Cryptozoo is in U.S. theaters & on demand August 20th! What a dream. So many amazing artists worked on this thing.
Please go see it in the theater opening weekend-- In NYC: Angelika. In LA: the Nuart. Other theaters in other cities coming in... Special events happening before that... I'll post on IG later!
So satisfying to hold this after years of work! Discipline is at nyrb.com and lots of book/comic stores. If your local shop ordered 2 copies and sold out, please be a good samaritan and ask them to order more copies. @nyrbooks@nyrcomics
Thank you to everyone who came out and made the 4th Annual Richmond Animation Festival so special! It’s been just over two weeks and we’re still glowing ☀️
This was our first year hosting the shorts program at Studio Two Three and we loved it. Every year we get to screen films at the beautiful Byrd Theater is pretty special.
Most massive thanks to Julian Glander for coming down and sharing his film Boys Go To Jupiter. His Q&A with Dash was a highlight. And many massive thanks to all of the brilliant filmmakers in this year’s shorts program: Kate Renshaw-Lewis, Victoria Kociman, Gabriel Gabriel Garble, Florence Miailhe, Winston Hacking, Meejin Hong, Junyi Xiao, Nadiia Pliamko, Elli Vuorinen, Maks Rzontkowski, and Júlia Tudisco.
Also many thanks to Julian for designing the poster, Nelly Kate for riso printing our shorts programs, Shane for projecting at Studio Two Three, James for volunteering, August for working the door at Studio Two Three and Ashley, Amanda and Nelly Kate for working the bar, RVA Toolbank for the chairs, Ashley for helping with logistics and last-minute chair rentals, and Zephyr for making our cool program visuals. And thank you to New York Deli for hosting our after party.
The Richmond Animation Festival is organized by Zack Williams, Dash Shaw, and me, Jordan Bruner. It’s a lot of work and every single year it’s worth it!
Slide into our DMs if you want to volunteer, donate, or pitch an idea for next year!
Photo Credits
1. Bryan Banes
2. Todd Raviotta
3-6. Zack Williams
7-8. Todd Raviotta
9-10. Zack Williams
11-12. Todd Raviotta
Did the same artist who drew the first cover of the New Yorker also create Superwoman? Kinda…
This is an appreciation of the great illustrator and cartoonist Rea Irvin who’s comics work has finally been collected in the book, “Rea Irvin’s the Smythes” from @nyrcomics
Hear more stories like these IN PERSON on May 7 2026 at the Society of illustrators @soi128 with @r_kikuo_johnson@dash_shaw and @granny_mcgurk
🗓️ Thursday, May 7 from 6:30pm-8:30pm
📍 At the Society of Illustrators NYC
🎟️ Tickets available at societyillustrators.org
#thenewyorker #reairvin #eustacetilley #superwoman #supergirl @newyorkermag
🫠 TEST PROOFS of the Like Swimmers covers, done with the brilliant Joe Kessler @joebaskervillekessler . A real pandemic murder mystery out this AUGUST from NYRC @nyrcomics . 🚴
📣 New zine alert: “Like Swimmers: Special Memory.” This is a 12 pg 11 X 17” newspaper zine like others I’ve done except this is ALL COMICS. It includes the comic short story WHAT’S OFF and cut panels/sketches for my forthcoming book LIKE SWIMMERS (out in August from NYRC @nyrcomics ). 🕯️
It’s around for free or free-ish ($2), including on Pittsburgh's own Copacetic website where they also have copies remaining of my last one ANT DODGER that had my comic short story WHAT ABOUT HUMILITY?
/comics/like-swimmers-special-memory Link in bio.
