Hellboy Animated

The Production of Hellboy Animated.

When working on the Hellboy Animated movies, I was asked to produce a production blog to build a following on social media. I paid for it and was reimbursed by the studio -- for two years. Since then, I've continued to pay the yearly fee to keep this material available. I haven't gone back and reread it but it's pretty much an account of the production done in real time. We thought we'd be doing a series of animated movies, as many as seven! Alas, the studio was sold to Starz who had no interest in funding their own productions.

Now a new Hellboy movie is in production with a fresh take on Mike Mignola's creation. Will there be an animated series too? No idea. I hope so because there's so much material to be found in folklore from around the world. I'd love to see it as a series instead of animated movies. They could be similar to Mike's short stories. Simple plots but filled with dark moods and atmospheres with surprising twists where they can be managed. 

The Hellboy Animated movies were one of the highlights of my career because the subject matter was so different than what I had been allowed to work with. I think the new animators should be more ambitious in how they tell the stories, maybe even switching up the styles for different episodes. Of course, that costs extra.

Anyway, the reason for this post is to encourage you to go back to the beginning of this blog. Click on the word "archives" and you'll see earlier posts than what is shown on this page. Enjoy your binge reading!

 

Incidently, I have only the vaguest memory of painting this and I'm sure it wasn't sepia when I started out.  

-- Tad

 

Trade Snob

Two years of almost total unemployment made me cut down my comics buying to zero.  Of course, that meant no Hellboy, no BPRD, no Lobster Johnson, no Mignolaverse at all.  With employment came a tentative trip to the comic store.

I've never waited for trades and I've always double dipped, buying single issues then the trades... and even a library edition.  But here I was buying trades for comics I had never read!  I still haven't bought the ones that collect the single issues I have.  So my trade collection has gaps.  But I had been forced to kick the single issue habit so I decided to just buy trades.

That lasted until I went in to buy the Screw On Head and Other Curious Objects hardcover.  There was a miscommunication.  I was a week early... didn't really want to leave the comic store empty handed... that would be a waste of gas...  So I checked out The Storm...

I bought Manga Studio 4 Debut at the San Diego Comic Con but work has been intense AND we've been moving to a new house so I only got to play with it this week.  I decided the best way to explore the program was to try a comic.

So here is what happened to me, although my part is played by my pal, Hellboy Jr.   My point wasn't to draw a perfect comic, it was just to explore the program and have a little fun.

Enjoy.   -- Tad

Bat from Back Then

In my active blog, Just A Tad, I talked about finding some treasures when I was cleaning my studio.  The one I didn't scan was this little sketch Mike Mignola did while we talked about a giant bat god stalking the ruins of a Mayan Temple.  It turned into a great sequence in Sword of Storms.

Anyway, here's the scan, and if you haven't visited already, check out my other blog which mostly talks about animation but there's other stuff too.

 

The Art of Mignola

The Art of Mike Mignola is now on Facebook.  I can't link to it direcctly but I suggest you become a fan because it's the best way to learn when his new website goes live.  In the time since we produced the Hellboy Animated films, Mike has expanded his fictional universe by working with fantastic artists and writers.  He manages to let them keep their voice while they stay true to his characters and stories.

Bravo, Mike!

 
 

The Comic Page as Art

In my other blog, I examine how Mike Mignola and other artists use the comic page to make a statement that's more than the sum of its panels.  It's not much but if you're a Mignola fan it may be worth checking out.

Treasures to Be Found!

Hi folks, long time no comment.

Why?  Because nothing's happening in the Hellboy animated universe.  At least, I haven't heard of anything.  But as the Hellboy Animated movies pop up in various streaming formats people have found their way to this blog.  Sadly, they only find a cobwebbed site featuring an old, yet incredibly cute, holiday greeting.

So two things:  First, if you've recently watched the Hellboy Animated stuff go back to the early archives of this blog.  I'm paying to keep this thing open because so many people told me it was a great resource.  Certainly the early stuff was.   I don't have the time to go back and police the comments of spambots so reader beware.  Lots of good stuff, you just have to dig.

