{"id":100135,"date":"2023-06-28T19:02:00","date_gmt":"2023-06-28T23:02:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/?post_type=bu-article&#038;p=100135"},"modified":"2023-07-20T10:57:55","modified_gmt":"2023-07-20T14:57:55","slug":"comics-animator-jeff-wamester","status":"publish","type":"bu-article","link":"https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/magazine\/articles\/2023\/comics-animator-jeff-wamester\/","title":{"rendered":"Super Animator"},"content":{"rendered":"\t<div class=\"wp-block-editorial-leadin magazine-block-editorial-leadin is-style-image-to-text has-media has-media-focus-center-middle has-primary-theme\">\n\t\t<div class=\"container-lockup\">\n\n\t\t\t<div class=\"wp-block-leadin-media\">\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<img width=\"2560\" height=\"1280\" src=\"\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-Jeff-Wamester-scaled.jpg\" class=\"\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-Jeff-Wamester-scaled.jpg 2560w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-Jeff-Wamester-636x318.jpg 636w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-Jeff-Wamester-1024x512.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-Jeff-Wamester-768x384.jpg 768w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-Jeff-Wamester-1536x768.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-Jeff-Wamester-2048x1024.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-Jeff-Wamester-1628x814.jpg 1628w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\" \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"wp-block-editorial-leadin-caption wp-prepress-component-caption\">Jeff Wamester is a director at Warner Bros. Animation, where he oversees direct-to-video films based on DC Comics characters. Photo by Patrick Strattner<\/p>\n\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"container-words-outer\">\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"container-words-inner\">\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"wp-prepress-tag\">CFA Alumni<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h1 class=\"head\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSuper Animator\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h4 class=\"deck\">Jeff Wamester brings your favorite comic characters to life onscreen<\/h4>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\n\t<\/div>\n\n\t\n<div class=\"wp-prepress-component-metabar magazine-prepress-layout-metabar\">\n\t<div class=\"wp-prepress-component-metabar-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"wp-prepress-component-metabar-date\">June 28, 2023<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"wp-prepress-component-metabar-credits\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<ul data-credit-type=\"By\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<li><a href=\"https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/magazine\/authors\/mara-sassoon\/\">Mara Sassoon<\/a><\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/ul>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"wp-prepress-component-metabar-share js-bu-prepress-share-tools\">\n\t\t\t<span class=\"icon-twitter\"><span>Twitter<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t<span class=\"icon-facebook\"><span>Facebook<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t<span class=\"icon-action\"><\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\t\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-editorial-introparagraph magazine-block-editorial-introparagraph is-style-dropcap-dimensional has-dropcap has-dropcap-color-primary\"><div class=\"wp-block-editorial-introparagraph-content\"><p>When Jeff Wamester was growing up in the 1970s and \u201980s in a small Connecticut town, his world revolved around drawing, cartoons, and comics. He looked forward to Saturday mornings, when he could plant himself in front of the television and watch his favorite animated series for hours. \u201cI was absolutely fascinated with shows like <em>Voltron <\/em>and <em>Macross<\/em>, which were part of the beginning of anime gaining popularity in the United States,\u201d he says. \u201cI couldn\u2019t get enough of them.\u201d After his morning cartoons, he\u2019d slip away to sketch or pore over a stack of comics. \u201cI read everything from Marvel and DC Comics. I\u2019d borrow them from my local barbershop of all places. They had a bunch of comics that had just been sitting there for an eternity. Some of them were 30 or 40 years old.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>By the time <a href=\"https:\/\/jeffwamester.com\/about\/\">Wamester<\/a> (\u201994) was nearing high school graduation, he realized that reading comics and watching cartoons could be more than just hobbies\u2014he wanted to make them for a living. He studied art and illustration at BU and the University of Connecticut and today works for Warner Bros. Animation. As a director, Wamester oversees direct-to-video films based on DC Comics characters, including <em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hbomax.com\/feature\/urn:hbo:feature:GYYrPZglAcomBwwEAAAAC\">Justice Society: World War II<\/a> <\/em>(2021), which features the Flash, Wonder Woman, Superman, and Hawkman; and <em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt22769820\/\">Legion of Super-Heroes<\/a><\/em> (2023), in which Supergirl attends a superhero training school.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWorking on these projects is exciting,\u201d Wamester says. \u201cOne of the things I find the most fun is trying to dig deep into these characters and consider how they are going to react to certain situations, and how they are going to grow. Every scene means something toward that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2>Building a Film<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Wamester\u2019s filmmaking process starts when he gets a script from the writers. It\u2019s his job to make the visuals that bring those words to life. First, he oversees the creation of a storyboard, or a series of drawings that roughly illustrate key moments in the script. He works with a group of storyboard artists, sometimes 10 or more, going over the aim of the film and assigning each one a section of the script to illustrate using the software Storyboard Pro.