http://search.deviantart.com/?q=by:genekelly&section=today deviantART RSS for by:genekelly en-us Copyright 2009, deviantART.com Thu, 31 Dec 2009 15:46:42 PST deviantART.com http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss http://s.deviantart.com/minish/widgets/apple-touch-icon-precomposed.png http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/28950462/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/28950462/ Mon, 14 Dec 2009 19:49:27 PST
I've done a decent amount of comic/story writing lately, but done very little drawing since the end of 1DF. I really need to do something about that. I also have some comic plans and another web project in the works. So much to do, so little time...

Anyway, just wanted to say "hey". Thanks for the recent comments, faves and birthday wishes. You guys are awesome! Hope you all have a really great holiday, full of good times and good friends. Cheers!

Gene

]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/27986278/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/27986278/ Mon, 26 Oct 2009 20:59:18 PDT
1. Layouts on the big boards for pages 1-3 of Rocket & Bounce #3
2. Thumbnail review and feedback for short comic
3. T-shirt commission image
4. WordPress tweaks for the Cranky Octopus home page.

What's on your to-do list this week?

]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/27935902/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/27935902/ Sat, 24 Oct 2009 06:56:10 PDT [link] for an hour or so each day, and then spending the rest of the evening working on a new comic script (more on that another time) as well as the revisions to the Rocket & Bounce #3 script and thumbnails.

In regard to R&B #3 and my recent frustrations, the bottom line is the recent version of the script was just too big and unwieldy. There were several scenes I liked, but also several scenes that, while being cool, didn't really help move things along. With the page count shaping up to be 24 pages or more it was just becoming overwhelming, especially when considering how much time it takes to make each page. That was my problem with the first two pages. As silly as it may sound they weren't needed and something inside just refused to let me go down that road. Some editing needed to be done so I spent part of my evenings this week going over the existing script and thumbnails and building a better story. The new version is 14 pages total and much stronger. I'm excited again. Game on.

If you haven't heard already, the man behind the AFL tournaments has a brand new drawing/fighting tournament starting up. It's called One Dollar Fighter. Details can be found here: [link]

I will be entering my character Paladin. Should be fun!


Also, I recently commissioned to do Rocket & Bounce pics for me and they are turned out awesome. Check out her gallery when you get a chance.


Also, The DC Comics Guide to Digitally Drawing Comics [link] by Freddie Williams II is a must read, if not a must own. Loaded with interesting ideas, helpful tips and more in regards to using Photoshop to make your comic drawing life easier and more fun. Good stuff!

Catch you later,
Gene

]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/27841938/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/27841938/ Sun, 18 Oct 2009 18:30:44 PDT

]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/27789922/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/27789922/ Thu, 15 Oct 2009 23:20:11 PDT What the f@#$ am I doing?! I don't want to spend the rest of my adult life drawing pin-ups and just wishing I could make a living making comics. No one read my first two Rocket & Bounce comics and thought "hmmm... this comic would be quite good if only that tricep were drawn in perspective a little better". No, most people said "Pretty cool. Where's the next one?" For Rocket & Bounce #3 I currently have 15 out of 20-ish pages thumbnailed, the cover drawn and inked, page 1 roughed out on the big paper and pages 2 and 3 about to be reworked in the thumbnail stage again because I can't get over it and leave them alone. I have several good excuses for not getting more done over the past couple months, but guess what? Good excuses don't make comics. Six weeks of daily sketches? Fun stuff for sure, good that I kept practicing. How many comic pages got done during those six weeks? Do I really need to keep working on muscles and action poses?! Not so much. I need to work on placing figures correctly within backgrounds. I need to be better about changing up the angles I use in my panels and creating more depth with middle ground, foreground, and background elements. I need to stay focused while completing a page and not wuss out with shortcuts and other bullshit just to get a page done. I need to do the best work I can do, accept my limitations and continue to produce! I am not a finished product. I am still growing. Improvement will only come through doing the work though. Put the time in, do the work. Do the f@#$ing work.

]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/27711500/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/27711500/ Fri, 16 Oct 2009 19:32:52 PDT
Weekly Sketches - Week 6: Teen Week

In the interest of making myself draw more often (and being around DA a bit more), I'm doing weekly sketches. Each week, Monday through Friday I'll be doing a sketch a day, probably a 20 - 40 minute kind of thing, and I'll be taking suggestions for characters to draw if anybody wants to chime in on that. Each week I'll pick five from any suggestions given (so it's not necessarily first come, first serve). If you suggest an OC please provide a link to an existing reference picture!

EDIT: Teen Titans and TMNT at the top of the request list, as they should be. Thanks guys!

1. Mon - Invincible thanks to and
2. Tues - TMNT thanks to
3. Wed - Hot Rod thanks to
4. Thurs - Libery Darling the oc of
5. Fri - Teen Titans thanks to and

And that's a wrap! Thanks again for the input! Much appreciated.

Gene

]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/27580207/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/27580207/ Fri, 09 Oct 2009 19:58:56 PDT
Drawing every weekday with these sketches has been pretty fun. It's also made drawing in general a little less scary. Yes, I still (still!) get scared of drawing if I'm away from it for too long. It's sad. Anyway, last week's entries took lots of time, so hopefully this week I can find a better balance of practice and free time. In theory these sketches are supposed to get me warmed up for my "real" drawing. (My drawing time usually comes after family time, which is after dinner, which is after work... and some time before sleep, lol. It's all about balance.)