Second, I'm PAYING FOR THIS THING!  How'd that happen?  Well the execs at Film Roman Studios had me put the blog on MY credit card and then reimbursed me.  Once.  But if I quit paying, what happens to the blog?  It fractures like a Tron bike hitting the wall and dissolves to random bits and bytes.   But the payment allows me the creation of another blog so I'll do just that.   This one will be about whatever creative activity I'm up to.  Like the Hellboy Animated Blog it'll be a view into the creative process, just a little more random in subject matter.  I could be my process or my thoughts on the work of others.

Here's a link, bookmark if you're interested.

Happy digging!

--Tad

Merry Chrismakawanzukkah!

I hope you and your family find joy in your holiday celebrations.  Thank you to all fans who've been so nice at the conventions I've hit.  And thank you to the pros who've said such good things.  I hope we're all busier next year.

Best to you all,

Tad

Amazed I Remember

My password, that is. Yes it's been a long, long time since I've posted. Why? Because I've had nothing to post about further animated adventures of Hellboy. I still don't. (Sorry if I got your hopes up for a nanosecond there.) But I wanted to tell you the state of HBA before moving onto other things - more on those in a bit.

With the advent of Guillermo's second trip into the Hellboy world and a couple of screenings on Cartoon Network, sales of the animated DVDs shot up. Hellboy II: The Golden Army open very well at the box office but was trounced by Batman as expected. But Hollywood is a weird place that deals with shifting expectations so that when it fell, passions cooled a bit. Last I checked, it hasn't bounced back; audiences are choosing to see The Dark Knight again rather than catching a film they didn't see in its opening week. So it's not like there's a huge push to launch new secondary projects like a third Hellboy Animated film. Even if Guillermo's movie started regaining ground, I think the current management at Starz would be satisfied with increased sales of the existing DVD rather than putting money into a new one.

For those who've asked be at cons, no, I will not be posting the script to The Phantom Claw. Who knows what the future will bring. Once rights revert, maybe we'll pitch a Hellboy/BPRD series to Cartoon Network and we'll plunder some of the unused stuff. That would be a ways off if ever.

So let's call this the penultimate post. I'll check in once more when I have a new blog going. I really do enjoy sharing the creative process and people seem to like it. I'm currently poking around outside the animation field since the industry is so unsteady but have yet to find the dream gig that will pay the bills. The down time has let me experiment more with comics. Check out the back up story in THE PERHAPANAUTS #3 which I had fun illustrating. While you're at it, check out the rest of the comic too by Todd Dezago and Craig Rousseau. Lots of fun with a weird team of paranormal investigators. Sounds like something right up your alley. I've also created my own comic, EMMARYN, which I am currently pitching to various publishers. It's much lighter than Hellboy but overlaps some of the same folklore territory. Check out the page below and give it a click.

So thank you again for your support. This blog will remain up in the forseeable future as a reference. Tell your friends.

Looking forward to sharing again.

Tad Stones

Doesn't Anyone Dust Around Here?

Just a quick note. No work is being done on the third Hellboy Animated film, although there is some talk of doing very short projects for the internet. With Guillermo del Toro's HELLBOY II: The Golden Army getting rave reviews from Universal execs, we should hope for a big launch for the movie. If enough excitement builds, who knows what will happen on the animated front?

BTW, if I deleted your post as I scoured the thick crust of spam that had accumulated here, I'm very sorry. In the meantime, visit Hellboy.com and its forum over at CBR.

--Tad

Comic Shop Surprise

I don't buy a lot of comics each week but I like the Wednesday ritual.  Warner Brothers Animation has moved to Burbank which arguably makes it the animation hub of the world, home to Nickleodeon Studios, Cartoon Network Studios, Disney, Warners, Starz Film Roman and a host of smaller producers.  That makes Wednesday at House of Secrets a nice visit with industry friends, no matter what's coming out.

Anyway, outside of Mark Waid's FLASH, I figured there'd be slim pickings.  I was thinking of picking up another Fables TPB when I saw Mike's new novel on the racks.

This is the special Previews edition with a sketchbook filled with Mike's thumbnails in the back.  That's a reason to check your Local Comic Shop instead of the local monster bookstore.

The You Tube interview is here.