District 9 (Development Edition)

~~ click on all images for larger views ~~

Hello my friends,
I started to put some inks and color on my District 9 rough sketch in between coloring some GH pages and working on my other 10,000 projects ;)
Here's some snapshots of the process. Check back in here as I post progresses throughout the next couple of days and I hope you enjoy the WIP process :)

Cheers,
Francesco

Artwork © 2010 Francesco Francavilla.

District 9 (Sketch Edition)

~~ click on the image for larger view ~~

So I accidentally stumbled on ABC last night and it was a lucky accident since the opening ceremony/concert for the (soccer) WOrld Cup was on: lots of great live music from a very colorful South Africa.

That reminded me I never had chance to watch "District 9" (which is set in South Africa) so I found it on my on-demand cable and watched it with my wife.
And - of course - I couldn't help to draw something inspired by the movie this morning, since I really enjoyed it :)

I am planning to do a finished, polished version of this, when I am not under 10 different deadlines ;)
Meanwhile hope you guys dig the sketch :)

Cheers,
Francesco

Artwork © 2010 Francesco Francavilla.

GARRISON #3 Preview

~~ Click on the above and below images for BIGGER views ~~

Hello guys,

issue 3 of GARRISON is still 2 weeks away but I wanted to share with you a sneak peek at the cover and first 3 pages, which promise another adrenaline run for our guy with a cowboy hat (oh wait, better don't call him that way ;))

I will make sure to post a lettered preview when we get close to the release. Meanwhile I hope you enjoy this (click on the above image for a closeup look at the art) and help me spread the word out there about my and Jeff's little comic adventure here :)

Cheers,
Francesco

Artwork © 2010 Francesco Francavilla. GARRISON © 2010 Jeff Mariotte & Francesco Francavilla

Lovecraftiana debuting @ Heroes Con

(click on the above image for a bigger view!)

Hello guys :)

as you know I will be attending Heroes Con this week and for the occasion I will have brand new exclusive prints, featuring the above "LOVECRAFTIANA" and below artwork (you may be familiar with those images below ;))

I will be set in Artist Alley (AA) at table 303. Two big banners featuring the Winged King Skull and the Dark Queen of Hearts should make it easy for you to find me :)
I will have these new exclusive prints plus some fan favorite like my Poe and Lovecraft B/W prints and lots more (including some of my faux golden age pulp covers). I will also have my sketchbooks and whatnot and , of course, I will be doing con sketches/commission all weekend long, so stop by to say hi and maybe get something (original or print work ;))

For those interested, I will also be attending the Comic Twart panel: it's gonna be fun so try to be there if you can :)
COMIC TWART PANEL @ HEROES CON !! JUNE 4TH,
Room 209, 4:00pm
The comictwart.com site has become one of the more popular sites online for fresh weekly comic art. Join “twartists” Tom Fowler, Chris Samnee, Francesco Francavilla, Ron Salas, Declan Shalvey, and Andy Kuhn, with moderator Chris Sims ofComics Alliance , for a discussion and multi-sketch demonstration. All sketches to be donated to the HeroesCon Art Auction!

Charlotte, NC
June 4-6, 2010
Artist Alley 303
See you there, my friends :)

Cheers.
Francesco

All images © 2010 Francesco Francavilla.
Dark Winged Skull King, Dark Queen of Hearts, Lovecraftiana ™ and © 2010 Francesco Francavilla

Super Stock Rookie

~~ click on the image for larger view ~~

Hi guys,

between the Nascar races on tv this past weekend and the upcoming HEROES CON in Charlotte, capital of Nascar and all racing things, I thought it was a good time to show this cover I did last year for the "Super Stock Rookie" novel by Will Weaver

Below are some info about the book, in case you are tempted :)

Hope you guys dig it: had lot fo fun working on this cover :)

Cheers,
Francesco

Trace Bonham has just scored an amazing ride—a brand-new, corporate-sponsored Super Stock. The sleek, custom-built machine runs like a dream. He’s set up with a professional crew, a top-of-the-line car hauler, and a great big paycheck; it all feels too good to be true. Of course, there’s a price for everything. Trace has to turn over the car he started in, his dad’s Street Stock Chevy, to another driver. He’s also no longer welcome at his hometown speedway—or by the girl he adores who runs it—since his new team made it all too clear they think it’s a hayseed operation. So what? There are bigger and better speedways, and more girls, in Trace’s future. But can he handle the speed of success?

"The novel is likely to appeal to youngsters who normally shy away from fiction.”—School Library Journal

“Weaver draws from his auto-racing experience to continue Trace’s story from Saturday Night Dirt (2008) and to bring to life the small-town, dirt-track racing world. Racing action, sharp dialogue and solid characterization make this a good bet for young sports fans.”—Kirkus Reviews

“There is no doubt that Weaver knows his way around stock cars, and he puts the reader in the middle of the action.”—VOYA

“Weaver offers outstanding descriptions of the races, putting readers in the center of the action.”—Booklist

Square Fish, April 2010
Grade Range: 7 and up, Age Range: 12 and up
ISBN: 978-0-312-60869-9, ISBN10: 0-312-60869-1,
Young Adult Fiction, 5-1/2 x 8-1/4 inches, 224 pages,
Trade Paperback $8.99

Artwork © 2010 Francesco Francavilla.

