lovedlovedloved that she willingly put in really bad beginning pieces, to show just how far she has progressed. Refreshing and the ultimate act of artistic humility.

Also, she has tons of resources at her site.

I apologize in advance for the notes; in spite of taking copious amounts, I often cannot read my rushed writing aferwords and thus guess at what I meant, and in the first panel was sketching as much as notetaking. So it might not make much sense or will seem scattered. I hope it is useful in spite of these things.



:: Facial Expressions & Angles: Join Amy Reeder Hadley (ARH) as she presents an in-depth, hands on tutorial on drawing facial expressions and faces from different points of view. (2 hrs)::

October 20, 2006

:Angles:

Face dynamics—when faces change; facial angles & expressions
Why care about? Knowledge, char. continuity, set out & know her pwr of the face; helps wrap u into the world to draw

Base Face: front view, base all off of
used to not do sketches; now she does
nose can be shadow triangle or nostrils only; whatever like
how diverse can u make it? So stylistic cannot draw anyway else? not nessecarily good

Shots of upside 3/4 view: lift head vs. angle standing below—both are angled diff
show lots of hair, nose & mouth lower
side view: err on giving too much space for hair (/), draw basics 1st, not concentrate on details (lips) till later
features change on the angle: face is not a balloon shifting view, but certain depths change as well when face shifts

3/4 Eye: top put near middle, bottom part out and shifts
iris elongated, space hit lid w/ eyelashes brows on guys in this posisiton are lower, forehead justs out more
noses tough
lips squish, not stay vert/horizontally front; side closest long, side farther away short

Downshots: eye 1/2 circles, curve upside a little
iris close to the eyes
when are looking rom below are at 45 degree angle; when just looking down is straight
eye: outside corner lower, inside is higher
iris tells a whole lot about the person

Upshot: eyes squish horizont.
lashes seen the most
eyebrows face down and are farther away
nose closer; can look upward into nostrils
mouth balls at the side, shaded below the lip
more chin seen

Side: is tricky
flatten the eye on front, not much face, def not draw same as frontward eyes
eyes look squished outside only
pupil—drawn inside the iris, revealing eye jelly
eyebrow squished
mouth turn up, then down

Looking Up: iris round when looks straight at u any position/angle
eyebrow still follows the rule of the angle though
model shot—face down but eyes looking dtraight at u; same as anger shot, only diff is the lips

:Facial Expressions:

good book: "Artists complete guide to facial xpressions"

Base Expressions:

Eyes: brows down (when does this, pulls the brow/muscle and pushes fat/skin down from the brow); brows together (pushes brow and pulls the fat/skin); brows raised; upper lid raised; bottom lid squint; upper/lower lid squint

Lips: base lip (can have mouth turned downward or stylized); mouth open (teeth?); mouth wide open; sneer (top lip curve is wider, outer lip edges shorter); sneer with teeth; sneer wide open; sneer 2 cry; frown 1; frown 2; frown to open; yell; smile (lips stretched); smile open (show teeth with black spaces at corner, not show teeth so big); smile wide open; pursed lips 1; pursed lips 2 (push lips in and down)

with a real smile, the eyes change: squint more

learn from other styles, pick & choose

Combine features to change perception/expressions
Scott McCloud: "Making Comics"

Darwin determined there are 6 main expressions every culture uses (can find derivatives of each one)
1: Fear (frown, sneer, brows together)
2: joy (eyes squint, smile)
3: dusgust (all features go to the middle of face; sneer, nostrils up, eyes close, brows tog)
4: anger (eyes down, mouth open)
5: surprise (lift brow, open eyes)
6: sadness (shut)

Expressions each take some of these 6 levels at different intensities, come together and make something (ex: fear+surprise+anger)

humans hold back emotions, so most time are not as extreme

examples of diff expressions: side+smile+upshot; 3/4 angle+surprise+anger (eyes open, brows down)

___ + ___ + ___ = final expression

Sample scenario expression: your boyfriend finally cooked for you, but says cooked your dog while you arte in mid bite: reaction?

