Posted in: Comics | Tagged: Comics, entertainment, leaky timbers

How Leaky Are Your Timbers?

Joey Ellis writes,

Sometimes a man makes a puppet video on the internet to ask for money for his comic book. That sometimes is today.

Hello. My name is Joey Ellis and I'm an illustrator with a new comic book, Leaky Timbers, currently on Kickstarter. Leaky Timbers stars Wolfie Monster and all of his neighbors that live in the Leaky Timbers apartment complex. The book is a series of short stories, jokes, poetry, recipes and a random collection of utter nonsense.

So… why Leaky Timbers? Why a puppet?

I believe that you have to show people what you're capable of. When I talk to people coming out of art school, the number one thing I always tell them is that their portfolio has to be a reflection of the kind of work they want to do. If you say you want to be a painter, but you have no paintings to show, then you're not a painter.

I've worked for over 10 years as a designer and an illustrator, doing character work for Disney, PBS Kids, Facebook, food companies, publishing houses, video games and more. I have always enjoyed being a character designer, but I've never been able to own my own thing or tell my own story. There's never a "right time" to chase a dream. I think you've just got to do it.

When I first set out to create Leaky Timbers, I knew the first form it would take would be a comic book. I love comics, and this move seemed logical… but what I REALLY wanted to do, was to support it with a puppet show.

Like a lot of my creative friends who grew up in the 70s and 80s, Jim Henson is in my blood. Sesame Street, in particular, is why I wanted to go into the business of character design. The monsters on Sesame Street were always very safe and gentle, but they were also funny which engaged the adults… which, for me, was an irresistible combination.

Puppets are the closest thing you can do to bring a character to life. They actually exist. They're not inside a computer, or a clumsy costume, or on a sheet of paper. They have scale and texture and when you're moving the puppet, there's just some sort of magic that makes it come to life. It's a very special experience.

So, knowing I wanted to do a comic book and a puppet show at the same time, Kickstarter seemed an ideal playground. I've been able to use the videos to showcase puppetry and the crowd-funding platform to help promote the book, all in one singular project.

Leaky Timbers is off to a great start on Kickstarter. The project has already received over half of its funding only after the first week, and that's very exciting. I hope the project is successful, that people enjoy the book and that this is the beginning of something very special. I would like to work with Wolfie for years and years to come!

To check out Wolfie and the rest of the Leaky Timbers crew, head on over to Kickstarter:

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