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed-youtube wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"responsive-video responsive-youtube\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Superman: Man of Tomorrow boards by Jeff Wamester\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Kvxi1xl1K38?start=8&#038;feature=oembed&#038;enablejsapi=1&#038;origin=https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption>An example of an animatic for <em>Superman: Man of Tomorrow<\/em>. Jeff Wamester<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cMaking storyboards can be a real grind because it\u2019s a lot of drawings you have to do,\u201d he says. \u201cWe\u2019re talking probably around 1,000 to 1,200 individual panels that need to be drawn.\u201d Wamester speaks from experience. He got his start in the industry as a storyboard revisionist for the animation company Film Roman\u2019s TV series <em>Ultimate Spider-Man<\/em>, and continues to work on storyboards on a freelance basis. Revisionists step in after directors request changes to storyboards. They\u2019ll change frames to better fit the timing of the film or television show, add elements to a scene (or take them out), and clean up the drawings to get them ready for the next step: creating the animated version of the storyboard, called the animatic, which plays the rough drawings in sequence, timed to voiceovers and sometimes music.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"683\" height=\"1024\" src=\"\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-003-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-100430\" srcset=\"https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-003-683x1024.jpg 683w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-003-424x636.jpg 424w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-003-768x1152.jpg 768w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-003-1024x1536.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-003-1365x2048.jpg 1365w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-003-667x1000.jpg 667w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-003.jpg 1500w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 683px) 100vw, 683px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-color has-background has-text-align-center has-normal-font-size has-black-color has-secondary-background-color is-style-caption\">Wamester has been obsessed with comics and animation since he was a child growing up in a small town in Connecticut. He would borrow stacks of old comics from his local barbershop. \u201cThey had a bunch of comics that had just been sitting there for an eternity. Some of them were 30 or 40 years old.\u201d Photo by Patrick Strattner<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The foundational skills Wamester developed in classes at CFA, including understanding color theory and rendering three-dimensional objects, have helped him in his animation career. \u201cAll of the drawing classes that I took, too, made a huge difference,\u201d he says. \u201cI found that because I had a lot of life drawing experience, I am able to draw really quickly, really accurately, and proportionally. I spend less time thinking about how I\u2019m going to draw something and more time thinking about the story and the points that we\u2019re trying to make. If you haven\u2019t honed your drawing skill like that, then you\u2019re fighting between telling the story and trying to draw the picture.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There are different approaches to creating storyboards, but the process always starts with a series of more rudimentarily sketched-out versions\u2014the \u201croughs\u201d\u2014and ends with a set of more polished panels called \u201ccleans.\u201d It can take about eight weeks to storyboard just 7 to 10 minutes of film.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-editorial-photoessay magazine-block-editorial-photoessay alignfull wp-block-photoessay js-block-editorial-photoessay\"><div class=\"photo-row-square-s-s-s\">\n<div class=\"photo-s\"><div class=\"wp-block-photoessay-media\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"889\" height=\"500\" src=\"\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-storyboard-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-100427\" srcset=\"https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-storyboard-1.jpg 889w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-storyboard-1-636x358.jpg 636w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-storyboard-1-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-storyboard-1-854x480.jpg 854w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 889px) 100vw, 889px\" \/><\/figure><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"photo-s\"><div class=\"wp-block-photoessay-media\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" src=\"\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-storyboard-2-1024x576.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-100428\" srcset=\"https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-storyboard-2-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-storyboard-2-636x358.jpg 636w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-storyboard-2-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-storyboard-2-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-storyboard-2-1200x675.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-storyboard-2-992x558.jpg 992w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-storyboard-2-1500x844.jpg 1500w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-storyboard-2-1628x916.jpg 1628w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-storyboard-2-1600x900.jpg 1600w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-storyboard-2-1366x768.jpg 1366w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-storyboard-2-1280x720.jpg 1280w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-storyboard-2-854x480.jpg 854w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-storyboard-2.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"photo-s\"><div class=\"wp-block-photoessay-media\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"889\" height=\"500\" src=\"\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-storyboard-3.