Frank MIller

         

Frank Miller is an American writer, artist, and film director best known for his dark comic book stories and graphic novels such as Ronin, Daredevil: Born Again, The Dark Knight Returns, Sin City and 300.

Born: January 27, 1957 (age 57), Olney, Maryland, United States

Books: Born Again, Holy Terror, Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, more
movie: Sin City: A Dame to Kill For

TV shows: HypaSpace

INFLUENCES:

"O: Do you have specific graphic influences you look to?
FM: Well, yeah. Just about everything I can get my hands on. As far as training goes, one unofficial teacher of mine was the artist Neal Adams, who put up with me when I kept showing up at his studio. He would do tissue overlays to show me how to compose a page better, and generally tell me to give up and go home. But I kept coming back until I was able to get some work." (taken from an interview between Frank Miller and A.V club)

COLOUR:

Frank Miller is not very well known for using colour. Except for Black, white, and sometimes red. he doesn't use any shading or toning however he does use some cross hatching witch creates the illusion of tone/shading. apart from this Frank Miller uses black ink on white background. this makes his art look like a photograph with very high threshold even though all of his works are completely hand drawn. this is a very strong contrasting effect and when a splash or red such as blood is added it becomes very visally appealing. 

"O: Is there any metaphorical significance to the unusual black-and-white art, with no gray tones?
FM: Actually, it was because Lynn Varley really didn't feel like coloring comics at the time. But also, I wanted to see if I could actually do the whole book myself. That's also why I lettered it. And it fits the genre so well. In a way, Sin City's designed to be paced somewhere between an American comic book and Japanese manga. Working in black and white, I realized that the eye is less patient, and you have to make your point, and sometimes repeat it. Slowing things down is harder in black and white, because there isn't as much for the eye to enjoy. A lot of my job is slowing you down. That's really a lot of what goes into a comic book. Finding ways to charm or amuse the eye in ways that make you linger. Because unlike in a film, I have no control over your eye. Technically, you could read my work in seconds, and I want you to take minutes."

"O: The black-and-white art does tend to suggest a moral simplicity that's echoed in the heroic scale of your characters—the epic, larger-than-life bad guys, particularly.
FM: The larger-than-life thing is definitely what I'm after. I've always drawn dark stories. Occasionally, I'll try a perfect hero, but it's a real stretch for me. I like 'em warts and all, and obsessive and weird. No wonder the superhero I'm most associated with dresses up like a bat."

MAIN IMAGE:

Frank Miller is a story teller he creates comics so his main image(s) range a lot from people and animals to landscapes buildings and vehicles. these change through each panel on each page and also depend on whats happening in the story at the time. but if he had to be catergorised to one main image id say that it was people or characters since he is writing storys about people and their lives/struggles so people are a very important part of his work. 

LAYOUT:  

Frank Millers layout isn't that different to other comic

artists since they all follow the same basic rules to layout.

beside I have provided a page from Frank Millers Daredevil

to help explain the way comic panels work and the general

direction that the eye is guided through the page.                                         

(Frank MIllers 'DareDevil')

      (Page from Frank Millers 'Daredevil')

TEXT/TYPE:

Text is obviously a very important part of comics and Frank Millers work however it is still a very simple part of it the only text in his work is dialogue of the charctures talking in the panels the font and size is often not very lage and most importantly very clear and easy to read. text/dialogue is presented in a speech bubble to the sides of the page so that they cover minimul space and don't cover important parts or expressions/events that's are happening in the panel.

SPACE: Frank miller pushes his pictures to the very edges of the panels often only showing the very most important parts of what needs to be shown at the time of the story. the panels cover the whole of the page however the number of panels can change from just one two paged image to one page completely fill of small panels.