PPP: Mike Mignola Talk

Here are the notes taken from the Mike Mignola talk (apologies if they seem a little brief but the dude can talk FAST). I loved hearing Mike speak, it felt very honest. He spoke of his successes but he spoke of his failures too and I always think that makes for a great artist (a great person really who can talk about failings). He had such passion for fun and drawing, he seemed to have love most of the work he had done which was really refreshing. His love for drawing was something that came through, sometimes you'll have a talk with someone who just loves colour or just likes to draw other things that they saw like a cult movie or whatever but with Mike you could just FEEL how much he loved to be immersed in his world, in his ideas and to just draw for the love of drawing.

10 years of professional comic book making
started as an inker - I'm not good enough to draw comics so i'll become an inker
most of my career was me trying not to embarrass myself
**Gotham Gaslight**
**Frank Miller**

If im going to do my own thinking.. I need to do something that is made entirely of the things I like.
On my deathbed at least I'll have made something that's "me".
**Mike Richardson Head of Dark Horse**

Im doing my own comics just because I like them.
Ive been working 7 day weeks for as long as I can remember.
Normally I have 3/4 ideas in my head at a time.
Everything I've done is for "ooh that looks like it could be fun"
*Did a 40 page alien story right before hellboy*

There's a lesson right there -- dont make things just for money.

I was asked to do a drawing I'd drawn a monster for fun. I remember thinking 'that was fun'. it was this barbarian monster thing. A couple years later I kept drawing him.
Maybe because I did him just for fun, maybe I would enjoying drawing him. I just knew I'd get bored drawing regular guys.

I knew as an artist..  I knew how to draw stuff. I never set out to be a writer, the idea's are just bits and pieces. I feel like I'm just throwing them over my shoulder and someone is trying to piece them all together.
I have a big library, i did some research into it. The man in the back something in the back of the brain putting stuff together.

'thank god that this stuff sells'
when i've got a beginning and the end and a couple of good bits in the middle then i start thumbnailing the story.
Things sort of happen, but ive got these markers I have got to get too. Sometimes Im scripting as i go, if you see original versions there will be 3/6 lines of other dialogue there too.

I just want to draw for fun but what is that? will that feel like a job? how can I make stuff for me?
Atlantis - the disney film thing was weird. How did anyone there even see my work!?  for whatever reason they wanted my style.
For comics you get paid by the page but they pay you by the hour there! I could have milked that thing for alot longer really!!

How do I split up my hours? I get up and go to the studio and Im there til dinner. Sometimes Id go back home for dinner and go back to work. 2 days a week I go to the gym.

Creating Landscape closeups. because I got really into designing my pages, i got into the habit of just adding things to build up any kind of tension. you have to come up with a different language to create an atmosphere.

What are your influences?
Im influenced by a lot of things, frank rosetta, bernie rights, how are you going to solve a problem? mostly inspired by painters. These lines make along im coming up with my own way. I dont wear my influences on my sleeves.

Illustrators starting art --- your style finds you. You can sit down and say 'this is my style' but could you sustain that? you just have to do your own kind of work. Certain tendancies in your work, things you seem to naturally do. Some guys they hit the ground running. Drawing is evolution. Ive never had a day where Ive sat down and thought oh hey i know what im doing.

I just knew what my stories were meant to feel like. Part of the style thing is embracing the squishiness of things. try to keep SOME things the same (not all) but i try to keep my things fluid.
I dont know what it is about monster, i read draqula when i was 13 and thats all i wanted to do.

(on stopping writing/creating hellboy) I lost my ability to make choices, i couldnt settle on one things. I could write for somebody else but when youre drawing your own thing and theres nothing to stop you thinking this or that. I got swamped by too many choices.

I love to draw writing is good to a certain point but i love to draw.