Student & Alumni Cartoonists Bring the Passion to 24-Hour Comics Challenge

Mark Simmons' "Commedia" is a disturbing tale of the effect a powerful puppet has on its owner. Simmons completed all 24 pages in 23-1/2 hours. He's a 2009 BFA grad of the School of Illustration.

One day — 24 hours — sounds like plenty of time to accomplish something … unless that “something” is to write, draw, letter and complete a 24-page comic book. Seventy Academy students and alumni recently stepped up for the 24-Hour Comics Challenge. In the end, one was standing: Mark Simmons, who finished 20 minutes early.

From Phnom Penh to San Francisco, comics creators gathered Oct. 3  — including at the Academy of Art University — to participate in the 24-Hour Comics Challenge, an event that’s part rite of passage and part annual tradition. Over the years, the challenge has thwarted and rewarded such luminaries as Scott McCloud, Dave Sim, Neil Gaiman and Kevin Eastman. School of Illustration instructor Dan Cooney describes it as “an energetic creativity marathon.”

At the Academy's 24-Hour Comics Challenge gathering, 70 students and alumni took on the challenge, 50 of them hung in for all 24 hours, and one — Mark Simmons — accomplished the remarkable feat of finishing an entire 24-page book. Photo by Bob Toy.

In just under the allotted time, Mark Simmons (BFA09 Illustration) brought his comic, titled Commedia, to life with pen, paper, ink and a harrowing story. The tale of an infinitely powerful puppet’s effect on its owner, Commmedia explores horror and even political themes. For his concept, Simmons drew on the nature of the 24-Hour Challenge. “In the spirit of the day, I made the comic a snapshot of my current state of mind,” he says. “Being surly and British, the character of Mr. Punch naturally suggested itself, and the rest of the story followed from there.”

According to creators of the challenge, somewhere around the 19^th hour there’s a tendency for entrants to cut corners: a character falls into a cavern or is lost in a snowstorm, allowing the artist to produce a page with no drawing, only dialog. None of those cheap tricks for Simmons.

“First and foremost, I wanted to finish all 24 pages,” he says. “And I wanted to do it as much as possible by the rules — I didn’t draw anything ahead of time, and I tried to keep it as loose and spontaneous as possible. I’m still kind of amazed I was able to pull it off, but it’s nice to know you’re capable of something like that.”

24-Hour Challenge work by Andrew Mar, a BFA student in Illustration.

Cooney, organizer of the Academy gathering, calls this “the ideal setting for passionate illustration students to devote their talents to crafting innovative comic books in the span of just one day.” He certainly knows the range of skills required: A veteran, he’s done it all — writing, penciling, inking, coloring, lettering and book design. Cooney currently produces his own stylish action thrillers, Valentine and Tommy Gun Dolls. Proving that comics go deeper than ink, he met his wife Carolina at Comic Con.

You can see all 24 pages of Simmons’ Commedia online at his blog. Learn more about him at his website.

See Dan Cooney’s art and learn more at his website and his blog.