Artist Ant Interviews People Summer Series #43: Crimson X 8/6/19

Interviewer: Anthony Andujar Jr

Interviewee: Crimson X 

Photo courtesy of Crimson X

    Hello and welcome to the Artist Ant Interviews People Summer Series! Welcome to another edition to my latest talks with local and global creatives that are alive, hustling and thriving in their respective crafts! Today I have a really special guest and one that I feel has had such an impact in more ways than one. This illustrator is someone that I first came across years ago on Instagram. I can’t remember how I came across his work, whether it was through his original character work, his Superior Spider-Man fanart or the impressive artstyle that looked so professional that one would have thought that the legendary Akira Toriyama illustrated it! 

    What fascinated me the most was how he managed to have such a fantastic artstyle and managed to create particle effects on paper using nothing but crayola markers. Yes Crayola Markers. CRAYOLA MARKERS! The fact that he was able to make vibrant art by using some of the cheapest material impressed me enough to catch my attention. Since then, his transition to digital programs only increased his craft, launching it ..dare I say it.. OVER 9000! I could go on and on about this gentlemen, about how humble he is, and that he even entertained the thought of being an interviewee for this wee blog of mine. But I figured, I’d let him tell his story, so without further ado, ladies and bots of the digital matrix, please welcome, X’avier AKA CRIMSON X!

Q0. Who are your inspirations?

CX:  Well, that's a very broad question for me. I've been inspired by a large plethora of artists in different mediums and media. I guess since this interview will predominantly pertain to my Dragon Ball work, I should say the artists who have worked on Dragon Ball haha. In that case, obviously, I am inspired the great Akira Toriyama, the creator of the franchise. His work changed my life, from his very simplistic yet purposeful design, to his elaborate storytelling and hilarious inclusions of comedic tones. Other artists, such as Toyotaro, who works with Toriyama to make Dragon Ball Super Manga, Tadayoshi Yamamuro, seasoned vet of the anime and Katsuyoshi Nakatsuru all really inspire my work.

DBS art by Crimson X

Q1. How did you get into art, most notably writing your own Mangaka?

CX: It seems that I tell this story all the time, haha. When I was young, and I mean really, really young, about 4 or 5 years old, my grandmother would make homemade holiday cards. She would fold a normal piece of paper and then do the artwork for it and sign it, which they would then be sent off to our family members in bulk. During these years, my grandmother was such a talented artist, to which I was inspired, and wanted to be as good if not better than her. I continuously challenged myself to make a better card than her one year, and at the time, I felt that I had surpassed her. Then, I began to read a lot of comics, watch cartoons and as you can probably guess, Dragon Ball. These things began to have a huge affect on what I drew, and I just couldn't stop. I was obsessed at that point.

Q2. When did you take art seriously?

CX:  For me, I began taking art seriously at a very young age. I had been enrolled in art elective classes since 1st grade. All throughout my school life, I was known for my artistic ability, winning multiple school competitions, taking higher level art classes at a younger age in the process. I would say that I had to test whether or not art was genuinely for me when I was around 16-17. I did not sign up my art class in 11th grade because I wanted to see what else I was capable of doing for a year, to which, was a great learning experience. However, I came back to it in the following year, which kind of was like a soft reboot button, certifying that I was meant to do art. As for doing a writing a manga, to be blatantly honest, I didn't really take it seriously at first.

My entire purpose for the Zabieru Chronicles manga was due to me being angry about being made out to be the bad guy in certain situations on Instagram. About 2 years ago, I had received a bunch of hate, where people considered me a terrible person, a jerk, a bully, or what have you. I just felt it appropriate to place that same feeling upon my character, Zabieru, who is a dragon ball reflection of me in a sense.

Dragon Ball: Xenoverse: Zabieru series and art created by Crimson X

Q2.1. You've been writing and illustrating your manga fanfic Dragon Ball: Xenoverse: Zabieru chronicles for some time now and it's amassed a huge following on social media platforms such as Instagram. What made you create this Mangaka series?

CX:  It's crazy that I have been working on it for this long. Again, I did not take it seriously at first, as you can tell by the multiple revamps that Part I has undergone haha. Part I was made really without much thought of it blowing up. It was genuinely made just for me and a couple of my friends characters (OCs) who I wanted to be involved in the story. Now, my entire intent in what I'm trying to do is different. I now want to tell an actual story, with stakes, consequences and resolutions.

Q2.2. What has been the toughest part about creating manga series?

CX: Without a doubt the amount of time it takes. Time management is, well was a huge issue for me these past 2 years. Taking on a full scale manga is a tall order, but being a college student on top of having to do commissions along with a Part Time job and my rampant personal life is really tough haha. Now, it's gotten quite a bit better, still stressful as hell haha.

