Storycraft

In true late night podcasting form, Seamus Smith, Pheobe Dubisch, Mike Dubisch and I share a bunch of laughs and "con-brain" moments as we recount the way our experience at San Diego Comic Con has changed over years in attendance, and how the con has changed as well. It's a love letter to "Nerding Man" that we attend yearly, but also a glimpse at creators in intake and networking mode, thinking less about story on the page, and more about story in the moment between people.

Then I sat down with Seamus Smith one-on-one to talk about his new portfolio site seamussmithart.com, where you can find his brilliant surrealist illustrations, his uniquely powerful photography, and his excellent debut short film, SLUMMING.

Follow Seamus on instagram @seamussmithart, twitter @allthingsseamus, and on facebook... but only after you visit seamussmithart.com.

Follow Mike on twitter, instagram & Facebook @mikedubisch.

Please support the Storycraft podcast by subscribing, rating & reviewing on iTunes.

Then tell all your friends! All. Of. Them.

If you'd like to do more, please visit patreon.com/monkeygong &/or monkeygong.com/shop.

Follow this podcast on twitter @storycraftpod.

Follow me on twitter & instargram @kraigcomx.

Comic book creator & animator Stephan Franck (Silver, The Iron Giant, The upcoming Playmobile Movie) sat with me in his graphic novel packed art studio to discuss the different history of comics in Europe and how that shaped his mind, the "Spirited" results of his young fervor for animation, his tandem love for multiple crafts, working with Brad Bird on the Iron Giant, and a bonkers revelation about the childhood influence that led him to later create his comic SILVER.

Follow Stephan on Twitter @stephan_franck & on instagram @stephanfranck.

Please support the Storycraft podcast by subscribing, rating & reviewing on iTunes.

Then tell all your friends! All. Of. Them.

If you'd like to do more, please visit patreon.com/monkeygong &/or monkeygong.com/shop.

Follow this podcast on twitter @storycraftpod.

Follow me on twitter & instargram @kraigcomx.

Children's book artist and papier mache master, Carolyn Watson-Dubisch joins me for a deep dive into art entrepreneurship, working for the long haul, the inner workings of the children's literary market, and how the residuals from one good project should be the goal, and could be a game changer for anyone's career in the arts. We also break down her recent art residency in Tetouan, Morocco, and discuss the incredible installation she built there, the experience of Ramadan as an American, living abroad for life exploration, how healthcare works (better) when you're in other countries, and challenging yourself, both by living elsewhere, but also by taking on projects before you know how you can execute them. On top of everything, this is "an artist's guide to Etsy, or, the art of tenacity." Truly a practical, takeaway packed conversation, with terrific cultural insight along the way.

Follow Carolyn Watson-Dubisch on Facebook, her Etsy store "Artisanmasks" and on Amazon, where you can find her available children's books.

Please support the Storycraft podcast by subscribing, rating & reviewing on iTunes.

Then tell all your friends! All. Of. Them.

If you'd like to do more, please visit patreon.com/monkeygong &/or monkeygong.com/shop.

Follow this podcast on twitter @storycraftpod.

Follow me on twitter & instargram @kraigcomx.

Alex Schumacher (Decades of (in)Experience, Mr. Butterchips) and I wrap up our career survival training talk with harsh truths about brutal honesty, pushing yourself to get your best, but only in a nice way, and intentionally working to make something outside of the "industry norm" whatever the industry. We also cover placing the right limits on yourself, tailoring your world to support you, finding the right relationships to provide that support, and that basically, though Murphy's Law may rule the day, Occam's Razor is the rule in the land of the creative-story arts: the simplest answer, (in this case most efficient and healthiest too,) is often the right answer. It's another hilarious riff fest surrounding and binding a deeply insightful look at maintaining your career and self over the long haul.

Find the great, painfully true work of Alex Schumacher on Decades of (in)Experience at decadesofinexperience.com and find the scathing, hilarious "Mr. Butterchips" at drunkmonkeys.com. You can also find the whimsical and gorgeous "The world's crummiest umbrella" at wanderinginthewordspress.com, and the darkly funny "Unemployment Adventures of Aqualung" at arcana.com or on comixology. Follow Alex an twitter and instagram @ajschumacherart.

Please support it by subscribing, rating & reviewing on iTunes. Then tell all your friends! If you'd like to do more, please visit patreon.com/monkeygong &/or monkeygong.com/shop.

