1. What initially drew you to comics?
I was very little when I was first introduced to comic books but they blew my mind immediately with the dazzling display of art and story blending into one.
My first American comic book was an issue of The Amazing Spider-Man, my Dad brought it to me when i was sick in bed with a nasty flu, and from that moment on i was completely obsessed with Marvel comic.
I have always been drawing since i could hold a pencil in my hands, but comics gave me something to chase by following my passion.
I think what drew me into comics was the potential for an infinite amount of adventures.
Super Heroes, Fantasy, Sci-Fi or Horror...you can have comics in any genre or form and it pulls on something very primitive inside of us.
The use of illustrations to tell a story is probably the most ancient art form in our history, you just can't beat that. 2. Please tell us about your creative process.
It all starts with the script or if i'm lucky, a plot. I love working the "old Marvel way", having to illustrate a plot leaves an immense room for the artist, gives him an almost complete control over storytelling and pacing.
Once i have that, i start sketching out thumbnails for each page, working small allows me to see the whole page in one glance, so i can focus on storytelling and composition without being slowed down by details.
After that i start refining the sketch, bringing shadows and light sources into the mix, so i can direct the emotional aspect of the panels. Once that's done i start inking, that's where all the detail work starts to get tightened up and things begin to look "pretty" :D
3. You've worked on some very well-known titles -- any experiences stand out as particularly positive?
I have to confess, I think I am one of the luckiest artists out there.
Since the beginning, I have been able to work with some amazing writers, people that know how to tell a story and how to bring out the best in a comic book artist. Of all my past projects the two that are closest to my heart are The Thing, with Dan Slott, because it was so incredibly funny and entertaining, and Annihilation because Keith Giffen just gave me an epic blockbuster in the cosmic Marvel playground and cut me loose into it. Some stories just resonate with you while you are working on them, and I have been lucky enough to have more than a few of them in my career. I hope to have that privilege many more times! 4. Where can we find more information about your work?
The Marvel website has all the information anybody needs about my work, or you can follow me on Instagram and Facebook, i regularly post news and some art there. Thank you very much, or as they say around my parts...Grazie mille! :)