surprise + anger + sadness + disgust; head down as eating; maybe fear

have a mirror handy to draw facial expressions

blush marks/sweat drops; commonly used but are cheating, since are used when in doubt is working; make it work instead and will get better

Places for further research:
use mirror
camera to take pics of self
use if can't do out of your head, digital especially helpful
photos: some say 3D not 2D the only way, is less inbred, but seeing angles in 2D can help a lot
do not trace from 2D images for final product, but is useful for learning/practice in order to see datails as they are
think in angles (a smile is 45 degrees, a shout 90 degrees)
impressions of things looking wrong (mouth not as big as u think)
amy's own site has helpful tools
3D imaging reps like Poser can look at to help
books ("Facial Xpressions" by Mark Simon: helps so not draw same thing over & over again)
Computer: helped her learn to draw out of her head, easy to fix probs
makes easier to forgive yourself for mistakes; experiment until right
do less on computer—not afraid to try
learn to draw by hand too, takes practice, less stale than comp sometimes
wacom for digital drawgin (feels the 6X8 too big ($300), prefer 4X5 ($60-100) to start

3 years ago she did a crash course in thinking out of her head to improve(has already graduated college)

there is time to be really good (no matter your age/skill at the moment)
she is serious about, wants to do her whole life

Her fave artists
Rockwell: realism + exact expression
Takeshi Obata (like me, woo hoo!): storywise, not gimmmick, way he tells it makes you care; even with stupid story loves the telling of it
bits & pieces of inspiration

she in bk for rising stars
osbury study (?) editor at TP liked her, now he works for DC comics

Stylisticaly: focuses on realism, takes what learns from studies and applies them to something cartoony
pick & choose

draw a lot; like office schedule: 40 hrs a week, 8 hrs a day, often work more than that, hand hurts sometimes

career: work for Tokyopop

pages do a week?
she slow; 1 pg a day for book
6 chapters is a novel—180 pgs, 30 pgs each
over a month, in addition do the story

screen tones: buy at art stores, comictones.com

resources: perspective grids, photoshop & how to use

dislikes:
crowd scenes
Likes:
side views, perspective grids for backgrounds she uses; likes ok

2 pt perspective; morph 4 any grid u want
print out for drawing by hand or keep in computer
dream up what wants to see, THEN the persp. grid helps after that
used to now, so is faster process
inking by hand takes time w/ rules(rulers?)

crosshatch/hatch
use dark corners
rustic, life we feel less so be flashy/alive (???)
not do TOO much
good inking—less tones, so not look grey and muddy

angle/expresson changes from 1 panel to the other
find what hang on to so has continuity (base face u set up, distinct features)
learn angles themselves; not do an angle just to do it

base face: what makes this char look diff than the others?
mouth turn down, smaller nose so go up lot or little; consider every angle

Lettering
she does lettering in photoshop, then tokyopop reletters
balloons: 1 layer 4 art, one for balloons, 1 for sound FX, then 1 for text
reletter in indesign—they redo so is not rasterized text (makes sense to me), she do 1st so is less chance they will screw up

Fonts
rooftop run from blambot.com
buy or get free fonts
nick piekos @ blambot: his stance on artist using the fonts: unless ur Marvel/DC/big comp, he friends w/ u and gives u right to use fonts =) =) =)
tokyopop has fonts u can use as an artist

payment
advance: royalties no see till see advance
pay while u do, by chapter (not amt time takes to do chapter)
do well: pay to create & pay 4 success; so technically can get paid 2X if are good and sell well

story currently on
is laid out for 4 volumes, she guaranteed 3
next vol out next july, 1 yr apart

format: FTP upload the raw PSD files

Thumbnails: plan out, incubation pd to think out layout
pre-write, so is better in the end
is better at improving things than starting things, so are useful
no blank pg w/ having templates
often end up very diff form final product, but getting done is crucial
editor go over them w/ her
like arough draft

why shift from comp to hand
does at 1200 dpi, 100% like 16X real size
inking by hand forces u to deal with your mistakes, work around them and improve
xper: comes alive more, base of impromptu things
not perfection
looks more "manga" that way
nibs_no use, use copic miltiliner, the skinniest
ink 2X size so lines look skinny
print out light, ink, scan
now sketching by hand too
lt blue template, panel lines/grids
lightbox & scan

