All posts by Brian Kolm

About Brian Kolm

Brian Kolm is a Artist and Instructor working in the San Francisco Bay Area. His work can be seen at http://www.atomicbearpress.com.

San Francisco JAM Thursday Dec 11,2008 and cheap-ass-white-elephant exchange info

comics, San+Francisco, , , , ,

Reminder that the last Comic Jam of 2008 is on this Thursday Dec 11, 2008 from 6:30 to 9/10 ish at the Church St. Café.

Info: The Cartoonist Conspiracy San Francisco (CCSF) meets twice a month at 6:30 pm on the second and last Thursday of the month at the CHURCH STREET CAFé in San Fransisco CA.

WHEN: Thursday Dec 11, 2008. 6:30 pm to usually sometimes between 9 and 10 pm.
WHERE: Church St. Cafe 260 Church Street San Francisco, CA 94114

——————————————————————————-

— the CCSF CHEAP-ASS-WHITE-ELEPHANT gift exchange

GOAL: to celebrate the holidays by being CHEAP and getting rid of comics, books, zines, art materials, postcards, cool art, stickers, left over Halloween candy and other cartoonist/artist friendly things AND to get some new stuff in return.

WHO: Participation is OPTIONAL.

WHEN: 8:00 PM Dec 11, 2008 at Comic Jam (Jam runs from 6:30pm to 9/10ish pm)

RULES: Bring a cheap-ass-white-elephant gift and get one in return. No complaining about what you get, but trading at the end is encouraged.

HOW: WIth the economic state our country is in it’s a perfect time to have some holiday fun that is CHEAP CHEAP CHEAP.

1) Just grab some comics/books, drawings/art, etc. that you don’t want anymore and think other artist would like — CHEAP.
2) Get a free mailing envelope from work or the post office or fed-ex Kinko’s (the cardboard flat rate mailers would be great since they make it harder to tell what’s in it–CHEAP.
3) Stuff stuff into envelop and seal envelope.
4) Put a secret mark so you don’t pick your envelope when it’s your turn.
5) Come to CCSF jam

6) at 8pm any one who brought a CAWEgift will draw a number. Person 1 can pick one of the packages and then open it up for all to see. Person 2, 3, 4 etc have the option of ‘stealing’ from someone else the whole package (not just part) or picking a new one. The person who was ‘robbed’ can then pick a new package from the pile. The rules can be modified by the group if need be.

7) Enjoy out packages of goodies or trade with others the contents.

NOTE: If you really fee inclined to buy something for the cheap-ass-white-elephant gift exchange, try to keep it cheap and fun (comics for $0.10 are a good idea for instance)

San Francisco JAM Thursday Nov 13, 2008

Uncategorized, ,

Hey all the next comic jam is tomorrow night. Hope to see some of you there. We will try to finish the choose-your-own-adventure comic and work on some other stuff too.

Time: 6:30 pm to usually sometimes between 9 and 10 pm.
Where: CHURCH STREET CAFé in San Fransisco CA. 260 Church Street San Francisco, CA 94114

— NOTE: No Comic Jam on Thanksgiving, Thursday Nov 25, 2008

APE: Alternative Press Expo – November 1-2, 2008 – CONVENTION and PARTY info

conventions, San+Francisco, , , , , ,

APE: Alternative Press Expo is this weekend and the Cartoonist Conspiracy San Francisco will have a table set up thanks to member Kraig Rasmussen. The table is at spot #250 (or #251)

Some of our other members will be exhibiting at the convention as well, so go check them out too:

>Amy Martin Comics    #273B
>Brian Kolm @ Cartoon Art Museum #364
>Fine Print Press: Kraig Rasmussen, Dan Salcido, Lori Stein, Mike Hales and Doc Popular #251 (or #250)
>Eric Ruston and Melaina Eller #534B

Admission is only $15 for both days.