Anyway, in order to put last week's practice to further use (and not forget it all right away, lol), Week 5's sketch theme is going to be Super Size 'Em! Each day this week I'm going to draw a super uber muscley dude or dudette or alien or whatever. The mo' big and muscley the mo' better! Per usual, I'll pick five from any suggestions people are kind enough to give (so it's not necessarily first come, first serve). If you suggest an OC please provide a link to an existing reference picture!

1. Mon - Hulk thanks to
2. Tues - She-Hulk thanks to
3. Wed - Gilead Samson an OC of
4. Thurs - Iron Bison an OC of
5. Fri - dA super buff thanks to

EDIT: Aaaaaand here's my sketch list for the week. Gotta' draw the Hulk cousins! Thanks again for the input! I really appreciate it.

Oh yeah, I also ate my first ever Fried Oreo today. The verdict: pretty awesome.

Gene

]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/27444233/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/27444233/ Fri, 02 Oct 2009 19:02:53 PDT
So! This week's sketch theme is going to be Anatomy Practice. Each day this week I'm going to try focus on a different aspect of anatomy and proportion and try to improve upon certain bad habits and problem areas I've never really addressed.

In the spirit of keeping this sketch thing a little interactive though, anyone have any problem areas of their own they want to bring up? Any particular aspect of anatomy, foreshortening, etc, that trips you guys up? I'm not specifically doing a tutorial, as this is really just practice for me, but maybe I can address some of your issues at the same time as my own? Worth a shot anyway, lol.

EDIT: All done for this week!

1. Mon - foreshortening basics
2. Tues - head and face
3. Wed - torso, abs
4. Thurs - legs and feet
5. Fri - arms and hands

Thanks for the feedback!

Gene

]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/27326208/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/27326208/ Fri, 25 Sep 2009 21:22:12 PDT
Sketch Week 2 [link] was fun. On with week 3...

WEEKLY SKETCHES - Week 3

In the interest of making myself draw more often and being around DA a bit more, I'm doing weekly sketches. Each week, Monday through Friday I'll be doing a sketch a day, probably a 20 - 40 minute kind of thing, and I'll be taking suggestions for characters to draw if anybody wants to chime in on that. Each week I'll pick five from any suggestions given (so it's not necessarily first come, first serve). If you suggest an OC please provide a link to an existing reference picture!

EDIT: Wow. No shortage of suggestions this time around either! You guys rock. Finally made it through the list and had a real hard time choosing, so I picked a lot of characters this week. Hopefully that doesn't come back to bite me in the butt, lol. And heck, let's it call it a theme! It's officially Team-Up or Tussle Week! Each day I'll be drawing two (or more) of the characters below either teaming up or taking each other on. Round 1! Fight!!

EDIT 2: All done for this week! Thanks again!

Thanks a lot for all the ideas. You guys make this little project a lot of fun.

1. Mon - Juggernaut vs. Steel thanks to and
2. Tues - Ms. Marvel and Masked Shrike thanks to and
3. Wed - Rocket & Bounce and Vector thanks to
4. Thurs - Vampirella vs. Abbey Chase thanks to
5. Fri - The Tick vs. Watchamacallit thanks to and

Thanks!

Gene

]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/27252204/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/27252204/ Fri, 18 Sep 2009 20:41:49 PDT
If you don't already know about it, check out the Photoshop filter called "BPelt". Looks wacky at first but it's pretty cool stuff. It's a reeeeal nice time saver when making color flats in Photoshop... 'cause flatting sucks, lol. [link]

My wife and I are playing around with ways of streamlining some kind of color process so she can help me with colors on Rocket & Bounce [link] . Anyone have any favorite coloring tutorials? Especially ones pertaining to color theory and mood?

Life and parenthood has kind of thrown us for a loop lately. Nothing too drastic or melodramatic, but it's definitely got us thinking hard about what goals we want to set and what we want to do with our life, family, etc. Must be some kind of grown up thing, lol.

Anyway, feeling a little frustrated about not being further along with certain projects, but definitely enjoying the recent batch of sketches. Thanks to those of you who've been chiming in on that. More soon.


------

WEEKLY SKETCHES - Week 2

A theme has developed! It was just too random to pass up, so it's velociraptor week, lol. Each day I'll be sketching the characters listed below and (somehow) a velociraptor. Come enjoy the ride with me.

1. Mon - Captain Planet thanks to
2. Tues - Cammy thanks to
3. Wed - Enigma an OC of
4. Thurs - Manzelle an OC of
5. Fri - Blue Wolf D an OC of

Thanks again for the input, lots of good stuff again this week. Much appreciated! More next week...

Gene

]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/27208351/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/27208351/ Tue, 15 Sep 2009 09:58:52 PDT EDIT: Apparently the UGO stunt isn't available in some countries outside the US. Argh! Sorry guys. The same interactive thingie will be on 1UP.com [link] a bit later today if you can access that site though. Sigh.

