MEDIA RELEASE: Black Mermaid Productions™ Launches Comics Masterclass™

MEDIA RELEASE
8 September 2013

Australian comics team and publisher Black Mermaid Productions™ has just launched its new professional development arm—Comics Masterclass™. Originally conceived in 2011 as a one-off weekend event that was run in conjunction with the Australian Society of Authors (ASA) and which attracted participants from around the country, Comics Masterclass™ has now evolved into a brand in its own right and a niche service that offers creative, business and self mastery opportunities to Australian (and overseas!) comics creators.

Comics Masterclass™ has three big picture goals:

1. To help emerging and developing comics practitioners realise their creative potential
2. To contribute towards creating an Australian comics economy where comics creators’ published works, expertise and experience are valued both critically and commercially, and
3. To facilitate the shift from an Australian comics community to a thriving internationally recognised and commercially viable industry.

The first offering is the Comics Masterclass™ script assessment service for emerging and developing comikers who are working on comic books, graphic novels, webcomics and comic / cartoon strips. This is the first dedicated comics script assessment service in Australia.

Says co-Black Mermaid Productions™ Director Julie Ditrich, “We have been talking to Australian comics creators about their professional needs for many years now. We become increasingly aware that there was a demand for critical feedback on comics projects in development but that no professional services were available to take on that task, which is why we came up with the idea of a comic script assessment service that critiques both writing and sequential art. It took us over a year to organise and assemble a high calibre team of qualified comics professionals with vast publishing credits, as well as editing and teaching experience, who would work as assessors and provide value and direction in this creative medium.”

Comics Masterclass™ is also pioneering in the Australian comics landscape by providing a variety of other services including creativity coaching, premium coaching, professional consultations, proofreading, editing and a counseling referral service. Furthermore, from 2014 it will also offer short courses and weekend intensives.

“We predict that Australia is about five years away from exploding onto the international stage and producing world class comics talent and publications in a big way,” says Black Mermaid Productions™ co-Director Jozef Szekeres, “We believe that Comics Masterclass will be at the forefront of facilitating this growth in the Australian cultural landscape.”

Ultimately, Comics Masterclass™ is about encouraging and nurturing new comics talent, and offering a safe place for creators to develop their creative and entrepreneurial skills.

For further information contact Julie Ditrich or Jozef Szekeres on
Phone: +61 2 9606 4728
Email: media@comicsmasterclass.com
Website: www.comicsmasterclass.com 

GRAPHIC 2012 Launch – Festival of Firsts

We're going on record to say that we're great fans of the annual GRAPHIC event—a weekend of graphic storytelling, animation and music that is held at the Sydney Opera House. We've attended multiple sessions over the last two years and had a fabulous time, so we were pretty pleased to receive an invitation to attend the launch last night where we got an insider's view of what's coming up in November.

GRAPHIC celebrates and often fuses the three different art forms. One example in this year's lineup is "Dr Seuss Meets Elefant Traks" (Sun 11 Nov)—a collective of 25 performers that will musically support the whimsical imagery from Dr Seuss's surreal universe. Another is "Radio with Pictures" (Sun 11 Nov) which is part radio, part comic strip and a whole lot of live performance. Oz illustrators Matt Taylor, Biddy Maroney, Matt Huynh, Leigh Rigozzi and more are featured in this session. Several of these artists appeared in last year's Oz comics panel and did sensational presentations so this is one session that's on our radar.

The major animation headliner is Pixar Animation Studios. which will feature in a "Behind the Screens" session (Sat 10 Nov) that will be held in the concert hall. Another favourite of ours and a must see on our schedule is "Animal Logic's History of Computer Animation" (Sun 11 Nov).

In the comics department, we've got "Peter Bagge's Hate! & Other Neat Stuff" (Sun 11 Nov). This year, GRAPHIC will give gaming its place in the sun.  This will come in the form of "The Good Game: Roffle Cup Live" (Sun 11 Nov), which is a quiz show similar to ABC's "Spicks and Specks" except that it focuses on computer games. In addition, the comics making workshop held during the previous two years will be replaced by a "Gaming Workshop: Gaming Level Design" (Sat 10 Nov).

We also have it on good authority that there will be some additional panel sessions, which have not been scheduled yet.