– CAM Alternative Press Expo Party: Keith Knight Closing Reception and Book Release Party for Jesse Reklaw, Hellen Jo and Olga Volozova

Cartoon Art Museum Event: Saturday, November 1, 2008, 8:00-11:00 pm. Price: Sliding Scale: $2 – $20
http://www.cartoonart.org

The Cartoon Art Museum, Dark Horse Comics and Sparkplug Comic Books proudly present The Cartoon Art Museum’s Alternative Press Expo Party on Saturday, November 1, 2008. Join special guest Keith Knight as we host the closing reception for The Knight Life: Bay Area Spotlight on Keith Knight. Additional guests include Jesse Reklaw, celebrating the release of The Night of Your Life, published by Dark Horse Comics, collecting the Ignatz Award-nominated webcomic Slow Wave; Trevor Alixopolous, creator of the Ignatz Award-nominated graphic novel The Hot Breath of War; Hellen Jo; Olga Volozova; David King; and Julia Wertz. Hellen Jo and Olga Volozova will be signing copies of their own newly-released graphic novels, published by Sparkplug Comic Books.

All of the aforementioned artists will be reading selections from their comics, as well as signing copies of their new books and selling limited edition prints and posters. Food and beverages for the event will be sponsored by Dark Horse, Sparkplug and a wide selection of local restaurants and merchants. Please visit our website the week prior to the Alternative Press Expo for a complete list of party sponsors and special events.

CCSF: Comic Jam in San Francisco Oct 30, 2008

jam, Jam Comics, San+Francisco, ,

Our next Comic Jam is this Thursday October 30, 2008
where: Church St. Caf̩ Р260 Church Street San Francisco, California 94114
when: Thursday OCTOBER 30, 2008. 6:30 pm to usually sometimes between 9 and 10 pm.

For this JAM will be finishing up some older work as well as attempting to do an interactive/choose your own adventure comic , so come with your imagination and favorite drawing tools.

There is also a good chance that we will have examples of the books being sold at APE as well.

Some of you out-of-towners will be in town for APE, so drop on by and say ‘Hi’ to your Cartoonist Conspiracy San Francisco pals.

The jam is FREE but it’s nice if everyone could purchase something from the café we meet at so we don’t wear out our welcome.

On-Line tools for 24HCBD

24 Hour Comics

Creating a 24 Hour Comic Book means trying new crazy things. Here are some on-line tools to help get some ideas. If you will not have web access during the challenge you can always print out some and then pick one at random.

On-Line Tools:

Random Log-Line Generator – Random plot seeds

Samples: A therapist watches TV with a monk in a yogurt shop, Ravishing street performers discover their true selves.

Oblique Strategies (by Brian Eno) – Random Ideas

Samples: Don’t be afraid of things because they’re easy to do, Do we need holes?, What mistakes did you make last time?

“These cards evolved from our separate observations of the principles underlying what we are doing. Sometimes they were recognized in retrospect (intellect catching up with intuition), sometimes they were identified as they were happening, sometimes they were formulated. They can be used as a pack (a set of possibilities being continuously reviewed in the mind) or by drawing a single card from a shuffled pack when a dilemma occurs in a working situation. In this case the card is trusted even if it appropriateness is quite unclear. They are not final, as new ideas will present themselves, and others will become self-evident.”

Seventh Sanctum – Random Name and Ideas – Here you’ll find tools for writers, gamers, and artists; randomly assembling names, concepts, and more for when you need inspiration, or just a bit of amusement.

Samples: Superheros, RPG characters, Names, etc.

Random Plot Generator – Random fantasy/epic plot elements Sample:Advice for the Hero: If I maintain a secret identity, I will keep my transformation ritual as simple and quick as possible so that I cannot be interrupted during it.

Behind the Name – Random names

Lee’s useless Superhero Name Generator – Random Superhero Names Samples: Emerald Z, Doc Kid, Shadow Cavalier

50 Random Superhero Names (From the Men and Supermen RPG) Sample: 46 Blue Brain Maria Martinez female

Hero Machine On-Line – Design and Randomize Superhero art

Random Romance Generator

Irony Games random Maps for RPG

Band-o-Matic – Random band names Samples: Filth Elder, Net Lard

Random Emo Band Names

Script Vault name generator – Random names

24HCBD 2008 San Francisco October 18t to October 19th

24 Hour Comics

Update: I got the info wrong, Doc is going to have a LIVE VIDEO FEED!

