Lightbox Expo 2021 (1 of 5) -- "Storyboards: The Unseen Art of Hollywood" book panel (updated 9.23.21)

A highlight panel for LBX 2021 was this discussion about "Storyboards: The Unseen Art of Hollywood." This book has been a passion project for its author, veteran storyboard artist Trevor Goring and the co-author, his late wife Joyce Kasky Goring. 

At last, this important look at Storyboards artists and history has been published and will be available soon.

Moderator Tim Burgard shared some background on the book and the Guild.

Book author and artist Trevor Goring reports that the book is at last enroute. It can be pre-ordered now from the publisher. Trevor also shared that special signed copies of the book can be pre-ordered from Stuart Ng Books. These SNB copies will each include an orginal art storyboard by Goring! More details at the end of this post. Here is the link to pre-order: https://stuartngbooks.com/storyboards-the-unseen-art-of-hollywood-snb-exclusive-edition.html

The covers of the book

a peek inside...

artist Benton Jew

artist Tracey Wilson

artist Warren Drummond

artist Marc Vena

These artists shared insights into their careers as storyboard artists. This was a terrific panel. I hope it was recorded and will be available to view at some time in the future.

For now.. here's more on the book from the SNB link..

https://stuartngbooks.com/storyboards-the-unseen-art-of-hollywood-snb-exclusive-edition.html

This storyboard art book features boards by over 80 artists including Tyrus Wong, Mentor Huebner, Sylvain Despretz, Anson Jew, Benton Jew, Rick Newsome, William Stout, Ricardo Delgado, Brendan McCarthy, Josh Sheppard, Mike Vosburg, Jennifer Yuh-Nelson, John Watkiss, and Darek Gogol.

Storyboards: The Unseen Art of Hollywood is by friends of the store Trevor Goring and his partner, the late Joyce Kaskey Goring.

You may recognize the name Trevor Goring from The Blvd sketchbook series or from his graphic novel Waterloo Sunset, or from his storyboard credit on 60+ films such as The Dark Tower, Thor: The Dark World, Twilight, National Treasure I & II, X2: X-Men United, and Independence Day.

This is a Pre-Order. This book will ship in September-October. If you do not wish to delay the shipping of other items in your order, we recommend you order this item separately.

From the publisher:

Comic book and storyboard artist Trevor Goring and his partner, the late Joyce Kaskey Goring detail the history of film storyboards. This important and long-neglected art is now given its due with this history of the art of film storyboards. Featuring a genre-by-genre discussion of over one-hundred great films and their storyboards, this visual tour features a full range of classic and contemporary films along with examples of how directors utilize storyboards in the creation of their films.

Our copies of The Unseen Art of Hollywood Storyboards will have these exclusive features:

• The book itself will be signed by co-author Trevor Goring as well as other artists featured in the book
• It will include an original page of storyboards drawn by Trevor Goring
• The storyboard page will be signed by Trevor Goring

As a bonus, if you are picking up your copy of the book from our store, you may pick out the original storyboard of your choice.

The original storyboards are from Truck 44, an unproduced feature film that Director Peter Berg was preparing. “I was going to do a film called “Truck 44” that I had written about New York City firemen who feel kind of bored and underappreciated and underpaid and decide to try robbing a building by setting a small fire in it. Right as we were in pre-production, 9/11 came along and that derailed that film thoroughly.”

Some additional views of the book..

Lightbox Expo 2021 (2 of 5) -- Schedule and panels (updated w panel links 9.24.21)

 The inaugural LBX in 2019 was in person. The event exceeded expectations. LBX stablished itself as a premire gathering for professionals. Due to Covid, LBX 2020 segued into an online event w/ innovations like its virutal Artist Alley. 2021 LBX continued to adapt with virtual offerings and expanded accessibility.

One of the benefits of LBX online is that artists and exhibitors are able to attend panels!! It's nearly impossible to do this during in-person conventions. 

