Adam and Patrick don’t let no stinkin’ ocean get in the way when it comes to the comic creation process. That’s why there was no hesitation when it came to scheduling an interview with Palle Schmidt, an artist, storyteller, and educator, from Denmark. Tjek det ud! That’s “check it out” in Danish, in case you didn’t feel like Googling it. You’re welcome.
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I have to admit, I’d been looking forward to this interview for a little while. Not only am I a fan of what Palle is doing with his site but I was very curious what the comic scene was like in Copenhagen. You see, the extent of my traveling is limited to the U.S. so I don’t get to travel internationally. When I get an opportunity to talk to someone living in another country, whether it’s about comics or the weather, count me in.
Talking to Palle was no let down. Learning about his process and his take on comic creation was well worth the wait. The topics ranged from the lack of comics in Copenhagen to scripting to using frustration as a learning tool for finding your own successful comic creation process. Enjoy!
Links:
Palle’s Twitter: @comix4beginners, @Palle_Schmidt
Palle’s graphic novels, Stiletto and Devil’s Concubine
Palle’s first podcast
Essex County (Jeff Lemire)
Saga (Fiona Staples)
Intro & Outro Song:
“RetroFuture Clean” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Outro Song Behind Vocals:
“Backed Vibes (clean)” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Transitions:
InceptionBrassHitMedium.wav: Herbert Boland / www.freesound.org
Old Fashion Radio Jingle 2.wav: club sound / www.freesound.org
makingcomics.com
Great podcast! I’ve been following Palle’s work on his website so it was a nice surprise to hear from him on here as well.
You guys were talking about how Jason Brubaker’s unique way of making comics and I think the reason why Jason Brubaker is able to compose “one page at a time” so effectively is because he makes each panel separately and then pieces the pages together in photoshop. That makes it very easy for him to scrap or add anything needed. (I was noticing this when I was looking at his thumbnails for sithrah – you can see where he’ll add or take away panels that were never in the original thumbnails.) As opposed to drawing an entire page and then realizing it doesn’t work, he instead draws the panels and then can play with arranging them. Plus reMIND took him like 10 years to draw so he had plenty of time to think about the story. =)
Hurrah! Palle is wonderful, a very open and friendly person. I was super stoked to see this podcast here. Especially after the one with Jason Brubaker as their creation styles seem so different. Palle has such a strong focus on knowing where you are going first and Jason seems to let his project flow out more organically. (on that note, great comments above, GaBe). Of all the helpful things i got from his website, his focus on story was sooo essential. As I just read in the introduction to the Black and White ZOT! anthology “artists with delusions that they can write are more common than the reverse because their delusions can’t be dispelled as easily.” Yep, that’s me.
As an ambassador of comics, Palle is top notch. He was the first professional that i reached out to directly and his openness and desire to teach is exactly the opposite of what i thought I would find. Additionally I find his website to be complimentary this one, rather than redundant so definitely check it out.
Thanks GaBe and Michael! Although I’m a bit hurt you expected the direct opposite of “openess and a desire to teach” from me, Mike! Ha ha!
It’s true that me and Jason Brubaker seem like different ends of the spectrum when it comes to putting a story together. In the prevois episode of this podcast he talks about how he writes the dialogue AFTER drawing the pages! VERY different approach. But it seems to work great for him. I just think the rest of us amateurs need a road map 🙂
Brubaker and I are similar though in the fact that we both took ten years to complete a book! And I think his entire online approach and how he shares his knowledge on his remindblog is awesome. And a huge influence on comicsforbeginners.com as well! If you can get ahold of his book, Unnatural Talent, you’ll get even MORE useful information on the whole marketing and production part of the process.
I really enjoyed chatting with Adam and Patrick and I’m hoping I get to meet them in the flesh at SDCC this year. Maybe meet you guys as well?
Again, thanks for the kind words and encouragement!
-Palle
Awesome podcast as always guys, many thanks! Appreciate your efforts…
This one with Palle is by far my favourite, both funny and inciteful, please bring him back at a later date, maybe when Palle can share his new project explaining some of the issues he encountered etc?
Elizabeth, thank you very much! This talk with Palle was a blast so I’m glad you enjoyed it, too. I’d love to have him back on the podcast sometime, too.
I had to come back to this podcast just so I could express my appreciation. I am now catching up on some that I had missed.
Everything you guys said about the creative process, basically finding your own way using your own skills to tell your own story, is dead on. When I began my artist recovery I spent a short amount of time in regret for letting my skills dwindle. With a little written encouragement from Julia Cameron (the Artist’s Way) and Malcolm Gladwell (Outliers), I decided to go for it, to let my art exist in whatever form it came forth. Allowing myself to actually complete something really did increase my confidence and desire to create.
Keep up the great work! I love this podcast!
-Aaron
Aaron, thank you! It means a lot that you say all that (and not just because my brother’s name is Aaron, too!).