Hey all, 24 Hour Comic Book Day is just two days away and I know lots of us are getting ready for the big challenge. Here in San Francisco we will be at Comics Outpost from 11 am to 11 am this weekend and drawing up a storm (as well as ingesting caffeine a lot).

Doc Popular as set up a live VIDEO FEED for the event and it can be checked out at:

“…I’ll be attempting to livestream the entire event from here http://www.ustream.tv/channel/doctor-popular-does-stuff They will be able to watch and chat whenever someone is near the computator.”

The store will also will have an official blogger who will be posting on the official blog as well as the stores myspace page.

FAQ for 24 Hour Comic Book Day in San Francisco’s Comics Outpost.

Location: 2381 OCEAN AVE. SAN FRANCISCO, CA. 94127 (415) 239-COMX (2669) – http://www.comicoutpost.net. Comics Outpost will remain open the whole time, so your friends can
come and visit at any point.

Reservations and Fees: Pre-register by emailing Doc Pop at ( yoyogenius at gmail dot com ), there will be a $5 to support the venue

Goal: To create a 24 Page Comic in 24 HOURS!

Set-up: Arrive by 10 am (or 10:30 at the latest) to set-up your work space and to Pow-Wow before we start our challenge

Times: Starts 11 am on Saturday October 18th and Ends at 11 am on Sunday October 19th

Location Resources: Comic Outpost will have free wi-fi and powerstrips. I HIGHLY recommend bringing your own desklamp, 24 hours of drawing in low lighting can really wear you down.

Transportation:

Bus: During the day the MUNI K line is the fastest with the only night service being the 91 Night Owl – visit 511.org to find out more
Bikes: can be locked up in the front of the store

Car Parking Behind the store

Dress: The weather has been lovely the last few days in San Francisco, but since we will be working for 24 hours  dress accordingly. The city always gets cold and you don’t want to freeze while you dash to 7-11 for a snack.

Materials: We won’t be able to provide any materials, but you can bring whatever
art supplies you want, as long as you can clean up after yourself when
your done.

Xerox/Copystore: Copy Edge – open 12-5 and there is a Fed-Ex Kinkos (more information coming)

Food: The store will be providing drinks, snacks and Pizza, but you should also bring your own food and drink of choice. There are places to buy food in the area, but most are not open 24 hour and might take time walking to them.

In Walking Distance:
7-11 – 4 blocks away
Right Aid – regular hours
Wallgreens – regular hours
24 Hour Pizza place
Stonestown Galleria – restaurants and such / http://www.stonestowngalleria.com / Monday – Saturday: 10:00am-9:00pm – Sunday: 11:00am-7:00pm

History: a reminder of the Scott McCloud’s original 24 hour challenge you can find it here:http://www.scottmccloud.com/inventions/24hr/dare/dare.html

Tips: We also recommend checking out Kevin Cannon and Zander’s tips to making 24 hour comics!

– http://24-hourcomic.blogspot.com/2007/10/kevin-cannons-24-hour-comic-tips.html

– http://www.bigtimeattic.com/blog/labels/144%20Hr%20Comics%20Challenge.html

Orphan Works Bill passes Senate by Hotlining

Uncategorized

From the Illustration Partnership Orphan Works Blog:

Orphan Works Opposition: Plan B

SEPT 27 Yesterday, in a cynical move, the sponsors of the Senate Orphan Works Act passed their controversial bill by a controversial practice known as hotlining.

With lawmakers scrambling to raise 700 billion dollars to bail out businesses that are “too big to fail,” the Senate passed a bill that would force small copyright holders to subsidize big internet interests such as Google, which has already said it plans to use millions of the images this bill will orphan.

