Frank Teran slagblog

murple derp

2012-03-03T10:20:00.004-08:00

a nights worth of fledgling 3d experimentation with a really impressive freebie program called sculptris by pixologic...
it's apparently been out for awhile now...surprisingly tactile simulation of sculpting.
major props to pixelogic for offering such a robust tool at zero cost.

i'm gettin flashbacks of painting pewter d&d creatures/warriors back in grammar school,since it also allows you to paint up your creation afterwards.

pic above is the base coat of hues on the maquette...painting a 3d object is so much different since painting in 2d,the artist often has to make an object seem more dimensional...that step is basically negated...so..it takes awhile to get used to,but dang, it's incredibly fun.

*updated: painted a bit more...added some warmer earth tones over the purple/magentas:

gif lab

2012-02-11T12:58:00.000-08:00

i've been fascinated with 2d animation since i was a kid but had never ventured into the process of creating any of my own until recently in my spare time via gifs...

the lo-fi looping process of gifs allows a tiny snippet of visual information to be assimilated and possibly used within the realms of storytelling or even simple conceptual idea presentations.

anyways,i'll eventually be posting more experiments as i navigate thru my own gif wastelands during my numerous coffee breaks.

january- warm ups

2012-01-25T15:47:00.000-08:00

i'll try to maintain a monthly post of warm ups in 2012...then compile em all as a sketchbook at the end of the year along with ones i hadn't posted.

also: my wife insists the 2nd one down is frankenberry's cereal killer twin.
i'd eaten unfathomable amounts of the cereal as a child.

word.

terminator: 'suicide run'

2012-01-17T21:23:00.000-08:00

hello...
my wife added all the original art from this 10 pager,written by alan grant,to the 'store'...
please note:there's a nostalgic glimpse of a walkman at the very end.
check out this nifty future tech circa 1983.

hellblazer: 'l o c k e d'

2012-01-07T19:51:00.000-08:00

all the original pages from #140 'locked' by warren ellis
were added to the store...
click here to wade thru the gruesome mess.

mush compilation

2011-11-23T20:39:00.000-08:00

all 52 paintings that were done for the cutscene segments for the various levels in the mushroom men/ ds version...all compiled below...i'd painted them at 512 x 256 pixels...they were later reduced to 256 x 128 to fit within the parameters of the nintendo ds softwares memory allowances.

misc:: random concepts

2011-11-22T10:09:00.000-08:00

various conceptual stuff from past game dev projects...

redhelm

2011-11-03T20:41:00.000-07:00

found this older concept from 2006.

mosaic

2011-10-25T06:49:00.000-07:00

all the original art from the entire 1st part (22 pages) of BATMAN: 'No Man's Land'-'Mosaic' is now up for sale on ebay.
it was written by greg rucka w/ me on visuals.

you can also get there via the ebay seller widget i've added to the right >>>>>>

word.

ole batman

2011-10-23T13:22:00.000-07:00

my wife put 5 pages up on ebay for $ale...from a batman short story that i'd penciled & comic samurai,klaus janson had inked and written.

scout

2011-09-23T09:23:00.000-07:00

specimen

2011-09-19T17:00:00.000-07:00

franky

2011-08-09T20:51:00.000-07:00

color version

no.5

2011-08-07T11:32:00.000-07:00

here's the color version of the piece from the last post...i think i'm gonna make some prints of it.
the black & white original & mc stein will go up tonight...i'll post the ebay link
once i create an account.

desktop : worknprog

2011-08-05T11:50:00.000-07:00

finishin up the legs on der mech...then addin in some background.
this one's gonna be up for sale in the 1st batch, along with mr.f'nstein

gonna get a decent hi-rez scan of it,add some hues,then i'll post it up back in here.

think i'm gonna use the characters again in somethin...

sketch pawn

2011-08-03T10:17:00.000-07:00

just a quick heads up--
i'm gonna be doin original pieces in various genres, that'll be put up for sale periodically,starting this week...either on e-bay or in the "wares" section(up top)...if you're interested,contact me via twitter.

