Jim: Corporate Big Wig

Look what someone made. Its me as a mogul. Just like in real life! Thanks Comic Cafe. Net!

Preview image!

With all the excitement surrounding the San Diego Comic-Con and new media press releases, I thought I would jump on that bandwagon and give you a little sneakie-peekie of my own. This is a still from my next cartoon. World exclusive! Stop the presses!

Hint about my next cartoon: its about a DJ. It's currently untitled (I have a couple of candidate titles).

I'm about 1/3 completed with the film. I hope to have it run about 4 to 6 minutes. I'm working on the soundtrack as we speak. Oh the excitement builds, huh? Look for this cartoon around the end of August or so.

Spotlight: Jake Miloy

Name: Jake Miloy

From the Film: the Fraudtographer

Factoid: Jake is armed with a 7th grade education and an IQ that is well into the low double digits. Jake lives with his sister, aspiring actress/low priced model Suzanne, in Reseda, CA. Jake sometimes gets paid under the table to bounce at the Low Diver, a local bar in Studio City.

Big Illustration Party Time Interview!

From the Big Illustration Party Time website:

"It's Episode 26, and in this episode we interview our good friend and prolific animator, Jim Lujan. We discuss his process of minimal animation, get some advice for illustrators who might be considering the jump for animation, get a bit of biography of his awesome career, and more..."

Click Here to check out the site and hear the interview (or click the player below!)

DJ Terrycloth Headband in Da Houze!!

Yes! I have my own radio station on BLIPFM now. I am special. I am one of only millions of other people who set up their station with their own musical pics. I chose the name DJ Terrycloth Headband cuz it sounds so street. I am building street cred daily. Right now, I just checked my street cred report and it shows that my street cred is up 12%. Thanks streets!

Fraud-Tastic!

Thanks for making the Fraudtographer my fastest rising cartoon yet on YouTube. Man, If I only got commission! I guess that what DVD sales are for. Hmmmmm....

Spotlight: Percy Tidwell

Name: Percy Tidwell

From the Film: the Customer Serviced

Factoid: Percy has been a loyal and often aggravated customer of the WamBurger in Carson, CA for over 13 years. Once, in 1994, Percy received his order and did NOT complain about anything. On this day it was as if time stood still for the terrorized staff. Percy paid, finished his meal, and immediately began to complain about the parking spots being too close to each other. The world was right again. Balance restored.

Spotlight: Brian

Name: Brian

From the Film: Mama, I'm a Thug!

Factoid: Brian is a known bully and hip hop gangsta in his gated community of La Estrada Estates in Mission Viejo, Ca. Once a promising little leaguer, Brian grew to become the founder of the Crazy White Boyz, rap hopefuls and street terrorists (at least they run the local Coldstone Creamery).

A Kinder Gentler Jim (sort of)

I wan't to expand my audience (without losing my edge). Huh?!

Here's what I mean:

I will never renounce a single cartoon I've done, but when you add them all up...it's a pretty twisted collection there. I need to balance my load. You can't always cook with salt, you need a little sugar to counter, right? I'm proud of my body of work. I think it's really good. I just want to experience the feeling of having a collection of cartoons that I can show anyone, regardless of age. I'm not changing my cartoon style, only toning down the creepiness that I purposely put in. The way I see it- the balance gives me more options. I can still play midnight shows, but also play to mixed crowds. Plus, "more accessible" cartoons will go with my existing weirder stuff. There's that balance word again!

In summary: New stuff coming. Less dark. More Funny.

Your feedback is appreciated. Comment here or at jimlujan@earthlink.net Thanks!

My Animation Show pics

Thank you to everybody that came to my first animation fest. It was a blast. We had a good mix of folks. Thank you to Nick and the staff at the Pasadena Central Library. The Wright auditorium is BEAUTIFUL. It was a pleasure and an honor to show my low budget (but highly humorous) cartoons there. They looked great on the screen. Great brand new sound system there, too!

We started the festivities with a little mixer/meet n greet. That was fun. Hanging out with everyone and having friends meet other friends, strangers meeting friends, family meeting strangers, strange family meeting strange friends. You get the picture.

