Video: Drawing “Never the Task at Hand”
My brother Dave, a super-talented film-maker, recently picked up this gorgeous new camera. It’s an SLR that happens to shoot really great HD video. .. okay I admit… there’s way too many happy adjectives in those last two sentences… but I’m seriously excited to show you guys what he can do with this camera. He’s been wanting to film me working on One Swoop Fell, so he hung out for a couple sessions in the studio while I worked on last week’s page. The end result is awesome and I hope you guys will watch and enjoy it!
One Swoop Fell - Never the Task at Hand from David Dutton on Vimeo.
… It’s a major credit to his expertise in editing and photography that I look like I know what I’m doing (though we also get to see how often I erase, redraw, and be indecisive in general). Please hop on over to his website and tell him what you think (or leave a comment on the video - I’m sure he’d really appreciate it). Oh, and please “heart” and share the video with friends if you like it! Based on the feedback, I’m hoping to do some more of these videos, but with dubbed commentary.
Thanks Dave!
October 13th, 2009 at 6:58 am
Wow Mike, that was just amazing to watch. You’re awesome with that brush, you can really see the work you put into this. I like how you sketch in and rework your lines until you find what you are happy with. I would love to see more of this with some commentary. But we can see why your strips come out looking so beautiful. Thanks for posting!
October 13th, 2009 at 8:07 am
I’m utterly amazed. How much time does it take to create one page? I really admire your inking job, mainly because it’s the one thing I usually dread doing with my comics.
I want you to know that I’m sharing this video with the members of a comicking club I’ve started at my university, in hopes some will get excited and inspired. Thank you for posting this! I really love One Swoop Fell, and I think your style of artwork is fantastic.
October 13th, 2009 at 12:00 pm
Elwen, I really appreciate you sharing the video with your comic club.
It usually takes me between 6-8 hours to do a page, start to finish. This was spread over two days, mainly because of a deadline on a different project. Thanks for the very kind words!
Tom - I’m really hoping to do some commentary in the future. The video is already getting some great feedback, so I’m sure we’ll see more of these soon. I’d also like to get some kinda digital capture card to record the painting process. I’m glad you enjoyed it!
October 13th, 2009 at 1:08 pm
Beautiful footage and lighting! Your brother did an awesome job of capturing you at work.
Man, I wish I had the time and steady hand to do brushwork, but I’m just a slob when it comes to my roughs and tend to change things mid-way thru my work.
October 13th, 2009 at 2:52 pm
SO COOL!!!!!!
More videos, please!
October 13th, 2009 at 8:57 pm
The footage is lovely work. The natural lighting is wonderful. Watching you make a straight stroke with a brush was something that made me smile and sigh. In fact, Chris and I were blown away to see that you ink your stuff with a brush!!!
Your bro’s got talent. Just like his brother. Good to run into you in the neighborhood!
October 13th, 2009 at 11:27 pm
It was extremely facinating to watch the cration of the strip. I would definately love to see more videos! One question I have, since your the second person I’ve seen using it, what is the purpose for the glove? Is it just to keep your hand from smearing the ink, or is there more to it? Your brother did a very good job on the video as well, the music and editing were nicely done!
October 14th, 2009 at 12:22 am
Hey Ed, glad you enjoyed the video.
I smear ink all the time, so that’s definitely not why I wear the glove! It’s mainly so that my hand glides a little more smoothly over the paper, which is very difficult to do if my hand is particularly (or even slightly) clammy. Bad friction makes longer brush strokes a real chore and the lines end up looking stiff and overworked. It’s also a safety issue. If I’m having trouble moving my arm freely about, I end up overcompensating by moving entirely with my wrist (especially when using a tablet during coloring).
Practical uses aside, I also think wearing one white glove is pure awesomeness… seriously, I could be onto some kinda new, never-before-seen fashion trend…
Molly - Really glad you and Chris enjoyed the video. And honestly, brushes make my life a whole lot easier. No need to own markers and pen nibs in every size!
Hayley - Will do (oh, and will email you back as soon as I can!)
Audra - I have a hard time believing you do anything in a slobbish manner, but I’ll give you the benefit of the doubt! Thanks for sharing the video earlier.
October 14th, 2009 at 6:12 am
Wow! Beautiful work, on yours and your brother’s part! What a talented duo. I really really enjoyed the video and shared it with as many people as I could. I found it really inspirational! It’s super cool that you ink by hand before colouring on the computer! I always thought OSF was completely computer generated, now I stand corrected! Realllly beautiful. Damn. I love this story and the characters so much. The video added more personality to the work and I appreciate it even more now!
October 29th, 2009 at 8:31 am
when are you going to put a new comic up??
November 4th, 2009 at 4:00 pm
That work is amazing, by both of you. I’ve been watching your brother’s other videos too, and they’re all superb.
I shared this video of your work specifically with various friends of mine that are interested in art, and every single person has complimented you on your work with the brush.
It would be incredible to see a OSF coloured traditionally as well, but that would take a lot of time.
November 4th, 2009 at 7:20 pm
Hey Mike, that was a great video, really enjoyed it! I have a question, what’s that liquid you added into with the ink? And what does it do? Thank you very much for putting up the video!
Best of luck,
Robin
November 4th, 2009 at 7:50 pm
Hi guys, thanks! Robin, the liquid is just distilled water and ox gall fluid. I use this mixture when painting with gouache to improve the flow of pigment - so I thought I’d try it with ink because it was starting to thicken. You can’t really tell in the video, but the ink was actually clumping and I had to scoop some of it out. Really nasty looking. Ebly- that’s really cool. I’m flattered to know folks are sharing this video with friends and it’s inspiring to know that I’m inspiring others.
November 20th, 2009 at 8:51 am
Love love the footage and watching the art as it’s coming out is superb! That brushwork is really great. Great video too and love the score! Those disney remixes have been on loop for ages on my pc. Keep up the great work and see ya on the walls sometime!
November 21st, 2009 at 1:10 am
awesome! i’d be totally keen to see more videos… dah! you make it look all so easy…
June 5th, 2010 at 5:54 am
This is an awesome video! And I’ve really learned to appreciate all the work you’ve been doing, seriously.
I was curious, what was the name of that soundtrack? Sounds very cool :).