1st up is frankenstein-it's bout 10''x 16'' illustration board...priced at around $100 ( not including shipping costs)... he'll stand guard over your house,then eventually throw you into a lake...

outnumbered

2011-07-28T18:44:00.000-07:00

t-ray "bones"

2011-07-13T11:48:00.000-07:00

this is a character design for anoNYmous...loosely based on my long time foe from art school,
tramell ray isaac.(t-ray)
we once had a rap record deal back in the early 90's,but it went sour...i blame t-ray for this...i also blame him for my inescapable moniker of "teranchilla-the 8 legged killa".
i've now cast him as the cynical,tech/communication/junkbot building guru in the fiction i've got goin thus far.i'm sorry this has happened.

experiment

2011-07-10T23:46:00.000-07:00

way back in middle school,i'd earned some decent scratch,by cranking out graffiti on t-shirts & hats for fellow classmates.
it was my first introduction to doin visuals under pressure...since it usually involved the customer supplying the wares to be painted up...so if i f'ed up,i'd have to pony up the cash to replace.

anyhows-here's a recent sketch i'd done as a style experiment,for certain sections of 'anoNYmous'.

3 seconds

2011-07-09T12:50:00.000-07:00

capt. drone

2011-07-04T03:51:00.000-07:00

u.s. drone bombing operations have expanded to six countries.

ghosts of alcatraz

2011-06-26T11:11:00.000-07:00

just an ensemble of head sketches and lighting practice , that i'd then deemed with a title...
since it actually kinda fit the cast of characters that seemed to manifest like ghosts from the exercise.

hmmm... i think facial hair was probably prohibited in alcatraz.
oh well.

anoNYmous

2011-06-24T17:34:00.000-07:00

i'm fleshing out an urban adventure story that takes place within a futuristic nyc...the surveillance panopticon plays a major starring role.
unfortunately,it's a backdrop that's becoming less science fiction and more 'science factual'
by the day.

überfutility

2011-06-17T11:11:00.000-07:00

from vectrex to ninja turtles

2011-06-10T15:32:00.000-07:00

after seeing an old ad for a video game system i'd had as a kid,called vectrex...the 80's theme reminded me to post up the new color version of a pin up i'd done for a tmnt comic,over a decade ago.

i'd found it while looking through all of my old comic work,and felt compelled to throw down some hues on it,for some reason.

i'd simply consider it a quick "futile attempt to resuscitate an old b&w piece that i'd otherwise choose to forget about" type of color exercise.

this allowed me to analyze how much of my process and approach had changed since then,while also allowing me a chance to simply focus on the coloring.

synchronicity via polaroid

2011-06-02T16:01:00.000-07:00

synchronicity...seems like the best way to describe the realization when your childhood past sometimes comes 'full circle' and collides with the present...and you get to witness the accident,within a fleeting window.

ya see...i'd been scannin various pages to eventually put up for sale,via the ware$ section up top...

one of which,was this aliens:havok page (pic above)...
then shortly after,that same morning...my parents stopped by,and my mom had brought over a buncha old pics of me and my sis.

while lookin through one of the albums,i'd run across this one,in particular...
and it was at that moment,i'd realized a fleeting synchron had just taken place.

(me and alien circa 79)

needless to say,i'd laughed at both the synchronicity...and also the fact that it looks like the rosary in the pic had fused to the back of my skull...or possibly shot out of it...though not surprising...since i was unwittingly holding the
evil dickhead alien that i'd eventually go on to draw in comics years later.

eh,so yeah...anyways,full circle.

*as a bonus fail...here's the commercial for the 'alien' toy from 79.

creature remix

2011-04-26T13:35:00.000-07:00

were is the sci-fi story?

2011-04-23T18:01:00.000-07:00

my apologies for the delay...i've been experiencing some annoying tech issues stemming from an outdated comp that's been bombarded with massive files in recent weeks...
and tho still slowly chuggin along...it's gettin to the point where it becomes unusable when i have any of my art programs opened,along with a few files simultaneously...so i've taken to the drawing board to keep the roughs for the story flowing till i remedy the situation (a file spring cleaning,may be in order)

in the meantime,here's a werewolf concept for something way down the road,short story wise...
and as always,thanks for lookin.

t s a

2011-04-14T16:48:00.000-07:00

back in nov 2010...

yet today it continues...unabated.

*plus,if you have an issue with the tsa groping you or your kids, you'll apparently be scrutinized even moreso,as a direct result.

