Happy New Year!

Thank you for your support! Happy New Year!

¡Gracias por su apoyo! ¡Les deseo un feliz año nuevo!

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Un teddy bear y una pedota

Mi sobrina de 3 años le pidió a Santa Claus "un teddy bear y una pelota".

¡Felices fiestas a todos!

Happy Holidays, everybody!

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Pearl Jam prende a la Ciudad de México

Photo by Karen Loria.

Es todo un evento el esperar y escuchar por primera vez un nuevo álbum de Pearl Jam.  Pero, esta es una banda que se tiene que ver y escuchar en vivo.  He conocido a personas que, después de verlos en vivo, pasan de sólo conocer algunas canciones del álbum ‘Ten’ a convertirse en fans de por vida.  He tenido la fortuna de ver a Pearl Jam en 8 ocasiones, y tengo que decir que el concierto del Foro Sol en la Ciudad de México el pasado 24 de noviembre, ha sido el mejor de todos.  Viajé de Tijuana a la Ciudad de México en la madrugada, sólo dormí un par de horas, así que llegué al lugar cansado y con sueño (pero impresionado por la cantidad de mercancía pirata que había en la explanada antes de entrar), pensando cómo podría aguantar un concierto de casi 3 horas, de pie y entre 60 mil fanáticos.  Pero, en el momento en que empezaron a tocar “Release”, todo ese cansancio desapareció.  Así de mágico es Pearl Jam.  ¡Qué noche tan increíble y electrizante!  Nunca había estado entre un público tan prendido (durante “Daughter” Eddie Vedder le pidió al diseñador de iluminación que oscureciera el escenario para poder ver cómo el público prendía sus encendedores al ritmo de la música, y cuando lo vio dijo, “Ahora ya sabemos que estamos en la Ciudad de México”) y nunca había escuchado un repertorio de canciones tan fascinante.  Los sets de canciones a los que estaba acostumbrado en un concierto de Pearl Jam incluían joyas desconocidas, covers, y en su mayor parte una muestra del álbum más reciente.  Lo cual es excelente para cualquier fan, pero, nunca me había tocado un concierto de Pearl Jam donde la mayor parte de las canciones eran grandes éxitos, y además, canciones nuevas, como “Olé” y ya épica “Of The Earth”.  Aparte del setlist increíble, había una sensación de emoción y celebración que no había sentido antes.  Para mí no fue sólo otro concierto, sino que fue la primera vez que los veía después de la película ‘Pearl Jam Twenty’ de Cameron Crowe.  ¡Esta era una celebración de 20 años de Pearl Jam!  La manifestación más lúdica y amorosa en esta fiesta fue sin duda la lluvia de vasos durante “Rockin' In The Free World”.  Se veía en las caras de asombro de la banda que eso era algo que nunca habían visto antes en sus conciertos.  ¡Regresen pronto a México, Pearl Jam!

Pearl Jam: The Kids Are Twenty

I really wanted to draw something to celebrate +Pearl Jam’s 20th anniversary.  The title is a reference to The Who’s 'The Kids Are Alright' (1979) rockumentary and it’s also the title for the alternate version of Cameron Crowe’s film, ‘Pearl Jam Twenty’ (2011).  The concept is an homage to John Holmstrom and Gus McDonald‘s cover art for the Ramones' 'Road To Ruin' (1978).  And yeah, I listened to a lot of Pearl Jam, The Who, and Ramones while drawing it.  This doodle was featured in Golpeavisa’s Viernes de Ilustración: Musical art jam, which was a lot of fun to be part of.

Tenía muchas ganas de dibujar algo para celebrar el 20 aniversario de Pearl Jam. El título es una referencia al rockumental de The Who, 'The Kids Are Alright' (1979) y también es el título de la versión alterna de la película de Cameron Crowe, 'Pearl Jam Twenty' (2011). El concepto es un homenaje al are de portada por  John Holmstrom and Gus McDonald para el disco 'Road To Ruin’ (1978) de Ramones.  Y si, escuché mucho a Pearl Jam, The Who, y Ramones cuando lo dibuje.  Este dibujo fue incluido en el art jam Viernes de Ilustración: Musical de Golpeavisa, en el cual me dio mucho gusto participar.

