by Mike Rhode
Artomatic just concluded, and there were plenty of cartoon / comics-influenced people exhibiting. On the weekends, there was a sales area on the third floor and I met D. (Dani) Feng there and bought her comic collection, The Cosmicals: Dusky Dunes. She has some interesting aspirations and plans for a Cosmicals universe that I look forward to following in the future.
What type of comic work or cartooning do you do?
Everything I draw at the moment are personal projects of my own characters. Usually on the cartoonier end.
How do you do it? Traditional pen and ink, computer or a combination?
I mostly draw digitally. Sometimes I’d sketch things out on paper first and then refine it on the computer.
I use a Huion Kamvas Pro 16 as my graphics tablet. The software I use is Paint Tool SAI 2 and Rebelle Pro 5. For the Cosmicals comic book, I had actually used TVPaint for most of the line art because I was borrowing an Android tablet from university, and TVPaint was free on the Android. I simply carried around wherever I went and worked on the comic when I had down time. Since I had to return the Android tablet, I’ve been getting used to doodling on my iPad with Procreate now.
When (within a decade is fine) and where were you born?
November 2000 in Rockville, Maryland.
Why are you in Washington now? What neighborhood or area do you live in?
I was born and raised in Montgomery County, Maryland. And… I still live there. I am never getting out of here, am I?
What is your training and/or education in cartooning?
Self-taught through copious amounts of unrestricted internet access
Who are your influences?
A huge blend of various internet artists that I looked up to. Too many to count. Some notable ones are vewn, Xamag, miraculoustang, and Natasha Allegri.
What would you like to do or work on in the future?
I have a very vivid two-season animated series idea for The Cosmicals that is currently occupying much of my brain space everyday. The only way this could work out the way I want it to is: 1) I gain an ample amount of animation industry experience so I feel comfortable enough about pursuing this project and 2) I win a lottery or win a bunch of Mr Beast Dollars to pay people. In the meantime, I’ll try to do as much as I can by myself before even getting to that stuff (writing scripts, making the side comics, maybe building a little website for them if I figure that out). 
Tell me a little more about your characters, The Cosmicals. In the intro to your book collecting strips of them, you say there were failed greeting cards?
The Cosmicals are a group of original characters that are very dear to my heart. I made around 20 greeting card designs for Stelle and Lune back in 2021, but I really don’t know much about that market to sell them well. The cards don’t seem to sell compared to my other items on my Etsy shop. I've emailed a lot of places that might take the cards but I haven't had any luck, since they're already stocked to the brim with greetings cards. Oh well.
Are these a webcomic? Or just one-offs when you feel like doing one?
It's not a webcomic. I have a lot planned for these characters, too much for me to explain in one sitting. I’ve explained the whole story to a couple of friends in person and each time, it took at least 4 hours. But the basic gist of it is: it’s a long-running 'unfiction' art project meant to satirize those marketable-character corporate franchises. Contents of it would include a website that treats The Cosmicals as a lost media franchise, fake flash games hosted on the site, fake animated commercials, and if we get to it, an animated series of shorts made to look like it's from the 90s. I started typing a long explanation of the project, and then I realized it would take way too much time, so I had to stop myself.
One's a happy star, and one's a depressed moon? Is that an accurate description of their characters? How do you write them so they relate to each other?
They have two very different outlooks on life despite having similar circumstances. They learn from each other’s outlooks over time.
These are not my best answers. I'm gonna be honest, I genuinely started blanking when I trying to figure out how to explain the entire project. I've made so much and so much of it has changed over the past 5+ years that I genuinely don't know where to begin. I have about 20 Google Docs of notes. Sorry I can't give a more thorough answer. I feel like this is one of those projects that has to explain itself. I'm also unsure if I can even get to making it due to lack of funding and experience. Check back on me in about 5 years. Then, I can probably give you a more concrete answer.
For more background, you can look at my animated YouTube videos:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pusxJQ48rn8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TpOpiKtGvw0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E-hy4EsWTHY
What do you do when you're in a rut or have writer's block?
When I was younger, I used to shame and berate myself inside my head whenever this happened. Now, I’ve kind of just stopped caring and let the art happen when it wants to. I can’t predict my mind so I’ve stopped trying to.
What local cons do you attend? The Small Press Expo, Awesome Con, or others? Any comments about attending them?
Yes, I’ve tabled at a few conventions in the past (Awesome Con, Baltimore Comic Con). I don’t often do this since it’s pretty exhausting and most of the time, I just forget to apply. (I missed the Katsucon artist alley application deadline by one day.) I absolutely love the Small Press Expo. Me and my friend Ian made it our mission to table there someday, but alas, we did not get in for this year.
What comic books do you read regularly or recommend? Do you have a local store?
I don’t actually consume a lot of media nowadays but I’ve recently been reading Dungeon Meshi and Witch Hat Atelier, which are super great. The closest store to me is “Purple Narwhal Music & Manga”, but they’re only open for less than half a week. Third Eye Comics in Annapolis is worth checking out if you’re a comic lover.
What's your favorite thing about DC?
It’s easy to find things to do or find hidden gems in the area, like the Glen Echo Park. I appreciate how diverse and (mostly) walkable the locations I’ve been to are. That being said, I’ve been kind of confined to this area my whole life so I don’t have a good reference point for what is good or bad.
Least favorite?
It’s expensive to live in the area, and the traffic on the beltway is as congested as my sinus.
What monument or museum do you like to take visitors to?
The American Visionary Art Museum in Baltimore!
How about a favorite local restaurant?
I’ve got several favorites. I probably go to Taco Bamba the most in this area. I also recommend Lavende Patisserie as my go-to local cafe and bakery (their Yuki cake is my favorite; you would not find a cake like that anywhere else). Pho 75 is a great, no frills pho restaurant (it’s cash only though). I also love the flatbreads from the Z&Z Manoushe Bakery. Another authentic Mexican taco place I love is Taqueria Los Primos in North Laurel.
Do you have a website or blog?
My etsy shop link: https://www.etsy.com/shop/
More socials here: https://dfeng.carrd.co/
I was a comp-sci college student at UMD during the entire COVID-19 era so I wasn't doing much art stuff, besides making this one animatic for my Art Scholars capstone project. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TpOpiKtGvw0
Man, that whole time period felt like a blur.