For 2021, LBX added more perks to the online access. When you registered, you would select your tickets, then create your account. From there you could access this main page. This was the place to scroll through the entire schedule or refine your seach via a list of dropdown menu selections..

You could also create a list of "Favorites" in your account. This made it easy to keep up with the events you were most interested in.

Each time you returned to the Lightbox Expo website and logged on...

you would scroll down to this menu to access your account..

The schedule indicated which panels were "live only," and which ones would be recorded. Most of these were also listed as a "watch forever on Lighbox.com" option. Some of the events were recorded but were only available to view until the end of the show on Sunday.

In addition to the long list of panels each day.. there were a large selection of workshops and downloadable activities...

At the end of the list of panels, there was a list of participants. These were listed alphabetically by first time. 

You could also select from these and build your own list of "favorites" 

For each participant, you could click on the name and (usually) see more information about them.

Here are some highlights from the schedule. You can click on each image to enlarge for details on the panel and to see if it's availble to watch on the Lightbox Expo You Tube channel. https://www.youtube.com/c/LightboxExpo

Above is the schedule listing for the panel "Protecting Your Art"

Below is this same panel --- available on the LBX You Tube channel.....

More sample listings from the schedule..

These screen shots are from the "my favorites" listing on my LBX 2021 Account. I am able to access the "watch forever" replays when I log in to my account, but I'm not sure if these are available to everyone.

Many of the panels were "live only" gatherings via Zoom. These were instant connections with the host and the attendees... but they often filled to capacity right away. Tip for next year -- if you can't get into one of these panels when it first starts, try back again later. Sometimes space becomes available and the moderator can allow additional attendees to access the program...

The Lightbox Expo You Tube channel is adding videos from 2021 and has videos from previous LBX years as well. Check it out. 

Stuart's 9.24.21 email newsletter included this link to panel and info on book coming soon by artist Bill Presing. Stuart himself writers the weekly newsletter. It's your best source for the latest info on new arrivals and projects in the works at SNB. Sign up here: https://stuartngbooks.com/join-our-mailing-list.html

Bill Presing's LightBox Presentation! Here is Bill's presentation Lucky Boy: Creation of the Comic for Lightbox Expo 2021 (29 minutes). Bill introduces you to the characters and premise of his new comic book Lucky Boy followed by a presentation detailing his creative process that brought the book from idea to final product. Spoiler Warning: Bill describes the characters and the situation but he does not give away the plot or the ending.

Arriving November 12th, 2021! Lucky Boy: Tempting Fate In what may be the sexiest post apocalypse ever conceived, the last man on Earth is an undesirable geezer, alongside seven confoundingly vivacious scientists, hell-bent on repopulating the globe! A new, ambitious vision in the mold of a classic harem manga, Lucky Boy is a tantalizing, exquisitely rendered tale of yearning, near misses, and cruel fate, in the beautiful, overgrown rubble formerly known as Tokyo. Years in the making, Bill Presing's new 80-page graphic novel is presented in a grand format--a 10 x 13 inch hardcover--to fully appreciate every lushly illustrated panel.

Here are links for panels and artist videos that are free online for all to access.

Social Media for artists

Manu Art Walkabout (in the Southwest) from arist Manu Carrasco

How LightBox Expo online works (from 2020 but still valid)

Lightbox Expo 2021 (3 of 5) -- Artist Alley new finds and old friends (updated 9.16.21)

Each expo is a chance to see favorite artists...  and find new ones...

Best of all is when you go to a convention and find a new (or new-to-you) artist who stops you in your tracks. For Lightbox 2021, this artist was Dominique Ramsey. https://www.dominiqueramsey.com/

Her booth caught my eye right away....

because she featured this image...

Oh how I wish the event was in person, because I had so many questions. I loved the subject matter -- smooth collies! But also the really unique way she conveyed them with shapes, silhouettes, an understanding of their anatomy.. and even the sable, blue merle, and tri-color coat colors. I started exploring her links to find our as much as I can and was finally able to contact her directly.