I also put together these posters for each character:

También hice estos posters para cada personaje:

Cheers!

正義 (Justice)

I made this doodle for COMCOM's "Samurai" Art Jam.  There are so many varieties of Samurai armor, and they are so colorful and beautiful and complex, that the challenge for me was to simplify that by using the less number of shapes and colors to translate it into cartoon form.  Also, I wanted to try coloring with a mono-chromatic scheme.  In this project I only used variations of yellow for the armor, but decided to paint the mask red, just like the “rising sun” background.

Zorras Del Mal 2

I made this follow-up to last year's "Zorras Del Mal".  Hope you like it!  Happy Halloween, everybody!!!

Productos Oficiales de IAMO/Nerdmigos en Entijuanarte 2011

¡Productos oficiales de IAMO/Nerdmigos sólo en @entijuanarte 2011!

Octubre 7-9.  Stand de Nerdmigos Unlimited (#59).

-Nerdmigos: Reservoir Nerds

-Nerdmigos: Chorizo Bandit Logo

-Nerdmigos: Drunk Jack

PRINTS $30 pesos c/u

-Batman: Blue

-Catwoman

-Don’t Be Afraid

-Jar Jar Binks vs. Darth Maul

-Nerdmigos: I Smell Hipsters

-Nerdmigos: Reservoir Nerds

-Nerdmigos: The Band

-Robot Vs. Zombie

-The Last Beer

-Usagi Yojimbo

-Vader Arrives

-Zorras Del Mal

BOTONES $10 pesos c/u

($75 pesos set de 9)

-Don’t Be Afraid

-Nerdmigos: Chorizo Bandit Logo

-Nerdmigos: Chucho Ortiz!

-Nerdmigos: Drunk Jack

-Nerdmigos: Reservoir Nerds

-Nerdmigos: School For Gifted Hipsters

-Robot

-Zombie

-Zorras Del Mal

¡Nos vemos el fin de semana!

Modelo: Patricia Montes ♥

Nerdmigos @ Entijuanarte 2011!

¡Nos vemos en Entijuanarte Frontera Creativa 2011!

Nerdmigos Unlimited:

Ben Camberos
Carlos Lerma
Ismael Alejandro Moreno Ozuna
Roberto Gutiérrez

“Nerdmigos” by IAMO

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25 Insights on Becoming a Better Writer

Check out this great article for writers and aspiring writers!

25 Insights on Becoming a Better Writer

Don't Be Afraid

I made this doodle for COMCOM’s Monster Art Jam.  I really like rock concert silkscreen posters; so, some inspiration on this piece came from that.  The “Pink Elephants on Parade” sequence from Disney’s ‘Dumbo’ (yeah, the one where he’s drunk having a bad trip) was definitely another influence.  I wanted to give it a dream-like feeling and have the monster be really big.  The little girl holding a lollipop came as an afterthought, when I needed something to show the size of the monster.  I remembered how my little 2-year-old niece is not afraid of anything, and started playing with the idea of the monster being more scared of the little girl that she is of it. The title, “Don’t Be Afraid”, is actually what the little girl is saying to the monster.

El Negro Cósmico

Una de mis canciones favoritas de Caifanes.

Nerdmigos Year Two

The very first “Nerdmigos” webcomic strip was made two years ago when I was playing around with ideas for an invitation flyer for my birthday party, which I shared a guy who inspired the character of Gelipe, who’s birthday is a day before mine. It was fitting to have Gelipe in the first strip, since I met some of the Nerdmigos through him (except Erick and Roy). Throughout 2009 we had several nerd gatherings (including Comic-Con) and I got to know these guys a bit. A lot of funny stories came from those gatherings and it felt good to have friends to hang out with, but I was still the new kid in the group. I never used the finished comic strip in the invitation, but I did post it on my blog and shared it with my friends. Some really liked it and had a laugh, others just ignored it, but the biggest support and motivation came (and still does, and I thank him publicly for that) from my friend Carlos Lerma (Lerms), who liked it a lot and said he wanted to see more of these strips. It was always my intention to include all the Nerdmigos in the comic, and even though I didn’t know them all that well, I started writing them into the strips. Most of my inspiration came from my favorite comic strips that I have always read in newspapers, like, “Peanuts” and “Mutts.” Within a week I had written the first ten strips and decided to keep going, since I saw it as a good exercise to keep writing and drawing.