Q2.3. Throughout the development of this series, what has helped to improve your skills as an illustrator and writer?

CX:  Constant studying and practice. I know that it's natural for someone's style to slightly change and evolve over time, but I continuously try to improve. I never like to feel like I've not learned anything new, as anything you learn is beneficial in some way. It's truly integral to me as a person to incorporate new information that would help improve my work. I experiment all the time with different tools to see what would work and what does not. As for writing, I feel like my writing hasn't really changed, I would say that it's how I present it has changed. My overall aesthetic has changed from what it was in my opinion, can't say the same for what you or others may think.

Q2.4. How many chapters do you have left for this particular series?

CX:  I wouldn't say that there is a set limit on how many more are coming. I have this current arc/saga planned and written out in its entirety, along with a future arc after. It will go on until I feel it isn't for me anymore, which right now, I don't see happening any time soon.

Q2.5. How do you feel about the content that you've created? Do you feel that this could be your best work this far? If so, what chapters are you most proud of and why?

CX:  I truly feel that the content that I have put out has been different from what is commonplace in the Dragon Ball Art Community. I have tried to show that you can tell a story in Dragon Ball that doesn't revolve around just spectacle, but also character interaction. So many fan mangas go straight into the fighting, not establishing a concrete basis or foundation for the fight itself. I involve setup, tension, stakes, and an overall atmosphere and surroundings to my work. I do feel that this will be some of my best work, but I think the best is yet to come. As for what I am proud of, I would say all of it. I by no means think that it's perfect, far from it actually. I think that anything an artist puts out to be criticized that they should have some sense of gratitude or pride for.

Q2.6. Aside from the DB: ZC series, what other projects do you have in the works?

CX:  Aside from that? Well, I am currently working in collaboration with Malik Torihane (@malik_dbna on instagram) on 'The History of Rigor' prequel mini manga of his 'Dragon Ball: New Age' series. It details the story of Saiyan Warrior Peppra, who goes through immense hardships on Planet Vegeta, before it is blown up. I recommend you all check it out when it will be released, it will be something to behold! Other than that, I am working on a prequel to the current arc of the Zabieru Chronicles, which will be from the perspective of Zabieru's older brother, Fon.

Q2.7. What misconceptions does your readership have about your work?

CX:  Oh man, too many to count. From constant misreadings of pages, to forgetting key moments in the story, people will just be absolutely ridiculous sometimes haha. As you probably know, there's always the common criticism of Zabieru and Fon looking like Gohan and Goku, but that does not really affect me anymore.

Q2.8. What do you plan to improve on in the near future?

CX:  I plan to simply just improve overall. Particularly in terms of my background work. I feel there are still things that can be worked upon in that department.

Q2.9. What other see do you plan to tackle and how will it be different from your current projects? 

CX:  I'm not looking at anything else at the moment. If it isn't Zabieru Chronicles, History of Rigor, or commissions, it is not on my agenda.

Q3. What drives you in your daily life?

CX:  Myself, my family, my friends that support me, and everyone that has a glimmer of faith in me. I try my hardest to be the best version of myself day in and day out.

Q4. What made you the person that you are today?

CX:  So many things... My life has been a rollercoaster of crazy events. I'm a child of domestic violence, moved from place to place, city to city throughout Virginia, was bullied at home and at school. Growing up, I always felt like I wasn't the favorite, far from it. I felt that there was a truly vast difference in terms of respect shown toward me and my siblings and cousins. The made me have a very big inferiority complex, feeling that I needed to succumb to others, conform to their way of thinking just to have a sense of belonging, to feel appreciated. I don't necessarily want to tell you my life story, but just know that it's made life better; made me better.

Q5.  If you could speak to any living creator or inspiration, who would it be, why, and what would talk to them about?

CX:  I would truly want to speak to Akira Toriyama. Again, his work changed my life, it had molded me into doing fan manga of his franchise. I would talk to him about so many things, ranging from why he chose to make certain choices in terms of story telling to what made him want to do such a monumental thing in the first place. 

Q6. If there were any deceased creators , actors, singers, writers, etc that you would want to speak to, who would it be, and why?

CX:  Without a doubt, Stan "The Man" Lee. He changed the world. Spider-Man changed me as a person. He knew how to connect to the little guy, the people that didn't have much. The people like myself that didn't feel loved, didn't feel useful to anyone. He work and creations inspired us to be better and not dwell on the sorrows of the world. I would love to pick his mind about his feelings about the how the world is now, and just how transcendent his work is as it is still applicable to many situations now.

