The Floating Island

UFO Response Team - Ken

2010-08-26T18:57:44Z

So, I saw these guys driving east on Lincoln this morning, around 9:15 AM or so.

Photo by Timoni

This isn't the actual car that I saw; I tried to get a shot of it myself, but of course my piece of shit WinMo phone camera chose that perfect moment to crash, as it so often does. The shot in fact is from a Flickr user - and if you search for "UFO Response Team," you'll find a whole lot more. Not just from San Francisco, but from all over the place. The one I saw was nearly identical, though - a refurbished police cruiser, the top having been spray-painted a matte black to try to match the rest of the car, Response Team decal on the back, UFO "tally" on the bumper.

In fact, they seem to have their own website. A privately funded organization, clearly, if they can't afford a better than a blogger site. ;)

Either they're crazy enough to actually be trying to find UFOs, in which case my hat's off to them - or it's an art stunt. If it's the latter - what do you feel they're trying to say?

Artist aggro - Ken

2010-08-10T22:12:47Z

All of we Island denizens are creatives, covering the range from hobbyist to amateur to semi-pro to professional. On a regular basis, we take these creative activities that we love - writing, drawing, mixing, designing - and we ask ourselves, "Is there any way I could do this all the time, and support myself with it? Can I find a way to get by in this world, doing these things I enjoy? And if so, how?"

That being the case, I've been idly clicking back to this thread, which has been generating quite a buzz among Deviants and other creatives on the net.

]]> In summary, Christopher Gregorio is a 16 year old flash game developer, who has been able to generate some tens of thousands of dollars in profit. For a struggling fledgling, that's not too shabby!

In May 2010, he made the blog post that you'll find at the above link. Here is Object Lesson #1 - no matter how insignificant your little blog in your little corner of the web, somebody who doesn't like you can find that post and blow it up so huge you'll never be able to live it down.

Despite the cries of outrage and claims of eternal vengeance from the amateur art community, I have a feeling that this whole little internet fiasco will have blown over in about a week. However, it's a dialogue that is worth paying attention to, as it raises a number of questions that are vitally important for creators who are trying to make a living at what they do in this day and age.

I'm not going to get into arguing for one side or other - you can find comments sections for that in plenty of places. (Although, only a few commenters are actually handling the conversation with intelligence or tact - it is, after all, the Internet.) Rather, I'll just present some of the major talking points.

Part of the art of business is finding the best quality you can for the lowest price you can. If Resource A and Resource B are of comparatively equal quality, but one costs more, and you decide to pay the one that costs more, as a business person are you making the correct decision?
Many amateur artists will charge below-average prices for their services, due to inexperience or youth or desperation. If you take them up on this offer, knowing that other artists would charge more, does that mean you are exploiting them?
Is an freelance/contract artist working on a project entitled to know how much money the project makes?
On small projects, what is the value of profit-sharing?
On small projects, is it better sense to involve everyone as partners, or to aim for a more studio-like approach?
The author of the original piece advocates targeting younger, inexperienced creators, withholding all payment to the artist until project completion, as well as trumping up early deadlines and penalizing the artist for failing to meet those deadlines. Ethically, that is all obviously shaky at best, reprehensible at worst. But, as the viewpoint of a young, moderately successful developer, do you feel this attitude is likely to lead him to success or failure in the long run?
The language in the original post is pretty inflammatory, from the perspective of a struggling artist. Do you feel the art community's reaction is appropriate, constructive, or abusive - taking into account the OP's age and his target audience (young people needing to learn how to manage work for hire)?

Finally, Encyclopedia Dramatica sums things up thusly:

The entire debate in a nutshell

"FFS HE ONLY PAID ME $15 FOR THIS COMMISSION AND HE IS USING IT FOR A FUCKING MASSIVE PROJECT I FUCKING HATE HIM"
"How much did you ask for?"
"$15"

In conclusion, the entirety of DeviantART is fucking retarded.

While my sympathies are always with the artist, I have to say this sentiment is not entirely inaccurate. You might not want to work with this guy, but you need a correct understanding of why that is. Rather than being angry on the internet, let's form working partnerships with people who want to support us in the same way we want to support them. Let's be smart about what we do. Let's have these discussions and learn from them. Let's do the research on how the business works, rather than having a knee-jerk reaction and then patting ourselves on the back. Shall we?

