08-28-01

I'm moving right along on Zed #3 and should have it back from the printer around the beginning of December. I am glad to see myself really improving from issue to issue. It's very gratifying. I will be posting a few of the inside pages soon, so stay tuned.

All work and no play is not good, so I went to John Dillon's party last Saturday, and it was great. John and I have been friends and co-worker for many years. For those who don't know, John is currently the special FX guru on the Powerpuff Girl Movie. John is also the guitar playing party expert!! He showed me the trailer for his proposed show (Boris and Leech) and I was really impressed. Nice stuff!

It was a pleasure, as usual, to have a chat with my good friend Jon Hooper (Evil Cartoons, Animation Meat ). Hoops is a totally cool guy and a really talented artist. I met Jon at Sheridan College (Toronto, Canada) in 1983 and we have been friends since! We did the Night Club scene in Ireland from 1987-89 (An hilarious and over the top phase of our lives). While in Ireland we even collaborated (with Jon doing most of the work) on a series of animation notes (Ten Steps to a Perfect Inbetween). Then back in California, he helped me a lot on Prelude to Eden. We actually started scanning in his bedroom!

Also in attendance was Dan Kuenster, the animation machine. One of the few man in the industry who can storyboard an entire feature by himself! I met Dan in 1986 at Don Bluth Studios, and I really like him. We always seem to run into each other at parties. I showed Dan my books and he was really into it. I always love to share my projects with people.

If you are in the L.A. area make sure you stop by Stephanie's Art Gallery, in La Canada. They are currently exhibiting several of my paintings and sculptures. For info you can call them at (818) 790-4905.

08-13-01

Upon visiting the Mile High Comics website yesterday, I found Chuck Rozanski's (Mile High's owner) review of Zed #1 & 2. Here is a copy of the review:

"An incredible new comic by Michel Gagné called ZED. Michel has a great resume, including many years as an artist with the Don Bluth animation studios. The basic plot of ZED is an Intergalactic talent competition in which things go completely awry, setting the stage for a cosmic war. All this is triggered by a seemingly innocent creature named Zed, who is swept up in events far beyond his control. He has nothing but the best of intentions, but in the first two issues is overwhelmed by the events transpiring around him. The closest title I can equate this book to is BONE. It has wonderful art, and a story that is both endearing and compelling. You immediately like Zed, and can't help but wonder what is causing all the craziness in his life. I am very much looking forward to reading issue #3!"

Both issues are available through their site. They even posted the entire first issue for people to read! Note: Zed #2 is now also available on Amazon.com as well as directly from us.

08-02-01

We have received a lot of e-mails lately asking us if it was possible to order books or prints directly from us. Well, now you finally can! Just go to our Ordering & Contact Info page. As an extra bonus, we are only charging 5¢ per item for shipping. You can even pay with your credit card!

On a different note... A couple of months ago, I was contacted by Tao Nguyen, who's a clean up artist at Disney. We ended up having lunch, and he brought his portfolio for me to have a look at. Tao is a super nice guy, and a really sharp artist. He told me he was in the process of building a website which would feature galleries of professional animators / illustrators and he wanted me to be one of the featured artist. I said sure, why not!

The site called www.prosketch.com is now up and running. It features really cool artists such as Tao Nguyen, John Pomeroy, Tom Sito, Sean Gallimore, Matt Busch and more. Make sure you check it out. Good luck with the site Tao!

It looks like I'm gonna be working away on Powerpuff Girls: The Movie for the next six weeks. My friend John Dillon, who's running the FX on the show, has asked me to give him a hand. I'll be juggling my time between that, the comic series (Zed) and my next two books (Frenzied Fauna and The Towers of Numar). Very busy schedule ahead...

07-25-01

07-17-01

We will be leaving for the Comic-Con early tomorrow morning. We hope to see some of you over there. Please, make sure you stop by our table and say hi. If you're there on Thursday don't forget to come to my presentation. I will be showing lots of artwork, including a video presentation of my special effects work on Osmosis Jones.

... and to make sure you have something new to read and look at during my absence, I added seven new pages in the gallery (under film works) as well as the introduction to the "Insanely Twisted Rabbits" in the book section. Lots of fun stuff!

07-11-01

Just dropped a bunch of Zed #2 at Golden Apple and Meltdown Comics in Hollywood, and Astounding in Burbank (Buena Vista & Olive). This is your chance to get the issue a full three months before it actually hits the stands nationwide. So if you are in the L.A. area, make sure you visit one of these fine stores.

07-06-01

More updates in the books section. You can now have a look at the covers and read synopsis from Zed #3 and #4.

07-03-01

Amid Amidi (famous animation journalist and critic) just sent me a text copy of The Great Shadow Migration review that appeared in Animation Blast magazine #5. I posted it here for your reading enjoyement.

07-01-01

Hello everyone! We have been on line for 4 months, and I hope you like how the site has evolved. This is truly a work in progress. All your comments have been really helpful. So keep 'em comin'!

Zed #1 is now available through July's Previews - The Comic Shop Catalog (page 272). It even received a spotlight (these items are not to be missed!). Make sure your comic retailer is aware and orders in sufficent quantity!

In the past few weeks I have received a lot of emails from people wanting to publish their own comic books. One of the recurring question is: what do I send the printer? Well, I found a book recently which outline the process quite well. The writing could be a little clearer but it will definitely answer a lot of questions. The book is called Digital Prepress for Comic Books. If you're serious about self-publishing comics, this is a good tool to have.