The titles associated with this image make me even more curious "Bedtime tales - The Panther" -- I hope to learn more and will update here...

While I wasn't able to get merchandise from her with this image on it from her online stores at Redbubble https://www.redbubble.com/people/euqinimod/shop and Society 6 https://society6.com/euqinimodart I was able to order other items. And I learned about her "Solitary Animals" book that is due to be released in November. https://www.dominiqueramsey.com/solitary-animals

Another new-to-me discovery was this booth by artist "Vixieart." https://www.artstation.com/vixiearts

Aritst Hedvig H-S based in Sweden. 

The animal images captivated me..

and exploring the links helped me make this find... and more purchases!

https://www.redbubble.com/people/vixiearts/shop

More striking animal images (are you sensing the theme here) at this booth by Eva Vilhelmina Eskelinen.

https://www.evelmiina.com/   

Also in this photo is a longtime fav artist of mine... David Colman of "David's Doodles." 

http://www.davidsdoodles.com/

https://www.etsy.com/shop/DavidsDoodlesShop?ref=

His Instagram account is brimming with gesture drawings like these....

Back to Artist Alley -- enjoy the wonderful angles and shapes of Hadji Joos' animals...

https://www.inprnt.com/cards/aveartz/

An artist I discovered at the inagural Lightbox Expo is Marie-Alice Harel. http://www.maharel.com/

You can scroll down this post from the 2019 show and see more: http://stuartngbooks.blogspot.com/2019/09/lightboxexpo2019-booths-and-tables-3-of.html

For 2021, she hosted several "filled-to-capicity" Zoom panels. It has been wonderful to see her embraced by the LBX community. Her art.. and her voice... are important. 

And of course.. every Expo is a chance to catch up with artists I've been following for years now..

Elsa Chang's art always charms me. https://elsasketch.portfoliobox.net/

The interactive links on her booth helped me find and purchase these discoveries..

Which shipped fast from her Big Cartel store. https://elsasketch.bigcartel.com/

Packing items well... and adding a note as well as business cards.. these are important gestures that enhance the consumer experience.

Art life is indie business life too....

If you're a fan of BBC Sherlock.. her "Violin & Tea" sketchbook is a delight!

https://elsasketch.bigcartel.com/product/violin-tea-sherlock-sketchbook

Bill Robinson's "Flimflammery" booth is always a treat... 

and I stock up on his greeting cards!

https://www.etsy.com/shop/flimflammery?section_id=10526038

Here's his "Mary Blair inspired" SF card..

lots more art and merch at his Etsy store..

https://www.etsy.com/shop/flimflammery

I wish more artists would sell greeting cards... postcards.. and mini prints. These small items are easy to pick up at conventions. Be sure to brand them well with your name and contact information. The cards get sent out... they make an art gift as well as a greeting and introduce you to new fans! Mini-prints are also great small gift items. 

Another artist friend whose career I've watched achive milestones over the years is Steph Laberis. https://stephlaberis.squarespace.com/

She used the interactive link on her booth to connect directly to her books at the SNB website.

https://stuartngbooks.com/?subcats=Y&pshort=Y&pfull=Y&pname=Y&pkeywords=Y&match=all&search_performed=Y&status=A&q=steph+laberis&dispatch=products.search

Steph's links also featured this great "about me" page. 

Artists always shy away from "self-promotion" -- but more than ever, it's important to share your story. So many social media sites thrive on (and profit from ) anonymous art. We have to push back against that -- artists and fans together. 

ArtWORK is never free. Is is the product of a real person who put it there. 

Share your story. Connect with your followers. Invite them to support what they "like and share."

Support art to bring more art! 

Artist alley is a way to introduce your art to peers and fans. Every year Lightbox Expo gives artists and attendees new ways to connect. Make use of all these opportunities. Since 2020 and all the lockdowns, we've all survived thanks to access to art. Art is life.