EDIT: The 1UP version is live now for those of you interested: [link]

----

Today on the UGO [link] homepage (if you're in the US) and later today at 1UP [link] we're running the coolest thing I've ever (eeeeever) made for work. Seriously. It's only going to be up one day to promote the new Wolverine DVD, so you should check it out now. I'm super proud of it!

SNIKT!!

...now I just need to see that Wolverine movie finally, lol.

]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/27189452/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/27189452/ Wed, 16 Sep 2009 06:53:16 PDT
WEEKLY SKETCHES - Week 2

In the interest of making myself draw more often (and being around DA a bit more), I'm doing weekly sketches. Each week, Monday through Friday I'll be doing a sketch a day, probably a 20 - 40 minute kind of thing, and I'll be taking suggestions for characters to draw if anybody wants to chime in on that. Each week I'll pick five from any suggestions given (so it's not necessarily first come, first serve). If you suggest an OC please provide a link to an existing reference picture!

EDIT: A theme has developed! It was just too random to pass up, so it's velociraptor week, lol. Each day I'll be sketching the characters listed below and (somehow) a velociraptor. Come enjoy the ride with me.

1. Mon - Captain Planet thanks to
2. Tues - Cammy thanks to
3. Wed - Enigma an OC of
4. Thurs - Manzelle, an OC of
5. Fri - Blue Wolf D, an OC of

Thanks again for the input, lots of good stuff again this week. Much appreciated! More next week...

Real journal post soon...

Gene

]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/27054653/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/27054653/ Wed, 09 Sep 2009 19:49:09 PDT Other than that just working hard, paying bills, spending time with the baby, and working on Rocket & Bounce #3. A bit more slowly than I would like, but still moving forward with it. Oh, and poor Dori is teething a month early. Sigh. Poor kid (and poor us, lol).

I haven't had time to do any new commissions in forever, and probably won't for the foreseeable future, but this might interest a few of you... in the interest of making myself draw more often (and being around DA a bit more), I'm going to start doing weekly sketches.

What's this mean? Monday through Friday I'll be doing a sketch a day, probably a 20 - 40 minute kind of thing, and I'll be taking suggestions for characters to draw if anybody wants to chime in on that. Each week I'll pick five from any suggestions given (so it's not necessarily first come, first serve). If you suggest an OC please provide a link to an existing reference picture!

First sketch is tomorrow!

EDIT: All done for this week. Thanks again for the suggestions, guys!!

1. Mon - The Spectre thanks to
2. Tues - A goblin or fairy for my friend 's contest [link]
3. Wed - Mega Rider an OC of
4. Thurs - Spider-Man thanks to
5. Fri - a Terminator thanks to

Catch you soon!
Gene

]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/26455765/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/26455765/ Fri, 07 Aug 2009 23:35:33 PDT The new site is live! --> [link]

Beloved comic site Cranky Octopus celebrates it’s first birthday today! One year on the web. Wow, time flies! So here we are, celebrating with a brand spankin’ new site design. And not only does the new site look a bit slicker, we’ve made the move to WordPress and that gives us some improved functionality too. Some cool new features include: a new search function, user commenting throughout the comics and gallery, extra navigation options when reading comics (like the previous and next chapter links), and an RSS subscription option for those of you who use feed readers. Not to mention the site is loads easier for us to update and maintain now… which is thrilling, lol.

So we hope you enjoy the new site. We’re looking forward to building on our first year and continuing to grow and make cool comics. Speaking of which, Vigil wraps up her second storyline this coming Monday. Not to be missed. And now that the new site is up and running I’m officially back at the drawing board working on new Rocket & Bounce material! Angie has big plans for Maverick and “Friends” too, so it should be an exciting year 2 for Cranky Octopus. A big thank you to everyone who frequents our humble little site and we hope you continue to enjoy the ride with us in year two! All the best!

Gene

]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/26417207/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/26417207/ Thu, 06 Aug 2009 06:18:54 PDT , and myself originally launched the Cranky Octopus site. [link] Well, this Saturday we're going to celebrate by unveiling the new site design... which should be pretty cool if I do say so myself. In addition to being a new daddy it's what I've been spending most of my time on the last few months. We're making the move to WordPress, and it's finally time to get this bad boy up and running. Hope to see you there!

Also, thanks again for the well wishes and "how ya' doin's?" in regards to my family and the new baby. Being a dad is still pretty awesome. My wife and daughter are doing great. Dori is a joy. No, we don't sleep as much as we used to, lol, but we love it anyway.

I'm starting to figure out when I can and can't sneak in some extra time to be creative and artsy. (Usually "free time" means staying up extra late while the baby's sleeping, lol.) I've got another "terrific twosome" pin-up that has been drawn and half-colored for a week. Need to wrap that up soon and get it posted.

More soon!
Gene

]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/25385459/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/25385459/ Thu, 18 Jun 2009 01:33:40 PDT x 1000.



Yeah, baby! The big day finally came and on June 13th Mary and I were blessed with the arrival of our little girl, Doreen Mae Kelly. Mary was amazing and after a muli-day labor (no joke) the actual delivery took just under an hour. I married a superhero. Seriously.

