Thursday, December 29, 2016

2016 Howard M. Shum Awards

The only awards not mired in corruption, bias, and sophists. The only awards that matter:

Film - “Nocturnal Animals” Written and directed by Tom Ford. It is said it is difficult to show the process of writing on screen. That may or may not be the case. If you are interested in seeing how art is made and the act of creativity, watch this film for Tom Ford shows you that. Using three storylines (one of which is a novel written by one character and read by another), we see how acts in life affect the writing of the book. The book itself is gripping and intense, making the whole a work of art.

Director - Tom Ford “Nocturnal Animals” Ford is a true artist and storyteller.

Actor - Viggo Mortensen “Captain Fantastic” Mortensen is great in Matt Ross’ brilliant and original film about a father who raises his kids off the grid in the wilderness and now has to take them to the “real world” on a specific mission.

Supporting Actor - Aaron Taylor-Johnson , “Nocturnal Animals” While watching this amazing film I wondered who was the actor portraying this savage villainous part. I was surprised that it was Taylor-Johnson whom I’ve seen before. He was brilliantly unrecognizable in this.

Actress - Kate Beckinsale, “Love & Friendship” I have never read Jane Austen’s Lady Susan (which is what this movie is based on), but if it is anything like the performance by Beckinsale, it must be funny. I would like to see her do more comedies.

Supporting Actress - Adriana Ugarte, “Julieta” She plays the younger version of the title character in Pedro Almodóvar’s movie. She goes through her young life carefree and not realizing some of her decisions will lead to much sadness for her older self.

Screenplay - “The Handmaiden” Screenplay by Jung Seo-Kyung and Park Chan-wook, based on a book by Sarah Waters. This is set in Japanese occupied Korea in the 1930s and is about con artists and devious people. Twists and turns abound.

Cinematographer - Natasha Braier “The Neon Demon” Before I saw this film, a stranger sat next to me at a movie theater (about to watch a different movie) and felt compelled to tell me The Neon Demon was the worst film she saw this year. A good friend of mine whose option I value much also told me the same thing. It made me want to see it more. While it’s not as bad as they say it was, it’s also not the best in filmmaker Nicolas Winding Refn’s oeuvre. I thought it was a funny movie (although I was the only person laughing in the theater) and it’s also a beautiful looking film.

Documentary - “The Eagle Huntress” Directed by Otto Bell. If you like watching movies and like feeling good afterwards, watch this amazing documentary about a spectacular girl.

Television Show Drama - “Game of Thrones“ The story continues to be enthralling and the production values better some feature films.

Television Show Comedy “The Good Place” The premise of the show is that a woman who was supposed to end up at the “bad place” when she died, instead accidentally ends up at the good place. Most shows with these types of premises (like Gilligan never getting off the island) milk it out for several seasons, but pleasantly surprisingly this show moves the story along quickly and does not drag.

Television Actor - John Turturro “The Night Of” This unkept lawyer with feet problems who does his best to get his client off was very interestingly played by Turturro.

Television Actress - Rhea Seehorn “Better Call Saul” As we see Jimmy McGill slowly descend into Saul Goodman, we also see Seehorn’s character Kim along the way but stopping short of following him into that descent of corruption.

Knock Out - Joe Smith Jr. vs. Bernard Hopkins. Sure it was against a 51-year-old, but no one else has ever knocked out Bernard Hopkins and this was through the ropes! It was spectacular to watch.

Wednesday, December 28, 2016

Thursday, December 22, 2016

Wednesday, December 14, 2016

Jude Demorest

Here’s a drawing I did of actress Jude Demorest. Watch her show “Star” on Fox.

My friends and I went to the Game of Thrones Behind the Scenes Event in Los Angeles. Watch our video:

Thursday, December 08, 2016

Gigi Hadid - Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show

Here’s a drawing I did of model Gigi Hadid from this year’s Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show.

Tuesday, November 29, 2016

Lada Kravchenko

Here’s a drawing I did of model Lada Kravchenko.

This is a fun new short film I did starring Katy Johnson Evans and Stephen Yan. This is my first short with visual effects (which I did all myself). I will do more shorts with VFX and hopefully they will get more elaborate the more I learn.

Wednesday, November 23, 2016

Wednesday, November 16, 2016

Thursday, November 10, 2016

Marissah - Laker Girl

Here’s a drawing I did of Laker Girl Marissah.

I cut together footage I shot of the Laker Girls at the Pacers-Lakers game (January 20, 2017)

Tuesday, November 01, 2016

Bridget Malcolm

Here’s a drawing I did of model Bridget Malcolm.

See how a comic book is made in my new video showing the creative process in making The Wondrous World graphic novel by Armando Zanker, Simone Arena, and me. This final part is about lettering.