Once again, curators Jordan Verzar and Ben Marshall have done a great job planning this years lineup, which is not only original but bound to be inspirational.

CLICK HERE if you want to check out the program. Tickets go on sale on Monday 17 September 2012.  Make sure you get in early because they sell out fast.

BMP at Manly Zine Fair

BMP will have a table at the upcoming Manly Library's 2nd Annual Zine Fair, which is part of the 2011 Manly Arts Festival in Sydney, Australia. Manly is a town on the ocean so it's quite fitting that we bring in some of our mermaid comics.

Here are the details:

Venue: Manly Library, Market Place, Manly

Date: Saturday 3 September 2011

Time: 10am to 1pm

Cost: Free

Contact: +61 2 9976 1747

For further information go to the Manly Arts Festival website.

GRAPHIC Animation Competition

Sydney Opera House invites the worldwide animation community to take part in GRAPHIC: an online animation competition designed to celebrate the innovation, creativity and imagination behind the art form.

Illustrators, animators and storytellers of all levels – from established to up-and-coming and newcomers – are encouraged to enter. The winning entry will score $20,000 prize money and be screened at a major GRAPHIC Festival event at the Sydney Opera House.

A panel of judges headed by Animal Logic CEO and Producer Zareh Nalbandian (producer Academy Award Winning Happy Feet) and members of the public will vote for the most original and creative animations over the course of three consecutive rounds.

Round 1 entries close on Sunday 17 July 2011.

Check out the GRAPHIC YouTube channel for all the relevant competition elements and submission guidelines. Here's the introductory video to get you started.

GRAPHIC 2011 at the Sydney Opera House

GRAPHIC is happening once again at the Sydney Opera House on Saturday 20 and Sunday 21 August 2011. The year's line up includes Robert Crumb, Scott McCloud, Jim Woodring, Peter Kuper, Reg Mombassa and a host of other fabulous overseas and Australian comics and animation talent. The program includes talks, workshops, screenings, performances, a games festival and, of course, the annual comics animation competition where you can win $20,000. I've bought my tickets and Jozef's in the process of buying his – "Understanding Comics with Scott McCloud" is at the top of his list. I'll be going to the the "OzComics Show and Tell" panel, "Altered States" panel, "Scott McCloud" masterclass, "Wordless Storytelling", "Silent Comics: Original Live Scores" and "In Conversation with Robert Crumb". This happens two days after I return from the World Mermaid Awards at Las Vegas so I'll be knackered but in my comics and graphic novels element. For the full program, go to the Sydney Opera House GRAPHIC website. To read our blog report on last year's event CLICK HERE. This is a highly recommended event.

ACA Cartoon Fundraiser for Queensland Flood Victims

While the government mucks around with levies and compulsory donation legislation, the Australian Cartoonists’ Association (ACA) is raising funds to help put flood-affected Queenslanders back on their feet in the only way we know how - drawing!

With over 75% of Queensland now flood affected, there has already been massive destruction of property, loss of homes and loss of life. The Queensland flooding is the worst on record, and is set to worsen over the coming weeks. Flood victims and rescue workers need our help and we must support them.

To raise money, the ACA is asking its members to donate an original cartoon (or signed print) preferably on the theme of Weather, but general themed cartoons will also be accepted. If you've already got some cartoons on the topic from this month send them on through!

Please note that since the floods, Cyclone Yasi has smashed into Queensland while most of us sat behind our desks. Now there's even more reason to participate in Floodlines with all money raised going to the Premier's Disaster Relief Appeal. Just a couple of years ago many ACA members helped out in the Victorian bushfire appeal which raised thousands of dollars. Now it's Queensland's turn. So please take a look at the website and send something through. There's only SEVEN days to go. Then the ACA will announce it publicly and it'll be all systems go for a great cause.

The pieces will be auctioned and sold on the floodlines.com.au website, with all proceeds going to the Premier's Disaster Relief Appeal.

Donated cartoons to be posted to:

"Floodlines QLD Fundraiser"

"The Victoria Building"

204v/162 Albert Street

East Melbourne, VIC 3002

Entries should include:

1. Brief artist bio (50 words max) - include website.

2. Where the cartoon was originally published (if published)

3. A recommended reserve price for the piece.

4. Maximum size of A3 (Black & White or Colour.)

5. If cartoon is drawn digitally, please also email a JPG file to president@cartoonists.org.au for use on the website.

DEADLINE: Friday, 11th February.