Follow this podcast on twitter @storycraftpod.

Follow me on twitter & instargram @kraigcomx.

Illustrator Alex Schumacher (Decades of (in)Experience, Mr. Butterchips) and I shared libations and laughs a plenty as we discussed the hidden difficulties of an art career, losing and regaining your confidence after going "pro", and the seemingly thankless moments of making art. We also talk autobiographical work, subverting the usual comic book formats, growing (mostly) out of superhero comics, and making something personal. Then things get personal as we foray into managing the highs and lows of the job, integrating experiences into our work, and being patient with ourselves. This is one helluva fun time at the podcast, and it's also a straight up therapy session... but with laughs! If you have ever struggled to keep going, or to regain your focus in tough times, we are talking to/with you in this one. Stay tuned for part 2 in just a couple short days!

Find the great, painfully true work of Alex Schumacher on Decades of (in)Experience at decadesofinexperience.com and find the scathing, hilarious "Mr. Butterchips" at drunkmonkeys.com. Follow Alex an twitter and instagram @ajschumacherart.

Please support it by subscribing, rating & reviewing on iTunes. Then tell all your friends! If you'd like to do more, please visit patreon.com/monkeygong &/or monkeygong.com/shop.

Follow this podcast on twitter @storycraftpod.

Follow me on twitter & instargram @kraigcomx.

Film Editor and friend Jake Pushinsky (Man Down, A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints, Fighting) invited me to record with him in his editing office on the Sony lot. Getting to visit a place so packed with film history was the cherry on top of an excellent talk about the mechanics of film storytelling, naturalism, and his longtime collaboration with Dito Montiel that has yielded 7 unique & powerful films already. We get technical on the amazing scene in Fighting, which squares off Channing Tatum and real-life badass Kung Le, how that very experimental fight harnessed the power of Kung Le without relying solely on a master shot, as well as how that film is proof Channing Tatum is both nuts and amazing. As a couple of San Francisco kids, we get candid about Robin Williams and what it was like for Jake to edit one of his final films, and his two-part, epic, upcoming Muhammad Ali documentary for HBO Films. There is also a very direct and intriguing formula revealed for how to avoid exposition! This is one for all storytellers, but most assuredly for serious cinephiles and those looking to up their game in crafting solid, naturalistic stories.

Check out Jake's work on Netflix, Fighting and Silicon Cowboys, and find the rest of his work on Amazon Instant Video: A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints, The Son of No One, Empire State, Boulevard, Man Down, Howl, Chops, 10 Years, The Making of a Father's Dream, and We Don't Belong Here. That's your homework, but you'll thanks me later!

Follow Jake on twitter @jakepushinsky and go see the Clapper when it comes out dag nabbit! Follow director Dito Monitel on twitter @ditomontiel.

Follow this podcast on twitter @storycraftpod. Please support it by subscribing, rating & reviewing on iTunes. Then tell all your friends!

If you'd like to do more, please visit patreon.com/monkeygong &/or monkeygong.com/shop.

Follow me on twitter & instargram @kraigcomx.

Comedian Ben Gleib (Neurotic Gangster on Showtime, The Idiotest on GSN) talks with me about the addictive nature of podcasting, technology's affects on society, clarifying the narratives in political & social debates, not needing to be right, valuing being wrong, and that the other side always has their own good reasons for feeling the way they do. We also talk about his recent travels to Israel and Palestine, the way he integrated that into his great podcast Last Week on Earth, starting conversations, and building communities. We share a ton of laughs, along with many large & small revelations, unique philosophies, our fears and hopes about the world, but did I mention the laughs? They are ample and various!! Strap in for one of my favorite comedians who also happens to be one of my favorite thinkers in podcasting-- we had a blast making this excellent episode!

Watch Ben Gleibs's fantastic stand-up special "Neurotic Gangster" on SHOWTIME (available as part of HULU). Watch the Idiotest Wednesdays on the Gameshow Network (GSN) or online at https://www.gsntv.com/idiotest. Follow Ben's upcoming tour dates and numerous projects at bengleib.com & on twitter @bengleib. Subscribe to his podcast Last Week on Earth on iTunes!

Support this show by subscribing on iTunes, rating, reviewing, and by sharing it. You can also support the show and my comics work at patreon.com/monkeygong or monkeygong.com/shop.

Follow me on twitter @kraigcomx and follow the show @storycraftpod.