Wednesday, October 26, 2016

Wednesday, October 19, 2016

The Meltdown with Jonah and Kumail

I was fortunate to be able to do a poster for The Meltdown with Jonah and Kumail a few years ago when regular artist Dave Kloc was out of town. I thought if I were to ever do another one it would be an homage to a classic comic book cover (being that the show is done at the back of a comic book shop). I won’t get that chance since the last show is being done this week. However, I still do this tribute to the show from John Romita’s Amazing Spider-Man cover.

Monday, October 17, 2016

The Eagle Huntress

I saw Otto Bell's The Eagle Huntress tonight. It's an excellent film about the first female eagle hunter in Mongolia. Watch it! Here's a drawing I did of Aisholpan Nurgaiv.

Watch footage I shot of Billie Eilish performing Ocean Eyes. She's amazing!

Thursday, October 13, 2016

Hannah Kirkelie

Here’s a drawing I did of model Hannah Kirkelie.

If you are interested in how comic books are made, watch my new video that shows the process of making Armando Zanker and my new graphic novel The Wondrous World. In this new part, Simone Arena and I talk about coloring:

Thursday, October 06, 2016

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles vs. The Uncanny X-Men

Here are Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles vs. The Uncanny X-Men and Hulk drawings pencilled by Martin Egeland and inked by me.

Watch a video of me inking the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles vs. The Uncanny X-Men drawing

Thursday, September 29, 2016

Wednesday, September 21, 2016

Monday, September 12, 2016

Jessie Graff

Here’s a drawing I did of stunt woman and Ninja Warrior Jessie Graff.

Here's footage I shot of Kaleo performing "Way Down We Go" last week

Thursday, September 08, 2016

Jeanie Buss - Ultra Violet

Here’s a drawing I did of Los Angeles Lakers president Jeanie Buss as a super-hero Ultra Violet.

Wednesday, August 31, 2016

Gene Wilder

Here’s a drawing I did of Gene Wilder as Willy Wonka. Growing up, I loved watching his films including Young Frankenstein, Blazing Saddles, The Frisco Kid, and Stir Crazy.

Here’s a drawing I did of model Denise Schaefer as Wonder Woman.

Wednesday, August 24, 2016

Bruce Lee

Here’s a drawing I did of Bruce Lee, the greatest martial artist ever put on film.

If you are interested in the process of creating a comic book/graphic novel, watch how Armando Zanker are doing it with our new book The Wondrous World:

Wednesday, August 17, 2016

Natalie Coughlin

Here’s a drawing I did of swimmer Natalie Coughlin.

I got to see the From Caroline to Kubo: A Magical Laika Experience exhibit at Universal Studios last week. This is what I shot

Thursday, August 11, 2016

Aaron Gordon and Skyslide

Here’s a drawing I did of NBA player Aaron Gordon dunking at last years Slam Dunk contest at the All Star game based on a photo by my friend Cassy Athena.

My friends Melanie, Kim, and I went to Skypace in downtown LA and went down the Skyslide on the 70th floor of the U.S. Bank Tower. Watch the video we made

Tuesday, August 02, 2016

Mabelynn Capeluj

Here’s a drawing I did of model Mabelynn Capeluj.

If you like cosplay and comedy, watch my new short I shot at San Diego Comic-Con:

Monday, July 25, 2016

San Diego Comic-Con 2016

I met amazing director John Landis. The Blues Brothers is an excellent movie!

Anthony Anderson is a good guy! He got a well deserved Emmy nomination.

Here are some caricatures I did during the con.

I shot a new comedy short at SDCC. I’ll cut it and post it next week. Here’s the short I shot last year.

Tuesday, July 19, 2016

Tuesday, July 12, 2016

The Wondrous World Print

Here’s a drawing I did of characters from my new graphic novel I’m doing with Armando Zanker called The Wondrous World. It’s amazingly colored by Simone Arena. I will make this as a print and I will also have a limited 500 copies preview of the book at San Diego Comic-Con July 20-24. I’ll be in Artists Alley table DD-22

Thursday, July 07, 2016

Monday, June 27, 2016

Bella Ramsey - Lyanna Mormont - Game of Thrones

Here’s a drawing I did of actress Bella Ramsey as Lyanna Mormont from Game of Thrones. She’s my favorite of the new characters introduced in season six. “I don’t care if he’s a bastard… He’s my king. From this day until his last day.”

If you are interested in creating a comic book or graphic novel or just curious about the process, I’m doing a series of videos on how Armando Zanker, Simone Arena, and I are doing our new graphic novel The Wondrous World. Part 1 focuses on story.

Wednesday, June 22, 2016

Jessica Buch

Here’s a drawing I did of model Jessica Buch.

Action Comics #1 - Rewrite

I rewrote the first appearance of Superman in Action Comics #1 to update it for a modern audience. You’re welcome, DC Comics! If you like this rewrite, check out my actual comics I created.