CROM Update: 029 with Guest Collaborating Artist David Molina
The Last Dryad: Crafting & Concepting New Mysteries for the Crom Universe
In the 29th episode of the Crom Updates Podcast, Kurt Brugel and guest artist David Molina discuss their collaboration on a new Crom comic story titled "The Last Dryad." David shares his experience working on concept writing and sketching for the story, noting that it was his first time working from a script. Despite initial struggles, he focused on creating the first panel, which depicts characters walking down Gallows Hill. David highlights his process of drawing inspiration from his past sketches and emphasizes the importance of staying sharp by drawing daily. He also describes his character design process, giving a heavy metal-inspired look to the characters Clobbhair and Doreen, who are thieves on a mission.
Kurt and David engage in a detailed discussion about inverting some story elements to enhance the narrative. They explore the idea of making the story obscure and open to interpretation, ensuring it remains within the Crom universe. Kurt emphasizes the importance of not making the story elements too precious and suggests focusing on the design of the maze, which plays a central role in the story. They agree to keep the maze obscure and overgrown, using black shapes to carry the design through the pages. Kurt also suggests adding a bird's-eye view panel to show the characters entering the forest, enhancing the storytelling with a more dynamic composition.
Towards the end of the episode, Kurt provides an update on his work on the Crom Collected Revised Edition. He mentions that he is close to completing the cover and has invited five guest artists, including David, to contribute pinups that will be used as virgin covers. The revised edition will be a black-and-white, 120-page magazine-size book. Kurt plans to send artist proofs to the guest artists and seeks their critiques to ensure the final product meets high standards. He expresses his gratitude to David for his contributions and enthusiasm for future collaborations, highlighting the creative synergy between them.
Watch the CROM Update 029 video on YouTube:
Here are a few educational highlights from the podcast discussion:
Overcoming Creative Blocks: David Molina shares how he overcame initial challenges by setting aside distractions and diving into drawing, emphasizing the importance of persistence and focus in the creative process.
Character Design Techniques: The discussion highlights the process of character design, with David drawing inspiration from past sketches and exploring various visual styles, like heavy metal-inspired aesthetics.
Story Element Inversion: Kurt Brugel suggests inverting certain story elements to enhance the narrative, demonstrating how altering conventional story structures can create more engaging and unique storytelling.
Maze Design in Comics: They discuss the significance of the maze in the story, focusing on making it obscure and overgrown, and using black shapes for design continuity. This illustrates the importance of setting and environment in comic storytelling.
Collaborative Creativity: The podcast emphasizes the value of collaboration in creative projects, showing how feedback and joint brainstorming can lead to improved story and visual elements.
Detailed Artistic Process: Kurt's update on the Crom Collected Revised Edition, including the involvement of multiple guest artists and the process of creating virgin covers, provides insights into the detailed work behind producing a polished comic collection.
David Molina is one of the few Artists who has been invited to create a pin-up for the Revised Edition of Crom Collected.
Use these links to find out more about David.
Use these links to find out more about Kurt inker Brugel.