**updated** this tsa employee must've really enjoyed his daily pat-down duties.

***updated*** as you can see,babies aren't immune to tsa pat-downs either.
while the tsa is blaming the stroller ,as the cause in the incident.

extraneous ramblin

2011-03-31T23:58:00.000-07:00

workin on a sci-fi story that i'll be
posting up in here in a few days.
it'll be divided into 5 to 6 page intervals...
till it's finito.

pic 1- my favorite lamp is next to my drawing table
consisting of a buncha flexible bx cables with halogen bulbs on the ends.

pic 2- all the pens and pencils/brushes from the week begin to pile up.

pic 3- a cropped section of a roughed panel from the sci-fi thing that's incoming.

so yeah,this is me,age 2...
i apparently drew all day,
even back then...also, my right arm
grew back shortly after the pic was taken,
thanks to my swamp thing photosynthesis pants.

lastly, here's some pics of a possible,aerosol induced sun dog,which lasted for hours,just a few days ago...here in jersey & in nyc.

granted,sun dogs are a documented,somewhat rare atmospheric phenomena...but it was the sheer amount of aerosols/residual particulate haze in the sky,on this specific morning...that had me leaning more towards "unnaturally" occurring and "geoengineered",in this case.

kinjoku

2011-03-25T15:27:00.000-07:00

h2o

2011-03-06T11:05:00.000-08:00

another colored sketch warm up.

immolate

2011-03-05T17:02:00.000-08:00

logan,lit up...
quickie color sketch for a friend.

even doing this quick project made me so much more
content to be doing my creator owned stuff these days.

hey,speakin of logan...this dude from logan's run, reminds me of the robot cops in thx1138.

i'd say,nothing pulls off "oppressive future look" better than shiny,chromed up masks.

the 9 year ole me thought this kraftwerk song was the future.

wed. sparring

2011-03-02T12:37:00.000-08:00

a colored,warm up sketch session from this mornin...courtesy of
some nifty new art materials i'd acquired within the last week.
i'm test driving the new goods..and it allows some experimentation.

pens,brushes and pencils feel right in my digits again...
for me,it's something that computers/technology will never be able to replace.
the tactile simplicity and tangible reality of having paper under my hand,
and sumi ink aftermaths drying on my fingertips.

just a heads up

2011-02-26T18:18:00.000-08:00

*updated the lucid dream sequence below if anyone wants to check it out.
i think this is all i'm gonna show from this particular dream.

swede twin doc

2011-02-24T12:40:00.000-08:00

i rarely post vids...but this bbc doc was quite intriguing.
it reminds me of cronenberg's "the brood".

*then again,the sheer amount of cctv cams set up in the uk,are just as disturbing as the doc itself.

lucid

2011-02-19T19:49:00.000-08:00

2-26-11:
a few more panels from the same dream sequence.

2-19-11:
quick 2 panel excerpt from a dream sequence in CAMP.
the lettering/word balloons are temps for placement.

plasma

2011-02-19T19:28:00.000-08:00

come in sinewave 5...*bzzzztttt*...
transmission 525 delta...elben here...
mantis xcav8tor in tow...commencing species
data collection and analysis.

crypto:

2011-01-18T15:51:00.000-08:00

i've always found myself working on multiple story ideas at one time...it's been like that since childhood...and though tangential at times,ideas come along at their own pace and sequence...there is no order in my creative process/style choices and thankfully,it keeps me from getting bored.
hopefully this year,i'll get some of em in print...or even online,as an ongoing.

anyhows,below are conceptual ideas for yet another story called CRYPTO:

there's a mix of cryptids,antagonist mercs and the protagonist main character,quincy.

c a m p : alphas

2010-12-29T00:38:00.000-08:00

just some of the camp counselor character designs... they're referred to in the story, as "the alphas" hierarchy...while everyone else at the camp are called "betas", by the counselors themselves.

c a m p

2010-12-26T14:52:00.000-08:00

usually when establishing a fictional story,i've always felt most comfortable
conceptualizing the characters and visual style first, since this then
allows them all to speak on their own...and i can just sit back and take dictation.
their personalities/quirks seem to bubble to the surface..with a subtle smirk
or a furrowed brow.