Also see: Jon Jones' critique.

Testing2 - Tamara

2010-08-03T18:03:03Z

Troubleshootin'.

Sucker Punch - Ken

2010-08-03T07:16:18Z

My favorite Youtube comments so far:
"It's as if DeviantArt became a movie!"
"This is going to make so much sense."

Ten Stupid Questions with Paige Braddock - Jaybeans

2010-07-29T05:01:22Z

Editor's note: This was originally filled out on September 13nd, 2003

In which city do you work?
Sebastopol, California

What got you into comics and animation?
I've always liked comics... Since I was 7... Mostly I was inspired by the Sunday comics page in the newspaper.

Where do babies come from?
Mommy and Daddy, or sometimes just Mommy, with help from an anonymous Daddy.

Where do you see yourself in five years?
Hopefully doing Jane's World comic books full time.

What do you feel you have yet to do?
See Alaska in person.

Does this make me look fat?
Only when you put that pillow up your shirt.

Which of your projects are you the most proud of?
My new trade paperback that collects the first 6 issues into one book... Mostly because I got someone to proof read it and so I fixed all the typos.

Who are your influences, inside or outside of comics?
Charles Schulz, George Herriman, Wynsor McCay, Clint Eastwood.

Does this look infected to you?
I'm not sure, but definitely don't scratch it.

What advice would you give a person trying to break into the industry?
Just do it, but don't wear Nike's. Follow your dream. Write from the heart. Be authentically you.

Let Me In - Ken

2010-07-26T04:55:30Z

For the record, you should probably see Let the Right One In first, as it's a remarkable film. But there's some good buzz hovering around this remake, so you may want to keep an eye on it.

Ten Stupid Questions with Steve Bissette - Jaybeans

2010-07-22T05:00:27Z

Editor's note: This was originally filled out on September 23rd, 2003

In which city do you work?
CITY? You're joking, right? I'm in the middle of the fucking woods.

What got you into comics?
Reading comics. Duh.

Where do babies come from?
Vaginas. Unless they are hacked from the womb.

Where do you see yourself in five years?
Not answering these questions.

What do you feel you have yet to do?
Answer five more of these moronic queries.

Does this make me look fat?
Getting thinner all the time...

Which of your projects are you the most proud of?
My son. Wait, is he a project?

Who are your influences, inside or outside of comics?
My parents, my childhood friend Mitch Casey, my art teacher Bill Cathey, Ray Harryhausen, Joe Kubert, Sam Glanzman, Mario Bava, Sergio Leone, Greg Irons, Nicolas Roeg, Alan Moore.
Does this look infected to you?
Yes. Cut it off, quickly.

What advice would you give a person trying to break into the industry?
Leave the village now, before the sun sets.

Ten Stupid Questions with Neal Adams - Jaybeans

2010-07-15T04:59:07Z

Editor's note: This was originally filled out on September 5th, 2003

In which city do you work?
I work in the City of Lost Souls.

What got you into comics?
My pedal extremities.

Where do babies come from?
Faw down da chimbly an catch 'em on firs bounce.

Where do you see yourself in five years?
Looking back to see where I was 5 years ago.

What do you feel you have yet to do?
I have yet to press 380 pounds and catch a sixth baby for son Josh to play with.

Does this make me look fat?
Yes it does but if you push the mirror in on both sides that will go away.

Which of your projects are you the most proud of?
My latest

Who are your influences, inside or outside of comics?
You, Daddy.

Does this look infected to you?
No, don't worry there's nothing wrong. (Pick at it.)

What advice would you give a person trying to break into the industry?
Industry? Industry? Slamming pistons. Wings over the World. Hydrogen power. Eruptive explosive driving pulsating dynamic machines of the future... uh... what was that question?

Beginnings and Endings - Ken

2010-07-12T04:37:41Z

Lali Singh of Sanai Sampura, India, was born with two faces, and lived for two months, according to the Wikipedia entry. Somewhat different than the condition of being a conjoined twin, Lali's condition was caused by an overabundance of a type of protein involved in the development of facial features.

How might our lives be different if we could look in two directions at once? How might language be different, if we could express two things at once? How might our lives be different if we could sing with two voices, smile with two smiles, cry twice as hard?

After she passed, it is said that they planned to build a temple in her memory. Here in the western Empire, we do not build temples to honor those so marked by difference. Mainly we bury them, and construct powerful dreams from their ashes. It's a different tradition.

