On Film.

...and other media.

Did you guess the film? Yes, that’s right, it’s 60s war epic; The Guns of Navarone!

Why have I made a drawing of such an old and irrelevant ‘dad film’? Well, that’s because I think it’s great. I loved it as a kid when I got it on VHS one Christmas and I’ve enjoyed it ever since, finding it to be more than it appears, as well as just being a great piece of cinema in of itself.

I’ve waited until now to find a suitable platform to wang on about it, but luckily my friend Jack McInroy has returned to podcasting and created a new show called, MADE IN ENGLAND, where he and a guest take a look at a film that fits the titular criteria.

For those of you who don’t know Jack, I would refer to him as what John Berger would call a ‘co-conspirator’. I met him about twelve years ago when he had just founded the seminal, South London Hardcore podcast with the late great Steve Walsh. Since then, he’s always been on hand to hear my ideas, kindly take a look at embarrassing early drafts, and just motivate me to do better. It’s always a pleasure chatting to him about any creative endeavour, so if you fancy joining us, you can listen to our discussion on The Guns of Navarone wherever you get your podcasts. Just search Made In England, or go to the source, HERE.

‘Existing IP’.

Back in the nineteen nineties, I was in a very famous TV show. That’s not true of course, in fact, I didn’t even have a TV, but I was thinking when I was drawing The Guns of Navarone image, that I seldom draw anything from another piece of creative media. Or, as the kids would say, ‘existing IP’, but unfortunately I can’t bring myself to use that phrase unironically yet.

This is strange, as I often feel drawn to, and yet I never seem to find the time amongst the other things I’m working on. But as with a lot of people, I’m sure it’s how I got into drawing as a kid. Famously (not famously) I used to create my own Tintin comics when I was young, as I wanted the stories to continue after I had consumed the whole series.

I think part of it is not quite recognising that I have a ‘style’. The fun of seeing someone interpret something else, is getting to see two things you like come together. Just imagine X, drawn by X?! I guess I always like to think I’m progressing in some way, and to have ‘a style’, suggests I have reached a destination and that I’m done. But of course I have a style, everyone does. And that can change, but it will still be true at the time you drew that thing you liked.

It’s very probable I’m over thinking this, so I should just relax and let myself draw a stormtrooper every now and then. I’ll almost certainly ignore your suggestions, and I’ll probably regret even asking, but any requests…?

There are a couple of exceptions. After the madness of lockdown and consuming entirety of Bojack Horseman, I drew the gang as a wedding wedding polaroid.

I actually started re-watching it recently, and I was slightly trepidatious, as I was worried it wouldn’t live up to my memory of it, and that it was too connected to that time. I needn’t have worried. It’s actually better than I remember, and like with a lot of shows, the rewatch allows you drop any anxiety about where it’s going, and you can simply immerse yourself in it and enjoy all the little details you missed the first time.

Outpost 31.

I did reference one of my other favourite films, The Thing, in this image I did a while back, entitled ‘Outpost 31’. It depicts the desolate Antarctic research station that’s the stage for all the delightfully horrific goings on.

Very excitingly, Dark City Gallery have just decided to do a limited edition 7-colour screen of print of it. So you can now get a much larger, high quality, signed and numbered print right HERE!

Any other film news I can crowbar in? Probably not. I think the last thing I saw at the cinema was Dune 2, or as it should be titled, ‘the second half of Dune’. There were bits I really liked, the smaller set pieces like the opening sequence, or the raid on the spice harvester, but I think I struggled a little with the ‘epic overdose’. Kind of felt like every scene was trying to top the previous one, regardless of content, which for me yielded diminishing returns. Still, it’s always nice to see a big sand worm on the big screen.

Okay, maybe it’s actually pretty clear why I don’t draw more ‘existing IP’… I’ll leave it there, before I say (or daw) anything even more stupid.

Have a lovely day. In London, spring/summer is having a few false starts (as always), but there are more frequent chances to dry your washing on the line, pop out to your favourite kiosk for a coffee, or perhaps spend a couple of hours on your local petanque piste. All good things.

See you next time.

Owen D. Pomery.