THE SIMPSONS NEWS
So the Simpsons Movie is out and the response from most everyone has been real positive. According to The Numbers and Box Office Mojo, it made $74,036,787 the first weekend and it’s up to $97,222,671 as of the time of this writing, which is really great. And that’s just the domestic gross. As an artist, any successful animated movie is good because it means more work for us. But of course this one means more to me personally because I worked on it. In any case, we are very happy about how the film is doing. Although, as of the time of this writing, no one from my family has actually seen it. I have had friends that have though, and they tell me they enjoyed it.
As far as work on the show goes, it’s not going well at all. The movie really did a number on the shows. We are very behind on many of them. The retakes department is flooded with work that needs to get done. Retakes is a department that deals with fixing thing on the finalized color version of a show that comes back wrong from Korea (where they do the final animation). They also rework scenes that have been rewritten. On Tuesday I was one of three crew members that got taken off Lance’s crew for the rest of the week to help out the retakes department. Needless to say it’s a bit annoying for all of us. Especially since I was going at a decent pace on Lance’s show. Lance’s show is now going to be late because of this. This is really bad. It means everyone will be working late to try to catch up to regular schedules. Like I said in my interview on The Catholic Insider, things sometimes get very stressful. To make it worse, the last retake scene handed to me has a crowd of kids in it. MAN, I hate drawing crowds!
COMIC CON
My trip to Comic Con began badly. Taking care of my baby daughter in the morning before I left made me a bit late. I left the house thirty minutes after I intended to leave. It was going to be a two hour drive to San Diego and I wanted to get there when the doors opened so I could get my on-site professional registration done and over with quickly. It took two hours and thirty minutes to get there because I ran into some random traffic. Once at San Diego, it was hell on earth just to find parking. San Diego has all these one way streets that, if you don’t know the city well, can get you really frustrated. The traffic was horrible in the city, EVERYONE was looking for parking. Luckily, I remembered I found parking five years ago south of the convention center so I headed in that direction and I found a place to park. This took about thirty minutes. I got to the convention center an hour off schedule.
Once in the convention center I stood in line to register at the professional’s booth. Usually I pre-register and get in for free, but this time I had forgotten to do so, so for the first time in thirteen years of going to the Con I paid to get in. While in line I found out that the water I had set aside to bring along with me wasn’t in my backpack. I realized, to my annoyance, I had left it at home. The Con has drinking fountains but I was stuck in line, so I couldn’t get a drink and I was really thirsty. An hour and a half later, I got my badge and drank some water at a drinking fountain (I refused to buy a bottle of the ridiculously overpriced water they were selling) then I went inside to walk around.
As it always does, the Con overwhelmed my senses as I walked into the Dealer’s Hall. Geekiness oozed as far as the eyes could see while mobs of the geek elite walked purposely from place to place. I happen to enter the Con right by the Wizards of the Coast (WoC) booth. I saw a line where people were rolling a giant 20 sided die in order to win a free WoC product. One of my personal favorite WoC games is Dreamblade
. I saw they were giving some boosters away so instead of starting my quest for art items I could only get at the Con, I thought I’d stand in the small line to try to get a Dreamblade booster pack.
The line was short and after about ten minutes it was my turn. Unfortunately in order to roll the die, you needed to have been shown a demo of one of the games that the people at the WoC booth were trying to sell. Since I hadn’t participated in a demo, I couldn’t get an item. The guy, told me if I participated in a demo I’d be moved to the front of the line when it was over but I just didn’t have time to do that so I just left. So far my Comic Con had been really annoying and tiring.
I then started my trek through the Con. As I always do, I started at one end and walked up and down the rows till I got to the other end. It took about five hours I think. I saw so many interesting things. In all the times I’ve gone to the Con I’ve always forgotten to bring a camera. It’s so annoying. I always remember when I see something I would like a picture of. Like some of the sculptures of movie, game, and comic characters. Or the crazy colored Darth Vader helmets or the crazy colored Bart Simpson heads. Then there was that awesome life size Adam Hughes drawing of the Star Wars Legacy Jedi on the Dark Horse booth. There was a giant Voldemort statue on top of another booth and a life size Optimus Prime in another. That’s only SOME of what was there and I don’t have pictures of any of it. Aaaaahh!