By the time I was done with Year One, I had become the official documentarian of Nerdonia, and I had received several ideas/requests/suggestions/threats from friends who wanted to see themselves or other people in the comic strip. I definitely wanted to do more with the comic and try new things. So, for Year Two I decided to do two things: First, I wanted to try and learn new techniques to make the comic. Second, I wanted to establish “Nerdmigos” as an ensemble cast and keep expanding the number of characters (meaning that the comic is not about one or a couple of main characters). This gave me a chance to include new and old friends, like Luisma, Soria, Amaranta, and Insaneo (who actually had a cameo in Year One). I also got to expand on Señor Maquino’s monkey assistant, Jack, which has been a lot of fun. This year has also given me the opportunity to hang out with my friends in another arena, doing art shows and proudly using the “Nerdmigos” banner.

So, what started as an inside joke among friends, and then a creative exercise for me, has now become a strange love letter to awkwardly social friendship in general. And I have a lot of fun making it!

Thanks for reading and thanks for all your support!!!

Be sure to check out the Year One and Year Two art jams featuring several talented artists and friends!

Follow “Nerdmigos” on Blogger, Facebook, and Twitter.

Rainbow Warriors: Movie Night

I made this “Rainbow Warriors” pinup for Sadhaka Studio as a follow-up to another doodle I made for them a couple of months ago based on "The Fearless Zombie Hunters.” When I read the “Rainbow Warriors” comic, I could easily imagine it as a sitcom. I noticed that in a lot of sitcoms they always have people sitting in a couch facing the audience, so I thought it would be fun to have the characters just hanging out watching movies. I also wanted to be faithful to the source material, so I decided to use the same color palette from the comic and have the characters interacting with a black and white background. I had a lot of fun with this one.

Thanks again to Manuel Ríos Sarabia for the invitation!

Robot Vs. Zombie

This doodle is dedicated to my imaginary friend, Adrián "The Insane One" Zambrano. He is the one who came up with the idea of having a Bender-like robot fight off a zombie in a pose like the one in the "Rocky v. Apollo" painting by Leroy Neiman shown at the end of Rocky III (1982). For the zombie character design, I looked no further than George A. Romero's Dawn of the Dead (1978), where the actors and extras playing zombies had a basic blue or gray makeup. For the robot, I really wanted a design with very basic shapes, like squares and circles, so, I researched some robots featured in movies and serials from 1920-1940. I loved the robots in the Superman animated short film, "The Mechanical Monsters" (1941) and also in the Italian science fiction film, The Mechanical Man (1921). So, a lot of the character design came from those robots. I also had a lot of fun doing the background, trying out different brushes. Hope you like it!

Who will win in this title fight of the apocalypse?

Share if you like it!

Nerdmigos Year Two Art Jam!

Help me celebrate the second anniversary of my webcomic “Nerdmigos”! Just as last year, I thought it would be fun to see your take on Nerdmigos characters and situations depicted (or that you would like to see) in the comic strip. So, send your drawings to iamo@live.com and I’ll feature them on the Nerdmigos fan art gallery on Facebook and Webcomics Nation.

Thanks for reading!

Cheers!

Top 10 Movies That Made Me Crave Music

I was thinking the other day that my musical taste was influenced in part (and still is) by movies that I have seen over the years. When I was growing up I didn't have older brothers or sisters to show me the way, I didn't have MTV (I still don’t watch music videos), and I didn’t meet people that I could talk to about music until much later. So, my love for music and my love for movies kinda grew together. Now, these movies are not necessarily musicals (in fact, they’re not), but they each have something that taught me to appreciate music in a way. I list them here in order of importance, not in chronological order, since I didn't see most of them when they were first released:

10. The School of Rock (2003)

Yeah, I guess I’m a sucker for sentimental bullshit, but you won’t find a better rock music 101 anywhere.

