Fan Expo Canada is Canada’s largest pop culture event that caters to the fans of comics, science fiction, horror, anime and gaming. Fan Expo Canada 2017 celebrated its 23rd anniversary during the Labour Day weekend at the Toronto Metro Convention Center. Fans from all over the world participated in this exciting family-friendly event as they explored the different venues of their favourite genres as well as spotting renowned celebrities that came to share the love. Another aspect of Fan Expo Canada is the Artist Alley that features many types of artists that join the convention circuit to display their own creative pieces.
One participant in the Artist Alley was an illustrator by the name of Vince Sunico. He has been part of the convention circuit since 2007, and before that, he did not know that such exposure for an artist existed. “I didn’t know much about conventions. I thought it was just more comic books. I wasn’t familiar with Artist Alley at all,” Vince started. “Until I went there and saw a friend of mine there and just noticing how everyone was buying his stuff and he was just talking to everybody and just meeting and I was like, ‘This is exactly what I needed’. I just never even thought about it until I saw him do it.” However, joining the convention circuit was no easy task for an artist. Vince shared that all artists are afraid of people’s reactions to their work, “Everyone is afraid of what is the expectation of what people think.” Despite his fears, Vince put his artwork out there and the people responded positively to him, “It really pushed me to push more.” It took a few experiences before Vince got a handle on the convention circuit.
Now since he was a child, Vince loved to draw, especially when it came to Spider-Man and Superman. He attended Sheridan College to pursue the three-year animation program. “It helped me refine my art,” Vince said before explaining how even after his education, he was always learning new ways to draw. The training allowed him to familiarize himself with other mediums, like the traditional pencil and paper verse going digital. Both have their merits, as each medium would produce a different style. “I prefer traditional,” Vince commented, with his preference being done in 2H, HB and white acrylic ink on gray stock paper. However, when working with company contracts, Vince would go digital. There is even a different process when Vince draws a picture meant to have colour or no colour. When working on his projects, Vince would alternate between two projects, as it would allow him breaks from a project without actually stopping his need to draw. Now it was at a 2015 convention that Vince had met his favourite artist, Arthur Adams. The experience not only gave Vince this sense of accomplishment as Arthur Adams praised his portfolio but Vince walked away with some advice that resonated with him. Arthur told Vince to work on his own projects. That is where Loathe comes in.
Despite the creative journey, there has been a character that lingered at the back of Vince’s mind. For years, the character of Loathe had been something that Vince had wanted to develop but he was an illustrator, not a writer. That all changed for Vince back in 2015 when he started talking about a possible partnership with Nicholas R. Lukic, an aspiring writer. “It’s really trying to promote each other,” Vince explained about how it all began, “He’s trying to get himself out there as a writer and putting myself out there as an artist. So why not?” Since then, Vince has been collaborating with Nicholas as they create a story for Loathe. “Nick understands what the story is about,” Vince praised, “It was fortunate that we could work together.” The team was set and the journey for Loathe could finally begin for Vince. Loathe was set to be introduced in a graphic novel mini-series with Nicholas focused on the writing while Vince worked on the illustrations, traditionally drawn. “I’m doing all the artwork, setting it up for print and doing all the lettering,” Vince explained, “There’s no colouring. It’s all black and white.” That is a lot of detail in those pages but that was what Vince was aspiring for, he wanted this project to demonstrate his full potential as an artist. “Loathe” is about a silent traveler with a unique gift, which lands him in an unknown world. While trying to find his way back, Loathe uncovers this new world while evading those trying to capture him. In the end, Loathe was a character that Vince had been waiting years to release and it has finally come together, “For me, I just want the story out there.”
Not only has Vince been working on “Loathe”, but from that came the creation of Bushido Red Studios. The studio made its debut at the 2016 Fan Expo Canada convention. “With Bushido Red, it’s just a brand we’re using to introduce other characters,” Vince explained. A preview booklet introduced Loathe as a Bushido Red Studios character, alongside two other character projects (created by Nicholas R. Lukic and Austin Chuck-Yin, separately). For their debut appearance, the fans did not disappoint. “When we were there, we got a lot of people just loving what we’re doing,” Vince recalled, “It was nice hearing that.”