We stayed in the hospital for two and half days to run the standard tests and whatnot and everything checked out great. We got back home mid-day Monday and have been getting to know each other each day since. Lots of sleeping and fussing and pooping so far... You know, like babies do, lol. Dori is amazing and I wish I could do nothing but spend time with her every day all the time. She's just starting to stay awake for longer periods of time and look around and take things in. She's so damn cute it nearly kills me, lol. We're so fortunate. Thanks to all of you who have sent well wishes and kept us in your thoughts recently. You guys are the best!

Gene

]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/24372289/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/24372289/ Wed, 22 Apr 2009 06:11:33 PDT


Page 8, the final page of Rocket & Bounce's second chapter, "Growing Pains", is up on the Cranky Octopus site. [link]

And if you're new to R&B, you can check out their first story in full color here: [link]

Hiatus time
As some of you already know my wife and I are expecting our first child this June. So not surprisingly my schedule's going to end up changing quite a bit in the near future. Now that the current R&B chapter has finished, I'm going be focusing on a needed Cranky Octopus website overhaul and various baby preparations. I'll also be working on the third Rocket & Bounce storyline and will begin making regular weekly posts again once that story is fully completed and I have a backlog of pages.

I'll still be around DA as much as I can though. And as always, thanks for reading! Now, I'm off to work and then after that I can get to my AFL Final. Fwew! Busy week.

Gene

-----------------

The Cranky Octopus Team [link]



]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/24248693/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/24248693/ Tue, 14 Apr 2009 22:58:13 PDT


Page 7 of Rocket & Bounce's second chapter, "Growing Pains", is up on the Cranky Octopus site. [link]

And if you're new to R&B, you can check out their first story in full color here: [link]

Upcoming hiatus
As some of you already know my wife and I are expecting our first child this June. So not surprisingly my schedule's going to end up changing quite a bit in the near future. The current R&B chapter is actually going to wrap up probably next week with page 8 (don't worry, it'll make sense, lol). After that I'll be focusing on a needed Cranky Octopus website overhaul and various baby preparations. I'll also be working on the third Rocket & Bounce storyline and will begin making regular weekly posts again once that story is fully completed.

I'll still be around DA as much as I can though. And as always, thanks for reading!

Gene

-----------------

The Cranky Octopus Team [link]



]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/24121601/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/24121601/ Tue, 07 Apr 2009 23:17:20 PDT


A little shop talk with grandpa. And Rocket has a real first name. Page 6 of Rocket & Bounce's second storyline, "Growing Pains", is up on the Cranky Octopus site. [link]

And if you're new to R&B, you can check out their first story in full color here: [link]

Gene

-----------------

The Cranky Octopus Team [link]



]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/23875871/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/23875871/ Tue, 24 Mar 2009 23:30:17 PDT


Rocket & Bounce unmasked! Page 5 of Rocket & Bounce's second storyline, "Growing Pains", is up on the Cranky Octopus site. [link]

And if you're new to R&B, you can check out their first story in full color here: [link]

Gene

-----------------

The Cranky Octopus Team [link]



]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/23756212/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/23756212/ Tue, 17 Mar 2009 23:11:58 PDT


Page 4 of Rocket & Bounce's "Growing Pains" is up on the Cranky Octopus site. [link]

And if you're new to R&B, you can check out their first story in full color here: [link]

Gene

-----------------

The Cranky Octopus Team [link]



]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/23712035/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/23712035/ Sun, 15 Mar 2009 13:00:22 PDT

I've got three AFL [link] fight pics nearly done. Just finishing colors on each. Only two to go after that. The clock is ticking but I'm catching up.

Originally I wanted to take commissions this month, but it'll have to wait a bit longer. Apologies to anyone interested in those.

Just watched the new Wonder Woman animated movie. It's modern, unique and really kick ass! Check it out!

My good friend Adron [link] pointed me in the direction of this sweet-ass scanner. The Mustek Scan Express A3 1200 Pro, 11x17" scanner and less than $200. Great for comic artists. --> [link]

Later,
Gene

]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/23516539/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/23516539/ Tue, 03 Mar 2009 22:27:53 PST


Page 3 of Rocket & Bounce's "Growing Pains" is up on the Cranky Octopus site. [link] It's villains, villains, and more villains. Some you know and some you might not.

And if you're new to R&B, you can check out their first story in full color here: [link]

Gene

-----------------

The Cranky Octopus Team [link]



]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/23390905/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/23390905/ Tue, 24 Feb 2009 22:17:19 PST


Hey guys, for those of you interested, I just posted page 2 of Rocket & Bounce's second storyline, "Growing Pains" on the Cranky Octopus site. [link] It's a fun one, and this is one of my favorite pages to date.

And if you're new to R&B, you can check out their first story in full color here: [link]

Happy Wednesday!

Gene

-----------------

The Cranky Octopus Team [link]



]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/23236425/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/23236425/ Tue, 17 Feb 2009 23:03:45 PST UPDATE: Tonight I got a message from the guy who used my image and he agreed to take it down along with some others. Apparently he's also been receiving threatening messages and emails which is pretty scary. Obviously I was angry at the guy too, but hopefully no one here did that. And if anyone did, please stop. The issue below has been resolved on my end of things.

Thank you for the overwhelming show of support. You guys are amazing.

