Saturday, March 24, 2018

Backstage Pass March: KnightJJ

We've got your Backstage Pass!Slip Behind The Curtain And MeetThe Redoutable KnightJJ!


So JJ, tell us about your name for a start?

I'm Janine Janssen but I prefer to go by JJ because my name is already taken by a violinist and non Dutch people can’t pronounce it.

What would you feel like telling us about yourself?


I was born on the 22nd of February 1995 here in the Netherlands. I’m currently in my last year of my illustration bachelor. I’m graduating in July but I want to apply for a master’s degree in animation.

Main Project



I have 2 main comics I’m working on right now


“Les Normaux” which I have been making since 2014
and my graduation project “Samuel and Djeya.”
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Other Hobbies, Guilty Pleasures and Obsessions

Recently I’ve been really getting into fashion. I absolutely love playing with it and I think it’s starting to shine through in my art as well. I have a thing with video clips as well. K-pop and hip hop specifically. And of course watching a lot of movies and series. The cinema is one of my favourite places to be.


So, tell me about your early experience. How did you fall in love with telling stories in pictures?

It sounds cheesy but I can’t exactly tell you because I’ve been drawing practically all my life. When I was little I used to get stacks of copy paper, staple them together, divide the pages in two and draw stories in them about princess kangaroos, foxes and ninjas with dragons. When I was 7 my parents put me in an art class and I’m still forever grateful for that. I stayed in art classes till I was about 19 even during the first 2 years of art school. During that time, I had multiple bigger comic projects but they never got made into something. I remember finding the comic “Lackadaisy” by Tracy J. Butler when I was 15 and thinking wow this is a comic that isn’t in a book and free to read. I could do this!

Another thing that really shaped my interest in storytelling is animated movies. When I was younger I’d even refuse to watch movies with real people in it. I also remember watching Brother Bear almost everyday of the week, pausing the film and redrawing the shots when I was about 13. The princess and the Frog made me decide I wanted to be an animator even. Little did I know animating and developing stories are different things.



What inspired your current project(s)?

Les Normaux started as a drawing of 3 monster couples in a Halloween Livestream. It started out as just a fun little project to take a break from my comic “Atlas” I was creating back then but ended up as a comic redefining the meaning of being normal through stories about LGBT and People of Colour.
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Samuel and Djeya is a story largely based on the problems of the world of today (rise of the alt right, Trump etc.) And my personal journey to become more accepting and understanding about the world around me because of what my friends (from different backgrounds) thought me.I’d say acceptance of others is the main theme and motivation that runs throughout all my stories.



What media and programs do you work in to produce your projects?

Image result for cintiq 13hdI usually work in Photoshop CC using a Cintiq 13HD. But I also really love working with traditional media. Mainly Acrylic paint and marker and fine liners.




Can you tell me about your typical day or strip-creation session? How does your work process flow from idea to finished page?

After I make up the general idea for an episode I make a great stick figure storyboard and a script. (Which my co-writer Al edits for LN) Then I make each panel in a separate Photoshop file before putting them together on a page and adding text. Resize the page to a way smaller size and post!


What’s the most difficult part of your work?

FBicondec2016.jpgUpdating regularly haha.  Planning stories in general is hard for me but I’m trying to really push myself with Samuel and Djeya.

Also looking back on old episodes of your series is always hard because you see all the things you could’ve done better for the story. Les Normaux in particular really gets to me on that point.



Can you tell me about your storytelling process? Do you prefer to script your stories, fly by the seat of your pants, or somewhere in between?

I actually switch this up for each project it seems. For Les Normaux I write down the general episode ideas for the season with my co-writer Al and write the final script and storyboard only just before starting on drawing each episode.
For my finished project 150 Days I wanted to see if I could make a finished short story because I never had.  I wrote the entire script beforehand but did no storyboarding at all.
For Samuel and Djeya I’m doing something in-between the two. I wrote out the general story from start to finish and make a script within the storyboard for each chapter but never too far ahead so I leave room for improvisation and rewrites.
What they all do seem to have in common is that they start with 2 or more characters and their relationship to each other. After that comes the world and story.

You use a lot of historical and futuristic speculation in your work; how do you go about doing your research? How much do you worry about getting details right?


panel 8.jpgMost of my stories start with a completely random idea unrelated to whatever else I’m doing at that time and I mix that in with my current interests because that’s just the most fun! I don’t worry about historical accuracy of the world all that much I just try to get the general feeling right and research items, architecture and clothing of the time chosen. The future is free range for me because nobody really knows what’s going to happen anyway. But I usually take something from the past or present time and twist it and add anything that I feel like till I have a completely new world. For example, the future world in Samuel and Djeya takes inspiration not only Amsterdam but also the Kowloon walled city that was a place in Hong Kong until the mid 90’s. I do however care a lot about treating the culture/sexuality that shapes my characters with respect and as much accuracy as I can.


What are some of your favorite research and reference resources?

To be honest I mostly use the internet and whatever sites I can find but I think my favourite source is my friends and readers. For example, I made Sebastien from Les Normaux Filipino because my co-writer Al is. And in 150 days my friend Aqssa helped me out a lot with everything in the story relating to the Islam.


How much of a buffer do you like to keep?

I have none which explains my irregular updating. It’s bad but I noticed that while also working on school projects it works best for me. But now Samuel and Djeya is my project I hope to get to a regular schedule for it as well as LN in the future.


If you could send a note back in time to yourself when you were beginning your work, what would you say?

2.jpgStarting with such a huge project like Atlas was honestly doomed to fail. Yet I wouldn’t change a thing about what I did because it brought me where I am now. However, I’d tell myself to not worry so much about what other people want. Work on your comics more instead of fan art if that’s what you really want to do and don’t worry about the people complaining. Also don’t be afraid to make friends with the people that share your interest in comics. Talk and learn from them. Also sometimes think before you do. It helps.

What message do you hope readers take away from your work?

I hope to spread positivity and acceptance of others. And I hope people take the time to research LGBT terms and other cultures after seeing them in my comics. The best messages are always the ones of people discovering something about themselves through one of the characters.
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What keeps you devoted to telling the story you’re telling?

The webcomic community and specifically the comments they leave on the stories that inspire me to do new things with it or continue to do what makes them (and me) happy. The collaborations with others within my projects. (Shout out to my friends Al (LN), Aqssa (150) and Julika (S&D)) As well as the artist friends I made within the community. And of course my almost self destructive drive to always prove myself.

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Thanks for all your lovely work JJ! Rock on!






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