Children's Book and Movie in the Making...
-As a child what did you want to become?
As a child, as far as I can remember when asked that very same question; my answer was I want to become an Engineer, I can sometimes remember myself standing by a construction site and looking at the giant crane lifting and moving loads; for some reason I was really fascinated by that aerial ballet . Later on in life I eventually pursuit a career in civil and managerial Engineering.
-Is writing your only profession?
No, writing is definitely not my profession. I tend to consider myself as an accidental writer. I started writing when I was in between two jobs; having been let go by one employer while looking for a prospective employer. My first piece of writing was a screenplay. I have to admit that I really did enjoy the experience. Creating out of fine air a fictional story with fictional characters and bringing them to life within that 120 pages format was a kind of fun. As the story goes, once you enjoy the process, you can't stop writing.
-What inspires you in the job of being a writer?
What inspires me, are the answers and the comments that I get from people who have read my stories. Positives responses get me motivated to do more and negative challenges make me do better. All my works are fictional and are mainly comedy and adventure. I also have written one thriller.
-Do you have any other creative ambitions or dreams you aspire?
Yes I do, I would like to see some of my stories turned into movies especially my last project: Jungle Gentle Giants.... The Tale of the Three Gorilla Princes.
-Does writing run in your family?
Not at all. I can safely say that I am the only writer so far.
-Do you have a favorite author yourself?
I don't have a favorite writer per say, I can safely say that I do enjoy any good book or literature manuscript with a nice story.
-With admiration I have read your script and the two book versions of your Gorilla stories. What gave you the idea to write the Jungle's Gentle Giants Script, the Tale of the Three Gorilla Princes?
I am a big fan of the Lion King. One bright afternoon after watching a documentary about gorillas and how they were in the list of endanger species the idea of writing a story about gorillas came in. After several trials and drafts I decided to write a screenplay for an animated movie featuring gorillas.
-The names used in the script and the two book versions are striking, beautiful and intriguing. How did you come up with those names?
I tried to come up with original names. Silver was given in reference to the Silver Back Gorillas, Noko is basically the translation of the word "Uncle" in lingala a language spoken in the Democratic Republic of Congo. A few names where given in memory of some of my friends that are no longer with us.
-For which different ages have you written your Gorilla books and within how many books?
The original manuscript for the story was the screenplay which was intended for all audiences. The novel is for junior readers age 8 to 12
-Are you never afraid you will run out of inspiration for your Gorilla Stories?
Gorillas are very resourceful, I do believe that there is plenty more to write about these gentle creatures
-What is the most difficult thing in your job?
For the neophyte that I am, once the story is finished, edited and polished how to find a way to bring my script into a movie and my books to the general public...
-What is the most fun part in your job?
I would say it is getting myself lost into the story....be for a moment far away from reality and be a fictional character for awhile....
-Do you expect your way of writing to change in the future?
Not really, who knows what progress can bring.
-Do you embrace the changes in the book industry regarding new media?
Absolutely. Positive changes are always welcome.
-Do you like art? Do you have any preferences for an artist? And/or for creators of artistic work (can also be a chef, designer, photographer or inventor)?
I am a big fan of painter Salvatore Dali. My two favorite architects are Frank Loyd Wright and Im Pei. The inventor, the genius Nicholas Tesla will also always intrigue me.
-If so, why is that? What special quality do you like in their work or personalities?
I especially like the level of perfection that each one of them has achieved in their respected field.
-If you were not born with a natural talent for writing, what other artistic talent would you love to have been born with?
I have zero talent in music; so I would love to have been born as a Jazz musician.
-Could we feature in our magazine and/or online you favorite artist?
I would love to see you feature the life story of Louis Armstrong that also will show his way of thinking and his background story. I think your script and books are more than ready to be put in production. Kids love it, so why don't you like to make it available to all kids in the form of a movie, maybe a show and a series of books?
-Would you be willing to work with us to find a production and publishing company that will pick up your book to make it into an animated feature?
It goes without saying that I will be delighted.
-What is your dream related to your Jungle Gentle Giants Story?
To make my story into a classic for future generations, a Broadway Show, a movie, a sequence of books and to have the main Gorillas in my book to become a child's favorite character. Further more, if with my story I can help in the preservation of the gorillas' species through awareness, I would be pleased to have accomplished something.