these character sheets are for a story that i've had brewing in my lab,called CAMP...and although the characters are somewhat lighthearted and cartoony...the storyline itself, is pretty dark and disturbing.

team: tranzhumanz

2010-12-22T13:15:00.000-08:00

hmmm?...what is this for?

i'd swapped out the "s" with "z"
as a nod to tranzor z

i treasured the 3 foot toy version of tranzor z,aka mazinger z, when i was a kid...
that entire line of japanese ip(the shogun warriors),in my opine,is the
top of the line in character design...so incredibly memorable.

krampus

2010-12-20T20:48:00.000-08:00

double header.

amok

2010-12-17T20:50:00.000-08:00

klot

2010-12-03T16:18:00.000-08:00

seems this dude met the agents.
apparently,it didn't go very well.

agents

2010-12-02T12:46:00.000-08:00

francais thx1138

bake sale

2010-12-01T17:11:00.001-08:00

mk-ultra and monarch

wreck 1

2010-11-30T22:11:00.000-08:00

blank friday

2010-11-26T17:28:00.000-08:00

mash.d tater o.d.

cryo-mutant variations

2010-11-21T21:41:00.000-08:00

these dudes remind me of those old aurora models
...back when i was a lil creep.
i remember being more intrigued by the paintings on the boxes themselves,instead of the models within.

**hah,my search for that aurora box link brought another memory from my childhood in the 80's...freezy freakies.
here's the old commercial for em.

rumbln & a tumbln

2010-11-18T11:40:00.001-08:00

for anyone interested,i've also set up a tumblr account called subteranean
yeah,yeah...i know...these things happen.
i've primed the engines with those lil familiar crayon waltzes from my last post...
and tho some future posts may be déjà vu at times,since it's gonna run parallel to this blogger universe...
overall,i'm gonna take different tangents along the way that you may not see here,or vice versa.
we'll see where it takes us.

wednesday monsters...

2010-11-17T12:21:00.000-08:00

...w/crayonic catastrophes as a bonus fail.

thoom.thoom.

2010-11-12T15:17:00.001-08:00

zip-a-tone n duo-shade love.

facade

2010-11-05T15:59:00.000-07:00

shifty shifter

2010-11-04T10:18:00.001-07:00

like a chameleon or an octopus changes hues...it's always
enjoyable to change gears and experiment with
different styles and approaches for varying themes.
i think i'm gonna adapt this look for a sci-fi
short i've had in mind for sometime.
hmmm...

memory from 78: boardwalk

2010-11-04T10:00:00.000-07:00

the ole shootin' gallery...can still hear the pneumatic symphony of light gun chaos...
and the robot piano player.

unleashed: second round

2010-11-02T21:05:00.000-07:00

i'd found some more of my sw concept stuff...

slag tech

2010-10-27T22:43:00.001-07:00

unleashed

2010-10-26T20:07:00.000-07:00

today was the release day for star wars:the force unleashed II.
red fly studio worked on the wii version...so of course my recommendation is gonna be biased.

go check it out.

btw,this was the first time i'd ever painted a lightsaber in my life...let alone,two of em.

misc..

2010-10-23T09:46:00.000-07:00

misc.

2010-10-22T09:30:00.000-07:00

racers

2010-09-20T22:00:00.000-07:00

sometimes...

2010-09-17T16:48:00.000-07:00

i'll paint aliens.

scalped

2010-09-08T18:57:00.000-07:00

published a few years ago for a comic anthology called 24seven vol 1.
below is the 8 page shorty,written by comic/screenwriting samurai miles gunter,w/ me
providing the colored,scribbley scratch panels.

it includes army jackets,sucker punches,gratuitous spark spillage,speak'n'spell vox cussing,inept nyc robotcops & oil infused gumball hi-jinx.

needless to say, it was a pleasure being a part of such an artistic undertaking.
it was all meticulously assembled and soldered together by writer/editor,ivan brandon.

tracers-sand-robots

2010-09-01T21:12:00.000-07:00

cig

2010-09-01T21:02:00.001-07:00

nebulous.2

2010-09-01T20:50:00.001-07:00

o9

2010-09-01T20:41:00.000-07:00

hansel und gretel

2010-09-01T20:08:00.000-07:00

this one is old...but i don't hate it...which is rare.

old ghost

2010-08-13T18:54:00.001-07:00

minor viking threat

2010-01-01T09:41:00.001-08:00

red.i'm seein'red.i'm seein'red.
i'm seein' r e d.

done many many many months ago as a weekend sketching experiment,ivan brandon eventually used this piece as a pinup in book 4 of his comic book saga,VIKING,published by image comics...pick up the miniseries.it's a viking crime story.

the minor threat soundtrack,is optional.

a two-fer post, to end 09.