That gives you all two weeks to get your donated cartoons in. Get scribbling!

Supanova Invitation: 'Tides of Hope' Flood Relief Fund-Raising

Dear Creator, Friend and Guest of Supanova,

Australia has experienced some of its worst flooding in 100 years. People have died, entire towns and suburbs wiped off the map. Brisbane was particularly badly hit. Recovery is estimated at billions of dollars.

You know all this as we’ve all been living and breathing it together.

In an effort to help in our unique community way, Supanova is inviting you to contribute towards a 32-page benefit comic book that we are 100% financing in relation to printing and distributing it so every cent of the retail price can go to the relief effort. It will go on sale at the Supanova 2011 Expos, in Brisbane and Melbourne, which begin April 1st onwards alongside an on-line auction of the original art.

If you would like to help us by donating a 1-page script, or draw a 1-page story from a script (or in some cases do both), we would love to have you on board.

The brainchild of the project is Chris Sequeira (chrissequeira@optusnet.com.au) and he is editing it alongside co-conspirator and Supanova Art Director, Tim McEwen (tim@supanova.com.au), with Supanova’s Event Director, i.e. me, making final editorial and publishing decisions.

The parameters are:

• All work must be a completely obligation free donation; no remuneration is possible.
• If we sell out, multiple editions will be reprinted (and possibly made available at later Supanova cons in Sydney and Perth this year) so, please, if you participate, all rights are donated in perpetuity.
• Please don’t use characters you don’t own unless you are able to provide official permissions in conjunction with the deadlines provided.
• All funds raised to go to the PREMIER’S DISASTER RELIEF APPEAL.

Writers:

• Acceptance: Need your acceptance by Saturday 5th February.
• 1-page scripts only, theme is “Surviving Flood”.
• All-ages, material please.
• Script in by: Thursday 10th February.
• A signed, printed copy of the script to go in a set of all signed scripts for an on-line auction would be a welcome bonus but is not mandatory.

Artists:

• Acceptance: Need your acceptance by Saturday 5th February.
• You will be given a script by Tuesday 15th February, OR you can opt to contribute an existing original piece or pin-up.
• Complete lettered art to be emailed by Monday 8th March.
• YES! You may colour it if you wish or have a friend do the colouring and donate their colouring as part of the event. Just make sure to give us details of any additional person involved so we can credit them.
• Indicate early if you'll need us to letter it.
• Original art to be mailed to Supanova shortly thereafter and sold at on-line auction.

Obviously deadlines are strict due to very skinny timeframes therefore we ask that…

a) You reply “yes/no” very quickly as no answer will automatically be considered as “no”

b) If it’s a “yes” you commit to the above deadlines

c) If circumstances change and you don’t feel you can; tell us ASAP so we can go to our reserve list for a replacement.

Thanks for your time and please be aware that we KNOW how busy people are in general. So if you think you can’t find the time there’s zero judgement on our part as your contribution to this medium alone is something that we’re already grateful for; especially people such as myself whose stick figures are gender challenged and whose scripts end up looking like… well like this… a proposal.

Chris, Tim and I look forward to hearing from all of you.

Regards,

Daniel Zachariou

Event Director Supanova Expo

Supanova Pop Culture Industries

Phone: +61 2 8006 0569

Mobile: +61 412 026 797
Fax: +61 2 8582 8985
Email: daniel@supanova.com.au
Website: www.supanova.com.au

Aussie Comics Creator Wanted

Queensland Health is looking for a comics creator to develop a 24 page comic to raise Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander prisoners' awareness of the benefits of being smoke free.

Production of this comic would ideally involve:

* Creative facilitation preferably by indigenous facilitators of two x 6 hour workshops with Indigenous prisoners in custody in regional Queensland to develop content

* Creation of storyline

* A draft written of the comic script for approval

* Art and text

* 24 page comic with character and environment editorial

* Cover and back page

* A1 sized poster to promote issues surrounding smoking as well as promote the comic

* Development of colour 24 page comic and poster to print stage (printing will be provided by Qld Health approved printers).

Approval by Queensland Health delegates to be sought at each stage of production.

Please provide a quote and timeframe based on the above brief.