Create the world - Ken

2010-07-09T21:43:26Z

Like puzzles, games, logic, fantasy, and world-building? Or perhaps, like me, you just have a god complex? Either way, you should go and play Doodle God. Like, right now. Frighteningly simple, frighteningly creative, frighteningly addictive.

Ten Stupid Questions with Peter David - Jaybeans

2010-07-08T04:57:19Z

Editor's note: This was originally filled out on August 21st, 2003

In which city do you work?
I don't work in a city. I work in a village.

What got you into comics?
Haircuts. When I was a kid, my barber had stacks of them, and he was real slow, so I always had to wait a while and had plenty of time to read.

Where do babies come from?
Big babies, who then become adults.

Where do you see yourself in five years?
I don't.

What do you feel you have yet to do?
Five more questions after this one.

Does this make me look fat?
No, but that does.

Which of your projects are you the most proud of?
My kids.

Who are your influences, inside or outside of comics?
My friends and family.

Does this look infected to you?
Christ, yes. That'll have to come off.

What advice would you give a person trying to break into the industry?
Don't get caught.

I'mma gonna hurt som'tin. - Forums

2010-07-04T15:14:47Z

Oi. My blog hates me. Tam

Test Pattern - Ken

2010-07-04T10:19:54Z

My humblest apologies for the dearth of content. There were a couple of weeks of serious crunch going on at work, and a couple of weeks of visiting a strange and pleasant world. More updates to come. In the meantime, spend a little moment with the Sad Cow.

Ten Stupid Questions with Jimmy Palmiotti - Jaybeans

2010-07-01T04:56:07Z

Editor's note: This was originally filled out on August 23th, 2003

In which city do you work?
brooklyn ny

What got you into comics?
loved them as a kid, so figured a way to make a living out of them.

Where do babies come from?
who's babies? I have none, so "my balls" cant be an accurate answer.

Where do you see yourself in five years?
in a bigger home, with Amanda Conner, not worrying about the bills, looking out the window and commenting on how nuclear explosions look

What do you feel you have yet to do?
make a movie, write a novel, kill a shark with my hands and love everyone.

Does this make me look fat?
like a pig.

Which of your projects are you the most proud of?
Jonah hex and daughters of the dragon, and the projects near my home where I buy my weed.

Who are your influences, inside or outside of comics?
amanda conner, my mom and dad, and paul newman.

Does this look infected to you?
no, just bad lighting.

What advice would you give a person trying to break into the industry?
shut up and braw you whining bitch!

Ten Stupid Questions with Gerry Alanguilan - Jaybeans

2010-06-24T04:55:13Z

Editor's note: This was originally filled out on September 23th, 2003

In which city do you work?
San Pablo City, Laguna, Philippines

What got you into comics and animation?
The girl made me do it. It's true. I was looking for a job that would bring me to America and I thought comics could do it. And I was right. But it took me too long to do it, years in fact, that by the time I was able to get a job in comics and stepped on American soil a couple of years later, the girl had left me and married a Texan.

Where do babies come from?
Eggs, I think.

Where do you see yourself in five years?
In five years I'll see myself where I always have...the mirror.

What do you feel you have yet to do?
I think I have to brush my teeth. It's been two days. After that, I still want to write and pencil on a regular basis.

Does this make me look fat?
Only on Tuesdays.

Which of your projects are you the most proud of?
My self published comic book Wasted. It's currently being shot as an indie movie.

Who are your influences, inside or outside of comics?
David Mazzucchelli, Nestor Redondo, Alex Niño, Alan Moore, Frank Miller, Paul Grist, Geof Darrow, Francisco Coching, Fernando Amorsolo, Juan Luna, Peter Jackson, Richard Taylor, Bruce Springsteen, Mike Kaluta, Berni Wrightson, Mike Mignola, Barry Windsor Smith, Al Williamson

Does this look infected to you?
Infected? It looks dead. And it smells bad. With maggots on it. I hate maggots.

What advice would you give a person trying to break into the industry?
Stuff the stupid questions. Then write or draw, or color. ALL THE TIME. You have to want to do comics so bad that you're willing to sacrifice the time and lots of other things just to do it right. Never be discouraged by setbacks. Just keep on doing it and doing it and doing it until you get it.