2009-12-31T12:07:00.000-08:00

yet again,while cleaning out one of my external drives to make room, i'd ran across some concepts cranked out while still freelancing(over 4 years ago)for a few games that both eventually died on the vine.sadly,this happens all too often in the game dev biz.

that crt monitor pictured,dates this pic to at least 2005 maybe 2004.regardless,i'll miss the ole crt's.

09 is gonzo.

2009-12-31T11:47:00.000-08:00

pugilist sepia sketches

2009-02-07T14:08:00.000-08:00

found this while cleaning off my desktop...circa 06

old texture experimentation

2009-02-07T11:11:00.000-08:00

i've always been fascinated with the way ink spreads on a wet surface...
the way it absorbs into the paper.i'd tried to transfer some of that
tactile spontaneity by scanning some of my ink tests and converting
them into photoshop brushes.

nebulous

2009-02-06T22:28:00.000-08:00

ole creature sketches

2009-02-03T20:22:00.000-08:00

trash for the virtual pyre...

2009-02-03T18:49:00.000-08:00

during external drive deletion action hour...

i had found a scanned page from "el diablo" that was eventually published with a different
artist at the helm. i bailed out of mainstream comics shortly after i was done with
the 1st issue...
since it was when i had the sobering realization i woulda went broke or
sunk in massive debt if i tried to finish the mini-series to keep face...

that's when i knew i had to throw in the towel.

you could say it was a fitting swan song to exit
the mainstream comic book world with...

a swan song that was destined to never be heard.

hard to believe it's been 10 years already.

terror inc...meet recycle bin

2009-02-01T09:31:00.000-08:00

was cleaning out my old external h.d. to make space
and found these old terror inc. sketches
i had done for a pitch at marvel years back, while i was still freelancing
...and even tho i had posted them on a few forums a few moons ago...
i figured i'd toss em up here as a final resting place.
i'm deleting the master, hi-rez files... since they're rediculous memory hogs.

the purging of old, useless, marvel shite is always good for the system.

bzzzzztt..gonzo.

amanita few excedrin

2009-01-28T21:31:00.000-08:00

pppppoundin' headache.

fellow fungus...

2008-12-09T20:16:00.001-08:00

if you happen to own a wii or a ds...and have some loot to spare this holiday season...
please support 3rd party indie development on nintendo,and give MUSHROOM MEN a whirl.. as a gift for yourself,or someone else...

i'm so damn proud of what our team has pulled off on the wii...

(it's available in all retail stores this week..it's already available at gamestop..i believe)

GRIMMthing n dr.DOOM

2008-08-21T20:10:00.000-07:00

fantastic 4 have always been my least favorite of all the marvel characters...but they were fun to sketch...i'll give em that.

WRAP

2008-08-20T16:13:00.000-07:00

my art duties on mushroom men have officially drawn to a close...i'm ready for mushroom men 2...so many ideas brewin in me noggin...until then i'm back to the lab for even more game idea tangents...so in the meantime...stay tuned.

* gonna make it a conscious habit to post more stuff..more often..end of transmission----------

72 stitches

2008-03-15T15:15:00.000-07:00

mr. manifold#322

2008-03-10T12:51:00.000-07:00

was sketchin a bit last night...yeah....bla bla..

on a tangent: Mushroom Men will be getting some more press this week...keep your eyes peeled...

time flies

2007-12-22T12:41:00.000-08:00

it's been an incredible ride so far...we started red fly studio a few years ago...and we've been busting our ass making games"officially"since this past year...with no signs of slowing.
i'm really proud of the badass team we've assembled...
may it be the year of the mush-busters
we shall see...

incisor

2007-12-21T21:24:00.003-08:00