Q7. If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go?

CX:  Japan. It has been a dream of mine for a long while.

Q8. What is one thing that you fear?

CX:  Failure, but I always welcome it. Fail often and as many times as I can so that I can have triumphant wins. Also, Clowns. I promise you, if a clown gets near me, it's either me or him.

Q9.  If you had a superpower what would it be and why?

CX:  Well the obvious and optimal answer would be Omnipotence. But that's boring, so I would say having Energy Manipulation. I would be able to do an abundance of things, and I'd pretty much be a Dragon Ball character haha. Why? I have always wanted to do a KAMEHAMEHA for real, and with that, it would be a reality.

Q10. What catches your attention when you meet people?

CX:  Body Language, Speech Patterns and Overall Appearance. These three things are essential in analyzing people. They tell you exactly what kind of person you're dealing with.

Q11. What is one word of advice that you would impart to your younger self?

CX:  Breathe. Life isn’t that bad, there's always someone in a worse place than you.

Q12. What are three books that you always remember or return to, and why? How did they shape you?

CX:  Is it fair to do comic books? I'll say novels and comic runs I really always go back to:

1. 'Dragon Ball' Manga - Android and Cell Arcs. - Cell is my favorite Dragon Ball Villain. He has immense swagger, presence and charisma. He embodies the entire cast and gives our heroes a taste of their own medicine... or Abilities in this case. He also created some of the most tense filled moments in all of the series with his hunting for Android 17 and 18.

  

2. . Superior Spider-Man Comic Run written by Dan Slott and illustrated by various artists. - An instant go to and recommendation. I never thought that this run would be so good, nor would it have such an impact on me as a reader. I truly was captivated by Doc Ock's attempt at being Spider-Man. Although he is no Peter Parker, I definitely at the time felt that he was the Superior Spider-Man. Has such a different vibe and gives a very out of the norm display of a hero. If you haven't read, go read it.

3. Of Mice and Men - One of my favorite books. For such an old story, it still parallels relationships people have in modern day. Carries emotional weight and I always find myself back to this story. Huge Recommend.

Q13. If you could continue or remake a movie, or franchise, what would be your film of choice ?

CX:  I would remake the DC Extended Universe Franchise. I think that franchise just hasn't really been dealt the right cards, especially in terms of how they've treated Superman. His presence in Pop Culture is really needed with all that's going on in the world now. We need the Big Blue Boy Scout to have a huge comeback and soon!

Q14.  If you were to make a film, novel, or comic book based on an album, what album or artist would you pick?

CX:  I don't know. I'm a general fan of music, so I can't necessarily say what I would pick to be honest haha.

Q15. Who In this life, has motivated you to stay true to what makes you who are?

CX:  Dang, these are good questions haha. I think the world is a huge motivator. Everyone nowadays wants to be something else, avoiding reality, and lie to themselves, not making anything in their lives better. They are willing to lie in your face just to make them look better, and that has just further made me feel obligated to never change or conform to anything ever again. I'm my own person and stay true to myself and everyone I interact with.

Q16. Where do you hope to see yourself in five years?

CX:  Successful, happy, content with my progress, and lastly, alive.

Q17. What are three albums or songs currently, that you listen to on repeat? And why?

CX:  Again, I'm a general fan of music. I listen to a large amount of music, in any genre, except country. I am currently listening to Dreamville's collaborative album Revenge. Which is fire btw.

Q18. What color speaks to you the most and why?

CX: Red. It's my color. It just appeals to me like. Like it was made for me. It represents Power, Strength, Rage, Wraith, Truth... pretty much everything great!

Q19: What is your greatest weakness?

CX:  My anger. I have a bad anger management issue. It makes my judgement become really skewed. Still working on it.

Q20. What is your greatest strength?

CX:  It's a tie between my Honesty and my Determination. I work too hard to give up. I fight until I can't. I've always had that dog in me. As for me being honest, I have no reason to lie. I feel if I'm honest with others, I shall receive the same treatment.

Q21.What's one thing that you're proud of?

CX:  My effort. I've put the work in. Long days and even longer nights spent working towards my dreams.

Q22. What is a mantra that you tell yourself?

CX:  "Fuck It. Wild Out'

Q23. What is success to you?

CX: Success is the feeling that you have accomplished what you've set out. That you are satisfied with the results of the work that you have put in. You're as I've said, content with what you've gotten.

Art by Crimson X

You can follow his work here on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/xx_crimsonx_xx/?hl=en

And If you want to get an idea of what his DB series is about, you can read about it here: https://db-ap.fandom.com/wiki/Zabieru

Remember folks, follow and support your local artists while they still exist amongst you!