9. Pulp Fiction (1994)

Man, that Tarantino sure knows when to cue good music!

8. High Fidelity (2000)

I totally get John Cusack’s music snob character. I really identified with him. Except the part that he’s a scumbag… and a compulsive list maker. Yeah, I know this is also one of those lists. Okay, let’s move on.

7. Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure (1989)

I know what you’re thinking: “WTF? Why?” Well, let me put it this way: The moment I saw this movie, I started listening to rock music. And that’s all I have to say about that.

6. Almost Famous (2000)

This movie reminded me how much I would’ve loved to grow up in the 70’s. I can’t think of a better time to have listened to my first vinyl record and attend my first rock concert.

5. The Boat That Rocked (Pirate Radio) (2009)

I didn’t realize how much I love 60’s pop music. My parents grew up with this music, and my dad worked as a radio DJ for a long time, so, this movie constantly reminded me of them, since they introduced me to this music.

4. The Commitments (1991)

The "World's Hardest Working Band" that introduced soul music to the people of Dublin, Ireland, also confirmed what I knew all along: I have a soft spot for soul music.

3. Singles (1992)

The backdrop of the movie was the early nineties grunge-era Seattle and the musical fireworks sprinkled throughout the film gave us one of the best soundtracks of all time (definitely one of the most listen to records in my collection).

2. The Blues Brothers (1980)

This movie is magical in so many ways! Not only is Jake & Elwood Blues’ “mission from God” an epic road trip, but these guy’s love for music explodes on the screen. This was my first introduction to soul music. I still have the soundtrack on vinyl. It makes me do the happy dance.

1. Amadeus (1984)

This is my favorite movie of all time. I saw this movie when I was 8 years old and it had such an impact on me. It singlehandedly sparked both my love for movies and my love for music at the same time. Timeless and awesome.

Well, that’s it. What’s your top 10?

Ooh Yeah! (R.I.P. Macho Man)

Aside from his distinctively deep and raspy voice, and his "Ooh yeah!" catch phrase, what I most remember about this childhood icon was the KA-POW-pimp-slap explosion of color when he hit the ring. That is what I was aiming for with this tribute fan art for "Macho Man" Randy Savage. So, I apologize for any eye or vision damage this has already caused. Sorry.

Share if you like it!

The Fearless Zombie Hunters Pin-up

I made this piece for Sadhaka Studio's pin-up book (availabe July 2011), based on characters from their awesome comic "The Fearless Zombie Hunters." El Angel, Abronsius and Candy.  These are great and fun characters, and I really enjoyed working on this project. Big thanks to Manuel Ríos Sarabia for the invitation and the opportunity. If you are going to Comic-Con International this year, be sure to stop by the Sadhaka Studio booth!

Hice este dibujo para el libro de posters de Sadhaka Studio (a la venta en julio 2011), basado en los personajes de su cómic "The Fearless Zombie Hunters". Me gustan mucho estos personajes, son muy divertidos, y disfrute mucho trabajar en este proyecto. Muchas gracias a Manuel Ríos Sarabia por la invitación y por la oportunidad. Si van a Comic-Con International este año, asegúrense de pasar al stand de Sadhaka Studio.

I also made these individual character pin-ups:

También hice estos posters individuales de los personajes:

Share if you like it!

Whatever Happened to 1986?

This was my submission for this year's Comic-Con International Souvenir Book celebrating "1986: The Year Comics Grew Up", the year that saw the debut of Art Spiegelman' Maus, Watchmen by writer Alan Moore, artist Dave Gibbons, and colourist John Higgins, and Batman: The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller, among other comics. This is the second time I draw a "team-up" featuring Rorschach and Batman. The first one was "The Last Beer."

Free download at deviantART!