@copaceticcomics
🥹💟🤩 @dash_shaw made this gorgeous poster for our 1/21 screening of BY THE STREAM, a film by the great Hong Sangsoo. We're so thrilled to work with a fellow Hong head, and we'll have prints of this available for sale at the screening! Tell all your friends! Tickets are now available on our website & at the link in our bio🫰💟 thanks again to Dash for this beautiful design that captures the elegant simplicity of Hong's style as a filmmaker. 🥹 he's a special one! in a world where everything has to be so loud and fast and exciting, it's nice to see a filmmaker whose interests lie in conversations, long takes, landscape shots, poetry, and of course, eating meals and getting drunk.
what's your favorite Hong film? i think mine is Claire's Camera but there's so many great ones. maybe BY THE STREAM will become your new favorite!
see yall at @studiotwothree on 1/21 🕊️🕊️
The Smythes is out TODAY! Now! This is a 1930s comic strip collection by Rea Irvin. Kikuo and I edited it and wrote the introduction. Caitlin McGurk wrote the biographical essay.
Kikuo and I talked about the book in an epic 85-minute NY Comics and Picture-Story Symposium zoom, now on YouTube. /watch?v=X9F0Snzb2yE
This book is for people who love elegant drawings and endearing characters. It’s an archival project and the historical aspect of it is interesting– but you may just enjoy this as the great comic that it is.
NYRC writes:
Rea Irvin was The New Yorker’s first art editor and creator of the magazine’s iconic mascot, the butterfly enthusiast Eustace Tilley. In 1930, he ventured into new territory with the comic strip The Smythes. The Smythes—comprised of John, Margie, and their two forgettable children, Willie and Maudie—are a niceish suburban family, restless in their social stature, and eager to climb a sometimes wobbly social ladder. Irvin’s distinct, graceful line renders the Smythes in all their glory and hilarity as they navigate ill-fated dinner parties with pompous socialites, fend off robbers dressed as Santa, and get chased out of restaurants by cleaver-wielding chefs.
The Smythes drolly captures the joys, heartbreaks, and humiliations of being in a family.. An unsung masterpiece of cartooning, The Smythes is finally available to a new generation of readers ready to marvel at the full reach of Irvin’s artistic abilities.
@r_kikuo_johnson@granny_mcgurk@nyrcomics
Variety announced the voice cast for my next animated movie, UNKNOWNIA.
Our lead is Sabrina Sickler. She’s new, this is her first movie and she’s in nearly every frame of the movie. She was 11 years old when we started recording her. I think she’s 13 now?
She’s joined by Robbie Crandall, also a new young great actor we found through casting director Susan Shopmaker.
Sabrina’s dad is played by Larry Fessenden in what I think is his greatest performance. I’m biased.
Larry is in a circus-like troupe with Angeliki Papoulia (Cryptozoo, The Lobster).
Then we have two dragons, Tim Roth (The Cook, The Thief, His Wife & Her Lover ) and Barbara Sukowa (Daliland, Lola).
Just your average kids cartoon cast!
I tried to approach the voice performances and casting of this differently than I had my other movies. I think you’ll hear it– it’s more like a documentary sound.
Variety says this is Miyazaki-inspired, but I made it partly as a job application to run Studio Ghibli when Miyazaki retires. File my application!
Unknownia appears sometime next year– I’ll post more about it here later–
This book is out in December! A perfect holiday gift.
Co-editor Kikuo and I will discuss the book on a NY Comics and Picture-story Symposium zoom on December 1st, 7pm EST. Go to / to register for the free event. It's uploaded onto their YouTube page after. @nycomicssymposium
I can't wait for everyone to see this book. I'm so happy with how it turned out.
Thanks @r_kikuo_johnson@granny_mcgurk@nyrcomics
Some great photos of my library show taken by Patrick Harkin @patrick_harkin – Thanks Patrick!
This show is up for another month, until the end of July. Richmond Public Library Main Branch, 101 E. Franklin Street.
I have more of these. If another cool venue wants to show them, please DM me.
Some of these were made for zines. The bears and “Aged to a Tee” are from “The Seasons” zine with poems by Michael Robbins (Walkman, Alien vs. Predator). The guy with a book under his foot is the cover to “Windy but Nice” with poems by Tomaz Salamun (Woods and Chalices) co-published by Black Ocean. Black Ocean appears to still have it available from their website for a dollar. /catalog1/windy-but-nice
