It’s a bird, it’s a plane, no ““ it’s an
alcoholic, suicidal crow.
This booze-binging bird is a character from the comic strip
“Maakies” by Tony Millionaire, one of the many
bizarrely creative works that fall into the genre of independent
comics.
Indie comics don’t portray cape-clad superheroes saving
humanity from worldwide domination, but instead present characters
like “cute little dead girls,” “demonized bunny
rabbits” and mischievous sock monkeys. And this Saturday,
uninitiated people will get a chance to delve into the world of
indie comics with a comic convention in Ackerman Grand
Ballroom.
Sponsored by the UCLA Campus Events Commission and Slave Labor
Graphics, Independent Publishing Experience will be the only one of
its kind in the L.A. area according to Campus Events coordinator
and student Jessica Gao.
“Artists and fans in L.A. are really excited about
it,” Gao said. “Apparently there’s just been this
void in L.A. ““ like they were missing some kind of forum for
L.A. artists.”
Slave Labor sponsored an ipex convention in 1999, but because it
was too difficult to coordinate from the San Jose office, it
decided not to hold them again. Since then, most of the conventions
have been trade shows or aimed at mainstream print.
Ipex will host a motley crew of artists and animators of widely
different comics, beloved by some, but unknown to most. Some of the
artists, however, are recognizable names who boast a number of
mainstream credits in addition to their indie work. Among these are
Phil Ortiz, artist and animator for “The Simpsons” and
Scott Christian Sava, known for his work on
“Spider-Man.”
Jhonen Vasquez, known by his followers for his comic
“Johnny the Homicidal Maniac,” as well as
“Invader Zim” (a cartoon on Nickelodeon), will also be
at ipex. Gao said she was extremely excited about getting someone
as popular as Vasquez for the convention.
“His fans flock by the hundreds,” Gao said.
“He’ll have a signing at some obscure bookstore in
Arizona and there will be a line around the block by 9
a.m.”
While Vasquez’s subject matter is dark, there is a range
of types of indie comics, including lighthearted humor and romance.
The whole point is that the artists create comics freely. But the
genre is especially recognized for its twisted proclivities, with
nightmarish stories and dark humor. “Lenore,” for
example, is tagged as “the adventures of a cute little dead
girl” by Roman Dirge and has risen to such popularity that a
feature-length movie is being made based on the comic.
Slave Labor artist Tommy Kovac is the creator of
“Skelebunnies,” which he describes as little dead
bunnies who become little walking skeletons when a demon vomits
acid on them, and then engage in a power struggle with Satan.
“They’re not censored, they’re not ruled by
what people will buy or not,” Kovac said. “You can find
more genuinely creative ideas and more sincere writing.”
Campus Events did have hopes of UCLA students showing their work
in addition to these L.A. artists, but only a few students signed
up, which Gao said was a major disappointment.
Three lone Bruins among over 60 artists are scheduled to show
their work: Jennifer Babcock, creator of “C’est La
Vie” will be exhibiting as well as David Keyes and John Pham,
a third-year Asian American studies student, and creator of
“Epoxy,” a Noir-style anthology series which was just
voted hottest comic by British entertainment magazine The Face.
With “Epoxy,” Pham has garnered his own following
and a grant from the Xeric foundation to produce his comic. But
unlike mainstream comics, Pham says his comics aren’t just
fluffy entertainment with shallow plot lines.
“It’s trying to move toward something a little more
arty and substantial,” Pham said.
And this kind of creative avant-garde work is what Gao and the
artists hope to expose to comic fans and non-comic fans alike to
possibly help make ipex an annual event.
“I think my goal would be accomplished if people come and
find something new that they’re interested in,” Gao
said.