Interviews

Interview with Ms,Shatia Hamilton

By LJ Douresseau
March 23, 2004 - 10:51

OK, so you missed the deadline for TOKYOPOP's new talent contest, The Rising Stars of Manga 3; there's always RSoM4. In the meantime, let's one again focus on a winner from RSoM2. This time it's Ms,Shatia Hamilton, and that is how she spells her name.

THE RISING STARS OF MANGA 2 anthology is filled with many talented artists and cartoonists, but Ms. Hamilton's art stands out as the most lyrical and beautiful. Why she isn't at the very least drawing covers for some comic book publisher escapes me. "Whisper", her winning entry, is an odd fantasy tale of brutal succession and filial obligation that is both suspenseful and terrifying similar to traditions in classical romantic literature.

Ms,Shatia answered these questions back in November of last year not long after TOKYOPOP announced the winners of RSoM2:

What was your first experience with comics? What kind of comics were they, and what were the titles?

MS,SHATIA: The first comic I ever really sat down to read was WITCHBLADE. I was never really much into comics before I started middle school. I'd been browsing through my local bookstore, flipping through video game magazines, and saw there was a comic section in back, I'd never really noticed it before that moment. I had time to kill and decided to see what was on the shelves. I noticed Witchblade right of the bat because of the cover. I didn't even hesitate to pick it up and start looking through it. I spent over fifty dollars that day collecting most of the series just so I could go home and read it. I've been hooked on American comics ever since.

At what point were you first exposed to manga and anime, and what were your initial reactions to it or your feelings?

MS,SHATIA: I'd known about anime for a long time, about since I was a fourth grader. I used to get up every morning at 6 am to watch "Sailor Moon" and "Dragon Ball Z." For the most part those were the only anime I knew about. By the time I reached middle school I'd discovered other anime like "Evangelion." I was still heavily addicted to American comics, but not American cartoons. I couldn't even put anime and cartoons together as the same thing in my mind. They're just so different in many ways. I was really drawn to how serious some of anime series could get. I liked that about them because it kept me watching and made me think deeply about what was really going on. They told stories. I still feel that way today.

I'd heard of manga before but didn't really know what it was. I'd never really seen one either but found out it was a Japanese comic basically. A classmate was watching me draw one day and said my style reminded him of this manga series he read. He brought a copy of ANIMERICA to show me the next day. This was back when Animerica was running some of the pages of X (X/1999 in the states). I was completely blown away by CLAMP's talent. I really liked what I saw in. I was hooked all over again. Although at first, I was a little off set by the lack of color in mangas. It was something I was used to in American comics. But the more mangas I saw the more I started to like the black and white pages.

What was it about the form that attracted you to manga, and what were the particular titles and creators who appealed to you?

MS,SHATIA: X by CLAMP stands out in my mind the most. I'd always gone out of my way to avoid things done in black and white for reason I still can't explain. But X really made me appreciate lack of color. I never really thought it was possible for pictures to look good without color. I think if X were to ever be a colored manga I wouldn't like it was much. About the form, X has this almost lyrical dream like feel to it. I catch myself staring for long periods of time at the pages trying to absorb how much is in each picture. I couldn't believe a story that good, with art so painstakingly detailed and beautiful, could exist. When I later discovered CARD CAPTORS, the NEON GENESIS EVANGELION manga series, CLOVER, and a bunch of others, I started to get exposed to more and more styles. But I still remain loyal to CLAMP. For about a year I was determined to draw just like CLAMP. I went through a really bad artist's block because of that.

When did you first become aware that there were U.S. based publishers of manga (like Eclipse, Dark Horse, TOKYOPOP, etc.) and what titles did you like?

MS,SHATIA: After I discovered VIZ I found out about Dark Horse publishing BLADE OF THE IMMORTAL. Most of the manga I own I ran across by accident though. I would look in preview magazines every month to see what manga comic companies would pick up for the states. I found out about TOKYOPOP at the beginning of my junior year in high school. Barnes and Noble had a few of their titles.

Were there elements of manga and titles that you didn't like or found off putting? What about them didn't you like?

MS,SHATIA: This isn't something I don't like, but I find a little off putting. A lot of mangas are the same story wise. But his could be said about American comics as well.

When did you become aware of TOKYOPOP and the Rising Stars of Manga contest?

