You may not know Kazu Kibuishi, but you will. The creator of long-running web comics Copper and Clive and Cabbage, Kibuishi will see his first comic see print later this summer when Viper Comics releases Daisy Kutter: The Last Train and Image prints the graphic novel anthology Flight. Paperbackreader’s James W. Powell was able to take a few moments of his time and ask the 26-year-old writer/artist a few questions…

1

I just got done reading the fantastic first issue of Daisy Kutter: The Last Train. My favorite aspect of the book is your minimalist use of dialog. The characters’ actions, facial expressions, and body language say so much more than words could. Was this style a cognitive choice you made early on when you first started writing the story, or did it sort of grow as you began to create the artwork?

When I write out my stories, I usually think about it all visually, with dialogue there to support the emotions and feelings I want to convey. I generally think that pantomime is a much quicker way to convey an emotion than writing is, so I tend to use faces and expressions to do it first, then back that up with appropriate dialogue. It's like when Bill Watterson gives Calvin all of those great facial expressions and you can almost feel your own face muscles contort and do all that fun stuff. I love that.  It would be so difficult for him to write that and achieve the same effect.

2

When I first heard of Daisy Kutter, I was expecting a typical Western book with gunfights and bar brawls. Instead, a lot of the tension comes from an often-overlooked aspect of the Western story: the poker table. Are you an avid card player?

(Laughing) Oh yeah. I love playing Texas Hold 'Em, and I think it shows in this first issue. And no, before you ask, I have not watched the World Series of Poker, but I am familiar with it. In fact, it's probably the reason my friends pulled me into the game. I've been hooked on it ever since.

3

For the remaining issues, can readers expect to find the action and drama in more unlikely places, such as Daisy’s inner struggles, or will there be plenty of gunfights and fisticuffs?

I'm glad you caught that about the first issue — that there isn't a single shot fired or a punch thrown. I promise there will be plenty of action down the line, but I want the readers to feel there's something at stake when it all goes down. Man, I WANT to feel it myself when I have to write and draw all those panels!

Seriously, when I started this project, I really wanted to base everything around the emotions and not just the cool action. I would not have tackled this project if it weren't for the intense conflict going on in Daisy's head during all of this stuff. Her problems make her such an interesting character to write, and she's been the most complex one I have written thus far. And, it only gets more complex as it goes. (laughs)

4

Despite occasional tries like Costner's "Open Range," Hollywood doesn't seem too enthralled by Westerns lately. Do you think the comic industry can help it make a comeback?

Man, I don't know. For some reason, I wasn't thinking about genres at all when I went to write Daisy Kutter. That's why it's got such a mixed stew of genres and not just a particular one. I just want to convey an emotion or theme and if I need a cowgirl to do it, or a robotic horse, then it gets thrown in there. I really think as long as the stories are strong, any genre can prove to be popular. If people start writing and drawing kick-ass Western comics, then the genre will definitely make a comeback. I haven't read much in the way of Western comics, but I have watched a lot of film Westerns. I really enjoy the work of John Ford, Howard Hawks, and Sergio Leone, but not simply because they're Westerns. I like them because they're good films.

5

Now, the basic idea behind Daisy Kutter isn’t anything new: A feared gunfighter retires from a life of crime, but old habits die hard and he’s pulled back into the life of a gunslinger. But you’ve used a woman as your hero and you’ve thrown robots in the mix, which flips the genre on its head. What's the secret of reinvention?

I don't think there really is a secret to reinventing a genre. If there is one, I feel it might be to stop thinking so hard about the genres themselves and to simply concentrate on telling an affecting tale. Something that people can relate to, or more importantly, something you yourself can relate to, since you have to write and draw it all. Start throwing in a bunch of disparate genre elements that you know and love so well, and voila! You create this kaleidoscope of feelings and pop culture that might have a chance at redefining something, but the good, solid stories are the pre-requisite, so any of the "genre-redefining" "genre-bending" stuff is simply an after effect of the first part. And the stories are the hardest things to create effectively. So there. Now I've confused everyone.

6

Since you’re both the writer and artist for the book, how does your writing process differ from that of a writer who hands off the script to another artist?