If you like to know more about Pamphil's books and moviescript and like to help him with bringing his dreams becoming reality, please email us at info@eyesin.com or call with (+1) 917 774 0167.
Eyes in Books - in Illustration - in the United Kingdom - Sam Needham
Interview with Sam Needham-Illustrator from Kent
-As a child what did you want to become?
I used to love drawing but it never crossed my mind to do it as a living. I remember wanting to be an archaeologist after seeing Raiders of the Lost Ark, and then being put off because apparently in real life they didn't swing from vines and kill nazis. I kind of liked the idea of being a mad scientist as well, more for the image than inventing anything.
-What inspires you in the job of illustrator?
All sorts of things, but mainly sci-fi comic books (not superhero stuff) and weird, unusual animated films such as Time Masters and Tekkonkinkreet. Computer games do too, though I'm not so good at playing them, Bioshock for instance is as artistic as any other medium. Also, being an illustrator, the only limit is your imagination, and you can tell stories with just pencils and paper instead of all the other factors that go into making films, TV and games. I suppose that's the same with writing, but even quicker. Sometimes it does frustrate me how long it takes to draw a sequential narrative compared with writing a script. But I don't get the same feeling of having worked hard on writing as from drawing.
-What is your main ambition?
I'm not sure if I'll manage that one in time, but I'd love to achieve what Hayao Miyazaki has. He's got his own animation studio with many beautiful films and he apparently draws every key frame for each feature. That's thousands of drawings, just the sense of satisfaction producing a bulk of work like that would give would be amazing. Osamu Tezuka's body of work is the benchmark for me though, working in both manga and animation, I'm not such a fan of his earlier kids' stuff like Astro Boy, but his great artistry mixed with his masterly and suspenseful writing is awe-inspiring. If I had a production company that could equal Ghibli's output, but have more adult, street smart themes such as Ralph Bakshi's, that would be amazing. Bakshi would hire people off the street to voice some of his characters. I think the media, especially in the UK, is way too weighted towards the middle and upper classes, and I would really like to even out the scales by training and employing poor young adults who have a passion for these kind of arts. A lot of kids from bad areas around the world find escapism through comics, films and games and I'm sure could create just as innovative art as anyone born into better circumstances, from a fresher perspective too. Having said all this, to achieve what Robert Crumb has, all on his own terms, never having sold out, with completely uncensored, raw subject matter, would be great too as I am no business man and the thought of owning a company of any sort scares me rigid.
-Does the fact that you became a dad have influenced your approach towards children's book illustrations?
Hugely. When I'm drawing the baby gorillas for Pamphil in Jungle Gentle Giants, I'm thinking of my little one year old Yomi crawling around and laughing. She kind of looks like a cross between an ape and a toad too, which helps. I can't wait so I can actually read it to her and the next baby once it's complete.
-Do you have a favorite cartoon figure?
Hmmmm. It would vary I think depending on what I'm into at the time. For some reason Ian McShane in Deadwood springs to mind as he's an outlandishly cartoon anti-hero. For the straight answer I'd say Droopy the dog, with his incredibly downbeat attitude and voice, he doesn't have to say or do anything funny, I just see him and smile.
-Do you have an ambition or special idea where you are aiming for in the industry?
I kind of answered that in a previous question, but I'll go further by saying I'd love to do what Avatar did, but make it more out there. Kind of dystopian, gritty, alien infested sci-fi with surreal and beautiful utopian elements, otherworldly. A 3D animated HBO TV series of that type of thing. Someone will definitely beat me to that idea though.
-What is the most difficult thing in your job?
Looking back at past work and being ashamed of it. This happens frequently.
-What is the most fun part in your job?
Working hard on an illustration or animation and then looking at it and loving it. When a client feels the same way then that's even better.
-The last years the role of illustrator has been a changing one with the merging of animated features and bookstories, in which way were you able to adapt to that?
I started in animation anyway so I'm quite clued up on these changes. I plan to create an animated graphic novel of my own when I get the time. The first one I saw was the Dead Space one, which gave me the idea. It is virtually impossible to keep up with these advances in the medium though, I think the best thing is not to panic; people still listen to classical music and jazz, watch black and white films, play pixelated blocky computer games and read books and plays written centuries ago. Whatever medium you choose to pursue, there should also be somebody out there that will love it.