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-100429\" srcset=\"https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-storyboard-3.jpg 889w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-storyboard-3-636x358.jpg 636w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-storyboard-3-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-storyboard-3-854x480.jpg 854w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 889px) 100vw, 889px\" \/><\/figure><\/div><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-background has-normal-font-size has-primary-background-color\">For each film he directs, Wamester oversees the creation of a storyboard, a series of drawings that illustrate key moments in the script. It can consist of more than 1,000 individual panels, like those above from <em>Legion of Super-Heroes<\/em>. Images courtesy of Jeff Wamester<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cSome people pick out key points,\u201d Wamester says, \u201cand they board those first and then go back and connect them. Some people do it more straightforward. I\u2019ve taken that approach. I read the whole story, so I know it in my head, and I\u2019ll start drawing it out chronologically. If I see something\u2019s not working, I\u2019ll backtrack and fix it until it\u2019s got the functional trail or sequence that I want to create in the setup for that moment.\u201d The first draft, he says, is usually just for placing characters and seeing how they are moving through a scene. In later versions, the drawings get more detailed and characters begin to look truer to their final form, with their emotions and expressions added.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-editorial-photoessay magazine-block-editorial-photoessay alignwide wp-block-photoessay js-block-editorial-photoessay\"><div class=\"photo-row-tall-1-1\">\n<div class=\"photo-1\"><div class=\"wp-block-photoessay-media\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"500\" height=\"750\" src=\"\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-008.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-100433\" srcset=\"https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-008.jpg 500w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-008-424x636.jpg 424w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/figure><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"photo-1\"><div class=\"wp-block-photoessay-media\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"500\" height=\"750\" src=\"\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-009.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-100432\" srcset=\"https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-009.jpg 500w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-009-424x636.jpg 424w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/figure><\/div><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-background has-normal-font-size has-tertiary-background-color\">In his role at Warner Bros. Animation, Wamester is also involved in character development and design. Photos by Patrick Strattner<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>On the films he directs, Wamester gives feedback to storyboard artists as soon as they turn in the first rough panels. \u201cI start making suggestions, like, we need to emphasize this, or this action doesn\u2019t hit the target for what we\u2019re trying to do in this scene, or we can use a better moment here or a different kind of shot.\u201d He\u2019ll get a revised version back to further fine-tune. \u201cSometimes there will be a story point that I\u2019m like, \u2018Oh, this isn\u2019t going to work, whatever way we do it.\u2019 My job is to go to the producer and let them know that I think there\u2019s a problem. Sometimes I\u2019ll even come up with a solution and provide it, writing half a page of the story, or revising lines, adding lines, or pulling lines.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>After the animatic is created, the film heads to production. Using various software programs, members of the animation team refine the pacing and design\u2014including how the characters and environments should look\u2014and animate the sequences, honing the color and lighting, adding voiceovers and music, and working with sound designers to perfect other sonic effects.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-bu-pullquote magazine-block-bu-pullquote alignwide is-style-modern has-image has-image-focus-center-middle has-primary-theme\"><div class=\"wp-block-bu-pullquote-inner\"><blockquote><div class=\"container-lockup\"><div class=\"container-icon-outer\"><div class=\"container-icon-inner\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1707\" class=\"bu-blocks-background has-background-opacity has-background-opacity-60 wp-image-100424\" src=\"\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-006-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-006-scaled.jpg 2560w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-006-636x424.jpg 636w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-006-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-006-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-006-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-006-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-006-1500x1000.jpg 1500w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-006-900x600.jpg 900w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-006-450x300.jpg 450w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Super-Animator-WAMESTER-006-600x400.jpg 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\" \/><\/div><\/div><div class=\"container-text\"><hr\/><div class=\"quote-sizing\">All of the drawing classes that I took [at CFA] made a huge difference. I found that because I had a lot of life drawing experience, I am able to draw really quickly, really accurately, and proportionally.<\/div><footer class=\"caption\"><br\/><em>Jeff Wamester<\/em><\/footer><hr\/><\/div><\/div><\/blockquote><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed-youtube wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"responsive-video responsive-youtube\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES | Trailer | Warner Home Entertainment\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/DKNjOwuBDbo?feature=oembed&#038;enablejsapi=1&#038;origin=https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption>Watch a trailer for <em>Legion of Super-Heroes<\/em>. Warner Bros. Entertainment<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>As director, Wamester is also involved in aspects of character development and design throughout the process of making a film. \u201cI go through the script and ask, \u2018What is this character\u2019s story, and how do they progress through the story?