With the meltdown on Wall Street, this is no time for Congress to concentrate our nation’s copyright wealth in the hands of a few privately owned corporate databases. The contents of these databases would be more valuable than secure banking information. Yet this bill would compel creators to risk their own intellectual property to supply content to these corporate business models. That means it would be our assets at risk in the event of their failure or mismanagement.

As David Rhodes, President of the School of Visual Arts has said, the Orphan Works bill would socialize the expense of copyright protection while privatizing the profit of creative endeavors. Copyright owners neither want nor need this legislation. It will do great harm to small businesses. We already have a banking crisis. Congress should not lay the groundwork for a copyright crisis.

– Brad Holland and Cynthia Turner, for the Illustrators’ Partnership

NOW FOR PLAN B

We MUST try to stop the House Judiciary Committee from folding their bill (HR5889) and adopting the Senate version.

PLEASE EMAIL CONGRESS TODAY.
If you’ve done it before, do it again!

It takes only a minute to use our new special letter.
Click on the link below, enter your zip code, and take the next steps.
Thanks to all of you who heeded the call to action yesterday.

http://capwiz.com/illustratorspartnership/issues/alert/?alertid=11980321

Over 70 organizations oppose this bill, representing over half a million creators.
Illustrators, photographers, fine artists, songwriters, musicians, and countless licensing firms all believe this bill will harm their small businesses. The Illustrators Partnership Capwiz site is open to professional creators and any member of the image-making public.

24 Hour Comic Book Jam in San Francisco CA, October 18th – 11 am to 11 am

24 Hour Comics, San+Francisco, , , , , ,

Well, it’s that time of year when artist take on the night (and morning) to create unique comic works. It’s time for the official 24 Hour Comic Book Day.

Your artist pals form the Cartoonist Conspiracy in San Francisco have joined forces with Comics Outpost to take on this unique challenge where artist work to complete a 24 page comic in 24 hours.

Crazy…..yes, of course. But an excellent challenge none the less.


On August 31st, 1990, Scott McCloud (Understanding Comics), originator of the 24 Hour comic concept, completed his first creative marathon. On April 24th, 2004 Nat Gertler organized the first 24HCD bringing together legions of participants all over the world in this annual event. In the years since, thousands have tried and many have succeeded in creating their own 24 hour comics.

So, wouldn’t you like to give it a try. If so, join our smelly/rude/caffeinated band of artist for a day/night of Cartooning fun.

How? We will be hosting up to 20 artists at our event, and we are requiring a $5 donation to reserve a space (this is going to Gary at CO to cover his expenses). To reserve a space, contact Doc Pop at (yoyogenius at gmail.com).

Time/Date: 11am Sat Oct 18th, 2008 to 11am Sunday Oct 19th

Location: Comics Outpost – 2381 OCEAN AVE. SAN FRANCISCO, CA. 94127 (415) 239-COMX (2669) – http://www.comicoutpost.net/

Still not sure, check out these samples by: Mike Hale and Brian Kolm

Bellow is the fantastic poster by Mike Hale.

CCSF Comic Jam in San Francisco – September 11th, 2008

jam, Jam Comics, San+Francisco, ,

Tomorrow night, Sept 11thm 2008,  there is another Comic Jam in San Francisco CA. Will you come and draw with us?

The Cartoonist Conspiracy San Francisco meets every SECOND and LAST Thursday of the month from 6:30 pm till about 9/10 pm and artist of all skill levels and talents are invited to come on out and draw with us. So grab your favorite drawing tools and join the fun.

WHERE: We meet at the Church Street Café at 260 Church Street San Francisco, CA 94114.

WHEN: 6:30 pm to 9/10 pm

TRANSPORTATION: We encourage you to take public transportation if at all possible since parking can be hard to find.

— From BART on Market St.: 1) You can take the above ground F line going away from the embarcaradero twords the Castro neighborhood. 2) Take the K,L,M on the Underground Muni and get off at the Church St. Station 3) take the J underground and get off at the first stop above ground, next to the big Safeway store or the next stop which is past the café 4) Take the other underground lines and get off at the first outside station which is only two or so block from the café.

Visit http://www.511.org/ to get the full details on how to get to the JAM.