Greatness in Comics Starts at Home

As an striving artist, competition and opportunity is really scarce. I not have any formal training in the arts except in in kidergarten with crayons and coloring books. And with limited resources at home, indeed it was a struggle to continue or worry first about what we will eat for that day. 
Destiny was kind to let me know people who provided me some tools for the trade. It started with pens, pencils, paper and some coloring materials and a lot of imagination from the thinga around me. It also helps to be a creative writer which goes well in being a comic artist. With each of my compilation crawling stories and characters in my head, I knew that I have to make them into more media, then there came the internet.


But my passion was somewhat subdued when I started working in the call center at graveyard shifts. With less or no time to draw, its became an endangered skill. But after sometime, when my shift rotated into morning and day schedules, it gave me more available time during waiting to start all over again and draw. This is where Krisis Komix started.


Krisis Komix became an outlet of the stress I got from work and when I had compiled some strips I posted them with their own blog (www.krisiskomix.blogspot.com) and launched them officially on Earth Hour.


I eventually had a break from the call center and continued studies and comic making at home. I eventually met people in the industry at Komikon and from them I found the enormous inspiration that I need. With different personalities and genres, it was information overload but has a more positive side effect. Continuing Krisis Komix, I also joined in several competitions, and one of the best achievement I got is the Larry Alcala Award for Krisis! Komix Family is Funny. 


I eventually launched its first compilation as an independent comic at Komikon 2010 with Krisis Komix: Identity Krisis. And launched the second one with new comics like Ang Bagong Kidlat, Dyosabelle, and Johnny Astig for Krisis Komix: World Krisis. I also established the biggest facebook group form Pinoy Komik Artists, Indie Komiks Manila which is still growing and very active in terms of projects and interactions. I also contributed for the groups compilation for Free Comic Book Day, Indies Maximus and will have another one this year. And I organize and create them at home with the help of my computer and the world wide web.


I am still young in the industry, yet I felt so very inspired and blessed with the gift of art. Even if its not as prestigious working in big companies, I enjoyed very much because I can do it in the comfort of my house. From the crayons I used in kindergarten to the editing software I now use for comic strips made me a better not only in art but in life.

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FHM's Latest Cover Racist?

At first glance it looks like a regular FHM cover featuring Bela Padilla. But taking a closer look reveals that she is in the midst of dark-skinned women and it also gets intriguing with the caption of "Stepping out of the shadows". The latest cover does feature and expose Bela as the center figure for the magazine cover however, many have reacted to the photo and find it very racist in content.

For me, the concept indeed has some suggestive thought of referring "shadows" to dark-tonned women. Though it was never discouraged them, it still has this negative impact on dark-toned people. Yes, in our Pinoy society, we prefer white skin over dark and this led to the mentality of dark is lesser than white. However, the point here is the photo and the statement itself which raise eyebrows. I do smell controversy in the making.