Kate Gibson

Smoking Initiative Project Manager

Offender Health Services

Queensland Health

c/- PMB 11

CQMC Qld 4702

Australia

Phone: (07) 49126259

Kate.Gibson@dcs.qld.gov.au

"Graphics Narratives" University Subject on Offer

The University of Melbourne is now offering a new subject – "Graphics Narratives" – to students enrolled in creative writing, editing and publishing courses. Students will study comics and cultural theory, contemporary criticism of comics with a focus on 20th century writers such as Robert Crumb, Art Spiegelman, Alison Bechdel, Chris Ware, Marjane Satrapi, Charles Burns, Bruce Mutard and Shaun Tan, and discuss the history and innovation of the comics writing practice. Guest tutors will present intensive workshops on drawing and storyboarding, For more information go to the University of Melbourne website or join the FaceBook page.

Adventures in Sydney Aquarium Wonderland Part 2

Here are some pretty grazing dugong (and fish) pics to arouse your interest ... and don't forget to join the Sydney Aquarium Conservation Fund. STILL TO COME: I'll post the Lego mermaid pic once Cat downloads it from her camera.

Australian 2011 Comics Convention Circuit [UPDATED]

Happy New Year, dear readers. To help all the Aussie professionals, here is a summary of the 2011 Australian Comics Convention Circuit (including two international ones) for your diaries:

Here are important comics and graphic novels calendar / diary dates for 2011:

Armageddon (Sydney): 26-27 February 2011 (The Dome, Olympic Park – Sydney Showground)

Armageddon (Adelaide): 5-6 March 2011 (Adelaide Showground)

Supanova (Brisbane): 1-3 April 2011 (RNA Showgrounds)

Supanova (Melbourne): 8-10 April 2011 (Royal Showgrounds)

Australian Comic Arts Festival (Brisbane): 4 June 2011 (The Edge Cultural Centre)

Armageddon (Tasmania): 11-12 June 2011 (Wrest Point, Hobart)

Supanova (Sydney): 17-19 June 2011 (The Dome, Olympic Park – Sydney Showground)

Supanova (Perth): 24-26 June 2011 (Claremont Showgrounds)

SMASH (Sydney): 16 July 2011 (Sydney Convention and Exhibition Centre)

San Diego ComicCon (USA): 21-24 July 2011 (San Diego Convention Center, California)

GRAPHIC (Sydney): 20-21 August 2011 (Sydney Opera House)

New York ComicCon (USA): 14-16 October 2011 (Jacob J Javits Center, New York City)

Armageddon (Melbourne): 22-23 October (Melbourne Exhibition Centre)

Doujicon (Melbourne) – TBA (venue TBA)

ASA COMICS / GRAPHIC NOVELS PORTFOLIO SPECIAL WEEKEND EVENT (Sydney) – 19-20 November 2011 (Surprises to be revealed soon! Just block off this weekend until we confirm details.)

Uncanny "Political" Lookalikes

And the Totally Looks Like pièce de résistance ... Australia's new Prime Minister, Julia Gillard. That's ma'am to you.

First Sydney Sketchmeet

Sydney artist, P J Magalhaes has organised the first "official" Sydney Sketchmeet, which is happening TODAY!!!

The idea is to get out of the house, mix with other artists, get to know each other and at the same time sketch. Artists all need some fresh air from time to time. Come, say hi to everyone, introduce yourself, and start chatting and sketching away. Feel free to start a conversation. Better yet, ask to see people's sketchbooks and share yours.

There are plenty of cafés around and other interesting places to explore. There are also lots of people to draw and always plenty of interesting characters.

Here are the details:

Date: Saturday 2 October 2010

Time: 10am to 4pm

Location: Hyde Park Sydney CBD at the Archibald Fountain (see picture above)

What to Bring: A sketchbook and something to doodle with

Goal: To sketch!!!

For further information ring PJ on 0404 353 589. You can also check out his blog here.

Sketch-o-Rama with Shaun Tan and Chewie Chan

Aussie Comics artists/illustrators extraordinaire Shaun Tan and W Chew Chan are having a 'sketch-off' this weekend. Join them in an afternoon of fun drawing games as they celebrate the release of Shaun's new book The Bird King and Other Sketches. The event is free. Here are the details:

Date: Saturday 25 September 2010

Time: 2.00 to 4.00pm

Venue: Books Kinokuniya, Level 2, The Galleries, 500 George St, Sydney NSW Australia

Cost: Free

For more info and to register your attendance, pop onto the event FaceBook page.

