July 2003 Archives

I kinda like these. I hadn't been able to get a chance to update the main page recently so some may have missed seeing these strips.

Kim Beazely as the Hulk. Not a bad size match.

Shark Slayer will be Dreamworks attempt to snatch the 3D animation market. I really think they shouldn't have done the whole celebrities as caricatured sharks thing. Check out the site to see what I mean.

I decided some time ago to take control of my destiny. At a stage in my career I felt that my level of learning had peaked and was suddenly becoming very stagnant. I needed to make some change to make sure that I continued to learn values that would contribute to my success. Sometimes I felt that I was getting nowhere and had no control of my life or career. These are the times you have to take on with a new level of gusto and control. I needed to find something to continue my thirst for learning and experience. I can tell you that I have had many odd jobs to survive the years since leaving high school. I left at the end of year 11 to pursue my art career. I worked at IKEA in a warehouse during the day and studied art at night. My work day was 6am-5.30pm and my art classes were 7pm-11pm. I lived an hour away from work and the art school. I had 3 years of this to contend with. What made me last so long ? attitude. To keep paying the bills and the art classes I had to continue working during the day doing anything. I got a call from Freedom Furniture asking me to join them as a manager. I worked there for years encountering all types of positions and ending as a customer service manager. I managed to administer and pursue to completion approximately 200 complaints a month by myself. How did I handle the disrespect that the general public gave me ? attitude. How did I survive or even live for that matter starting out as a freelance inbetweener with fluctuating incomes of some weeks $60 some $200 ? attitude. It's the same attitude that I use today that has kept my eye on the target I set myself to achieve personal goals.

The issues that agress me are the attitudes of those who are negative about where they have been and where they are going. Yet change their attitude and they can be a whole new person.

If you really want to be a cartoonist, it takes attitude and commitment. Not someone elses help. You need to decide if you have what it takes to handle discussions in business meetings with all types of clients, time management skills, business accounting skills, marketing skills and lots of street credibility and knowledge. Cartooning isn't about drawing stuff all day. It's about being a professional offering services. So many young adults I have call are looking at the industry thinking it has to be one of the easiest jobs around. I doubt they'll find that easy when they encounter their first editor who demands an editorial cartoon within two hours. Don't forget that the cartoon you see in the paper was the one of a choice of 5 usually drawn and shown for approval. Could you come up with 5 knee slapping funny cartoons on the one subject ? Bloody hard, and I really have to bite my tongue when I get asked about how to get someones kid in to the industry "because they're a top little drawer!". You could draw the best Mickey Mouse but what's it gonna earn you. Draw him perfectly in a few poses without copying a drawing. Can they ?

I must admit that this entry came out of frustration. I've been there and know what it is like starting out. But it has made me experience what I need to know today. And I learnt it from finding out myself and making my way. No help at all. It was my attitude that made the difference.