Like I said before, I tend to write visually, so being able to draw it all makes a HUGE difference in the process. I can simply write the dialogue without having to worry about communicating what I mean to the artist, since the artist is me! Since I also do the greytones and the colors on the comic, I feel like I'm basically running a relay race with four different versions of me. The writer Kazu, the layout Kazu, the inker/finished pencils Kazu, and the colorist/greytone guy Kazu. I like being able to do less work on one thing so that I can pass it along to the next Kazu in the process to finish it up for me. (laughs)

If there is anything good to take from that inane thought, it is that it's important to think for the end product and not just one specific aspect in the production. I don't think the book should feel "finished" at any stage of the production but the end. I feel like a crazy film theorist like Eisenstein or something, but yes, I feel that this is the truth.

7

Daisy Kutter looks and feels, well, old. I think it’s the perfect look for a period piece. Can you fill us in on the process you went through to come up with the look for the comic?

That was totally unintentional! I just wanted to find a way to get the production done quickly so that I could dish out several pages in a day. This is why I decided to keep it in pencil and not ink it. Of course, I started to really tighten it up and finalize the pencils to look like "ink," so I end up spending almost as much time as I do inking anyway. So that's how I came up with the process. (laughs)

Actually, it IS the stuff I stumble upon by accident that I really end up liking the most. I just keep that mentality as I go, and try to improve upon whatever "style" I happen to stumble into.

8

Who are your primary influences as an artist and as a writer? More important, how have you used their work to create your own style?

Oooh, hard one. If you thought my previous answers were lengthy, then this one's really gonna put you to sleep. I think I could write an encyclopedia of influences. No, I'm kidding, I'll keep it short here. The biggest influences overall would probably be Hayao Miyazaki and Jeff Smith, mainly because they set out to do what I eventually want to do, and that's to create a big graphic novel adventure story. I love the pacing in their storytelling and the heart and humor they're able to imbue on their characters.

Other influences for this project in particular would be Sergio Leone's Once Upon a Time in the West for style, Robert Rossen's The Hustler for the characters and themes, and Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill Volumes One and Two for massive amounts of inspiration in exploring similar territory.

9

Daisy Kutter is your first published work, but it’s definitely not your first comic. Your web site, www.boltcity.com, has been the home of your creations Copper and Clive and Cabbage for a while now. What prompted you to start the site?

It started as a portfolio site, and I started doing Copper as a comic for a publication called Yolk magazine. The adventures of a little boy and his dog sat right next to pictures of girls in bikinis and sports cars. I also started to post the comics on my web site, where it seemed more appropriate, and started to get a good response there. If it weren't for boltcity.com, I may have quit Copper altogether, since Yolk went under and they only asked for one strip every two months. Basically, the comics then migrated from print to web, where it found a great audience. (Clive and Cabbage was drawn for my college paper, the Daily Nexus.) After seeing Derek Kirk Kim's comics online (www.lowbright.com) I was convinced that there was high quality content being posted on the web, and I decided to give it a try.

10

How excited are you to see your work printed? Is there more satisfaction in getting it printed as opposed to self-publishing on the web?

(laughing) Come back and ask me that question when Daisy Kutter is published as a big fat book. That's what I'm shooting for, actually. I'll be happy when I am really writing and drawing graphic novels. It's all I really want to do right now.

11

You’re a huge part of Flight, the graphic novel anthology to be released by Image in July. Can you tell me more about the project?

Oh man, where to begin? It's a project my friends and I put together in our free time. This was back when I worked in 3D animation full time. So this little free-time project snowballed into this big, beautiful book, and the artists put so much heart and soul into it that I had to leave my (fairly) steady job to make sure that this thing got the attention it deserved. I am still wondering how I am going to pay the bills, but I think following this path will serve me well in the end.

People like Scott McCloud are saying it's going to redefine the comics industry and all that, so the pressure's really on! While that's all fine and good, I just want to make sure people enjoy reading it and that it finds the audience that it deserves. People can find more info on the project at www.flightcomics.com. I'm the editor of the project and one of its many contributors.

12

It seems that you’ve been pushing the book a lot, both at conventions and on your web site. What’s it like trying to get the public to recognize your work and the work of your peers?

It's really easy when I promote the work of others, but like any self-respecting, self-hating artist, I tend to shy away from promoting my own wares. (laughs) I usually tell people that "the work in the book is amazing!! Except for my stuff, of course..." (laughs) I'll jump out of a helicopter in the middle of battlefield for the other artists, but it's hard to give myself the time of day! So, in short, I feel like I'm promoting THEIR work, along with mine, and that makes it real easy because I love it all. The work was also very good, so people took notice immediately.