Ésta fue mi entrega para el libro de recuerdo de Comic-Con International para este año, que celebra el tema "1986: El año que crecieron los cómics", el año en el que debutaron Maus por Art Spiegelman, Watchmen por el escritor Alan Moore y los artistas Dave Gibbons y John Higgins, y Batman: The Dark Knight Returns por Frank Miller, entre otros cómics. Ésta es la segunda vez que dibujo en "equipo-up" a Rorschach y a Batman. la primer vez fue "La última cerveza".

Here's another version of this piece. This time referening Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow?, written by Alan Moore, art by Curt Swan, George Pérez, and Kurt Schaffenberger (also a 1986 comic, and that's where the idea for the title came from in the first place.)

Free download at deviantART!

Esta es otra versión de esta pieza. Esta vez hace referencia a Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow?, escrita por Alan Moore, arte por Curt Swan, George Pérez, and Kurt Schaffenberger (que también es un cómic de 1986, y de ahí salió la idea para el título).

“Vader Arrives” ‘Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back’ 30th. Anniversary

I had all the intention of finishing this piece last summer, but for some reason or the other this was another sketch that was laying around until I had the time to work on it. Better late than never. I still had a lot of fun working on this. This drawing represents everything I love in Star Wars: My favorite Star Wars movie (‘The Empire Strikes Back’), my favorite Star Wars character (Darth Vader), my favorite Star Wars vehicle (the AT-AT Walker), and of course, I love drawing stormtroopers/clonetroopers ever since I was a kid. The idea for the composition came from this “The Force Unleashed” screen shot. I thought it would help me capture that moment when Vader arrives at Hoth. Hope you like it!

Batman: Blue

A couple of weeks ago I made a quick Batman sketch on a small piece of paper. I wasn't planning on doing anything with it. It was just laying on my desk for some time. But then, I got the idea of doing something like this with it. Quick and fun doodle.

Catwoman Fan Art

This was my submission for the first COMCOM Art Jam. This year’s theme was Super Heroines/Villainesses. Picking which character to do was easy. I love how Catwoman works in that gray area of comic book characters where she can be both a hero and a villain. However, deciding how I would depict my version of Catwoman took a little longer, but it was a fun process. This character has obviously gone through different looks in comics, TV, and movies through the years, so I looked at some of the stuff that has been done before, I kept those aspects that I like in the character’s design and personality, I got rid of the ones that did not work for me, and I started to draw my own rendition of the Feline Fatale. For instance, I understand the practicality of Catwoman having short hair and low-cut boots, as seen in recent portrayals, but I really like her with long hair and knee-high boots. I really like the goggles she uses in recent comics, cartoons, and videogames, so I decided to keep those. I tried a couple of different colors on the lenses, but the basic dark shades worked better for me. She always looks great in black, but I really wanted to throw more color in there, so I used the classic purple costume. Also, I wanted to stay away from the movie versions of Catwoman as much as possible. (Especially the Halle Berry version) (Except for the cleavage… I kept the cleavage). I’ve seen some great Catwoman illustrations in dynamic poses, but I was aiming for a sexier full body pin-up pose. When drawing attractive female characters, Bruce W. Timm’s style (“Batman: The Animated Series”) is always a big influence on me. At this point, I’m learning how to do a lot of stuff on my own, and with every illustration I learn something new. I had a lot of fun doing this piece.

Get a free download at deviantART!