MS,SHATIA: I was on looking at my friends list on Live Journal and one of my LJ friends was kind of advertising it. They were saying we should all enter and other stuff like that. I started to enter the first contest but didn't really have the time. I was also suffering with a terrible artist's block.

Was the second contest your first entry in RSOM?

MS,SHATIA: Yes.

Was your entry something you'd been working on for a long time, or was it something new for RSOM? Did you have to rework the concept to make it fit the preconceived notions of what manga is?

MS,SHATIA: I started on it the moment I knew about the contest starting up again. I sat down and sketched out the pages and panels in 2 days but I really didn't' know how I was going to go about finishing them. I really didn't adjust my style to fit the "manga" style as you say. I figured, since TOKYOPOP has so many different manga genres and styles that an original or different style, art wise and story wise, is what they were looking for. I worked on some of the pages for 6 hours and others for only 1 hour. I was working on my entry for the most part up until 3 days before the deadline doing final touches.

How does your work fit in with the "manga style," and I'm asking this knowing that manga encompasses an incredibly broad base of genres and storytelling techniques?

MS,SHATIA: I don't' really know if it does to be honest. I take influences from manga and American comics for my work so it's probably a cross between both. I had to simplify my drawing style and story telling style in order to get my entry done on time. I wouldn't have gotten past page one if I'd really sat down and did the pages how I'd wanted to. I've never done a short manga before. I found it really hard to adjust to only having 20 pages to work with. I don't feel you can really tell a story in only 20 pages without having it continue. I know this isn't the norm for a true manga series though.

Is it your goal or dream to be a cartoonist, and how are you working towards that goal in terms of educating yourself about the history, form, and content of comics.

MS,SHATIA: I want to do character designs and story boarding for video games in the future. I'm going to school for animation now. I try to keep myself up on what's new and hot in the industry but for the most part I avoid paying attention to what's already on the market. I think people start trying to mimic what does well if they do that. I really strive to be original and mostly read manga and comics for fun, not for study or anything.

What is your artistic background as far as training and learning, even it you are self-taught?

MS,SHATIA: Self taught all the way. I've been drawing, really drawing, since I was a fourth grader. I used to draw things from cartoons, movies, video games, and then comics. I went to basic art classes in school. I started developing my own style when I was in the 6th grade. I just drew all of the time. During class, lunch, work, on the bus, in the car. It's all about practice. I can't impress that more to anyone trying to better their drawing skills. All the programs I use I learned on my own. I didn't have the patience to go through basic steps when I started off, so I just jumped right in. If I saw something I liked, I pushed myself to learn it and surpass it if I could.

Describe the feelings you had upon being notified that you were a RSoM winner.

MS,SHATIA: I was really happy! (I think my mother was more ecstatic than I was though). It felt good to know I'd accomplished something. After I'd mailed off my entry it was a short waiting game. For the most part I wasn't too worried about winning or losing. I'd entered for fun and would be happy either way. But it feels so good to know I'm going to get my name and work out into the public eye. I really didn't think the contest was a big thing until I saw my name on the RSoM winners' page. There were so many of my classmates congratulating me about making it into the book. It's a great feeling.

Did winning change your long range plans in terms of your work and/or budding career as a cartoonist?

MS,SHATIA: Hmmm, not too much really. Knowing now how big the industry is and that it is possible to accomplish a possible career in manga I may consider it as a starting point. I learned a lot while working on my entry. I'm just going to push myself harder to do better. If drawing comics/manga is where I have to start, I have no problem with that.

THANK YOU MS,SHATIA. To see more of Ms,Shatia's work, please visit www.destiny-makers.net. I want to also send out the usual thanks to PR/Marketing goddess at TOKYOPOP, Mina Sung, for her contribution to Mr. Charlie #22. Check out www.tokyopop.com for the latest news on the company including info on recently published manga titles, company news, contests, art submissions, and more. You can find TOKYOPOP publications at comics shops, bookstores like Books-a-Million, or at Internet shops like Amazon.com and Wal-Mart.com, both of which sell TOKYOPOP books at nice discount prices.

And if you are a comics creator or publisher and you want to send me material for review consideration or you just want to talk about your book in a Charlie column, punch the click-able name link to send me an email. Holla!

Last Updated: August 31, 2023 - 08:12