::

Really super panel, which opened my eyes to the nuances of facial expressions in a way that hadn't presented to me before. Amy had a wacom tablet and projected it onto the screen, so we could watch her sketch for the demo. Very cool of her I thought; I've done that before when I did demos in Adobe, but drawing in front of people makes me nervous, even if it's just friends, so that to me was incrediby brave of her.

She also talked about the nuances of drawing for a company. Some questions she wanted to save for her next panel, but she was willing to answer everything. A lot of the things I was planning to implement or do with our manga as far as tools and process, are things she and/or tokyopop also do and endorse, which was a very cool hint that we are on the right track, even if it seems out train is stalled for the moment.

Oh, and I didn't get this until after I got back home and read her manga, but she wore striped leggings just like her main character wears, which was very cool.





:: Getting Your Manga Published: Join fool's Gold creator ARH for tips on how to get published ::

:Her start:

a student in her psych class wanted to turn in manga or a project. ("Uh,what's a manga?") So he turn in ("Oh, it's a comic then?") That was 3-4 yeas ago and now she does it!

:Getting Into Business:

many options to get into manga business (gomanga.com, tokyopop.com)
good time to get in wass 1 year ago; getting pickier as more approach them

Seven Seas Entertainment (Boogie Pop)
owner did title, discontinued doing it, says is publisher 1st and artist 2nd
web comic like: draw stories they've written right to left

Slave Labor Grapics .com (Johnny Homicidal Maniac, Invader Zim)
lots of styles
submit web: ab.us/submissions

OniPress
indie manga, scott pilgrim

Imagecomics

Dark Horse (Lone Wolf & Cub)
take submissions; from writers no
is harder as writer
good company, artsy manga
suff that not sell as well but they believe in

Marvel Mangaverse (Spiderman Loves Mary Jane)
she approached by to draw for existing series
samples, not want to u change style for them

Vertigo, Part of DC (Sandman, Fables)
critical acclaim
only read manga at present? then branch out and try their titles

:Getting There:

Photo realism: National Geographic, found a gift for copying
got into Sailor Moon as grad HS (98)
SM/Ranma were her only exposure but she thirsted for more, wanted to make up her own girl characters
college, ugly doodles, poses
continue faces & show off do in college, copy mags and change hair/ear
realism thru head (continue/combine to forward?)
took art class—process (listened to lots Bjork)
r u gonna b an artist? what do w/? draw?

became teacher, social science (sociology, psych, hist)
plan 2B, loves teens

sis got into as well and more people (paradise kiss)

:Rising Stars:

20 pgs and top 7/8/10 won; competitive
computer at work; maybe I can draw like this
like 1st place winnner (Priscilla Handley, blackmoontides.com)
drawing tablet on comp—found and learned Photoshop
comp allowed images to come out of her head and fix
make her learn a lot, experiment, swish/erase
xper necc to learn, no hands behind back
8 months after 4th vol
my char this guy back there (?)
most no like her style, found her long lashes obnoxious
1 editor believe in her, subtle jokes, so he end up allowing her a place in the book
8 months after that, book deal

editor—3 volume story 2 pitch to them
her editor assigned absent, no e-mail her 1X week, she fell betwen the cracks
kept improving, did art online
he told her editor at a mtng was a huge mistake she not signed yet
he got her 2 editors & signed a bk deal, her 1st editor fired

:Ways to Get in:

1. RSOM: prove do by deadline, read all pgs of all comics submitted (rare)
reg submissions allowed 6 pgs max at best
tokyopop: about section
2. submissions: info online, exactly what they want (plot, outline) done to letter of law or be tossed; bk deals (rising start or submissions, whatev) makes school a handy place to learn (deadlines, protocol)
3. collaborations great way; harder for writers 2 get in, hard to evaluate; requires brainpwr, takes less time 2 write than draw; can have 1 writer 4 many series so usually less of a demand for; find an artist to draw for u; often 1 gets the other in; psycomm/z apt/road song examples; like a team, but easy for 1 to back out of so B careful; like being in rock band (she in 1 in college), hard to get tog
4. Portfolio Review: Rivka from SteadyBeat do this; annual, find $/relatives for the CA convention to show your stuff; get straight-on feedback
5. Assistanceships: tone/ink books; Bizenghast originally a toner; way to get in; in Japan have contests for assistanceships
6. Awesome Web Comic: Sorcerors & Secretaries = she approached by because of comic

:Improvement:
they tell u 2 improve, no make rising stars, etc—don't get angry and talk crap, especialy online don't say something bad—others can see
don't be drama queen, pick your own battles

Improving art
3 yrs ago she started; computer
sketch diff angles
plan out
try new things so learn better

wks after, she compile 4 comic contest
no words, in color, like music vid
funky paneling, lots not know how to do then
each time, everything you learn, compile & b best ever
"this is awesome, I'm an art god!" later see w/ new eyes
room 4 improvement; brain do, strech and grow as imrove
her orig entry: cluttering, confusing
draw angles—mad studied in library, tutorials
people no like her RSOM entry 3pgs, new editor saw new pgs
bk deal—character illustrations for
pgs at end r diff

:amy's 6fold Recipe for Improvement (on back):

Objective: make sense; unique paneling done 4 specific reason; start simple then get complex; pyrite pacct: comcept breakdown; visual storytelling (Tokyopop link)

Educate Self about Industry: trim more, safety xone; don't be like her; know terminology; research other people in the industry; tone on computer

Get noticed: persistance; one guy for RSOM entered all, rejected, but now has bk deal; no throw tantrum, and they saw him improve; webcomics make good and no slack off; don't make fool of self & b professional

:Contracts:

not allowed to talk ab specifics
read bk on authors contracts; writer's legal guide so no get screwed; get a lawyer if poss since is complex (her uncle a rich laywer); memorize all definitions in contract; all implications and what do w/; decide what your limits are (tokyopop pay not fab but if value having your stuff published in big stores, especially if unknown, may be worth it)

:Process:

story bible: backstory w/ simple pages, sample cover sketches; char turnarounds (front, back, side); locations, objects

Tumbnail/Script
start w/ something

pencils for chapter panels, editor may change
ink
tone/letter
then next ch

Illustrations random
process: not a lot of; is specialized but lot want 2B artist

Company
pay
work w/ editor; get awesome 1, some picky, some contact u a lot or little
help, no bug w/ vision

deadlines
work at home bk deal; unmotivated after drawing time, work 50-60 hr weeks; do what u love

having stuff published is wonderful

hard/software
wacom (cheap on Amazon)
manga studio: debut version $50

Pitching story
themes of, be consice, find its selling points
she use char as fashion designer as visual appeal
catch: THIS make it diff, unique

she do it yourself/picky; they replace letters
print out panel line; grids on blue; panel over; cross out face an clothes/hair; lightbox & paper; tight sketch; comp; print out 2X size; 8 1/2 by 11 (2 pgs per 1 panel); light nonphoto blue; ink copic multiliner .5/.8 size; scan blue; put up pg w/ panel lines; tome on comp; photoshop; letter
impromptu nature of inking; draw on computer help learn but is now branching out

paneling: storytelling
doing quares often makes the angles more dynamic
way u show panles is storytelling in itself

come by her table in dealers room, talk ab. there & stuff

::

Also a good panel. We were already planning on entering Rising Stars in the future, but good to hear about how she went that route and things to watch out for. It was cool to know about the artists she was mentioning, having done my own research on them, knowing the processes she was using, and the importance of a good partner. Luckily I have one in my Leeshee! =)

I'll be putting up more stuff, but wanted to get these out. And DO plan on AB for Friday.