Interview With Hack/Slash Creator Tim Seeley
By: R. O'Donnell |
Sunday September 03, 2006 |
 |
In every slasher movie, there's one girl who makes it all the way to the end. She's the survivor...the last girl. Artist/Writer Tim Seeley knows this girl very well. |
| You started with the tongue-in-cheek superhero comics Lovebunny and Mr. Hell, onto 20 stellar issues of G.I. Joe, and then into developing the cult phenomenon Hack/Slash. Tell us, Tim, were did it all start, how did you get hooked on comic books? Well, for better or worse, I fell in love with comics at the ripe old age of five. The moment I picked up that issue of Spider- Man, I knew what I wanted to do with my life. Admittedly, I guess it is freakish. If only I had opened a medical journal or a law book instead. With Hack/Slash brilliantly lampooning and dissecting the American "Slasher" flick, you can tell you dig that genre the most. Care to elaborate? When I was a kid, I was terrified of horror movies. If I watched anything, even just a piece of like Alien or Nightmare on Elm Street, I'd be up all night. My imagination could really get away from me. When you're a kid, the sky is the limit. Any of that shit could be REAL! As I got older, boring, and jaded, the fun stuff stopped scaring me. It got replaced by "fear of finances" and boring shit like that. That's when I realized how great horror movies were. For just a few hours, you could have "fun fear." I think slasher movies are the ultimate form of horror movie. They're unrealistic, formulaic fun. It's kinda combing the "serial killer" aspect of reality with this almost supervillan unreality. They also often contain sex and boobies! Hack/Slash: The Final Revenge of Evil Ernie is a crossover masterpiece. Who's idea was that? Thanks, it was my idea. I had read Ernie as a kid. To me, he was the seminal comic book slasher. If I was gonna do a slasher comic, sooner or later, it'd have to cross with Ernie. The comic was kinda half well recieved, half dispised. I was really proud of it. I'm glad you liked it. It was kind of a love letter to the character and some good ol' fashioned teen angst. You're an artist and a writer. Which came first, the pencil or the pen? I don't know. As a kid, I'd make up my own comics. I had to write and draw them myself. So, as I got older, drawing was always in tandem with making up stories. I just never called it "writing." Once I started doing things professionally, I was afraid to write my own stuff. I'd usually get help. I finally decided to throw caution to the wind and wrote that first Lovebunny an Mr. Hell book myself. It was such a rush. I just kept going and going. Sorry everyone. *laughter* And which do you prefer? Writing. It's less stressful. On one-for-one ratio, it's a LOT less work. I can write a page in 20 minutes. It takes at least four hours to draw one. As an artist, do you like drawing fantasy or the nitty-gritty stuff? The more out there, and less tied to reality, the better. I still like making stuff up better than anything. What music do you listen to? I love music. Personal favorites are Joy Division, Morphine and Nick Cave. I'm also a huge fan of "underground" hip-hop...the Minneapolis guys like POS and Atmosphere. Does it impact your work? Actually, I don't think so. I'm so zoned out when I draw, that I could have any sound in the background. It doesn't matter. It's funny, cuz I work in an office full of comic nerds. Half the time I'm hearing arguements about whether Darth Vader could beat Doctor Doom. How did your partnership with Stefano Caselli come about? When I first started at Devil's Due, the whole staff kinda did everything. I was an "editor" on Micronauts. Stefano did a few issues of it and he and I would always IM all day. We really hit it off. If he had been a girl, or we were gay, there'd be a "date movie montage" of us laughing and typing. When I came up with the idea for Hack/Slash, I just emailed him with the question "do you like horror?" That was that. How bout a few words on Devil's Due Publishing? How did that all come about? I met Josh Blaylock 10 years ago when we were both young punks publishing our own stuff and hocking it at the Chicago Comicon. We met because we were both enamored with this cute girl that kept stopping by my booth. We kept in touch for years, and when Josh got the G.I.Joe license, he offered me a job. And, I'm still here! Cassie Hack, the spawn of slasher legend the Lunch Lady, pals around with her gruesome partner, Vlad, hacking slashers all t'hell. Is Cassie a bona fide gal? Is she somebody you know in real life or just a figment of your warped imagination? Well, fortunatley, Cassie's background is all made up. Her looks though - and some of her personality, are based on a real girl. Maybe several actually, cuz Stefano's drawings of her are based on an exgirlfriend. Guys are pretty notorious for basing their creations off of women they want to, and/or have slept with. Hack/Slash is heading toward celluloid with helmer Todd Lincoln and co-writer Martin Schenk. How did that work out? Right when we started the comic, DDP's Hollywood agent guys were shopping it around. It took a little bit, but after a few pitches they found Todd and Martin. Their ideas sounded fantastic. Once we had Todd, the studios were interested. We were lucky enough to get bought by Rogue Pictures, who released some awesome shit like Seed of Chucky and Shaun of the Dead. So far, it's just gone very well. Which, y'know is rare. Damn, I'm lucky. Chicago's home sweet home. What makes the city "click" for you? Just about everything. I love Chicago. It's the perfect city. The people, the food, that god damn beautiful lake, the EL....Chicago worked itself into my blood. You originally worked with children's books, think you'd ever return? If they'd have me! I really love comics. I'd do anything that allowed me to make shit up for money though. Your one-shot Loaded Bible chronicles Jesus kicking vampire ass. Where'd that come from? Loaded Bible is a teenage angst story that grew over time into a political parable. I didn't grow up in a very religious family, but I knew the Christ stories. It always bothered me that people who seemed to tout the guys name were often the worst examples of the guys teachings. My brother Steve and I tossed this story around on and off for years. I always said I'd actually do it someday. I can't believe Image let me do it! Even weirder is that it sold very well. Influences, influences, influences? This is always the hardest question. I think everything influences me, from Hitchcock to Teletubbies. The stuff I really STUDIED and tried to understand so I could use it, are Alan Moore, Erik Larsen, James O'Barr, and Art Adams. What's next, Tim, where do you go from here? Well, after this interview, I plop fown at my desk, and draw some G.I. Joe's fighting Cobras. Then, it's home to lay around with my wonderful girlfriend. Then, repeat. I just hope I get to keep doing what I do. Maybe I'll come up with a few more good ideas and enjoy some Chicago. |
|
|
|
|