On my trek through the Con, I passed my friend Aimiee’s booth and I took some of her postcards that she had out for free. I bought a few books of sketches from different artists and I paid very close attention to how artists promoted themselves and their comics (for when I have to do it). The whole time I was there, my main goal was to look for anything I might get inspiration from for my web comic. I passed by a section that had all web comic artists but I didn’t introduce myself because I had nothing to show them. Besides, I’m an introvert and it’s not in my nature to go up and approach people. I did pay attention to what and how they sold their things. One of the booths I’m glad I stopped at was the Alcatraz High booth. I met the writer/artist Bobby Rubio and bought the books that he had there. His drawings are great. His comics where one of the few comics I got at the con that really made me start thinking about how I was going to approach my web comic. Bobby Rubio is a storyboard artist at Pixar and also worked on Avatar: The last Airbender along side my friends Kenji Ono and Tomi Yamaguchi. He signed my books. Thanks Bobby!
Finally, as I approached the other side of the Con I reached the Stuart Ng booth. Stuart Ng sells European comics and I was in heaven. Problem was I only had a little bit of money left. Last year I spent a lot of money there. This year I only had enough for four books. The agony of choosing was almost unbearable. There were a lot of French comics there. You see, the French, like the Japanese, take their comics seriously. There have been many influential people that have talked about French comics as another serious classic art form. It’s difficult to argue against the fact that these comics are, by far, some of the best in the world and here I was trying to pick only four. Well, I chose my four. I was sooo happy with the comics I bought there. They are so INSPIRING! I’m so glad I got them. I’m so glad I went. I didn’t know I needed the inspiration until I left the Con and really took a long look at what I bought. It was a great ending to an irritating day.
MY WEB COMIC
I finished the first draft of my web comic story. Finally the hard part is over (getting it all down from start to finish.) After I read the draft I said the same thing my friends said when they read the first draft of the Simpsons Movie. “It’s terrible!” Hopefully, now that I have it written down I can start working out the kinks. I hope the revisions will be successful. The story needs to be rock solid before I start drawing. Otherwise it’s just a waste of energy.
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Luise,
That is a great illustration of the Podcast Expo. Sorry you did not make it to the Mass.
God bless,
Fr. Jay
Just found your page about Italy! Loved it! Lived in Italy a couple of years; just doing a YouTube video about how to get to the Sistine Chapel. Your sketches brought back so many memories (especially the “Metro at Rush Hour” type).
Dear Luis,
Very interesting and thoughtful blog. If you are interested in Catholicism and boardgames you might appreciate “Vatican” the boardgame I designed. It has been selling worldwide and we have gotten very favorable comments
Sincerely,
Stephen Haliczer Ph.D.
Distinguished Research Professor
Product Designer
The College of DuPage Press
Hey! I’ve been trying to call you for a couple weeks! I should have checked your blog sooner. I thought you might have had the baby by now! Congrats! Call me ya bum. My number…unlike yours… is the same xxx-xxx-xxxx.
im doing a piece of it coursework and wondered if i could put your
“computer stoopid” picture on it.
I would acknowledge where it came from beneath it and in the bibliography.
If the answer is yes then could you tell me the artists name too?
thanks. keith.
Sure, absolutely, go right ahead. Thanks for asking.
Hi Luise,
I just came upon your Nephilim skeleton debunking image….very interesting.
I wish we could have met at Comic Con to discuss certain issues. Nothing that
I would want to discuss openly here.
Hope to hear from you,
Den
If you want to discuss something privately, you could always e-mail me. The address is up there under the “Hi, Welcome!” about the top commentators. It’s luis(at)luisescobarblog(dot)com.
Can you give me permission to use one of your illustrations for a tee shirt. I really want to wear “there must be some way to plug this keyboard into this game” – It’s how I see the world.. and you explained everything I want to tell the world in that one illustrzt8ion.
Gina
Yes, Gina. You can make it into a shirt for yourself off of that cartoon. I’m flattered.
I’ve been thinking about making shirts off of my little cartoons but I’m not sure which ones to do. Outside of an occasional cartoon that really hits home for someone, I’m not sure if they would sell.
So go right ahead Gina. Have fun.