13

I’ve read Scott McCloud’s introduction to the anthology -- He’s set some lofty standards for the book and any that follow. Does his intro make you nervous in any way?

(laughs) Not really, only because I know Scott and I love him for his unwavering enthusiasm for comics and for us. It was so wonderful for him to predict such great things, but seriously, I'm just hoping people don't ask to get their money back!

14

McCloud’s introduction is written by a man (or rather, his brain) looking back on comics from the year 2054. What do you think the future holds for comics, both for those comics that are web-based and those that are printed?

We'll see.

Maybe I should ask McCloud that?

Yeah. He’s already there! (laughs)

15

You use the computer to color your art. How do you think the computer will affect the future of the comic book?

It's only a tool. I use it because I can get my work done faster on the coloring end, and it's really easy to make adjustments. The computer has become like a necessity nowadays, especially since they can create and output beautiful, print-worthy material. I hope more people take advantage of the computers in order to create more comics, but I get the feeling that many will simply spend more time trying to use the computer to make their comics look "cooler." If we can impose limitations on ourselves on the technical end but still use the computer, I think we will see some really great work in the future. Now I just confused EVERYBODY. (laughs)

16

We all want comic books to thrive. In your opinion, what can the following people do to help the comic book industry:

A.     The Fans — Promote diversity in comics. Stories other than what's on the shelf already. I think many of the fans are already doing that, but the creators have to act in kind and offer that fresh, new material. I have faith that they will be receptive to the good stuff.

B.      The Retailers — Promote the good stuff. Take a risk on some books and start pushing them based on whether THEY like them or not. It sucks to see retailers bummed out about their customers buying stuff they think isn't good. If so, why sell to them? If there's hardly any money in the marketplace now, why not push the stuff you love? I'm sure most people are doing this, though. So I know it is up to the creators to deliver the content.

C.     The Creators — Create good reading material for people other than your colleagues and fans. Write and create for your brother or sister, or your neighbor, anyone. We need more people getting interested in comics. The people into it already will be there no matter what. They're hardcore fans. You can't get rid of them if you wanted to! So start branching out and just see what happens.

D.     The Publishers — Promote C. Or rather, encourage C.

17

You graduated from the University of California, Santa Barbara with a film studies degree. How has your study of film helped you with comics?

Tremendously! I think studying visual narrative in film has made me a much, much better comics artist. It hasn’t made me a better filmmaker, but man I always think back on my film studies education when I draw comics. As a comic artist, you are basically being asked to reinterpret visual narrative (like a film) in a 2-dimensional form on paper. At this point, good film analysis becomes invaluable when you go to draw. I am so glad I went to that school. At night I even got paid to draw for the school newspaper! So, in the day, I was studying visual narrative, and at night I got to put theory into practice. It doesn't get any better than that.

18

Do you see your future being in film, comics, or elsewhere?

Wherever I am allowed to work on telling a great story for a cool project and I don't have to work another day job to feed myself. Of course, I have entertained being a sushi chef just for the hell of it. (laughs)

19

How did you hook up with Viper Comics?

They contacted me a while back. They liked the sketches I posted on the Drawing Board and they've been to my site a number of times. They asked if I wanted to do a full-page pinup to advertise my web site, www.boltcity.com, and I said sure! After that, we got to talking about possible projects. They were interested in Flight but they couldn't afford to print it, so I mentioned I wanted to do a Daisy one-shot. They contacted me back and asked if I wanted to do a four-issue mini-series. I said "sure!" Next thing I know, I'm unemployed fretting over the greyscale on my first graphic novel while trying to scrounge up some change to eat a taco. And I couldn't be happier.

20

Is the 4-issue Daisy Kutter series the whole shebang, or do you plan other series with the character?

I actually have several story arcs in mind and I really love the characters, but we'll play it by ear. So, we'll see.

Flight is solicitated in the Image section of this month’s Previews. (Visit www.flightcomics.com for more information.) Daisy Kutter: The Last Train will be solicited in the Viper Comics section next month. (Visit www.vipercomics.com/features_dk.asp for a preview of issue #1 and other information about the book.)