Gene


-----------
The old stuff:

(who is a hell of an artist) was good enough to point me to this item on the "Legendary Design Co." MySpace page: --> [link]

The horse and rider artwork has been stolen, since it's MY artwork and can be seen in its original un-altered state here in my gallery. --> [link]

I don't know Mike Milford or his "Legendary" Designs, but he was NOT granted permission by me to use my art, or to reproduce it and profit from it. I reported this to MySpace and sent a letter to Mike, but if any of you have a MySpace page, could you also go to that same link and please click on the "Report This Image" button? (and choose the 'copyright violation' option) I'd appreciate it. Apparently, he's also been stealing from at least 5 other artists here in the Deviant Art community.

EDIT: Apparently, you don't need a MySpace page to report this. Just go to the link and click the button.

Thanks!
Gene

]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/23212626/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/23212626/ Sun, 15 Feb 2009 09:28:50 PST Been a while, lots to yap about...

First off, Mary and I recently learned we're going to be having a girl! Mary's starting to show and we're incredibly excited. The baby seems most active at night (like daddy!) and we joke that she's having a one-baby-dance-party because she is really moving around in there, lol. The baby's due in mid-June. Can't wait. Not sure how this is going to affect my comics/freelance work mind you, but none the less can't wait.

Over at Cranky Octopus, Rocket & Bounce's second chapter is beginning. [link] The first chapter was an action filled introduction and this time we get to go a bit deeper and learn more about our young heroes and their life outside of the costumes. Should be fun.

A couple people have asked me about commissions recently. Next month I will likely be opening some slots and taking commissions again. Thanks a bunch for your interest.

Also wanted to let you guys know how the Cisco Film contest turned out. [link] This month Cisco had a screening of the films and announced the winners. Based on page views we came in 6th place out of 8 films, lol. (In your face, you two films below us!) We're of course still really proud of the film and the higher-ups had a bunch of nice things to say about the film and our comics. Oh, and Spike Lee voted for us! Jamal, our director, met him at school and he liked the film a lot. How sweet is that? We are also going to be getting a little prize money based on the percentage of views we got, so a huuuuuuge thank you again to everyone who checked the film out. We'll likely put that towards future comics printing and what not. You guys rock!

I made it to NY ComicCon on the 7th, thanks to one of the editors at work who was awesome enough to get me a last minute pass. The show was nuts. Unbelievably crowded to the point where I started ducking into panels just to get away from the crowds. I usually attend the Chicago Con and it seems that, while they do have really packed areas, there are also some larger slightly more open spaces to break things up. It felt like NY Con was just unrelenting from entrance to back wall. None the less, I had a good time. Got to check out the costumes, pick up some books and chat with some fellow comic makers. Unfortunately, I also didn't get to see several DAers and comic folk I would have liked to have spent time with. Hell, some tables I couldn't even find, lol. sigh.

On the plus side, got to see and at the Drumfish table and all are extremely cool. Picked up the Sentinels Anthology too, which was great. If you haven't read Sentinels yet and you enjoy superhero comics (and well written, character driven comics in general), you owe it to yourself to check it out. [link]

Also got to meet Brad Guigar, the evil mastermind behind the online supervillain strip, Evil Inc. [link] Incredibly friendly guy and a great comic.

Oh, and we got a review copy of Street Fighter IV at work and it is frickin' sweet. All the awesomeness of the classic 2d games with gorgeous stylized 3d goodness. A potent cocktail of nostalgia and new game joy. Delicious.

So yeah, enough rambling for now. Gold star if you made it this far, lol.

Gene

-----------------

The Cranky Octopus Team *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/22747956/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/22747956/ Thu, 22 Jan 2009 21:24:21 PST
Go see pretty please! --> [link]

Real journal update coming soon.

]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/22062925/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/22062925/ Fri, 19 Dec 2008 08:38:09 PST Cisco film contest entry! It's neat! Please watch it!!
--> [link]

Okay, so last journal I mentioned a film contest Cranky Octopus is going to be part of. Cisco technologies is holding the contest in association with NYU and one of my good friends is an NYU student and thought Cranky Octopus would be a good subject for her film. Well, everything went live sooner than we expected and the entries are up right now!

The subject is about people interacting in the digital world (with network technologies) and Angie, Kostmeyer and myself do all our work, social yapping, etc, online. The director and the crew are very cool people and did a hell of a job with very tight deadlines and other crazy restrictions. It turned out really cool.

Every page view is a vote and there's a nifty sweet cash money prize. And really, you might just find it fun to watch. So we'd love it if you took a look and maybe even told a friend.

--

On a much crappier note. Mary and I were originally supposed to be on a plane to Chicago right now, starting our Christmas vacation. The massive snow storm in Chicago had other ideas though. All the flights have been canceled and we're stuck in NYC until Sunday. Sunday! Uuuuuugh.

The snow outside is really pretty though. And at least we weren't at the airport when the flights were canceled this time. We got notice before leaving the apartment. Yay for that at least.

--

Huge, huge thank you for all the well wishes for Mary and the upcoming baby! You guys are wonderful.

Gene

-----------------

The Cranky Octopus Team [link]



That's right, 2008 is the year of the Octopus! Look for more of these characters right now at Cranky Octopus.com!!