Hi Luis,
My name is Phil and I came across your site while looking up information about animation and voice-over work. I’m a huge fan of the Simpsons & Futurama and a big Billy West fan (Ren&Stimpy, Futurama, Ect.). It is truly amazing to me how so many individuals come together to create these animated cartoons and the quality of the end product. I’m curious from your perspective how much work you have to re-do sometimes because of the networks and the way they censor some of the work that is being done. Best of luck to you in your projects. – Phil
You’d be surprised Phil. The biggest censors of the show are the writers themselves. They often pull back a joke they think is going too far. Sometimes, some of the jokes are funny too. It’s the artists that end up complaining about it. For example, there was a joke in one of the Halloween shows that all the artists thought was really funny. It was the show where Homer goes back in time on his toaster. In one of the futures he comes back too, he finds himself married to Patty and Selma. He discovers this when they show up waring lingerie. They looked really nasty, with their flab and hairy legs. When we saw it, everyone roared with horrified laughter. It was crazy. For some reason, during the re-write, they cut the gag because they thought it was too much. It was very disappointing. They didn’t even put the scene as an extra on the DVD.
Hope that answers your question.
It does. Thanks for the reply Luis. That gag actually would have been hilarious! Too bad it didn’t make it. I wonder if some unnecessary second guessing happens though because the writers feel they may be going over the top? (If that’s possible.) I know there is that fine line that writers and creators have to walk probably not only with the content of the show that’s created but with the networks as well. At least from what I understand in reading interviews and seeing convention interviews. Storyboards I think really help to set the tone of an episode and I bet it probably helps to justify many of the ideas that get spun out during the writing sessions of the writers. You all do great work on the show and I’m going to continue reading through your website. Thanks! – Phil
Hello there. I was researching nephilim for a report and I foung your blog. Its too bad those pics were all frauds. If they had been real, it would have been amazing.
After I read your stuff on the pictures I hung around a little, and read your “about me section”.
I am merely curious, so if I overstep a boundary, please feel free to tell me so.
I was wondering, sir, since you state that you are in fact a roman catholic, weather or not you believed in the deity of Jesus Christ?
I myself am a Christian, but I research other religions and alternate sects of my own. You could say its a hobby. In any case, if you find my inquiry impolite, I am sorry. I mean no offense.
Heh, no Christine, your question isn’t impolite. It’s good of you to ask. Too often people just assume things about Catholicism without asking.
The simple answer to your question is, “Yes”. Catholicism, teaches that Jesus Christ is God, the second person of the Holy Trinity.
The slightly more involved answer is as follows: The Catechism of the Catholic Church (the official book that explains all that the Catholic Church teaches) in paragraphs 446-451 ( http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P1H.HTM ) states the following:
Arianism was a Heresy that the Catholic Church fought against that deputed this belief around the years AD 250-336 which concluded in the Council of Nicea. For more info go to: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arianism or http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01707c.htm .
Hope that answers your question.
thank you. most people would out-right refuse to answer that question nowadays.
May the Lord bless you, Luis!
Luis – my name is Luis Escobar – every now and then I Google my name just to see what pops up. Well – I often come across you. No doubt – you have discovered me too. Anyway – sure there a ton of our Luis Escobar’s out there but I thought that I would just say hello and let you know that you have a cool name. BTW – I am the third Luis in four! Grandpa, Father, me and my son. Louie’s all around!
HA ha! Yeah, you have a great name too.
Wow! That’s a lot of Luisesesss in your family. Pretty cool. Love your site dude. I’ll link to you.
wow – that was fast – I am a photographer, distance runner and high school cross country coach. I live in Santa Maria California. Married with three kids. Your work is great. You are very skilled. I will take some time and learn a little more about you and your work. Very cool. Well – I am off to a work with one of my running students. I will look forward to talking with you a little more in the future. Luis
Cool. Anytime.
i like simpsons, starting watch becouse my doughter like it
I write comment but strange dropdown
Howdee Luis, if you are a real Christian then i would suggest you to do some research on your big boss (Matt Groening being a 33rd degree mason).
Loads of subliminal messages in the Simpsons, and occult symbolism.
(Even 9-11 was announced).
Greetings…. (Peace be upon you)
I would like to present to you all the sciences related to cosmogony together with its rules as per its identity which is something not similar to any of the other things and is out of any and assimilation according to the following point of view:
1. The theories of on cosmogony lack the fundamentals of the origin of things as they are mainly based on incidence and on the unseen.
2. The cosmic extension that has been taking place is the result of the range of vision through using the telescope and any other instruments because the thing being seen is determined by vision and this is one of the universe laws.
3. Knowing the within secrets of man will uncover secrets of the universe as the apparent entities of existence are of six kinds: the perspective (what is being seen), the tangible world (what can be touched and felt), what can be weighed, what can be heard, things that have flavor and things that have smell. These, in most cases, are overlapping and are counted six in number.
