Decided to get Intuos pen tablet after all these draw-and-scan shenanigans. Adjustments needed, badly. I think it is a fun way to renew my acquaintance with Photoshop.

A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night

The Girl & Saeed (graphite on paper, 2015)

Skateboard (graphite on paper, 2015)

Aku mudah terpukau dengan karya seniman (keturunan) Iran. Karya-karya Abbas Kiarostami adalah filem berbahasa Farsi terakhir yang kutonton. Taste of Cherry (1997) dan The Wind Will Carry Us (1999) adalah favoritku. Selain itu, ada Marjane Sartrapi, yang juga keturunan Iran, yang membuat salah satu novel grafis paling kuingat semasa hidupku. Karyanya pun sangat mengilhami karya komikku (hanya menggunakan tinta hitam dan putih, tanpa garis batas yang rigid).

Filem berdurasi 99 menit ini disutradarai Ana Lily Amirpour, (lagi-lagi) wanita keturunan Iran yang lahir di Inggris dan besar di Los Angeles. A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night adalah debut pertamanya di Sundance Film Festival 2014. Bercerita tentang seorang vampir perempuan (The Girl) yang hidup di Bad City (Shahre Bad), kota penghasil minyak, terasa bagai Iran tapi California dan dipenuhi oleh orang-orang kesepian.

Bermain skateboard di tengah malam, mucikari yang putus telunjuknya, seorang ayah pecandu heroin, kucing yang sangat gemuk, wanita penghibur yang berusia 30 tahun, penggemar James Dean yang kehilangan mobil cihuy dan anting-anting berlian berbentuk bunga adalah adegan-adegan yang kusuka dari filem ini. Juga, efek "nahan-nahan nggak mau megang", kayak di film Wong Kar Wai, yang bikin tambah gemes.

Jangan khawatir teman, ini bukan filem religi yang setannya takut sama ayat suci dan wanita ber-chador. Ini cerita tentang mbak manis berbaju garis-garis, banjir musik post-punk dan ngefans berat sama Margaret Atwood!!

Fun fact:

• Di dinding kamar The Girl ada poster muka Margaret Atwood (penulis Handmaid's Tale), tapi dipose seperti poster Madonna. Ini mungkin seperti sebuah bentuk penghargaan Amirpour terhadap Atwood yang sudah menyumbang USD$ 57,000 dalam crowdfunding film ini di Indiegogo. Amirpour pun gadis yang beruntung, bisa berfoto bersama Ms. Atwood.
• The pimp, diperankan oleh Dominic Rains adalah pemeran Jihangir di film Taqwacore (oh aku suka film ini!) dan tato 'Jakesh' di kepalanya adalah coretan tangan ibu Amirpour, yang berarti "someone who provides place", tetapi di Iran kata ini eufimisme dari mucikari. Don't get mixed with 'koskesh" which literally means pussy-puller, pussy-stretcher or a fucker.

Wawancara dengan Amirpour & behind the scene AGWHAAN.

Tentang Gambar "The Girl & Saeed" dan "Skateboard"

Nah, karena aku suka sekali dengan film ini, akhirnya aku mengumpulkan beberapa screenshot adegan untuk dibuat fan art-nya. Awalnya ada sekitar 5 gambar yang disiapkan, dengan target minimal 3 gambar. Namun aku kehabisan tenaga di gambar kedua. Pengerjaannya cukup singkat, 2 hari saja. Menggunakan 3 pensil Derwent ukuran HB, 4B dan 8B.

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A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night (2014)
Sutradara: Ana Lily Amirpour
Produser: Sina Sayyah, Justin Begnaud, Ana Lily Amirpour
Pemain: Sheila Vand, Arash Marandi, Mozhan Marnò, Dominic Rains, Milad Eghbali, Rome Shadanloo, Marshall Manesh, Reza Sixo Safai
Durasi: 99 Menit
Bahasa: Farsi (dengan subtitel Bahasa Inggris) 
 

Red Two, Standing By!

It's May the 4th! It's Star Wars Day!

 Red Two, Standing By! (graphite on paper, 2015)

"Look at the size of that thing!"

"I remember the days before Yavin when we were all young, armored with the invincibility of youth and fired by the belief that the Emperor’s evil Empire could not win. It didn’t, but the cost was more horrible than any of us could have imagined."

On the April 30th, I had this conversation with a good friend of mine, to make fan arts based on Battle of Yavin. Specifically speaking, the Red Leader: Wedge Antilles. He's going to make it in Lego bricks, but on Friday night he just told me he couldn't make it. Meh. Went already halfway (as long as I remembered, I already finished with Wedge on center, working my way up to the ship), there's no possibility for turning back. Not for this Corellian pilot who survived through Battle of Yavin, Battle of Endor, Battle of Hoth and second Death Star runs.

He's not the Captain Antilles that had been strangled by Darth Vader, it's Raymus Antilles. Or former C3PO master, Colton Antilles, who's possibly Raymus' son. Yes, I know, some of you confirmed that Raymus and Colton is the same person and the character synchronization between A New Hope and Revenge of the Sith went kinda glitchy here. With no signs of aging etc. Raymus in episode III = Colton in episode IV.

Anyway, I collected all details and studied some pictures, what made this Red Two standout from others? Oh! It's the helmets! Each Squadron has their own helmet design, gold, grey, green, red,
Antilles - olive green with yellow-black stripes on center
Biggs - yellow-black checkered
Luke Skywalker - two red Rebel symbol.

 
(via Tumblr)

The Battle of Yavin: this scene over and over again, feel the Force!