]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/21945846/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/21945846/ Fri, 12 Dec 2008 11:22:48 PST
First, best, and most important: Mary and I are going to have a baby! Yesir, the tiny tot should make it's debut in the middle of June and we're incredibly excited. If it's a boy he will be named Spider-Man the 1st. If it's a girl she will be named Princess Bunnycakes VonCutenstein... or something more sensible, lol. We'll see.

My little office is going to become the baby's room eventually so we're already rearranging the space. Mary says I'm nesting, lol.

Just turned 31 yesterday. ...and I'm going to be a dad. Yowza. Am I old now?

Cranky Octopus [link] is four months old and things are moving along mighty nicely. A huuuuge thank you to everyone reading our comics and an extra special thanks to you guys hanging out on the forums. You rock.

If you can't get enough Cranky Octopus, my good friend Carolyn got me and my cranky cohorts into a cool 3 minute short film contest sponsored by Cisco techonologies (about how people use technology to connect with each other). Carolyn, the director and the crew did a hell of a job and our entry got accepted. You can check it out and even vote for it online when it goes live. Should be around the 23rd of Dec (I believe), but I'll post a specific link when I've got one. So more on that soon.

The holidays are almost here. Man, did that come fast. Yay Christmas in NY...

Gene

-----------------

The Cranky Octopus Team [link]



That's right, 2008 is the year of the Octopus! Look for more of these characters right now at Cranky Octopus.com!!



]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/20645302/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/20645302/ Wed, 15 Oct 2008 21:51:56 PDT

Exciting news! My good friend and fellow Cranky Octopus creative cohort Vale is accepting commisions now! She's amazing! And there's only two spots left, so don't walk, run! Check it out. You'll be glad you did (especially if you have any female OCs). --> [link]

:::Commission List:::

$10 commission sketches (one character, no background):

1. - Firehazard
2. - Sparrow
3. - Phase Flow
4. - Detest
5. - The Cloak
6. - ninja chick
7. - Cactuska
8. - Crimson Ring http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/19835220/ Thu, 07 Aug 2008 21:06:31 PDT Cranky Octopus, is now live!! Right now! The wait is over... I might pass out, lol.

Go! --> [link]

Gene

-----------------

The Cranky Octopus Team [link]



That's right, 2008 is the year of the Octopus! Look for more of these characters right now at Cranky Octopus.com!!



]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/19823619/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/19823619/ Thu, 07 Aug 2008 08:54:24 PDT 8-8-08 is here! For those of you who have been keeping track, or are just into comics and fun stuff in general, our original comics website, Cranky Octopus, is going live at midnight tonight! Gulp.

EDIT: That's midnight, EDT (Eastern daylight time zone, New York)

Come join us for our big debut --> [link]

Gene


-----------------

The Cranky Octopus Team [link]



That's right, 2008 is the year of the Octopus! Look for more of these characters tonight! Yes, tonight!!



]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/19760723/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/19760723/ Sun, 03 Aug 2008 21:52:34 PDT Cranky Octopus, mere days away! The clock is literally ticking. Don't believe me? Go see! --> [link]

AFL II has started up and from the early entries it looks like the bar has really been raised this go round. Gulp! Also looks lots of fun. And yeesh! Round 2 already? It's only been 3 days since we started! More info here --> [link]

The world does not stop while you are away, kids, lol.

Gene

]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/19168201/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/19168201/ Wed, 02 Jul 2008 15:17:09 PDT
Hear ye hear ye, Octofans, the date has been set! The Cranky Octopus webcomic website will officially go live on 8-8-08! The year of the Octopus begins in one month so don't miss it! --> [link]

Wizard World Chicago was this past weekend. I met a lot of great creators and picked up some very cool books. It was an exhausting but fun weekend and I'm a bit behind on DA posts and follow up greetings. Working on it though.

Some great artists have done some awesome Rocket & Bounce images recently, so here's a collection of said art. I love it all! Thanks a ton, you guys!

http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/18791908/ Wed, 11 Jun 2008 20:39:30 PDT DailyDeviants for Wednesday, June 11th, 2008. Super cool. See it here --> [link]

And one of the featured pics is from the latest AFL jam. So thanks to everyone for creating cool characters, lol.

The Chicago ComicCon is fast approaching and some of my very best friends (seriously they're family) have put together a darn fine anthology comic. They're the Comic Creator Cabal and you can get a sneak peak of the project at their DA page here: and if you're attending the Chicago con, check out their book, "Emergent Phenomena".

Still plugging away at freelance work and the Cranky Octopus [link] website, and making really good progress. I have another AFL jam pic up my sleeve too. Mwa ha ha...

Gene

-----------------

The Cranky Octopus Team [link]



That's right, 2008 is the year of the Octopus! Look for more of these characters this summer!



]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/18590005/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/18590005/ Sat, 31 May 2008 08:30:58 PDT Cranky Octopus website and sneaking in time for new Rocket & Bounce [link] pages where ever possible. Hopefully this month is where I blast past a few of these obstacles and start making some more pronounced head way. Of course hoping doesn't mean much, so it's time to get back to work, lol.

