This interview has been edited for format and clarity.
PR: You stated that your style is Brit-Comic. When were you first exposed to British comics, and what struck you about them?
GR: I am a Canadian, so I was exposed to British Comic collections as long ago as I can remember. We had the standard US Comics, but stores would have the black and white Marvel stuff repacked for UK markets and a lot of the UK collections by UK Publishers, so the short answer is all my reading life. (I’m 62 now, so this was the dark ages).
PR: Your current project that just wrapped up, World of Noise, is a visually stunning work. What render software did you use for World of Noise, and what made you settle on the filter you used?
RG: I used a bit of Cycles in Blender and the majority using Iray in DAZ Studio, with models imported from Blender when needed. I have a massive collection of 3D items, as I have been using 3D since about 20 years ago (several terabytes of data). Sometimes it’s hard to find a specific model.
To give folks an Idea of how long I have used 3D, I started by using Lightwave a long time ago. I am a maniac for proper topology of models, only quads.
I am a believer in using 3D for comic work, so it must look like pen and ink as much as possible. It’s been my experience that straightforward 3D renders look like crap when printed, and a lot of 3D artists only worry about the render.
PR: Furthermore, was that filter part of the render, or an aftereffect done in Photoshop?
RG: This is going to be a long answer. I use several methods, I use a couple of Photoshop Actions, which are available on Renderosity.
Step by step method in Photoshop:
1. I render the scene in Iray and call this the layout layer.
2. I then render each element separately, this way I can compose them in the final post production software.
3. In Photoshop, I import the layout image, get it sized and cropped where I want it etc, then bring in each individual element and build the scene using layers.
4. I duplicate and desaturate each layer, usually four times, naming one main line, line two, tonal, and black.
5. I then select the item, create two layers below, shrink the selection by several pixels and fill the first new layer with white.
6. I enlarge the selection by several more pixels and fill the selection with black, then merge both the white and black layers. This creates an outlined “knockout” layer.
7. I go to the top layer “Main Line” and run a Photoshop Action from the set called “Professional Comic Actions” (available here).
8. I adjust the layer using the levels adjustment to get crisp blacks, then I use the threshold tool to turn it into pure black and white. I then set the layer to multiply.
9. I go to the second layer and then run another action called render magic (specifically, the ultra lines action, available here).
I use this one in conjunction with the first action because this one is a bit grittier for texture, I then repeat the adjustments and turn it into pure black and white using the threshold tool. Again, set to multiply.
10. On the third layer down is the tonal layer. I adjust the levels to create the contrast I want, then run the film grain filter, adjusting it until I get the right layer of tone, then again I use threshold to make it pure black tones, then multiply.
11. On the fourth layer I use the threshold adjustment to make a really dark black and white high contrast image, then again set it to multiply, this allows the outline and white knockout layer to offset the art from any background layers, etc.
12. I usually create a merged layer from visible while holding the Alt key. This creates a composite image on a layer on top of it all, then put all the creation layers into a group in case I need to edit them, then lock and hide them.
13. I then create an “inks” layer on the very top layer. Then I add ink lines, correct any boring lines that are too static etc.
Then I repeat this for every item and the backgrounds.
This sounds laborious, but it’s quite fast once you get rolling.
I do have two other methods, one using Iray itself and another using Clip Paint Studio EX.
I used both Photoshop and Clip Paint for World of Noise.
PR: How did you go about choosing/building props and characters that would work with this particular style of black and white render?
RG: I pick the props from my huge collection. Sometimes I will go on Daz or Renderosity to purchase something very specific for a project.
Some props are fully textured, some are just grey. It really does not matter because the lighting and camera settings are far more important, I could write a book on these things for artists to use.
I have about twenty years’ experience working in theatre, rock concerts and movie sets as a stage hand. The biggest film I worked on (for which I got no credit, sadly) was the 2008 Hulk movie — the Ed Norton one. I did real world SFX for the second unit, basically a bunch of rigging and setting up stuff to burn and blow up. I recommend the book The Five C’s of Cinematography by Joseph V. Mascelli. You will learn a ton from it.
PR:World of Noise almost reminds me of Clemens Gritl’s Brutal Visions. The architecture of the world is frightening, empty, and dark. It’s all a little too quiet. Did you approach illustrating the comic from a dystopian or horror standpoint, or did it just turn out that way?
RG: I wanted it bleak; a world where the rich live well and the common person toils. I leaned into dystopian, which is funny because I prefer a Star Trek style of future.
PR: You’ve shared some of your work from Blender on Blue Sky. Is Blender your render program of choice? What are some of the render programs you’ve used over the years?
