PODCAST: Nga Pakiwaituhi: New Zealand Comics and Graphic Novels

Above: The New Zealand Comics Panel, featuring (from left): Dylan Horrocks, Adrian Kinnaird, Sarah Laing and Sam Orchard.

As a part of the Auckland Arts Festival 2013, the St Paul St Gallery at AUT hosted two comics exhibitions: Nga Pakiwaituhi: New Zealand Comics, an exhibition of work by contemporary New Zealand cartoonists, and Comics, Manga & Co. :The New Culture of German Comics, an overview of the current German comics scene.

Nga Pakiwaituhi: New Zealand Comics featured the work of over 30 local cartoonists, which you can revisit in my gallery of the exhibition HERE.

Above: Dylan Horrocks asking the tough questions!

Towards the end of the exhibition in mid-April I took part in a panel discussion on New Zealand Comics. Moderated by Dylan Horrocks, creator of Hicksville, the panel also featured Sarah Laing, novelist and cartoonist of the webcomic Let Me Be Frank, and Sam Orchard, also a webcomic cartoonist, as the creator of Rooster Tails.

You can now listen to a full podcast of the panel HERE.

We discuss how we got into comics, our backgrounds and working process, as well as lots of other fun bits and pieces related to New Zealand comics culture. Enjoy!

-AK!

WEEKEND LISTENING: Dylan Horrocks & Mike Dawson Interview

Above: Dylan Horrocks and Mike Dawson.

Mike Dawson, the US cartoonist behind Freddie & Me, Troop 142 and one half of the indie-comics podcast Ink Panthers, recently got on the phone to interview Dylan Horrocks for The Comics Journal's TCJ Talkies series.

They discuss the recent creator rights controversies: from DC's announcement to finally move forward with it's Before Watchmen series of prequels without Alan Moore's blessing, to Gary Friedrich's failed lawsuit to be recognised as the creator of Ghost Rider against Marvel Comics. Dylan has always been outspoken and honest with his views on creator rights in comics and intellectual property, and this conversation is no exception.

On a more personal front, Dylan starts off talking about the start of his career and the decision to move from part-time worker to full-time cartoonist. With New Zealand heading into another term of a National led government and a US election on the horizon, there's also an interesting discussion on the differences between our two electoral systems, and why we should perhaps get a vote in Uncle Sam's elections!

All this plays out to the occasional Tui tune from Dylan's backyard in Maraetai. You can listen to the full recording HERE.

-AK!