More on Cranky Octopus [link] in the coming months and a big big thank you to every one who still stops by my page to say "hi". Much appreciated!

Gene

-----------------

The Cranky Octopus Team [link]



That's right, 2008 is the year of the Octopus! Look for more of these characters this summer!



]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/18162313/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/18162313/ Sun, 04 May 2008 10:05:24 PDT Hey guys, just a little update. This month I'm continuing to work on pages for my upcoming Rocket & Bounce webcomic [link] for the Cranky Octopus [link] site. I'm also working on some illustrations for a book of spooky children's poems along with some other misc. drawin' stuff.

It's been a busy week, and very little of it had to do with drawing unfortunately. Monday - Wednesday my after work time was largely devoted to band practices and Thursday was a Witches in Bikinis show. Lots of fun, but not lotsa' drawin', lol. The Witches have a bunch of shows coming up this summer if any of you New York types want to come check out an amazingly fun show. Show dates and music tracks can be found at our MySpace page. --> [link]

The free sketches from last month were a lot of fun. When I get a couple things sorted out with my free time I'll probably end up doing some more of those.

I still need to see Iron Man. Darnit.

If you're a comics fan do yourself and favor and go read Sentinels!

I picked up the first two trades at the NY Comic Con and it was easily my favorite purchase of the weekend. Great character interaction and art, and an evolving, emotional and fun story with plenty of action. The perfect cure for those of you sick of the current state of superhero comics (well, at the big two anyway). Check out their website [link] or hop on over to the creator's DA page You'll be glad you did.

All for now,
Gene

-----------------

The Cranky Octopus Team [link]



That's right, 2008 is the year of the Octopus! Look for more of these characters this summer!



]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/17666831/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/17666831/ Sun, 20 Apr 2008 15:38:10 PDT The sketches are complete! A big thank you to everyone who signed up and especially to everyone who's been coming by to see how these progressed. This has been a lot of fun and I'm feeling really energized about drawing in general as a result.

I'm going to be focused on my upcoming webcomic for Cranky Octopus [link] for a while here, so I may not be posting as often. We'll see. At the very least I'll still be poking my head around though, seeing what everyone else is up to.

Thanks again!
Gene

---

It's the gift that keeps on giving. After having received a couple free sketches from other Deviants this way, I'm joining in the fun. I'll be drawing free sketches for the first ten people who respond to my journal. If you don't already know, this is how it works...

The first ten deviants to comment in this journal will get a free sketch from me of the character of their choice. (If it's an OC, a reference link would be appreciated). Simple huh?

And of course, in the name of fun, if you sign up it'd be nice if you did the same in your journal (not mandatory, but nice... and many of you already have, which is swell).

THE COMPLETED SKETCHES:

1. Stunboy
2. my choice
3. Dr. Bionic
4. Myrmidon
5. Joanna Dark
6. Maverick
7. Cactuska
8. *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/17387455/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/17387455/ Mon, 17 Mar 2008 21:35:52 PDT Rocket & Bounce [link] story are about done. The Cranky Octopus team is trying to get a backlog of pages done before we launch our webcomic site [link] later this year... and the weeks are flying by, lol. Gulp.

I just took a quick break from that and some stuff I've got going for Empty Room Studios [link] to participate in AngelCrusher's March art jam. [link] There have been several really cool jams and tournaments and whatnot floating around DA that I've missed out on lately. Kinda sucks. I'm glad I got to hop in on this one though. Go show the AFL Fight League champ some love.

Also, my band Witches in Bikinis has some more shows coming up in NY over the next couple months. Very fun stuff if you happen to find yourself in the area. Check 'em out --> [link]

I've been reading Marvel's Essential Fantastic Four trades lately. Some of the most stilted, overly dramatic dialogue ever, (which I still get a kick out of lol), but it's especially cool to see all the great Kirby designs and technology through out. He just would not stop filling the background with gadgets and pipes and tubes and shapes and shiny metal. Great stuff.

Gene

-----------------------------------------------
The Cranky Octopus Team



]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/16879407/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/16879407/ Thu, 14 Feb 2008 10:48:09 PST Witches in Bikinis. [link] The band's a heck of a lot of fun, and well worth seeing if you ever find yourself in NYC.

Aside from band stuff, I'm also continuing to letter the webcomic Cowboys & Aliens II which can be found on the Drunk Duck Webcomic Community. The comic's got a great creative team (many of whom are here on DA) so check it out. --> [link]

And in addition to juggling graphic design at work and a little web design at home, plans are underway for a joint webcomic site featuring original comics by myself and my creative cohorts Kostmeyer and Vale. The Cranky Octopus site [link] should launch sometime in the 2nd half of the year. We're trying to get a surplus of comic pages finished before we launch. More info on that later of course...

So yeah, lots going on, but not a lot to post just yet. As always, thanks for stopping by. Much appreciated!

Gene

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Cranky Octopus Team



]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/16386802/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/16386802/ Sun, 13 Jan 2008 11:36:59 PST
Cheers!