Loathe was not the only one being introduced at the 2016 Fan Expo Canada. New Head Writer of Bushido Red Studios, Austin Chuck-Yin had also made his debut appearance. In December 2015, Nicholas R. Lukic (a friend and co-worker) recruited Austin for the new studio, after sharing his first completed comic book script. “That was the very first script I ever did and I gave it to Nick, for him to review,” Austin recalled, “I put my heart and soul into that.” After being brought on board, Austin was pitched the character Lady of Wrath, and he has been with them ever since.
Austin’s love for writing stemmed from his introduction into the comic book world during his first year at Ryerson University, where he studied business management. “I just fell in love with comic books,” Austin explained about his start, “I just wanted to learn all about it.” From then on, if Austin could incorporate comic books into his education, he made it happen. After immersing himself in this new world, Austin wanted to challenge himself by writing his own. “It was so hard,” Austin confessed. “It took so long. But I can really appreciate professional writers and how they work.” In the end, Austin was motivated to write a story that he, as a fan, would enjoy reading. One source of inspiration came from a comic series called “Saga” that was written by Brian K. Vaughan, who happened to give Austin some advice about how to deal with criticism. “Constructive criticism is always welcome, just don’t take it too personal to the point it’ll affect your work,” Austin paraphrased. It was advice that Austin had taken to heart, “I’m a huge believer in learning from your mistakes.” While working with Bushido Red Studios, Austin also landed an internship with Titan1Studios, a Canadian publishing company which also debuted at the 2016 Fan Expo Canada.
While Austin has been to Fan Expo before, 2016 was the first year he was there to share his own material. “This Fan Expo was honestly my best Fan Expo,” Austin commented, despite the anxiety he felt about debuting his character. “People at Fan Expo are attracted to characters they recognize, property licensed characters, like Wolverine, Spider-Man, the X-Men. They are attracted to that franchise.” Austin explained about what the people are initially looking for when they attend the convention. This made pitching new material a challenge. Despite that challenge, Austin enjoyed the experience of pitching his own story, “I found that I was so much more passionate about it.”
For this graphic novel series, “Lady of Wrath” featured a Spanish assassin that found herself on a dark path of discovery after her father was taken. “I wanted to write a badass female protagonist,” Austin shared about his lead character. To help him bring his vision of “Lady of Wrath” to life, Austin teamed up with an illustrator by the name of Oliver Castaneda. After Austin shared with Oliver what he envisioned for the story he had created, Oliver would sketch out all of the illustrations (pencilling and inking). The symbiotic dynamic between a writer and an illustrator is crucial for a project to reach its full potential. “It is the greatest joy I’ve ever experienced,” Austin shared about Oliver’s work, “To see something come to life, something that you wrote in words be brought into picture.” The notion was truly unforgettable and it was something that Austin loved about the industry, “I think that’s the beauty of comic books because any artist can interpret a script and it’d look so different.
Be on the lookout as there are more to come from these talented men. Vince Sunico and Austin Chuck-Yin are prime examples of what you could accomplish once your mind has been set. Their hard work, creativity and dedication are just a taste of what these two could achieve. The 2017 Fan Expo Canada convention debuted the first issues of Vince Sunico’s “Loathe” and Austin Chuck-Yin’s “Lady of Wrath”.
Photos Courtesy of: Vince Sunico and Austin Chuck-Yin
Social Media Contacts:
Instagram = Vince Sunico | Austin Chuck-Yin Facebook = Bushido Red Studios
Online Store = Austin's Lady of Wrath
Publication Note:
This was titled "Fan Expo Canada Highlights Local Creativity" when it was published in Volume 14, Issue 2 of AsianWave Magazine.
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