Lives in Art
Comic auteurism emerged with the ‘60s underground comix movement, which presented genuine human frailty as an antidote to the muscle-bound superhero series of Marvel and DC. But it really blossomed with the graphic novel revolution of the ‘80s and ‘90s, which saw a new breed of small presses provide outlets for comic artists trafficking in adult themes, dark worldviews and unconventional genres like memoir, history, and even journalism. Interestingly, while mainstream Hollywood has lately sought independent directors like Sam Raimi and Darren Aronofsky to breathe life into moribund comic franchises, independent cinema has begun recognizing the legitimacy of these comic auteurs, as evidenced by Daniel Clowes’ admission into the film world with Ghost World and the upcoming Art School Confidential, or the note-perfect translation of Frank Miller’s dystopian universe in this spring’s Sin City. Still, cartooning is not exactly a lucrative profession, and these success stories aside, the vast majority of serious comic artists are in it for sheer love of the craft. The same can be said for their counterparts in animation. Outside of last year’s The Incredibles, Hollywood has remained myopically fixated on ultra-safe family fare and CG realism, so animators pursuing mature subjects or employing more traditional hand-drawn styles are typically relegated to the cable TV universe of Adult Swim, music videos, or perhaps the distant outskirts of indie film. As long as studio execs continue to see men in tights, cartoon animals, and effects-driven spectacle as all comic artists and animators have to offer, these creators’ existences will likely remain modest. But as any poet knows, poverty brings with it a certain kind of purity, and today there are more talented artists pushing the boundaries of comics and animation than ever before. This issue is about them.
RES, Vol. 8, No. 4
“Comics and Animation”
July/August 2005
