An Interview with Emily Brady of Footloose!
Comic title: Footloose
Comic URL: http://www.footloosecomic.com
Creator(s):Alice Nuttall and Emily Brady
Genre: High school comedy in *bizarre* setting.
1) What is your comic about? (it’s so open-ended, I know! Talk as long or
as short as you like!)
It’s about lives of the 24 students studying -uh, unusual martial arts
at one of Faeries most prestigious Dojos.
A mix of Humans, Fey and Werewolves and our unfortunate main character is an ungainly mixture of all three, physically untalented, "funny looking"and prone to dangerous psychological disorders. Her parents are famous ‘adventurers’ branded as terrorists in the mortal realm, and unfortunately Primary Protagonist Syndrome runs in her family. In a world governed by the mysterious ‘laws of generics’ Keti is told by her Faerie Godmother that one day the Plot will catch up with her (it may have already) and if she can’t learn to be a hero, then the events it throws at her may destroy her.
Keti’s trying her best to live up to her family traditions amongst cross-dressing elves, grumpy half-wolves, evil magical girls and shoddy mecha, but that’s not the worst part, no. Her weapon of ‘choice’ is …a shoe.
2) How did you get started making webcomics?
I used to write, but I suck, so now I let Ally write and I just draw pretty pictures and add the ocaisional pun.
3) Five years from now, what do you see your comic becoming? Will it be over? Will it have grown larger?
It will be sold on every street corner.
No, In all seriousness I wouldn’t want FL to be a full time job because it wouldn’t be fun anymore. The most I’ve ever hoped for it would be that it would pay for itself, and that people would send us mail saying that they like reading it. We wouldn’t really want to publish it, it’s an internet thing.
4) Tell us about your main character. What are his/her motivations? How did he/she join up with your other characters and why?
Poor Keti Jones. all she wants is a quiet life- but alas her ears are all pointy. Keti is our gateway into a weird and wonderful world, because she’s just as ignorant of it as we are. Her overbearing mother has been trying to keep her ’safe’ from the world she grew up in, but it’s all backfired horribly, as they’re forced to make a speedy exit from the mortal realm and seek political asylum in Faerie.
Luckily Keti is befriended almost immediately by the ditzy half-wolf Jin and her sarcastic twin brother Daniel. They do their best to keep her out of trouble.
5) Who is your favorite secondary character and why?
Fairly Obvious Transvestite Magical Boy Cherry (Steve). For some reason we found it hilarious to make a male magical girl. Kind of a parody of the transgender comic genre. Everybody assumes Cherry is gay because he wears a dress- and he’s being using it to get into the girl’s bath house ever since.
6) What is your favorite comic page?
I think at the moment it’s this one: http://www.footloosecomic.com/footloose/05_42.html. Poor Cherry. All he wants is to be a magical warrior for love and justice- but instead he got beat up by a girl.
7) Is there a storyline you’re really looking forward to? What is it about? Give us a spoiler warning if necessary!
W’re just about to start a big storyline about *gasp* pirates! ‘No not pirates- the horror!’ I hear you say. Yes Pirates; the dastardly Faerie Pirates of The Emerald City. They steal your stuff and you have to get it back, and it takes 5 chapters…
8 ) Can you give us a short explanation on how you make your pages?
1) Make several sketch layers, gradually improving scale and detail.
2) make a layer of black lineart
3) lovely shading layer
4)shadows
5) text
^) Blam! one comic.
9) Be your own critic! When it comes to your comic, what are you looking to improve upon?
Want to make the style a bit looser- it takes far too long at the mo. Oh, and make better backgrounds.
10) Emily, where did you two get such a weird collective imagination?
We’ve lived in the same dull village since we were four. it’s get imaginative or turn into a chav and live your life in misery.