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Your new graphic novel United They Stand - in a few words,
what is it about?
United They Stand is a crossover event that merges my
first horror feature, Methodic
with the heroes of the BCU. It is also a sequel to my 2015 web series
Phantom Faye. Basically, if you’re a Blinky fan, this book has
everything. United They Stand is a
superhero story, a genre you've also returned to time and again as a
filmmaker - so what do you find so fascinating about the genre? I
just love comics and superheroes. They are fun, entertaining, and
educational. I love being able to blend and bend genres. And having my
heroes battle a horror villain, I think, is really cool. United
They Stand is also tied in with your horror feature Methodic
- care to elaborate? In the book, I take the villain
from the movie, The
Dollman, and pit him against my team of heroes. We
also get a little more backstory on the Dollman. Who and what he is, and
where he came from. We also get to see his true form, which are things I
have not been able to show on film.
What
can you tell us about the look and feel of United They Stand? The
book is comprised of photographs, edited like a comic book. I’m an
artist, but I’m not talented enough to properly draw, ink and color an
entire graphic novel and make it look awesome. I know my limits. So I
chose to make the book with photos. It’s new, it’s different, and
it’s actually a lot of fun. It’s like making a movie, but I can do
more, in less time. Also, there really aren’t any other photo comic
books out there, so I’ve just decided to corner the market. With
United They Stand being a photo
comic book - do talk about producing a comic book this way, what are
the challenges? And how does it compare to shooting a movie, and where are
the main differences? Making the book and making a
movie are 95% the same. I make costumes, cast roles and schedule
shooting days. The only difference is that nobody has to memorize any
lines, and I can do more in the visual FX department. I can literally
create anything I want, whereas when filming, I’m more limited. But
other than that, the experience is exactly the same. Do talk about your key cast, and
why exactly these people? I try to cast people who
resemble the characters as closely as possible. Like any casting process,
you want to find people who fit the role, who can emote, and who are easy
to work with. Being able to hold a pose or expression is a lot harder
than you might think. What can you tell us about the
shoot as such, and the on-set atmosphere? It’s just
like making a movie, but you never have to worry about shushing people. So
it’s less stressful. I just pose my actors like they were action
figures, and take pictures of them. It’s very simple and effortless. And
since it’s photography, rather than filming, it’s easier to score more
exotic locations, because you aren’t getting in anyone’s way as much.
It makes guerrilla shooting a lot easier.
Anything you
can tell us about audience and critical reception of United They Stand? Well
the BCU and Methodic
have their respective fan bases, so I am eager to see
how they react to this book, ie: the horror fans being introduced to the
BCU and the BCU fans being introduced to the Dollman. Though I think
anyone who reads this will definitely get a kick out of the story. United
They Stand is not your first photo comic, but from what I know, you've
only gotten into the medium pretty recently - so what caused that step?
And also do talk about your previous photo comics for a bit? Well
I actually began with Danerman in 2013, but I didn’t make another book
again, until The Centurion in 2016. Though BCU’s photo comics didn’t
really become a regular thing until 2017’s First
Born. That was THE book
that made me want to do this as often as possible. It was a sci-fi/horror
thriller about an alien assassin sent to earth to kill a baby. It had a
real Terminator vibe to it and I just loved the experience so
much that I
wanted to keep doing it. Since then, I’ve made Blast, which released
back in January, and now United They Stand. Any
future projects (in whatever medium) you'd like to share? Not
sure what I’ll do next as far as comics go. I gotta figure that one out.
As for films, I will be releasing SID 6.7, a fan film based off the 1995
Denzel Washington movie Virtuosity, and then Ghostbusters of Long Beach.
Your/your
comic's website, Facebook, whatever else?
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Feeling lucky ?
Want to search for books by
Chris R. Notarile
yourself? |
The links below
will take you
just there!!!
(commissions earned) |
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Check me out at
www.facebook.com/blinky500,
www.facebook.com/bcucomics
and
www.youtube.com/blinky500.
You can order your copy of United They Stand here:
http://a.co/bjZoP0c.
Anything else
you're dying to mention and I have merely forgotten to ask? We
sleep, they live! Thanks
for the interview!
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find Chris R. Notarile at amazon.com
find Chris R. Notarile at amazon.co.uk
find Chris R. Notarile at amazon.de
