We first met Jim Lujan on the website Blastro.com. His animated shorts were so funny we just had to contact him and beg him to let us do an interview. He finally consented. (Note to kids: Appropriate begging can yield positive results.) Thankfully, Jim’s got his own couple of websites. We surf there to view his bizarro world up close, and personal.
Why the characters that you do?
Jim Lujan: I really enjoy creating bizarre characters. I think it has something todo with the people you see everyday. I like to make up scenarios in my head of what’s really going on behind closed doors. Trashy behavior is really funny to me.
Where do you live? all your life? if not, what is your countryof origin?
Jim Lujan: I was born (and raised) in West Covina, California (USA). Its about 25miles east of Los Angeles. It was a real suburban melting pot of different ethnicities. Our cultural centerpiece was a mall..the “Fashion Plaza”. Theres a lot of material to draw from in West Covina. I had alot of fun growing up there.
Are any of these characters autobiographical?
Jim Lujan: No, most of my characters are exaggerated versions of traits I witnessed from people in real life.
Is cartooning your full-time gig? or do you have another job?
Jim Lujan: I have another job. Cartooning has always been a passion that I’ve beenable to make a little money off of.
Are these characters made specifically to show on blastro.com?if not, where else do they appear?
Jim Lujan: No, For the most part, they existed before Blastro. The founders ofBlastro are good friends and I am glad they chose to showcase my stuff. Plus……they paid me!
Your cartooning style is very unique. how did you decide on that particular style?
Jim Lujan: My art style is an extension of my sense of humor. Its basically reallife- but tweaked and exaggerated to the point of being ridiculous.
In fact, would you consider yourself a cartoonist or an animator?
Jim Lujan: Hmmm…I’m not enough of a cartoonist to be a solid cartoonist, yet, myanimation skills pretty much suck- so I’m not really an animator. How about a cartoonist that animates…or vise versa?
How long have you been creating cartoons?
Jim Lujan: I created my first cartoon short, Mayhem News in 1997.
Are the different characters on blastro.com your first foray into cartooning?
Jim Lujan: I had done some animated shorts and cartoons before Blastro. I reallydeveloped my style on Blastro, though. I used to have a public accessTV show in Los Angeles. That was fun.
If not, how many others have you done, and what became of them?
Jim Lujan: I recently did an “inventory” of my cartoons, and I have something like 20. Only 12 or so have been seen on the web. The rest aired on thepublic access TV show I had a few years back.
Do you have other forms of artistic expression?
Jim Lujan: Definitely. I love writing and playing music. That, along with art, became a passion early on in my life. I have a band that I formed with friends. Ive always had music projects going on. Its really alot of fun for me. Music is one of my favorite things.
Do you have a family?
Jim Lujan: I have a great wife and wonderful little girl. The only thing that is a drawback with being a creative person, is that it sometimes steals time away from them. Nothing is more important than family.
If so, did you create these cartoons for your kids or for yourself?
Jim Lujan: Sad to say, but its 100% for me. I create stuff that I personally think is funny. I sometimes look back and think “Oh man, thats kind of messed up”. I try to keep things suitable for early teens. Nothing too perverted or offensive. I just get weird, not nasty.
How often do you produce a cartoon? do you call them cartoons or animations?
Jim Lujan: I call them cartoons. At my best pace, I would do one every 2 months. I’ve really slowed down that last 3 or 4 years. I’m planning on getting back on a more productive schedule, though. I miss creating the films.
What software do you use to create? why that particular software?
Jim Lujan: I draw pen on paper and color in Photoshop. I mainly assemble and animate in Flash. I started with Flash 3. I have a good friend, Miles Kinghorn, that animates much of my stuff. He uses AfterEffects. If it looks legit animation-wise, then he did it. He’s gifted.
What do you like most about creating the animations?
Jim Lujan: I like the total freedom of casting and designing the characters, changing the look of the world, the mood of the piece. My favorite part, though, is naming the cartoons.
What do you like least about creating the animations?
Jim Lujan: Basically, I hate animating. I take no joy in the technical side of it.Its too time consuming. Im really frugal when it comes to the amount ofanimation I use in my films. I cheat like crazy.
How much longer can you see yourself producing these animations?
Jim Lujan: Till I die….or until they arent fun anymore.
How long does it take you to create each one?
Jim Lujan: When I’m animating my own stuff, The average creation time is about 3 or 4 weeks. When I work with Miles, he does things the “right” way, so we take our time…it takes much longer.
Do you write and draw, or do you have a partner?
Jim Lujan: Miles Kinghorn, for the animating. Nissim Leon has sung pretty much all of my theme songs. I work with Nissim a lot. We go way back.
Have you ever skipped an episode?
Jim Lujan: My films are “one offs”. I dont have to worry about scheduling.
If not, have you ever wanted to? what did/do you do to keep yourself motivated?
Jim Lujan: My main motivation is to do something that I enjoy creating and watching. Something that feels right. I never hit the mark 100%, but the closer I get, the more I want to keep creating.
Business questions: do you sell any merchandise?
Jim Lujan: Yes, I have a cafepress store. I still haven’t sold my stuff on DVD. I really need to do that.
Do you sell books of your animations? (pardon me if that one’s obvious and I missed it on your site)
Jim Lujan: Not yet, but I’d love to do that. I’ve done comic work, but not yet a book of my own.
Do you do it for love or for money? or for both?
Jim Lujan: For the love. The money has been a nice bonus, but I’m not buying a Rolls Royce anytime soon. Thats what the other job is there for.
What’s your favorite website? And if you can’t name one, how about your top five?
Jim Lujan: www.jimlujan.com, I just have to say that. Also http://home.earthlink.net/~jimlujan/index.html is worth a shot too.