]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/15209371/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/15209371/ Wed, 24 Oct 2007 22:50:14 PDT
If you loved the brilliant and magical "Jim Henson's The Storyteller" when it was on TV back in the day don't bother with the lesser known follow up "The Storyteller: Greek Myths". Just buy the original Storyteller on DVD, lol. For some reason Netflix only has Greek Myths. *shakes fist*

"Who would win in a fight: a minotaur armed with a trident or a centaur armed with a crossbow?" Say what? Check it out here: [link] This is probably the coolest thing I've gotten to do at work to date. (And it's got celebrities! That means something, right?)

Inking in Photoshop at print quality resolution is crazy time consuming. I've fallen back in love with my ink pens, lol.

NBA season is right around the corner. Go Bulls!

Gene


Edit: I also just read the first two issues of The Umbrella Academy and really enjoyed them.

]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/14631449/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/14631449/ Fri, 14 Sep 2007 13:58:15 PDT
Striffle's having an awesome art jam at his page you should check out. [link] Lots of good stuff there.

My 1 year wedding anniversary was on the 2nd. It's crazy how quickly time flies, especially as I get closer to the big 3-0 in December. gulp

I got sorted. [link] Strangely enough, the last question asks which house you think you'd be in. I picked Ravenclaw and ended up in Ravenclaw, but keeping all the same answers I tried the other houses and ended up in Griffindor each time. Not sure why, but I thought that was kind of neat.



]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/13303858/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/13303858/ Mon, 11 Jun 2007 13:39:10 PDT I'm still around these days, but I have a couple projects in the works that are hogging most of my time. Some of it I can share a bit later. Until then, sorry for not posting much. I am checking out everyone else's work of course.

Gene

]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/12718615/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/12718615/ Tue, 24 Apr 2007 14:09:55 PDT and keep posting some sweet original supercharacters and that's got me thinking about my own batch of originals again. It seems that whenever I've got a spare moment I'm actually filling up my sketchbook and having fun with it. That shouldn't be that unusual, but it is, especially with a day job that demands creative energy. So, yay for forward progress.

In other random news I got my new G5 (whom I dubbed Goliath) and now my CGing will witness the power of this armed and fully operational battle station! Hahahaha!!

Ahem, so yeah, thanks for popping in. Hope you like what you see.

Gene

]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/12142365/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/12142365/ Sun, 11 Mar 2007 10:52:40 PDT [link]

I saw 300 in Imax on Friday. I really enjoyed it. There were a couple moments of over the top Frank Miller machismo that made me laugh when I wasn't supposed to, but overall I thought it was really cool and visually it was pretty damn fantastic.

Gene

]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/11720615/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/11720615/ Wed, 07 Feb 2007 09:52:07 PST [link] or have been to my gallery recently you know I've started one of those 100 themes challenges. [link] Originally I wanted to do a theme each day. Yee-ah, silly me, lol. I'm still continuing with the 100 themes challenge, but they definately won't be an everyday thing. There's just too much going on these days (and I swear I have the attention span of a 6 year old, lol). On the plus side, I'm really enjoying the themes so far and have some cool ideas for the next ones. I also have some other artsy type stuff in the works. Maybe too many, lol.

In random news, I was pretty excited to see Christopher Eccleston on "Heroes" Monday. I really enjoyed him in Dr. Who.

Gene

]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/11547427/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/11547427/ Tue, 23 Jan 2007 21:54:57 PST [link] , and I are both looking to improve at our respective crafts. So to that end he's going to do a new photograph each day and I'm going to (hopefully) do a new drawing each day.

I'm starting one of those 100 themes challenges I've seen other fine arteests here at DA undertake. [link] My first entry is in my gallery now (theme 1 - introduction). I'm still looking to infuse my work with a more gestural/animated quality. It'll be interesting to see how things develop... and to see if I actually get better or phone it in just to get the darn thing over with, lol. Pray for my poor art skills, lol.

Gene

]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/11281784/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/11281784/ Mon, 01 Jan 2007 22:06:43 PST [link]

Happy New Year. Time for me to get some shut-eye.

Gene

]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/11142691/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/11142691/ Thu, 21 Dec 2006 19:15:16 PST
Gene

]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/10993897/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/10993897/ Fri, 08 Dec 2006 11:11:52 PST [link] which I'm really excited about. It's set to launch on New Years and I'll probably ramble about it more later. I will be on DA commenting on everyone's else pics though and posting when I can.

My friend Kostmeyer just joined DA. You should definately go check him out (be sure to peek at his scraps). You can also read his brilliant superhero writing here: [link]

Go look at the entries for Lady-Silvercat's romance contest and vote for the winners here: [link]

And it's not too late to enter Ren and Brianne's art contest here: [link]

I also turned 29 this month. Weird. Peace out (and good will toward men, lol)

Gene

]]> *genekelly http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/10558175/ http://genekelly.deviantart.com/journal/10558175/ Tue, 07 Nov 2006 23:56:09 PST
Hi and welcome to my new DeviantArt page. I used to go by gkelly77 [link] but have wanted to change my screen name for some time. So, I took the plunge and reuploaded everything (pics, friends, faves, etc) to this new account. Sorry to those of you who have to re-fave any of my pics... And thanks a ton if you actually do it, lol. It's much appreciated!

HEY LOOK! Some friends of mine have some art contests going on... Here: [link] and here: [link] Go check 'em out!!

Thanks for stopping by.
Gene

]]> *genekelly