Just off the phone to Dave McKean, interviewing him for Film Focus. My review of Mirrormask is now up, and there’ll be a transcript of our chat shortly (am about halfway through typing).
It’s odd getting to speak to your heroes. I remember discussing McKean’s work in “The Face” (a hip style magazine) with my sister, back when we both lived at home. Didn’t know who had done these weird, scary images – or how you could even do that with photos – but his were the ones I stuck into my notebooks.
Always been in awe of people who can draw well and make things. Spend most of my time these days working on Word documents, which don’t ever look much when I hand them in. Clever people transform the words I come up with into lavish magazine spreads, proper-looking books, or bring them alive on CD.
Of course it’s the design we see first, then the words. But the design doesn’t just draw our eye, it shapes our reading as well.
McKean’s stuff is certainly striking. Liadnan bought Varjak Paw for my birthday some years ago just on the strength of the cover, and I suspect a lot of Sandman got shifted on the same principle. That’s how I first read it, anyway.
And he seems, in the 28 minutes and 10 seconds that I spoke to him, a decent enough sort of fellow.
My review of Kidulthood is also now available. And I like this story, via a chum, about a shotgun wedding for a goat.
Now hurrying off to see V.
Speaking of Varjak Paw, what did you think of it? I really enjoyed it, a strange combination of anthropomorphic stray cat in big city story with martial arts, and I'm looking forward to the sequel (in paperback)
ReplyDeleteYeah, I enjoyed it too - and it's the book of choice among the 8/9 year-olds at a school where my mate works.
ReplyDeleteThere's also the spooky, horror-story element with the lobotomised evil cats, too. Freaked me as a grown up, so can't imagine what it does in the minds of small children.
Bought the sequel for the Dr for Xmas, and she whizzed through it happily. Am intending to get to it myself soon...