The amazing Paul Madonna (All over Coffee, Small Potatoes, On to the Next Dream) joined me, along with my teammates Erin Lim, Ange- aka Captain Party, and producer Char from Bitch Talk, LIVE on stage at the Lost Church in San Francisco to discuss the changing experience of a long term career and life as a working artist in the city. We also get into his unique approach to narrative subject, his deft use of emotional tone, his HUGE upcoming museum show opening in JUNE 2018, and the power of control we have in the stories we tell ourselves. There is also a strong undercurrent of learning to enjoy the art experience, and of showing yourself some care and understanding in times of wandering and exploration, when maybe not the most tangible amount of work is getting done. Unexpectedly, (though surprising due to my unbelievable lack of sleep on stage,) this is an excellent episode, encapsulating everything I like to share from great artists, and stacked with some amazing reveals. The entire experience was an epic adventure that I cannot wait to repeat, only next time with more zzzzzzzzzz.....

A very big thank you to Paul, his hilarious wife Joen (sp?), The Lost Church & our host Phil, my Bitch Talkin' friends Erin, Ange & Char, my sister Kristen, filmmakers/pals Chadrick, Sean & Dexter, and Johnny the bartender for all kicking ass to make this night incredibly cool! Also, thank you to our rad and very engaged audience, some of whom are good friends already. You are the one's who made the night on top of it all. We cannot wait to bring you another show soon!!

Visit paulmadonna.com to find all of Paul's incredible books, and to keep up with his numerous Bay Area appearances and activities. Follow him on twitter @pmadonna.

Follow this podcast on twitter @storycraftpod, and support it at patreon.com/monkeygong, by shopping at monkeygong.com, or by subscribing, rating & reviewing on iTunes, as well as by sharing it:)

Follow me on twitter and instagram @kraigcomx.

Cody Goodfellow and I round out our talk about wearing many storytelling hats and loving film, books and comics all the same, switching gears to grow creatively, and more. We also cover his great short film Stay At Home Dad, which is gooey awesome sauce, and his upcoming work. More fun times and lots of juicy takeaways... and sounds... Expect Cody back, due to all the fun we had, and a some cool things he has on the horizon.

Find Mystery Meat Comics at mysterymeatcomics.com or mikedubisch.com, and get Rapture of the Deep from Hippocampus Press online or wherever you buy books! Look out for Cody's upcoming book the Snake Handler, co-authored by J. David Osborne, from Broken River Books.

Less than a day until the LIVE Podcast Tag-Team at the Lost Church in San Francisco. Grab your tickets now before they are gone:

http://www.ticketfly.com/event/1483305-bitch-talk-storycraft-live-san-francisco/

Hope to see you there!

Follow this podcast on twitter @storycraftpod, and support the show at patreon.com/monkeygong, monkeygong.com/shop (they're the same basic thing,) and by subscribing, rating reviewing or sharing it.

Follow me on twitter and instagram @kraigcomx.

Thanks for listening!

My blazing fast and fun talk with writer Cody Goodfellow, (Mystery Meat, Rapture of the Deep, & the upcoming Snake Handler w/J. David Osborne,) is the perfect example of his unique mind and the type of playful energy he brings to everything. We cover a ton of ground in this engaging and hilarious Part 1, discussing Hollywood myth vs. reality, making something fresh in a rehash soaked era, buying what we are sold growing up and the vast unknowable mysteries/frustrations of being an indie creator. But naturally we also get down to why we can't give that up, as well as pushing ourselves to do good work in the classical sense, defending good grammar and editing ourselves until our eyes bleed, or something like that. Listen to know all!!

Plus, I grabbed a few minutes with our pal Mike Dubisch to setup their creative relationship, which plays nicely into Cody's thoughts on the matter later in the episode.

It's a different mix and a deeper story than usual, and without a doubt a great listen!

Just a few days until the LIVE Podcast Tag-Team at the Lost Church in San Francisco. Grab your tickets now before they are gone:

http://www.ticketfly.com/event/1483305-bitch-talk-storycraft-live-san-francisco/

Get a copy of the awesome Mystery Meat anthology at mysterymeatcomics.com & mikedubisch.com.

Follow this podcast on twitter @storycraftpod, and support the show at patreon.com/monkeygong, monkeygong.com/shop (they're the same basic thing,) and by subscribing, rating reviewing or sharing it.

Follow me on twitter and instagram @kraigcomx & follow Mike @mikedubisch.

Thanks for listening!