Friday, July 29, 2016

SDCC 2016 - Thank you, Darwyn.


We publish comics in the U.S. since 1999, first work with a publisher was in 2003 things started to hit off only in 2006, but we still live in Brazil and that keeps us distant from the market. The upside is that we don't get influence by trends, imediata statistics or business gossip. We do our work isolated in the safety of our studio. The downside is that we don't have direct contact with the readers and retailers. We throw our books into the ocean hoping they'll find the reader. Throughout all these years, San Diego Comic Con International has been the moment we have to connect with the market, the editors, artists and readers. We've been going since 1997, and this trip serves to recharge our batteries and fuel another year of production.
The convention has changed a lot since we started going, but it's still a unique experience and the best portrait of the North American market in every sphere, from the indy artists with their first mini-comic, to the Small Press area filled with tiny publishers you've never heard of, to alternative oasis like Drawn & Quarterly and Fantagraphics, going through book publishers having their go on comics like Penguin and Scholastic and First Second, finally getting to Marvel, DC, Dark Horse, Image, as well as "younger" companies like IDW or Boom Studios. Besides, there're many artists and writers scattered around on tables, signing sessions and panels. Yes, Hollywood has taken a gigantic space on the Con – physical space as much as the attention of the media and the public –, but if you're going there for the comics, you're still gonna have the best experience of your life.

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We shared tables on small press area and booths on the main floor for years, but since 2012 we don't have a table anymore, a place to stay for the whole day selling our books. This year we had one signing every day and a couple of panels, giving us all the time in the world to walk around, enjoy the show and rest. We miss the close contact with the readers that having a table allowed us, but it was great to do things calmly and really enjoy our days. With such a big demand and a 7 years waiting list, I'd say it's rather unlikely we'll have a table in SDCC again.
But our signing sessions were awesome, full of old and new readers, known faces, people who we connect only by social media, who comment, share and like the smoke signals we send throughout the year, from afar. During these moments of brief interaction, we could have a glimpse of the the readers' reaction about TWO BROTHERS, released last October, and also about our new book, HOW TO TALK TO GIRLS AT PARTIES, released last month. With two recent books, readers had a lot to talk about.
Between parties and dinners, one of the highlights of SDCC is the Eisner Awards Ceremony Friday night. Long and boring like any other award ceremony, the Eisner is, however, a moment to stop and celebrate Comics, the creators and the work. We're ALL isolated in our studios, separated by miles, continents and oceans, but right there we're all together, with all our attention on the art. Throughout the night you'll discover works you didn't know, see some comics that had not caught your attention earlier with new and fresh eyes, and get to know a little closer artists whose work you appreciate for years. Over the weekend, you can walk the convention floor looking for the winners. All of them will be there, waiting for you.
Once more, we were.

San Diego Comic-Con 2016: Eisner Awards

San Diego Comic-Con 2016: Eisner Awards

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Over the course of twenty years, we met a lot of people in Comics. We've seen our idols become our friends and some of our friends turning into professionals. SDCC is also a big reunion, a big party.
This year's edition was one of the best SDCC for us, for all the reasons described above, but specially for bringing a deeper feeling of recognition. We're always trying new things, every new project is different from the last, and every year we meet new artists and new works that inspire us and push us to keep innovating and believing there's still a lot to be done in Comics. One of these artists, whom we've met personally in 2008, was Darwyn Cooke. He showed us with his “Parker” series that it was possible to make an good adaptation, keeping his own voice while doing it and blowing the readers' minds. This was the work that convinced us it was possible to adapt Two Brothers. He showed us (and everybody else) an adaptation can be relevant, feel original and look amazing. Throughout the years, his work would guide us, and I hope to have achieved just a bit of the prime he's presented us.
Last Friday, in the heat of the moment and nervous as hell, while thanking everyone who helped us making Two Brothers a reality, I forgot the most obvious and important person of all. Without Darwyn Cooke, our book wouldn't exist. The Eisner we won is dedicated to him.
 thanks_darwyn

Saturday, July 23, 2016

TWO BROTHERS got the EISNER AWARD!

After all these years, the excitement of having a new idea remains the same, the thrill of finishing a story remains the same, the happiness of being nominated for an award remains the same, the nerve-wracking rollercoaster ride during the award ceremony remains the same, and winning the award remains as unbelievably amazing as ever.


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TWO BROTHERS is a very special project, an amazing story we had the honor of working on and we had the chance to introduce to new readers. This book deserves all the attention it may get and this award fills our hearts with joy.

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Thanks for all who’ve read it and got us this far. E if you haven’t read it yet, get it on your local comic book store or book store, or buy it online, and after you read it, go look for the original novel that originated this work. Do yourself this favor.

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Friday, July 15, 2016

SDCC 2016, here we go again.

Ten years ago, our career in comics started to really happen. By that time, we had just published the first issue of Casanova and released our Eisner nominated anthology, De:TALES. In 2006, we were very excited about all the wonderful possibilities awaiting us, and we made the video below to celebrate it. (the audio is in Portuguese).




Ten years have passed and here we go again, crossing the ocean to attend San Diego Comic Con International, the 5-days-long-pop-culture-craziness that celebrates comics, at least for those who really care and keep going back for it. If you’re going to SDCC for the first time, you may be overwhelmed by the whole Hollywood circus and all the bullshit that takes over the entire Gaslamp District, but if you cross the herds of movie fans standing in endless lines all day and get inside the convention floor, the comics are still in there, and the creators are still in there, just waiting for their fans. We certainly go just to see our friends and meet the fans.

We don’t have a table anywhere, but we’ll have signings and will be on panels, so if you want to find us, here’s our week-long schedule:

THURSDAY, JULY 21th

4pm - Signing at Dark Horse booth (#2615) - Fábio Moon and Gabriel Bá

FRIDAY, JULY 22nd

2pm - Signing at Dark Horse booth (#2615) - Gerard Way and Gabriel Bá (ticket event)

3pm - Dark Horse Originals panel (room 7AB) - Dave McKean, Fábio Moon, Gabriel Bá, Peter Hogan, Cullen Bunn and Jonathan Case. How cool is it to be on a panel with Dave McKean?

8pm - Eisner Awards (Indigo Ballroom at the Hilton Bayfront)

SATURDAY, JUY 23rd

12pm - Signing at Dark Horse booth (#2615) - Fábio Moon and Gabriel Bá

3pm - Signing at CBLDF booth (#1918) - Fábio Moon and Gabriel Bá

SUNDAY, JULY 24th

11am - “CHANGING THE READER, ONE WORLD AT A TIME” panel (room 28DE). Let’s celebrate the power of comics and talk about how the use of images and words together to tell stories leave a unique and incredibly powerful effect on the readers. Find out which stories changed our lives and how we plan to keep changing the world with Comics.

3pm - Signing at CBLDF booth (#1918) - Fábio Moon and Gabriel Bá

Stay tuned in our social media channels (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc...), for updates on our schedule and activities.

We hope to see you all in San Diego, sign your comics and talk about our love for stories.

Tuesday, July 05, 2016

Harvey Awards Nomination

Today they announced the nominees for the Harvey Awards and TWO BROTHERS has been nominated on two categories: "Best Graphic Album Original" and "Best American Publication of Foreign Material".



You will find the complete list of nominees here. Lots of great names in there.


The Harvey Awards ceremony takes place on September 3rd, at the Baltimore Comic-Con.