RG: This is a bit of a long list. I started using Lightwave 3D very long ago. The last version I used was Lightwave 2015. I have used Kerkythea Renderer, Lux Render, Maya, 3DS Max (which is a pretty cool program, but damn expensive). I used Maya when it first came out, and it was ok. I did have Modo but they are gone now. I have also played with Cinema 4D. I have experimented with so many renderers over the years. I loved 3Delight but Daz got rid of it.
Right now I have decided to try out Houdini. It’s a big leap for an old “pixel pusher” like me, but I am actually very impressed with it’s ease of use for all it does. It’s a joy to use, but as I type this, I have abandoned Houdini as I simply do not have the time for it.
Not to bash Blender, but the 5.0 series has lost me. I feel it’s a little too much of everything, and a lot of my old add-ons don’t work.
PR: How have you seen render comics change over your career? Are they being embraced more again? Do you think they can ever re-achieve the heyday of the popularity they enjoyed in the 1990s (Sinkha, Batman: Digital Justice, Donna Matrix, etc.)?
RG: Oh, I have seen huge changes, so many programs gone bye bye. The work has gotten better over the years, lots of people do not even realize it’s a very widely used tool in comics today.
Clip Studio Paint is a great tool and it handles 3D very well as a post process tool. Most readers do not realize the use of 3D for backgrounds and anatomy.
I have seen very few good 3D comics that are pure 3D rendered, but I know a couple of them that are gorgeous.
A strip, that has sadly been discontinued, called TransNeptunian on Drunk Duck is just really well rendered, but be warned folks it’s NSFW.
Another creator who does fantastic rendered work is an artist called Linwelly. Her work is so beautiful, well worth the search for it.
PR: Do you ever use animations at all when composing your scenes, or just still renders?
RG: I never use animations. I use still renders. I’m lazy that way, I have only ever done a few layout jobs and some storyboards for animations, I have avoided animation. That’s a whole different area to me. Even the 3D pose animations, I avoid them.
PR: You posted about older art you found hard drives, and that it wasn’t comic art. What other mediums and formats do you like to work in? Would you say you are primarily a digital artist nowadays?
RG: Well, every piece, comics or illustration, always starts on paper for the layouts. To paraphrase Alex Toth, if it does not work on paper, it won’t work in film or animation, and I believe the same for 3D.
I love markers. I am a HUGE Bob Peak fan from his loose marker days, back when I started, so much advertising work was marker comps. I loved that stuff, but no one really does it anymore. Now you are more likely to see a product render or worse AI slop in an ad.
I want to go back to more traditional work. The hardest part is most of the tools I used to use are not made anymore.
So, right now, I am playing around with markers and watercolour markers, also with pencil crayon highlights. Old school for sure.
As for digital, so much is leaving me cold right now. I may go back to it. I don’t hate it at all. I have always used technology. By “trade” I am an electronic technologist, and I am also an electrical technologist. I built my first computer back in the day when we had to get a kit, even etch the circuit board. I have worked on factory controllers, done some networking, written print drivers, and worked with RIPS for printing. I do kind of love technology, but recently I have wanted a tactile experience, so this could be a phase. I do suffer from ADHD, have all my life, so I never stand still too long. I might wake up tomorrow and decide to do digital again.
But if the stuff I do sucks, no one will see it.
I am at one of the plateaus in art creation. Lots of folks think it’s artist block or burn out, but really it is the fact that your mind has grown tired of the “style” and “methods” you are using. Your subconscious wants to play and your art needs to grow.
Embrace change. It can be hard. Everyday part of me wants to go back to digital because it’s easy after using it for so long, so you have to bull through the lazy thoughts of backsliding into it.
My new style and direction are out there, I just have to find it.
PR: I see a lot of AI content on the Daz and Renderosity forums. Do you think render artists are moving from traditional render software to AI image generation, or will the two be able to exist in harmony?
RG: That is a hard one to answer. For me, AI needs to become far more ethical and way less environmentally destructive. I don’t use it, and it’s very much a “garbage in garbage out” scenario. I understand the tech, but as for existing in harmony, not for me. I have seen too many friends lose jobs to it and there is zero creativity. It only knows what it scrapes, and nothing is really created by it.
PR: What are you working on next, and where can people follow you?
RG: Right now, Bluesky. I have two web sites of my own, rono64.com and gravelleart.ca. People can look here for any future work but these sites are lying fallow right now.
As for what I am working on next? That is a tough one to answer, I have pretty much decided to retire from comics, at least until I find an idea I just have to do.
In 2025 I got hit with some nasty health issues, all inherited stuff, so it’s really cut into my available time for projects.
But never say never, I have quit comics before, so maybe in the future, who knows.
I may do some non-digital work, but if it’s too much on my health, I will go back to digital. I really should detail all the processes I use with images and screenshots. I have zero problem with anyone using my methods — in fact, I would prefer this over AI for artists.
To paraphrase Alex Toth, if it does not work on paper, it won’t work in film or animation, and I believe the same for 3D.
