Daniel Schaffer is a British based artist, writer, and filmmaker known for his underground classic comic book series DOGWITCH, as well as THE SCRIBBLER (both the book and movie), WIREMONKEYS (for Heavy Metal magazine), the 2018 film PERIPHERAL, and much more! His upcoming film, ELECTRIC MEAT, is being released by VVOMB STUDIO (which he founded). I recently had the opportunity to speak with Daniel about his career and influences.
MAD: Daniel, it’s always a pleasure speaking with you. I’ve been an obsessed cyber-stalker since way back in 2002 when your phenomenal underground cult-hit comic book series DOGWITCH (published by SIRIUS ENTERTAINMENT) first arrived on shelves. This is a very broad question, but one I am personally interested in - DOGWITCH ran for about 4 years, and 18 issues, with some special features and exclusive merch. How would you sum up that period for you, creatively, and how did the idea for Violet Grimm first come into development?
D.S.: DOGWITCH was change in direction for me at the time. I'd been doing sci-fi, but the publishers were all telling me not to pitch that genre as it was having a down turn and they already had enough sci-fi titles. So I adapted a cyberpunk story I was working on, changed all the tech weirdness to occult weirdness, and the result was DOGWITCH. That was the first time I got published. The reader response was really positive, and I love horror as much as sci-fi, so it was one of my favourite times in the business.
MAD: Realistically, is there any possibility that the quirky and unique world of DOGWITCH might get rebooted or a sequel series? Would you ever want to revisit that concept again? If someone said “here’s $3 million dollars!!!”, would you consider a film or TV adaptation?
D.S.: There have been a few producers chasing a film adaptation over the years but something usually screws it up - the Hollywood strikes, covid, the fact that the mid-budget range of films fell off the map completely. It would make a good TV series, I guess, like a kinkier WHAT WE DO IN THE SHADOWS. There's a film screenplay sitting here, I wrote it ages ago. I should probably write a lower budget version at some point. I'm back working in film now so maybe I'll shoot my own trashy, cheap, grindhouse DOGWITCH film one day.
MAD: Sorry to start off with the DOGWITCH stuff, you have done so much more since that series ended, including comic books, feature films, music videos, and photography. You’ve also contributed to HEAVY METAL magazine in recent years. What has been the most artistically and creative fulfilling thing for you (either publicly, or in your private life)?
D.S.: I try to chase jobs that give me complete artistic freedom. I've managed to do that in comics and some of the film stuff. Screenwriting gives me less control, but I love creative collaboration process too, so I don't mind. The film I just shot, ELECTRIC MEAT, was self-funded through my own company, so that was creatively fulfilling as I didn't have to answer to anyone else.
MAD: What has been the most frustrating aspect of the past decade of your creative life?
DS: Working in any artistic field in the current cultural climate is frustrating now because art has been systematically undervalued for the last couple of decades (not including that gaffer tape banana or whatever it was). It's been re-categorized by greedy corporate types as "content" to generate advertising dollars! If you think art is something more than that, you're in a constant uphill battle.
MAD: As mentioned, HEAVY METAL is currently being relaunched. What are your initial thoughts on that, and is there any possibility that you’ll be involved with new features there?
D.S.: I don't know what they're up to, to be honest. There are still some unprinted WIREMONKEYS episodes and scripts for another monthly series they commissioned from me, but I don't think the magazine is going to be monthly anymore so I don't know what their relaunch is going to look like. I'm working back in film again now anyway so I don't have any plans to start making comics again any time soon.
MAD: Over the past few months, I watched the independent film PERIPHERAL (2018), which is excellent, by the way. You were the screenwriter on that movie, and I think it took many elements of your personal visionary storytelling aesthetics. How did the development of this film come about?
D.S.: That film's a bit like my autobiography but from the perspective of my subconscious. A.I. wasn't a thing when I wrote it but there was already a lot of "writing assistant" tech out there at the time. Even basic programs like Final Draft were adding stuff to help you write better and I just kept thinking, who is this for? It might be great, I don't know, but I'd rather not have anyone or anything "helping" me put my ideas onto paper. PERIPHERAL was kind of about that and also trying to capture the weird Kafkaesque nature of what it feels like being a subversive writer in a world that wants unchallenging, comforting, middle-class stories. The fact that it turned out to be kind of prophetic was just a fluke. There's a graphic novel version of it, also written by me with art by Vince Locke, but it's just sitting on a publisher's shelf somewhere and they have no intention of printing it (talking of frustrating bullshit in this business).
MAD: What are some of your thoughts on A.I. generated art, writing, and content in general?
D.S.: It's hard to keep up, it's evolving so quickly. As soon as you form an opinion about it, it all changes. As a writer and artist, obviously I don't much care for A.I. art. The whole point of art, to me, isn't just entertainment, it's about sharing ideas, exploring our connections and putting the stuff that's inside us out into the world so we can all get a richer perspective on the human condition. I think this genuinely helps us grow and evolve as a species. You can tell I take art quite seriously. If someone gets a robot to write or draw something for them to sell or share, it might look amazing, but what's the point? Maybe if the machines become genuinely sentient one day they'll have something to say artistically but, until then, they're just scraping human ideas when they should really be focusing on curing cancer or something.
MAD: Do you have any advice for other independent artists (particularly in the comic book medium), or film-makers?
D.S.: Get paid up front, believe in your own vision but be open to suggestions, be nice, don't get rushed into signing a contract, don't work for contracted back ends as they don't exist. I've never met single artist, writer, actor or director, who's ever seen a dime from net profit participations. Don't undervalue your own ideas, don't let people who have never achieved anything artistically tell you how to be an artist, and, if you find success, watch out for people trying to piggy back on it to help themselves. They'll always screw you for a piece of the pie. Don't wait for anyone to give you permission to do your own creative thing, just do it and stick at it until it's done.
MAD: Please tell me a little bit about what’s going on with the recent photography and music videos over the past couple of years.
D.S.: When Heavy Metal went down taking all my work and money with it, I was left high and dry, so I cashed out an old private pension I had, quit comics, and taught myself how to use cameras and editing software. I already knew how to write screenplays so I wrote one that would be cheap to film, started a film company (VVOMB STUDIO) and made a movie with a handful of actors. I'm in the middle of editing it now. One of the actors, Nina Courson, is the singer from Healthy Junkies, so, while we were filming, I shot some promos for her band. That was a good laugh so I hope to do some more music related stuff/video work.
MAD: Favorite comic book title? Favorite book? Favorite band? Favorite film?
D.S.: I can't even look at a comic at the moment. I just dropped off most of my collection at the local charity shop to make shelf space for other things.
Favorite book: Hard to pick just one but I'll go with Slaughterhouse 5, as I've read it more times than any other.
Favorite band: Right now, HEALTHY JUNKIES, of course!! They just dropped a new album called LISTEN TO THE MAD, and it's brilliant. Check them out.
Favorite film: That's easy, ERASERHEAD.
MAD: Once again, thanks so much for your time today, and it’s been cool catching up and am looking forward to what’s in store! In close, is there anything else you’d else like to leave readers with?
D.S.: Never trust A.I. and try not to join a cult. Find me on the usual socials under VVOMB STUDIO.
www.vvombstudio.com
https://www.healthyjunkies.co.uk/
Thanks for having me Mike. Always a pleasure chatting with you.
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Michael A. Dyer is the creator and host of the HORROR TO CULTURE podcast, vidcast, and website.