\u2019\u201d He makes sure that the films stay true to the characters involved. \u201cA lot of the characters we work with at WB exist within this canon. So, when we have a story, we\u2019re thinking about how the canon plays into the story. We\u2019re working within this huge network of stories and interactions, and we\u2019re trying to make sure that what we\u2019re doing is progressing these stories and characters, and motivating them. We want to avoid having a character do something \u2018just because.\u2019\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"alignright size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"927\" height=\"1024\" src=\"\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Colonel2-927x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-100922\" srcset=\"https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Colonel2-927x1024.jpg 927w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Colonel2-576x636.jpg 576w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Colonel2-768x849.jpg 768w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Colonel2-1390x1536.jpg 1390w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Colonel2-1854x2048.jpg 1854w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/05\/Colonel2-905x1000.jpg 905w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 927px) 100vw, 927px\" \/><figcaption>Wamester and writer B. Dave Walters have created <em>Electropunk: Children of the Future<\/em>, an alternative history graphic novel inspired by inventor and engineer Nikola Tesla. These are some of Wamester&#8217;s character designs for the project. Images courtesy of Wamester<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2>Comic-Con Moment<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Wamester will never forget the joy he felt as a kid, reading the comics he borrowed from his barber. \u201cI think ever since I picked a comic up, I\u2019ve wanted to create one myself,\u201d he says. For years, he\u2019d come up with ideas, eventually landing on one he thought was worth pursuing\u2014<em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.kickstarter.com\/projects\/electropunk\/electropunk-children-of-the-future\">Electropunk: Children of the Future<\/a><\/em>, an alternative history graphic novel inspired by inventor and engineer Nikola Tesla, who is well known for pioneering the use of AC electricity and who experimented with the wireless transmission of electricity. \u201cTesla\u2019s lab burned down in the 1890s, and he had said that he had hundreds of experiments in there that were destroyed, a ton of ideas that he was going to follow through on,\u201d Wamester says. \u201cThis story kicks in as if that never happened, and through those experiments he discovers there are indeed things that go bump in the night. And so he enlists his orphaned niece and nephew, who he trains from when they\u2019re very young, to help him stop these monsters.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>He pitched the idea to his writer friend B. Dave Walters, who he was hoping would collaborate with him on the graphic novel. \u201cHe thought it was such a cool idea,\u201d Wamester says. \u201cWe had an initial meeting, and he just took off and wrote the graphic novel, along with a 12-issue miniseries and another origin prequel novel.\u201d In 2020, at the beginning of the pandemic, they launched a Kickstarter campaign with the hope of raising enough money to produce the comic. They raised a little more than $45,000, more than their $30,000 goal. After beginning production on it two years ago, Wamester says, they completed a final proof in December 2022 and are looking for a publisher.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In the meantime, Wamester is basking in the full-circle trajectory of his career. In July 2022, he was a panelist at San Diego Comic-Con, where he premiered <em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt20192230\/\">Green Lantern: Beware My Power<\/a><\/em>, another film he directed for Warner Bros. Animation. He joined the film\u2019s voice actors\u2014Aldis Hodge (<em>Black Adam<\/em>), Jimmi Simpson (<em>Westworld<\/em>), and Jamie Gray Hyder (<em>Law &amp; Order: SVU<\/em>)\u2014onstage to answer fans\u2019 questions about the film. \u201cIt\u2019s exciting to have a movie showing up on the screen and have that many people cheer and laugh at places that I had been thinking, \u2018Oh, I want to make them laugh here,\u2019\u201d he says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"is-style-end-of-article\">\u201cIt\u2019s hard to explain the level of excitement of people at Comic-Con, and when you get to be onstage, that energy absolutely flows your way. It very much fuels you. I mean, this is stuff that I got excited about when I was a kid, and it\u2019s so cool to be on this end of it now.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories is-style-card has-three magazine-block-editorial-relatedstories\">\n\t\t<h3 class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-title\">Related<\/h3>\n\t\t<ul class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-list\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-list-item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<article class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-article\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-article-image\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img width=\"2000\" height=\"1335\" src=\"\/cfa\/files\/2023\/02\/Joel-Christian-Gill-22-1673-VISUAL-032-feat.jpeg\" class=\"attachment-post-thumbnail size-post-thumbnail wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/02\/Joel-Christian-Gill-22-1673-VISUAL-032-feat.jpeg 2000w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/02\/Joel-Christian-Gill-22-1673-VISUAL-032-feat-636x425.jpeg 636w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/02\/Joel-Christian-Gill-22-1673-VISUAL-032-feat-1024x684.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/02\/Joel-Christian-Gill-22-1673-VISUAL-032-feat-768x512.