Jhonen Vasquez

Portrait of Jhonen Vasquez. (http://alchetron.com/Jhonen-Vasquez-879133-W (http://alchetron.com/Jhonen-Vasquez-879133-W))

"Nothing quite brings out the zest for life in a person like the thought of their impending death." ~Jhonen Vasquez

Jhonen doing signings at New York Comic Con. (http://www.librarything.com/author/vasquezjhonen (Lampbane))

Pencils, ink and pens, and wads of papers are spat out onto a simple desk in an even messier room. In the world of comics, Jhonen Vasquez contributes to the world stories such as with the misadventures of a foreign alien trying to take over the world, to an insomniac serial killer keeping a portal of demons sealed from entering the world. I was first introduced to Jhonen Vasquez when I was younger through the TV show Invader Zim, which aired on Nickelodeon in the early 2000's. As a kid, I didn't really understand most of the atmosphere, since it was a cartoon and I had a fascination for animated shows, but overtime I've grown to enjoy Jhonen's works. His art style is noticeable, and the characters he makes really appeal to me. Now that I am a high school student, I am mature enough to comprehend the dark humour of the comics and show he produced. I draw and create characters of my own, and I would love to pursue a career in the comic industry by writing stories of my own characters.

http://likesuccess.com/author/jhonen-vasquez (http://likesuccess.com/author/jhonen-vasquez)

Sources such as the Occupational Outlook Handbook Website, state Multimedia Artists can do multiple things, much like the name stands for. They create designs and animations for television shows, videogames, comics, and more. Common tasks with being a multimedia artist request storyboarding, editing both rough and final drafts, researching the design if necessary to make a character or setting realistic, and to handle criticism from a team of directors, clients, and other animations. Education up to a bachelor's degree is required to become a multimedia artist with a variety of specializations, particularly art related subjects like sculpting, painting, drawing, and animation, but nowadays computer programming is also asked for. Employers often want artists with strong computer programming skills and a portfolio that meets their expectations. Training to be a multimedia artist is usually done on-the-job, and typically use specific programs or certain methods to produce work depending on the authority figure. Salaries in the field may vary, and a future outlook on positions is uncertain, considering artists and animators are always going to be needed to produce entertainment. Depending on where the artist works and what work they take, according to the Occupational Outlook Handbook website, some may make between $37,000 to $113,000 a year.

http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id (http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id)

Jhonen Vasquez was born September 1st, 1974 in San Jose, California. According to an interview with Comic Book Resources in 2008, Jhonen stated he wasn't too into reading comics as a child, but his brother loved Marvel and thus Jhonen instead read the character biographies rather than the comics themselves. Then, Jhonen started to collect Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comics and that's when he felt something. Although, it wasn't until he was in Highschool when he really launched comic book making, it's noted that Jhonen would sketch in his notebooks in class. Jhonen began to make comics to run in Mt. Peasant Highschool's newspapers, and according to sources like Wikipedia and Famous Birthdays, comics such as Happy Noodle Boy and early drafts of Johnny The Homicidal Maniac were produced in the papers, although Johnny was known as Johnny The Little Homicidal Maniac at the time. After graduating in 1992, Jhonen attended college briefly at De Anza College, originally to be a film student, but he decided to drop out and focus on a career in cartoons. In the mid 1990s, Jhonen began to publish Johnny The Homicidal Maniac through Slave Labor Graphics. Nickelodeon and Jhonen produced the cartoon series Invader Zim. Recently, Jhonen has been producing Invader Zim comics again. Jhonen contributes to society with his comics, using his dark humour and his personality to attract readers. He's also contributed to the comic and art world, as well as television. Invader Zim, for example, was a television show that aired on Nickelodeon in the early 2000's, focusing on an alien named Zim, who's goal is to take over the planet Earth, but along the way attends "Skool" and tries to enact his plans with the help of his robot, GIR, and forms a rivalry with a classmate named Dib. According to TVTropes.com, "those who worked with him on Invader Zim noted how professional he was when debating content with the network heads, particularly for a guy in his early twenties known for sadistic, nihilistic comics who'd just been given control to his own TV series. Meetings would often consist of the network giving long-winded notes as he listened patiently before responding "Well, yeah, but, it's funny!"" Jhonen may have not been a formal business man, but with the success of Johnny The Homicidal Maniac and reigns to produce a show, he ended up attracting many audience members who weren't even at the targeted age group. The show's animation style and characters were appealing, but at the same time the grotesque plots maybe weren't too suited for kids. Invader Zim's existence was short, as sources such as Wikipedia state that there were 2 official seasons with a total of 27, 22-minute long episodes. Another achievement of Jhonen was with his spinoff comic called Squee! , which FamousBirthdays states was nominated the Eisner award for Best New Series and Best Humour Publication. According to Wikipedia, in 2006, Jhonen was the director for the Mindless Self Indulgence video for the song "Shut Me Up". With the release of Johnny The Homicidal Maniac, that's where Jhonen recieved most of his success. Along with that, he has also worked on multiple comic projects, such as I Feel Sick, Fillerbunny, and has recently began the project on Invader Zim comics.

https://www.pinterest.com/knottedheart/jhonen-vazq (Pinterest)

In order to be involved in a profession like Jhonen's, one of the biggest goals is to have a cast of appealing characters and a well thought plot that will attract others. Art classes, both in school and outside of school will be a big help, as well as animation courses. Overall, doing well in school will help, and while Jhonen did drop out of college, sometimes people aren't so lucky, so it's better to go to a design college and manage schoolwork while creating. Being a comic book artist takes a lot of work, and multiple majors and degrees can be earned to become a comic book artist- Visual arts, Graphic Design, Multimedia, Computer Programming, etc. Jhonen Vasquez has inspired me and many others with his sense of humour, the way he writes, and his diverse casts of characters and variety of projects.