Rafael Rosado has had a long career working on some familiar properties. The Boondocks, The Avengers, Teen Titans, The Venture Brothers, and Animaniacs are just a few of the many credits to his name. On top of being a talented storyboard artist and animator, he and his writing partner, Jorge Aguirre, have created a three part all-ages graphic novel series The Chronicles of Claudette including Giants Beware!, Dragons Beware!, and Monsters Beware! Originally born in Puerto Rico, Rafeal is now based in Columbus.
1. Can you tell us how you got started drawing and who influenced your work?
I’ve been drawing since I could hold a pencil! My dad’s a big influence, he’s an artist himself. My uncle was an artist, and so was my grandfather. There are a lot of artists in my family, actually. It’s in the genes. My older brother was into comics, so that’s how I became interested. We were reading Disney comics, Little Lulu, Bugs Bunny, stuff like that. We also read comics from Mexico like Kaliman, or masked wrestler comics like El Santo and Blue Demon, or Condorito (which is actually from Chile). All in Spanish. Later on we discovered Marvel and DC comics, and we were hooked. Batman, was a favorite, so were Fantastic Four, Avengers, and Captain America. I started drawing comics when I was 5 or 6 years old and I never stopped. I still have a lot of those, I’m glad my parents saved them! Anyway, Jack Kirby’s my favorite artist and biggest influence. He was the first artist I recognized and actively collected. Later on I became a fan of French Comics (Bande Dessinnee), and particularly the work of Ligne Claire artists like Yves Chaland and Serge Clerc. The Claudette books owe a lot to that style.
2. One of your first jobs was working for the Columbus-based animation studio Character Builders, known for their work on the movie Space Jam. Can you tell us how that work experience helped shape your career?
I met Jeff Smith, Jim Kammerud, and Marty Fuller before they founded the studio, while I was studying film at OSU. I interned there and got hired a couple of years after graduating. It was my first experience working at an actual studio. It was truly inspiring to work around so many talented people. We learned from each other, challenged each other. It was a great time to be there. I got do just about everything at Character Builders. I started out as an assistant animator, then became an animator. I did layouts, character design, storyboards, and eventually directed a handful of TV spots. While at the studio, I got to do storyboards on TV shows like Alvin and The Chipmunks, Life With Louie, and Beethoven. It led directly to my work as an animation artist in Los Angeles. I wouldn’t have the career I have today without the experience I had at Character Builders. That place was a huge talent incubator.
3. Since you’ve worked in both animation and com ics, do you have a favorite between the two?
I sent out tons of comic book samples to Marvel and DC in my youth. They all got rejected. I was still sending out samples when I started at Character Builders, but since the animation thing was working out, I decided to concentrate on that. I’m glad I got all those rejection letters; I got to make comics my own way, when I was really ready for it. I had time to develop my own voice and my own style, instead of ape-ing someone else’s. And I understood the medium better. All those years of storyboarding and telling stories made me a better comic book artist. I really enjoy working in animation, especially when my work clicks with the creators’ taste, like it did with Venture Brothers, or Curious George. But to be honest, I would be perfectly happy drawing nothing but comics the rest of my life.
4. Typically, all-ages material is drawn with an animated quality where body proportions and gestures can be exaggerated as opposed to real ism. Why do you think that style works better for all-ages productions?
Well, in comics, the simpler the style, the more you identify with the characters. Scott McCloud talks about that in his books, doesn’t he? Look at Peanuts or Bone: big heads, easily identifiable silhouettes. Story is really important in all-ages comics, so you don’t want the drawing to get in the way of that. That style is more conducive to humor and gags. It’s easier on the eyes, in my opinion.
5. Can you describe the process of collaborating with Jorge?
Jorge’s one of my oldest and dearest friends. We met in film school at OSU and we collaborated on some projects there. Over the years we talked about doing something together, continuing that collaboration. So when I came up with the concept of Claudette, we knew we’d found the right project. Jorge took the basic concept and fleshed it out, made it come to life. Our process is very fluid. We usually work out the story together, and spend a long time figuring out the themes, character arcs, all that good stuff. Then Jorge writes an outline, and we go back and forth on that. Eventually he’ll go off and write a full script that I can work from. He writes it in TV format, meaning that he doesn’t breakdown every page panel by panel like a lot of writers do. It’s up to me to figure out the pacing, page layouts, and shot distribution. And even as I’m drawing the pages, there’s lot of discussion back and forth. We’re not afraid to critique each other’s ideas, there’s no ego involved. That’s one advantage of working with a close friend, I suppose.
6. The Chronicles of Claudette has quite a cast of characters including the bombastic and brave Claudette to a king made up of water. How did you come up with the character designs?
This is where that whole idea of making comics at the right time and my own way comes into play. My style comes out of hundreds and thousands of hours at the drawing table. When I design characters, they’re almost fully fleshed-out. I don’t go through many revisions. I just have to please myself, so if the first doodle looks right, I go with that. That’s one advantage of creating your own world. When I work on a show like Scooby Doo, I have to draw those characters “on-model”, I have to stick to that established style. I don’t have to deal with those restrictions in my books.
7. What are your future plans for Claudette? Are there more books in the works?
Claudette is on hold while Jorge and I work on our next two books for First Second. The first is called “Call me Iggy”. It’s a Young Adult graphic novel set right here in Columbus, about a Colombian-American kid who’s out of touch with his heritage, until the ghost of his Grandfather appears to school him in the ways of life, love, and Spanish grammar. The second book is a direct sequel to “Iggy”, but we’re still working out the story on that one. But fear not! We’re not done with Claudette. We really love those characters, and the world they live in. We’ll go back there someday. In the meantime, you can check out my Instagram this October. I’ve done Claudette drawings for Inktober the last two years, and I plan to do it again this year. So stay tuned.
8. You’ve been a storyboard artist, animator, layout artist, writer, character designer, director and producer. Is there anything you liked best or wish you had the opportunity to try?
I really enjoyed directing and producing. It was cool to be able to put my own creative stamp on a project, to be trusted with my particular vision. And most of all, it was fun to work with so many talented people. It could be grueling at times, tight schedules and all, but it was mostly a blast. It would be fun to have my own animated series on the air some day. There’s been interest in Claudette over the years, so that could still happen.
9. I read that you previously lived in Los Angeles. Can you describe why you made the decision to make Columbus your home?
L.A. is where the animation industry’s at and that’s why I moved there, but it can be tough at times. The pace of life can really get to you. I knew that I could still work remotely from Columbus, based on the relationships I’d built over the years. So the move was based on quality of life and wanting to raise a family in Ohio.
10. Do you have any advice for people looking to create and/or publish their own work?
My advice is this: don’t wait for anyone to give you permission or approval to make your own comic, or film, or whatever. If you have a story to tell and you want to share it with an audience, there’s never been a better time to do that. You can share it instantly on any number of platforms. Just commit to putting in the hours, weeks, and possibly years, of hard work that it takes to create a work of value. Even if you draw one page a day, or a week, commit to it. You’ll see how quickly it adds up!