-Do you expect more changes in this field in the future?
Many, many more. I won't be so happy if motion capture is solely employed in animation as this seems like cheating to me and will put a lot of animators out of business, but then some people will adapt and others won't. I'm OK cause I could just stick to illustration if this happens.
-What would be a dreamjob for you?
An alien concept artist. Creating and drawing aliens all day, that would be cool. I like the Mass Effect games for these, so concept artist for Bioware would be great.
-What inspires you in making the drawings for Pamphil's Gorilla story?
Pamphil's story itself. It's a wonderful, classic return to the art of storytelling for kids that Disney used to do so well. There are serious subjects rooted in the tale, such as the endangerment of wildlife at human hands, and that power and greed cause corruption. Pamphil doesn't patronize the child audience either, knowing that showing that good characters can suffer and die is not a bad concept for a child to understand, just like in Bambi. These are important themes for children's fiction to explore, and companies such as Pixar and Dreamworks could do well from understanding this. Children's fiction is possibly the most important type of fiction as it does play a big part in shaping their collective personalities and morals. Showing them animated features that bombard them with hundreds of wise-cracking one-liners seems to be pandering more to the parents than their children, but maybe that's just me.
If you like to contact Sam Needham for Illustration projects please email to info@eyesin.com
Sam Needham's Biography in Images and Words:
Sam Needham's Bio:
Sam Needham was born a son of bakers (SoB) and the oldest of 6 in July 1976 in Brighton, England. He loved drawing since a young age and would spend most of his free time locked away reading or drawing. He rarely used colour and would mostly used black biro pens to draw fantastical, wildlife or violent images. He was terrible at art and PE in school but got good qualifications in maths, science and English. After hitting 14 and becoming influenced by the rebel music of The Sex Pistols, NWA and Guns N' Roses he kind of lost interest in drawing and wanted to become a musician, taking up singing and guitar in a few bands. This led him astray somewhat, working in convenience stores and bumming around till he got pneumonia at the age of 24 and subsequently landed a job as a medical lab porter, carrying organs and blood samples around the same hospital he was admitted to.
He definitely should've listened to his dad, who'd told him he should've stuck with his drawing. While working he attended night courses in animation, and in 2001 decided to enrol on an Animation degree course at Northbrook college in Worthing while working at a convenience store in Brighton. He worked and played hard for 3 years, producing some outlandish and profane animations (these are littered on various sites on the web) that riled some of the tutors but still got him a 2:1 BA (Hons). The free computer he received when he was diagnosed with Dyspraxia didn't do any harm either. He consumed the whole reading list for the 3 years in the first 6 months, and gained knowledge and influence of such wonderful animation artists as Ralph Bakshi and Tex Avery, as well as his all-time biggest influence, underground comic artist Robert Crumb. It was Brooklyn born Bakshi (Fritz The Cat, Coonskin, The Lord of the Rings) who he most empathized with as he came from a humble background and wanted to drag animation out of it's Disneyfied children's ghetto and drag it into a world of adult street smarts and social conscience.
Sam had a few of his short animations shown in cinemas in London, Brighton and Worthing where audiences would either laugh uproariously or walk out in disgust. Once he left college he worked as a 3D Studio Max Modeler and Animator on Clear Crown Studio's WildLife! PC game. After this he became a Maya 3D Layout Artist on Sir Billi, an animated film starring Sean Connery that never saw release. Though he mostly worked in 3D, Sam missed illustrating and creating 2D animations so decided to set up a freelance business of his own called Sambad Productions in 2007. The last 3 years has seen him animate a TV commercial for Chinese New Year for the Singapore based Intense Animation, illustrate a children's Bible book called Ark Buddies for Alabama based Footwash Ministries, be hired as a Storyboard Doctor for the upcoming film Not Scared Of You for UK based Handley Associates, create the logo for the Nigerian National Health Service Trust and work as a 3D Animator/Modeler/Layout Artist on The Jarmies, an animated TV series on Sky's JimJams channel, on which he still works. He is currently working with writer Pamphil Kin as an illustrator on Jungle Gentle Giants, a forthcoming children's book.
Sam lives happily with his wife and two daughters (with another baby due in February) in rural Kent, England. His main goals are to travel the world and possibly emigrate, as well as set up a production company that would train and hire poor dispossessed young adults who have a passion for animation and drawing.
