by Mike Rhode
This past weekend was Free Comic Book Day, and I swung by Victory Comics in Falls Church, VA. They've had cartoonists set up for the past few years, and I got to meet a few new people and ask them our standard questions. Jaron Johnson, a comic book writer, was giving out copies of his Centerpiece "an illustrated anthology of poems written between the ages of 17 and 19. Through these pieces of prose and imagery, Centerpiece tells the story of Nomad a young man just trying to find his way in the world."
What type of comic work or cartooning do you do?
I am a comic author and filmmaker, so my creation spreads across a few spectrums. The comics I've written span several art styles, but our current project employs a fun and unique blend of hand-drawn elements superimposed over still photography.
How do you do it? Traditional pen and ink, computer or a combination?
My illustrator, the incredibly talented Clark Campbell, draws with pencil, pen, and paper. He scans this at a high resolution to maintain the texture of the medium, then uses digital image editing software to combine our characters with still photography.
When (within a decade is fine) and where were you born?
I was born in Cambridge, Ohio, in January of 1994.
Why are you in Washington now? What neighborhood or area do you live in?
I moved to the NoVA area a year and a half ago to grow and learn and improve my life. I was feeling a bit trapped and enclosed within the three towns I grew up in. Life afforded me a window of opportunity, and I leapt through it.
What is your training and/or education in cartooning?
I cannot draw to save my life. All of the art education, writing and filmmaking, has been learned in the field.
Who are your influences?
This current project, Centerpiece, is heavily inspired, visually, by Don Hertzfeldt's animations. He is a brilliant animator and independent filmmaker. My writing influences are largely Kevin Smith, Woody Allen, and Zach Braff.
If you could, what in your career would you do-over or change?
I am honestly quite satisfied with the direction my art is heading. There have certainly been bumps along the road, but these are most often opportunities to learn. We should seize and embrace these failures, and define ourselves not by the failures themselves, but by what we learn from them.
What work are you best-known for?
I am best known for my writing as a whole, i suppose, but mostly my film work with Clark. I have also made awful music, and I've begun publishing my alternative forms of art.
What work are you most proud of?
I am absolutely most proud of Centerpiece. But this remains to be the case, that I am always most proud of my recent works, because I view them as improvements on prior work.
What would you like to do or work on in the future?
I have several larger budget films that I would love to do. I also have two ongoing comic scripts which I would love to see illustrated and distributed.
What do you do when you're in a rut or have writer's block?
Forcing a muse is nigh impossible, but if I've gone a long period of time and remained uninspired throughout, I will often exercise an internal rebel nature. I'll act recklessly for a while to remind myself of the power we all have, yet choose not to exercise each day. This is empowering and uplifting to me.
What do you think will be the future of your field?
Tom DeLonge, who is an inspiration of mine, has been bridging several mediums of art together. He has spoken at length about how, with advances in technology, one can use the same computer to construct an award-winning album, edit together an action film, write a novel, and build a comic from the ground up. To illustrate that, he has since started creating multimedia projects. One fictional universe told through novels, comics, music - every form of art he has access to, he utilizes to tell a single story. I firmly believe this is the future of our artistic endeavors.
What local cons do you attend? The Small Press Expo, Intervention, or others? Any comments about attending them?
I have actually never attended a con in my life. Not to sound cliche, but I have struggled greatly with anxiety since high school, and the prospect of being any level of spotlighted makes me uneasy to say the least. I am not opposed to the idea, of course. I imagine it is something I will have to learn to overcome in time.
What's your favorite thing about DC?
I really love the wonderful blends of cultures here. Where I'm from, we mostly have farm culture and small-town culture. I have learned a vast amount about outside cultures since moving to the DC area, and every time I learn something new I just get giddy in my garter.
Least favorite?
Admittedly, the social atmosphere here is colder than I'm used to. I come from an area with a population beneath 2,000, so I am used to warm smiles and waving to each other, wishing one another a good morning or evening. Everybody here, before you really get to know them, has a tendency to kind of give you a cold stare and an absence of words. It makes me feel an awful lot like an outsider.
What monument or museum do like to take visitors to?
The National Building Museum and The Lincoln Memorial are my two favorites, so that's usually where I take folks who come to see me.
How about a favorite local restaurant?
Charbroil Grill in Woodbridge is a fantastic place, and I eat there frequently. However, my favorite place is 29 Diner in Fairfax. This hole-in-the-wall has the nicest staff you could ever meet, and they're open 24-7, which is convenient for me because I work the night shift. The owner is incredibly involved in the local community, and so it reminds me a bit of home. Its a slice of small-town living orbital to one of the busiest places in the nation.
Do you have a website or blog?