Donnie Darko

~~ click on the images for larger view ~~

I know I know, I am kinda late (movie is from 2001) but I never had chance to watch it until tonight.
LOVED it!
And felt compelled to do a quick tribute: such a strong iconic image :)
Hope you guys dig it.

Cheers,
Francesco

Artwork © 2010 Francesco Francavilla.

GARRISON #5 Cover preview

~~ click on the image for larger view ~~

Hello guys,

GARRISON #2 just came out this week and the first reviews seem to confirm the general consensus: this is GOOD story all around! :D
So why not pre-order issue 5 while you are at the store picking up issue 2? :)
Above is the cover for the penultimate chapter of this mini and here is the solicitation info:

GARRISON #5 (of 6) - JUN10 0251
Garrison finally gets answers to questions about his shadowy origins – answers that raise even more questions. Whether he'll live to put those answers to use is, of course, anybody's guess.

Written by JEFF MARIOTTE
Art and cover by FRANCESCO FRANCAVILLA

Size: 32 Pages - Price: $2.99


And plese help me spread the word out there: this is my baby, you know :)

Cheers,
Francesco

Artwork © 2010 Francesco Francavilla. GARRISON © 2010 Jeff Mariotte & Francesco Francavilla

GARRISON #2 is here!

~~ Click on the above and below images for BIGGER views ~~

Hello guys,

issue 2 of GARRISON is coming out tomorrow and I thought to give an exclusive preview of the first 6 pages just to give a glimpse of the rollercoaster action you guys are gonna get from now until the explosive issue 6 (which concludes the mini).
A huge thanks to all of you who picked up issue 1 and helped spread the good word about it. Hope to see you and many more picking up issue 2: this is gonna be FUN! :)
Look for the below cover on the shelves tomorrow!

Cheers,
Francesco

Artwork © 2010 Francesco Francavilla. GARRISON © 2010 Jeff Mariotte & Francesco Francavilla


~~ click on the image for larger view ~~

Death's Blues

~~ click on the image for larger view ~~

Just because ;)

Cheers,
Francesco

Death's Blues © 2010 Francesco Francavilla
Artwork © 2010 Francesco Francavilla.

24

~~ click on the image for larger view ~~

Alright, so last night I watched this week's episode of "24" (which I DVRed on Monday) and I have to say, while the seasons have seen highs and lows, the whole sequence of Jack Bauer kidnapping the (former) President Logan was one of the coolest things I have seen on TV in quite some time. The cold resolution he act in that sequence, the super cool outfit, the way he put his boot on the hole of the windshield after throwing in the car the gas bomb... Yeah, that's what 24 should have been all time.
It reminded me a bit of Mann's "HEAT" in the very first sequence of the attack to the safe truck, everyone pretty much wearing that same cool hockey masks :)

Anyhow, I couldn't help this morning - as a warmup - tributing "24" at one of its finest scene.
Hope you guys dig it.

Cheers,
Francesco

Artwork © 2010 Francesco Francavilla.


~~ click on the image for larger view ~~

IronMan Vs the FrogBot Pt.3

~~ click on the image for really larger view ~~

You asked for it... :D

Is this... THE END? ;)

Cheers,
Francesco

FrogBot & Artwork © 2010 Francesco Francavilla.

Fin Man!

~~ click on the image for a larger view ~~

Hello guys,

Between a cover gig and my Frazetta tribute (see it here) I didn't have time to mess with FrogBot, so for today here's a Fin version of our guy tearing up a (poor) tank ;)

Tomorrow pt.3 of Frogbot :)

Cheers,
Francesco

Artwork © 2010 Francesco Francavilla.

IronMan Vs the FrogBot Pt.2

~~ click on the image for really larger view ~~

:D

Should I do Pt.3 tomorrow or I shouldn't bother?

Cheers,
Francesco

Artwork © 2010 Francesco Francavilla.

IronMan Vs the Frogbot! Pt.1

~~ click on the image for really larger view ~~

Hope you guys dig it.
Tune in for part 2 tomorrow :)

Cheers,
Francesco

Artwork © 2010 Francesco Francavilla.

Iron Man!

~~ click on the image for a larger view ~~

Hello guys,

How about an Iron Man Week to celebrate the release of IM2? :)
To start, an oldie that probaly the 95% of you haven't seen yet, with a new coat of paint just for the occasion ;)
LOVE to draw the ole TIN version of this guy (as you will see ;))

Cheers,
Francesco

Artwork © 2010 Francesco Francavilla.

HellBoy's "Crap"!