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/02\/Joel-Christian-Gill-22-1673-VISUAL-032-feat-1536x1025.jpeg 1536w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/02\/Joel-Christian-Gill-22-1673-VISUAL-032-feat-1498x1000.jpeg 1498w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/02\/Joel-Christian-Gill-22-1673-VISUAL-032-feat-900x600.jpeg 900w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/02\/Joel-Christian-Gill-22-1673-VISUAL-032-feat-450x300.jpeg 450w, https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2023\/02\/Joel-Christian-Gill-22-1673-VISUAL-032-feat-600x400.jpeg 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-article-content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-article-category\"><span>Visual Arts<\/span><\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h4 class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-article-title\"><a href=\"https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/news\/articles\/2023\/comics-artist-joel-christian-gill-launches-bus-new-visual-narrative-mfa-degree\/\" class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-article-title-link\">Comics Artist Joel Christian Gill Launches BU\u2019s New Visual Narrative MFA Degree<\/a><\/h4>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-article-date\">February 27, 2023<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"wp-prepress-component-article-share wp-prepress-component-article-share-sharedby-news\"><span class=\"wp-prepress-component-article-share-label\">Shared from<\/span> <span 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450w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-article-content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-article-category\"><span>Visual Arts<\/span><\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h4 class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-article-title\"><a href=\"https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/news\/articles\/2021\/two-ways-of-exploring-visual-narrative\/\" class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-article-title-link\">Two Ways of Exploring Visual Narrative<\/a><\/h4>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-article-date\">July 21, 2021<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"wp-prepress-component-article-share wp-prepress-component-article-share-sharedby-news\"><span class=\"wp-prepress-component-article-share-label\">Shared from<\/span> <span class=\"wp-prepress-component-article-share-source\"><div class=\"editorial-branding editorial-branding-news bu-prepress-branding-type-text\"><div class=\"editorial-branding-wrap\">News<\/div><\/div><\/span><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-list-item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<article class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-article\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-article-image\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img width=\"580\" height=\"372\" src=\"\/cfa\/files\/2017\/03\/bighero6.jpeg\" class=\"attachment-post-thumbnail size-post-thumbnail wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-article-content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-article-category\"><span>CFA Alumni<\/span><\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h4 class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-article-title\"><a href=\"https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/news\/articles\/2017\/from-sketch-to-screen\/\" class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-article-title-link\">From Sketch to Screen<\/a><\/h4>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"wp-block-editorial-relatedstories-article-date\">March 13, 2017<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"wp-prepress-component-article-share wp-prepress-component-article-share-sharedby-news\"><span class=\"wp-prepress-component-article-share-label\">Shared from<\/span> <span class=\"wp-prepress-component-article-share-source\"><div class=\"editorial-branding editorial-branding-news bu-prepress-branding-type-text\"><div class=\"editorial-branding-wrap\">News<\/div><\/div><\/span><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/ul>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By the time Wamester (\u201994) was nearing high school graduation, he realized that reading comics and watching cartoons could be more than just hobbies\u2014he wanted to make them for a living. He studied art and illustration at BU and the University of Connecticut and today works for Warner Bros. Animation. As a director, Wamester oversees [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6310,"featured_media":100424,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"bu_prepress_billboard":"{\"post_id\":98498,\"hed\":\"Comics Artist Joel Christian Gill Launches BU\\u2019s New Visual Narrative MFA Degree\",\"dek\":\"Next Article\",\"class\":\"wp-block-editorial-billboard magazine-block-editorial-billboard\",\"backgroundType\":\"image\",\"backgroundOpacity\":\"100\"}","_bu_prepress_primary_term":"","_bu_prepress_primary_term_manual":""},"tags":[],"bu-publication":[191],"magazine-article-category":[372,379],"magazine-topic":[],"news-article-category":[],"news-topic":[],"bu_edition":[396],"media_type":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/bu-article\/100135"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/bu-article"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/bu-article"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6310"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=100135"}],"version-history":[{"count":26,"href":"https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/bu-article\/100135\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":101261,"href":"https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/bu-article\/100135\/revisions\/101261"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/100424"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=100135"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=100135"},{"taxonomy":"bu-publication","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/bu-publication?post=100135"},{"taxonomy":"magazine-article-category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/magazine-article-category?post=100135"},{"taxonomy":"magazine-topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/magazine-topic?post=100135"},{"taxonomy":"news-article-category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-article-category?post=100135"},{"taxonomy":"news-topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-topic?post=100135"},{"taxonomy":"bu_edition","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/bu_edition?post=100135"},{"taxonomy":"media_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/id-andrea.cms-devl.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media_type?post=100135"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}