Interview with Joe Dunn

Joe Dunn is a badass. Not only does he draw amazing looking characters, he frames up his panels with photographic precision and draws some amazing articulated backgrounds. His style is unmistakable, huge oversized eyes square almost flat hands, both with oodles of _expression.

His comic Joe Loves Crappy Movies is awesome. Each comic is a gag based on a (often crappy) movie that is currently in theaters. Each movie has an elaborate review by Joe attached. Genius ehh? Great art, funny gags, a topic we can all enjoy.

Here's the Q & A.


STUMBLEBUM STUDIOS - Holy moley Joe, How many comics are you drawing right now and how often do you do them?

JOE DUNN - Well, Coffee Achiever just ended so technically it's 3 right now, but my second project with Mitch Clem should be starting up in about a month. It's called Rain Dogs and right now it's just an idea and some sketches. Even I don't know too much about the story but from what I've gathered it's Serenity meets Waterworld. Is that too random? We'll see. People could be begging for Coffee Achievers 2 after 4 strips of Rain Dogs. I'm just happy to be drawing.

SS - On top of all these comics you also watch a lot of movies and write pretty long reviews for each one. Do you ever sleep?

JD - I sleep during the previews. Naw I get by. If I could actually do without sleep the comics would update twice a day.

SS - 3. Where'd you learn to draw like that?

JD - I'm not sure really. I mean, I've been drawing all my life and I did go to art school at Parsons school of Design, but I wasn't drawing in this style when I left there. It was similar but different. I would say my current style is a combination of that training and a necessity to work fast. When stuff needs to get done right away, you learn how to make it work, you know? And the current style has definitely evolved over the past couple of years. Go check out the early Free Lunch or Matriculated strips. Gah! Just… bad. I find it very comforting that over time you get comfortable> with certain things in the way you work, and you get better at certain things. It gives me hope that the strips will continue to grow.

SS - . Mitch claims you can draw really fast, what's your process for making comics and how long does it take?

JD - I can draw reasonably fast. At a convention or doing incentive images I'll bang them out in like 10 minutes. Partly because they don't have to look perfect, they just have to be passable. It's amazing how fast you can move when you're not worried about the finished product being absolutely flawless.
Actually sometimes that can yield some of the best work. I find I'm really stiff with my strips. It's always cool to loosen up and see what happens. For the strips I focus a lot harder. From sketches to finish the whole
process takes between 2 and 6 hours depending on how complicated the subject matter is. It's not so bad. On a good evening I can get a few strips done.

SS- . Joe Loves Crappy Movies is an excellent idea for a webcomic. It's funny, good gags, topical.. everybody loves movies. How did you come up with this idea?

JD - I just really liked movies and talking about movies. For about 2 years before actually starting the strip I would rate movies and talk to people about them or talk about them on my board. Stuff like that. I would sneak out on Sunday mornings to catch matinees of absolute garbage movies. When it's 10 am and you're sitting alone in a giant theater watching Son of the Mask - it's time to make a commitment. I decided in December of 04 that it had to happen. I had to do it. If I didn't then I would just keep wanting to do it. Turned out pretty well though. It's an amazing release to just unload all that information into my own little personal movie watching history. It's the sort of thing where 10 years from now I'll look back, laugh, and just say "Why the hell did I see Bloodrayne?" Hell I'm, looking back 10 days later and saying "Why the hell did I see Bloodrayne." Joining the comic with review just seemed like a natural connection. Otherwise I would just be some third rate Theater Hopper rip off. And the reviews are a blast to write. They've gotten pretty complicated over the last year with the ratings and DVD recommendations and trailer reviews and
such. But it's still a lot of fun and the response is good. I'll often get people saying they don't always agree with me, but love hearing what I have to say. Such is the curse of loving crap ass movies.

SS - Rank the following modern film gods, greatest to weakest, please show work.

Wes Anderson
The Coen Brothers
Guillermo Del Torro

JD - Wow tough one, but I think I'll let them ride in the order you presented
them.

Wes Anderson has a real special place in my heart and as much as I loved Bottle Rocket, his movie just keep getting better. Every time he puts out a movie I end up revaluating my life on some level and discovering some AMAZING song that I'd never heard before even though it'd been around
forever. I just love the worlds he creates. I feel very comfortable in them.

The Coen's would have been the obvious answer as the best of the three, and in the long run - yeah I'll give it to them. They've had a huge influence on modern cinema. I think the Big Lebowski will go down as one
of the greatest cult movies of our generation. There have been some missteps though. When a Coen Brother's movie comes out and it's not worth seeing, there's a problem. I really want them to have another Fargo . Another Raising Arizona. I could do with less of The Lady Killers though.

With Del Torro I've only seen the big movies. Love Blade 2, Love Hellboy. Not only are they fan boy wet dreams but they represent to a degree what the crappy movies strip is all about. Not everyone is going to be drawn to seeing Blade 2, but that movie is sweet! If I draw a comic on that, write a little review, and people check it out because of that - awesome. I think he needs to prove himself a little more to be listed next to the Coens and Anderson, but I certainly do have a lot of love for his movies and his style.

SS - . Do you always win at Pictionary?

JD - No, and people assume I will which is really annoying. Here's the deal with pictionary: It's all about breaking it down. You don't want a photo realistic or even good-looking cartoon of a duck; you want a circle with a beak. I'll be sitting there drawing my ass off and by the time I've got a sweet looking webbed foot the next team is three words ahead. The trick is to simplify, and that can be hard to do for someone that is
drawing every day. My natural instincts are to get complicated. Flesh things out. You can't do that it Pictionary. I will straight up kick your ass at Chinese Checkers though.

SS - The population of the earth is rapidly increasing. Obesity levels are doing the same. If all this extra weight caused the earth to rotate slower it would mean longer days. At least that's what they tell me in my mind. If the days were longer by like two or three more hours, how many comics
do you think you would draw?

JD - I've actually thought the exact same thing before. Ok, I haven't, but that would have been cool. With an extra few hours I could get an extra comic done but the truth is I would probably waste the time watching
another movie or playing some video game or getting fatter. You know, doing my part to slow the earths spin.

Check out Joe's mad skills at http://www.digitalpimponline.com/


And as always check out Dave's mindless pap at http://www.culturalvoid.net