And for those of you who can't make it cause you live overseas, then pick up our personal favourites.

Aussie Comics Articles

Australian academics are writing more and more about Australian comics history and trends and we're discovering more and more portals of great information and some serious discourse about the subject, which in our view is a good thing. Nay, a GREAT thing!

Check out the online article "The Invisible Medium: Comics Studies in Australia" by Kevin Patrick, in Refractory: Journal of Entertainment Media. which is published by the Cinema Studies Program, School of Culture and Communication at the University of Melbourne. This is interesting in itself because we've been fielding lots of calls from screenwriters and directors who are applying for film grants that cross media platforms and who are wanting to create content for cinema, digital comics and graphic novels. It appears as though the Australian film industry is switching onto the versatility and storytelling potential of the comics medium. But hey, that's another story ....

In his article, Kevin Patrick tells us that:

The near simultaneous appearance of [recently released] works, all of which received positive reviews, suggested that Australia’s mainstream book publishers were ‘catching up’ with international trends.

Such concentrated media coverage created the false impression that the Australian graphic novel was an entirely new phenomenon, thereby ignoring earlier Australian examples of the graphic novel and bypassing any mention of Australia’s post-war comic book industry, the scale and diversity of which easily eclipsed the modest output of present-day graphic novel publishing activity.

Yet just as Australian publishers, readers and journalists have lagged behind their overseas counterparts in their critical reappraisal of comics and graphic novels, it would appear that Australian academe has been equally tardy in giving this medium serious consideration... Comics, it seems, remain an invisible medium.

But no longer. I was recently invited to attend a private function at the Pop Culture Association of Australia and New Zealand(POPCAANZ), which had added comics to a heavily laden seminar program. The academics in the room were warm, enthusiastic and completely open to the idea of comics in a way we've never experienced before. You rock, John Cockley!

We must also make special mention of Clare Snowball who has spent years researching her PhD on comics for teenagers. You can check out her website here.

The only point of contention in the Patrick article for us is about who actually popularised the term "graphic novel". Patrick credits Titan Books (UK) publicist Igor Goldkind, as the key person in 1985 but we've heard, read and seen documentary evidence that suggests that Will Eisner began using the term prodigiously during the 1970s. Indeed Wikipedia tells us:

In 1976, the term "graphic novel" appeared in print to describe three separate works. Bloodstar by Richard Corben (adapted from a story by Robert E. Howard) used the term to define itself on its dust jacket and introduction. George Metzger's Beyond Time and Again, serialized in underground comics from 1967–72, was subtitled "A Graphic Novel" on the inside title page when collected as a 48-page, black-and-white, hardcover book published by Kyle & Wheary.

The term "graphic novel" began to grow in popularity months after it appeared on the cover of the trade paperback edition (though not the hardcover edition) of Will Eisner's A Contract with God, and Other Tenement Stories (October 1978). This collection of short stories was a mature, complex work focusing on the lives of ordinary people in the real world, and the term "graphic novel" was intended to distinguish it from traditional comic books, with which it shared a storytelling medium.

Anyway, it's a small point (although it could be controversial between US and English shores).

In the meantime, we applaud the scholarly examination of comics in Australia and are learning a lot about our art form in the process. Goodonya!

Stanley Awards – New Comic Book Artist Award Announced

The Australian Cartoonists' Association (ACA) has recently launched a new "Comic Book Artist Award" category within their annual Stanley Awards, and we're pleased to say we were on the consulting team to define the scope of the award.

The submission criteria for this award is:

An artist whose published body of work consists primarily of sequential art drawn with the intention of conveying information and/or telling a story to the reader in the form of comic books (periodicals/"floppies"), graphic novels, adventure cartoon strips with serial content and zines (containing sequential art content).

The ACA Year Book is limited to half a page for award submissions, however, comic book artists will have a full page to showcase their work.

The Award winners will be announced at the 26th Stanley Awards to be held in Melbourne on 6 November 2010.

CLICK HERE for the 2010 Stanley Awards Categories and Submission Guidelines. Please note that you need to be a member of the ACA to submit your work.

Please also note that the deadline for entries has been extended to Saturday 28 August 2010.