Ésta fue mi entrega para el primer Art Jam de COMCOM. El tema de este año fue Super Heroínas/Villanas. Escoger qué personaje hacer fue fácil. Me gusta cómo Gatúbela funciona en esa área gris de los personajes de cómics donde puede ser héroe y villano. Sin embargo, decidir cómo representar mi versión de Gatúbela tardó un poco más, pero fue un proceso divertido. Obviamente, con los años este personaje ha pasado por varios cambios en cómics, TV, y películas, así que estuve viendo algo de lo que ya se ha hecho antes, me quedé con esos aspectos que me gustaron del diseño y la personalidad del personaje, me deshice de los que no funcionaban para mí, y comencé a dibujar mi propia interpretación de la Felina Fatal. Por ejemplo, entiendo el sentido práctico de que Gatúbela tenga cabello corto y botas bajas, como se ha visto en representaciones recientes, pero ella me gusta con cabello largo y botas altas. Me gustan mucho los lentes que usa en cómics, caricaturas, videojuegos recientes, así que decidí dejárselos. Intenté usar diferentes colores, pero los lentes oscuros se ven mejor para mí. Ella siempre se ve bien en traje negro, pero sí quería echarle más color, así que utilicé el traje púrpura clásico. También, quise mantenerme lo más lejos posible de las versiones de Gatúbela que se han mostrado en las películas. (Especialmente la versión de Halle Berry) (Con excepción del escote… Me quedé con el escote). He visto algunas muy buenas ilustraciones de Gatúbela en poses dinámicas, pero yo le estaba tirando a una pose de más sexy de pin-up de cuerpo completo. Cuando se trata de dibujar personajes femeninos atractivos, el estilo de Bruce W. Timm (“Batman: La serie animada") siempre es una gran influencia para mi. A estas alturas, estoy aprendiendo cómo hacer muchas cosas yo sólo, y con cada ilustración aprendo algo nuevo. Me divertí mucho haciendo esta pieza.

¡Descarga gratis en deviantART!

Nerdmigos Unlimited At COMCOM 2011

Last year my friends and I put together the “Nerdmigos Unlimited” art group as a fun way to do some art shows. I’m very happy to say that this year we will be at COMCOM 2011, on March 19, in Tijuana. Last year, Rob, Gelipe, and Ben each had their own stand at COMCOM, and I believe that was the first time any of us decided that next show we should do something together. Also, my friend Lerms will be a special guest at COMCOM this year and will offer a lecture about his amazing artwork. Good times are ahead. I’ll see you there!

About Nerdmigos Unlimited:

“Nerdmigos Unlimited” is a group of Mexican artists that produces works, in collaboration and individually, in video production, illustration, comics, and graphic design. The members of “Nerdmigos Unlimited” for COMCOM 2011 are:

- Ben Camberos
- Carlos Lerma (Golpeavisa, Taco de Ojo)
- Guillermo Sariñana
- Ismael Alejandro Moreno Ozuna (“Nerdmigos” webcomic)
- Luisma Lerma (Official Nerdmigos DJ)
- Roberto Gutiérrez
- Roy Calderón

About COMCOM:

COMCOM is a convention where all sorts of comics, anime, videogames, and graphic design are united in order to form a large group of talent and experts to promote new and classic culture and arts for entertainment and enjoyment of attendees.

El año pasado mis amigos y yo formamos el colectivo “Nerdmigos Unlimited” como una manera divertida de participar en exposiciones de arte. Me da mucho gusto decir que este año estaremos en COMCOM 2011, el 19 de marzo, en Tijuana. El año pasado, Rob, Gelipe, y Ben estuvieron en COMCOM en puestos individuales, y creo que esa fue la primera vez que alguno de nosotros dijo que para la próxima deberíamos hacer algo juntos. Además, este año mi amigo Lerms será invitado especial en COMCOM y ofrecerá una plática sobre sus ilustraciones chingonas. Se va a poner buena. ¡Ahí nos vemos!
Sobre Nerdmigos Unlimited:
“Nerdmigos Unlimited” es un grupo de artistas mexicanos que produce trabajos, en colaboración e individualmente, en producción de video, ilustración, cómics, y diseño grafico.

Los integrantes de “Nerdmigos Unlimited” para COMCOM 2011 son:

- Ben Camberos
- Carlos Lerma (Golpeavisa, Taco de Ojo)- Guillermo Sariñana
- Ismael Alejandro Moreno Ozuna (“Nerdmigos” webcómic)- Luisma Lerma (DJ official de Nerdmigos)
- Roberto Gutiérrez
- Roy Calderón

Sobre COMCOM:

COMCOM es una convención donde se unen el cómic, anime, videojuegos y el diseño gráfico para formar a un gran grupo de talento y conocedores, para difundir la cultura de lo nuevo y lo clásico de estas artes para el entretenimiento y gusto de la gente.