Yup...I even did a Q & A. I swear it wasn't staged! It was cool having folks I hadn't ever met ask me questions about the cartoons. We filmed a little bit of it and I'll post it sometime. Some of the cartoons I played that night were:

Alphanerd

Mama, I'm a Thug

the Fraudtographer

the Customer Serviced

Up In My Grill

Slip & Fail

Chicken n Cigarettes

Stoner Girl

And a bunch more!

One thing I learned....DO NOT open the show with Chicken n Cigarettes, the saddest cartoon in the world (so says Scott Hinze)! The crowd was blind-sided by that one. There were about 3 people laughing hysterically during it, but the rest of the room sat stunned. It was a surreal (and innerly hilarious) moment. Not to be repeated. Gotta warm up the crowd before I show that one! Slip & Fail and the Fraudtographer got really good responses. I was happy with that, as they are my two most recent cartoons.

After the show we had a dinner at Burger Continental in Pasadena. So good! Love that hummus! Nissim Leon (pictured here) joined me along with family and friends and we ate, laughed, and boogied down until 4 am. Well, we ate and laughed.

My lesson learned for the night: I think I will tone down the cartoons a bit from here on out. Yup. I'm going to make them just as funny, but more for all ages. Maybe I'm getting old, but I like the idea of not having to warn my audience before showing my stuff. You heard it here first folks. Jim is SELLING OUT! Oh well. Thanks again for your support! More toons coming soon...and hopefully more festivals!

Jim Lujan's Animated Film-Show in Pasadena! (July 8th)

Come one... Come all! Its the very first JIM LUJAN ANIMATED FILM SHOW Weds July 8th in Pasadena I'll be showing my cartoons and hosting a mix n' mingle and Q and A. Who is going to want to ask me anything, I don't know (aaaaw humble boy). Seriously, I hope you all can make it to the show that night. Come down, have some cookies and punch, mingle,watch some weird cartoons and have a laugh. Yes, just one laugh per person. The cartoons will run 30-40 mins total, but will seem MUCH longer, I promise. I'll be posting more news as the event nears.

Location: Pasadena Central Library Auditorium

Date/Time: Weds July 8th 7:00 pm-8:45 pm

Cost: Freeeeee!!

Extremely Interviewed!

I did an interview over at ART & STORY EXTREME!! When you say EXTREME you have to add the exclamation marks! Speaking of Marks...Mark Rudolph (half of the A & S team) did a phoner with me and it was a good time. Jerzy (the other host) was out of the office during the call. I got to talk to him off of the air, really good guys. Both guys- good folks and wonderful soul warriors of mind art. Wow, that sounds deep.

CLICK HERE TO HEAR THE ICONIC RAMBLINGS OF JAMES MICHAEL LUJAN!

Spotlight: Suzanne "Suzie Q" Miloy

Name: Suzanne Miloy(She really wants people to call her Suzie Q....but they don't)

From the Film: the Fraudtographer

Factoid: Since moving to California in the early 90s, Suzanne has made a name for herself in such low budget films such as "Kill Me While You Can", "The Booty Watchers" and the less successful "Booty Watchers 2; Cancun Sunrise". Suzanne has also appears naked in the latest issue of Smut Weekly, published by Carlos Chang, esq.

Sergio Aragones (and me!)

Mad's maddest artist, Sergio Aragones, will be on Fanboy Radio this Sunday at 4 pm PST! Show host (and very good buddy) Scott Hinze called me and asked me if I want to co-host the interview.....oh yes I do! I have almost every issue of Mad magazine from the mid-late 70s through the 80s, and I have all of Sergio's paperback collections. Sergio is a childhood hero of mine and I've met him a few times. If you have any really good questions, post them in my comments section and I'll try and ask them.

Just don't ask him "Do you know who Bababooey is"?

Spotlight: the AlphaNerd

Name: the AlphaNerd (secret identity not revealed because nobody cares)

From the Film: the AlphaNerd

Factoid: By day, he terrorizes the Comic Inferno comic shop in Pasadena, CA. By night, he dresses in homemade tights and patrols the rooftops of old town Pasadena in search of crime. With no super powers, gadgets, or even an above average IQ- He poses a threat to crime slightly larger than a small teenage girl would. He is also banned from San Diego Comic-Con for making the celebrity guests feel "highly uncomfortable".