~~ click on the image for a larger view ~~

Hello guys,

and let's wrap this week with one of my fav HB illo (I did last year) not everyone might have seen it yet. I thought it is a perfect ending of the Hellboy week :)
Since everyone enjoyed this, stay tuned for some more HB related "specials", very soon ;)
Thanks for the love, everyone, and now go read some Mignola's Hellboy goodness :)

Cheers,
Francesco

Artwork © 2010 Francesco Francavilla.
HELLBOY © 2010 Mike Mignola

HellBoy Vs Nazis

~~ click on the image for a larger view ~~

Hello guys,

couldn't let this week go without some evil nazi zombie, could I?
SO here's a quickie (it's one of those days...)

Cheers,
Francesco

Artwork © 2010 Francesco Francavilla.
HELLBOY © 2010 Mike Mignola

HellBoy in Mexico

~~ click on the image for larger view ~~

Hello guys,

The new book "HELLBOY IN MEXICO" by Mike Mignola and Richard Corben was released today, so i thought to play close to the topic of the book with this tribute. I haven't read (or picked up) the book yet, so all of this is just a guess, a Mexican guess, that's it :)

Now let's all go tot he store to pick up that bad boy, if you haven't done it yet :)

Francesco

Artwork © 2010 Francesco Francavilla. HELLBOY © 2010 Mike Mignola

HellBoy and "L'Isola del Terrore"

~~ click on the image for a REALLY REALLY larger view ~~

Hello guys,

I plan to come back to this when I have a little more time and "dress' it as a movie poster, but for now I think it will do as is ;)
Ladies and gentlemen, I give you HELLBOY AND L'ISOLA DEL TERRORE! :)
Hope you guys enjoy it and come back tomorrow for some Mexican Amor :D

Francesco

Artwork © 2010 Francesco Francavilla. HELLBOY © 2010 Mike Mignola

HellBoy Vs The Giant Eye

~~ click on the image for larger view ~~

Hello guys,

With the blessing of Dark Horse, I am dedicating this whole week to one of my favorite comic characters: HELLBOY! :)
Been a huge fan of the Big Red and its incredibly talented dad, Mike Mignola, since the beginning and with the release of a new new HB book this week, I thought it was appropriate to pay tribute by posting some new and some (almost) never seen before HellBoy artwork I have done here and there :)

To start, one of my fav illos (from 2007): Hellboy Vs the Giant Eye (with included lovecraftian tentacles ;))

Hope you guys enjoy it and tune in tomorrow for some mo' Hellboy :)

Francesco

Artwork © 2010 Francesco Francavilla. HELLBOY © 2010 Mike Mignola

~~ click on the image for larger view ~~

VICTORY...

~~ click on the image for larger view ~~

Inspired by last night episode of Dr Who featuring Daleks and WW2 :)

Cheers,
Francesco

Artwork © 2010 Francesco Francavilla.

GARRISON is here!

Hello guys,

Yep, this above is me pimping the book ;)
GARRISON #1 is finally out: go and grab a copy and enjoy the read (or call the store and tell them to save you a copy if you can go today ;))
I really hope you guys dig the book: being a creator owned project for me, I have a special fond for it so I wish the book to do well :)
If you need more previews, just click on the images here and you'll get it :)

Thanks,
Francesco

Artwork © 2010 Francesco Francavilla. GARRISON © 2010 Jeff Mariotte & Francesco Francavilla


~~ click on the image for larger view ~~

Nazgûl

~~ click on the image for larger view ~~

I was playong the LOTR Return Of The King Soundtrack while doing some storyboards and this guy showed up ;)
The risks to listen to soundtracks while working...

Cheers,
Francesco

Artwork © 2010 Francesco Francavilla.


~~ click on the image for larger view ~~

Sammina "Bellella" Francavilla

~~ click on the image for larger view ~~

It's a sad day for us: our 17 year old cat Sam has left us to go to kitties heaven.
She has been with my wife since she was born and with me for 10 years now.
I am gonna miss her coming by at noon, in my office, reminding me it was lunch time with a couple of miaow and a WTF look if I wasn't getting up and go to get us all some lunch.

You have been good to us, Sammina, and we will miss you greatly.


Francesco & Lisa

Photo © 2010 Francesco Francavilla.

The Return of SITHursday!

~~ click on the image for larger view ~~

It's Thursday and had fun tackling this guy again, so - dedicated to LucasFilm, Dark Horse, and all the Star Wars fans - I give you SITHursday again :)

Maybe one day I will see this character design I created put to use: now that would be cool :)

Cheers,
Francesco

Artwork © 2010 Francesco Francavilla.

More MM...

~~ click for bigger size ~~

More about this guy. Hopefully I will eb able to reveal his story soon :)

Cheers,
Francesco

Artwork & Character Design © 2010 Francesco Francavilla.

A New Villain...

~~ click for bigger size ~~

Can't say too much about this yet.
I hope you "like" it anyway ;)

Cheers,
Francesco

Artwork © 2010 Francesco Francavilla.

HAWKMAN!

~~ click on the images for bigger view ~~

It is HAWKMAN week at Comic Twart so after offering my tribute the other day (see below), I felt inspired to do another piece, above, more some sort of portrait/closeup this time.
Hope you guys enjoy it as much as I did drawing it :)

Cheers,
Francesco

All Artwork © 2010 Francesco Francavilla.