The origin of all entities are bare pictures of materials, void of force and readiness; it shines in debate and is complete when read. The investigation of scientists is restricted to this reading (capability and liability) where the material is with all its atoms, energy and speed and this alone is useless compared with its radiance.
The first cosmic law is that nothing can be determined unless established with what is contrary to it. And things are sometimes concrete and sometimes abstract and both are the same according to law.
The origin of radiance is the brain and by saying this I do not mean perception but the simple core of it. By formulating this equation the truth becomes uncovered.
The subject is highly complicated and can only be clarified by word of mouth or by arguments.
So, what do you have to present. (show)
بعد التحية :-
أود أن أعرض عليكم جميع علوم نشأة مفردات الكون وقوانينه وفق ذاتيته التي هي شئ ليس كباقي الأشياء خارجه عن حد التعطيل والتشبيه حسب النظرة التالية :-
1/ أن نظريات نشأة الكون تفتقد لأصول نشأة الأشياء وتحيل على ألصدفه أو الغيب .وكذلك استغراق البحث في الأفاق لم يأتي بغايته إلا بقدر ربطه بالوعي الإنساني.
2/ التوسع الكوني الحاصل هو نتيجة المد البصري من خلال التلسكوب وغيره لأن المنظور أليه يثبت بالبصر وهذا أحد قوانين الكون
3/ معرفة أسرار بطون الإنسان تكشف أسرار الكون حيث أن مفردات الوجود الظاهر على ستة أنواع (المنظور أليها ). (الملموسة). (الموزونة). (المسموعة). (ذات طعم). (ذات رائحة). وتكون في أغلب الأحيان متداخلة .وأصل الأشياء كلها صور عارية عن المواد . خاليه من القوه والاستعداد . بمناظرتها تشرق وبمطالعتها تتم . وبحث العلماء ينحصر في هذه المطالعة (القوه والاستعداد) حيث المادة ودقائقها وطاقتها وسرعتها وهذا وحده لا جدوى منه بقدر إشراقها . . وأصل الإشراق هو العقل ولا أقصد به الإدراك أنما هو )جوهر بسيط درأك محيط) وبتكوين هذه المعادلة تنكشف الحقيقة .
الموضوع غاية بالتعقيد يوضح بالمشافهة والجدل فما هو عرضكم ؟
توضيح:-
* أود أن أبين بأن وسائط الإدراك هي الحواس ألخمسه + تحسس الوزن.
* إما أحوال الإدراك ( تصوراته أي المعاني التي يلبسها ) فهي ستة أيضا ثلاثة وخلافها :-
1/ الحياة والموجود ولها صور فمثلا صورة الحياة هي الماء.
2/ الحركة والسكون ولها صور فمثلا صورة الحركة هي الهواء.
3/ الانفعال والسكينة ولها صور فمثلا صورة الانفعال هي النار.
* إما مراتب نفس الإدراك إي نفس ألصوره فهي خمسه:-
1)الجماد 2) النبات 3) الحيوان 4) الملكوت 5) الإنسان وصور ذلك كثيرة.
*** وكل هذه الصور تندرج ضمن تصورات الإدراك .منها ظاهره ومنها كامنة إي لم تظهر لحد الآن . والتوسع الكوني الحاصل هو ظهور لبعض هذه الصور الكامنة.
*وأروع إبداعات الإدراك هو العقل (جوهر بسيط درأك محيط ) ولكل واحده تفصيلاتها الوظيفية.
ووظيفة العقل هي ربط كل الصور المذكورة أعلاه بعوالمها الحسيه ألسبعه. وعالمنا هو العالم السابع وفق نمطيته الحسيه. وتجري آثار العقل على كل الصور الكونية فتصبح محسوسة وفق قوتها واستعدادها التصوري.
قد لا يفهم الموضوع بشكل جيد كونه لم يطرق بتاتا
Lol been stalking you. You’re pretty good. Not bad for a dad of many. Very talented. Don’t know how you keep up. Chat soon on twitter
An overwhelming desire to keep sane helps.
I’m doing some onsite interviews at Mystic Dragon’s Festival of Books. Would you have time to talk with me about your work and “The Art of Draw Fu”? at 4 pm on August 15th? Please let me know (and your “Black Terror Kid” comics, along with your comic about your trip to Rome, are really fun!).
Yes, absolutely. I’d be happy to.
Great, thank you! Could you email me a contact for you, at the above email link, and I’ll send you more information (and I’m ordering your book now!).