Lili Todd is a rad cartoonist. She also happens to be eight years old. With help from her dad, illustrator Mark Todd, Lili has been releasing her own mini-comics for several years, demonstrating a keen knack for designing cute characters and a clever understanding of print layout flaunted in works like Robot Dressup and Change My Face, an interactive exquisite corpse-esque zine. While Lili’s not exactly an artistic wunderkind, you can tell that she cares about her creations and loves sharing them with others. The sheer enterprise of a girl who made personal appearances at both APE and Comic Con is admirable enough, without the added benefit of her comics’ irresistibly endearing Sanrio-esque charm.
One of her latest works, Polley Makes Snowcones: Book #2 seems almost allegorically autobiographical in its ruminations on work and play. The story begins with an optimistic bear waking up and exclaiming, “It’s snow-cones day! Yippy!” before frantically setting up a booth to share her frozen treats with a long line of animal friends. In the middle of her hectic day, Polley notes, “This is work,” but never gives up. At the end of the comic, Polley awakens to announce once again, “It’s snow-cones day!” She’s accepted both the joy and the strain of work and forges onward, extending what we first assume to be a day-long flight of fancy into a lifetime project.
It’s been two and a half years since principal shooting wrapped on Where the Wild Things Are. While Max Records and his father Shawn haven’t drifted into complete Hollywood radio silence– they flew to Serbia, for instance, so Max could shoot The Brothers Bloom– they’ve remained for the most part sheltered from the PR machine in their hometown of Portland, Oregon. On the morning of the big Warner Brothers presentation at Comic Con, Max was sent on his first whirlwind publicity tour. Shuffling through a series of hotel junkets and convention center green rooms for photo shoots and interviews, the younger Record found himself at the mercy of media outlets instructing him to lounge on piles of pillows bearing the cadaverous visage of Robert Pattinson, hordes of preemptive megafans clamoring for autographs, and busty entertainment journalists leaning in closer than most tween boys are comfortable with.
Overwhelmed by the frenzy, the Records escaped to their hotel room to recover after the panel. Max and his younger brother Sam ate room service grilled cheese sandwiches while they filled me in on the details of the Portland Trailblazers’ dramatic showdown with the Houston Rockets. Since he’d been through the standard behind-the-scenes questions all day, I wanted to give Max a chance to relax and talk a little about himself and his interests outside the movie. Check out our interview below, where Max fills me in on the work of Osamu Tezuka, his favorite Portland bands, and local legends of Matt Groening’s mischievous childhood.
The frenzy over Where the Wild Things Are went into full swing Friday at Comic Con, prompted by the premiere of Lance Bangs’ behind the scenes featurette and an exclusive sneak peek at 10 minutes of the film. Max Records courageously braved the hoardes of fanboys hungry for autographs amidst a signing in the model fortress and also introduced the clips at WB’s big presentation, relaying a message straight from Maurice Sendak: “You know I really love this movie and I hope people like it, because if not they can all go straight to hell.”
Throughout Comic Con, fans, nerds and cinephiles from all walks of life were spotted sporting lovely cardboard Wild Things crowns akin to those nostalgic fast food hats of childhood yore, emphatically displaying their breathless anticipation for this fine film. Yet others went full out, rocking homemade wolf-suit Max costumes in spite of the scorching San Diego sun. Amidst the flurry of activity I was lucky enough to get a chance to catch up with Shawn and Max Records (stay tuned for a video interview!), the couldn’t-be-radder Catherine Keener, and Mr. Lance Bangs himself (pictured above in an orange visor), whose young son Marshall proudly showed off the signed Chewbacca autograph he had just received from Peter Mayhew. Comic Con– the place where dreams come true!
Just a few pictures from the Where the Wild Things Are display at the 40th annual Comic Con International. If you happen attending the convention this year, swing on by the Warner Brothers booth to hang out in the amazing life-size fort and take the video game for a test drive. And don’t miss the WB presentation later this morning, with exclusive footage from the movie and some special surprises! Also, if you’re interested in meeting this humble blogger, you might just find me working at the Giant Robot booth. More to come from San Diego!
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