Root Hog or Die (DVD)

*This is not a comic! Well, it comes with a mini-comic, but it's a documentary about comics!

By Dan Stafford. Produced by Kilgore Books. 

Region Free DVD, 100 minutes, 2016.
Softcover, 8 pages, B&W, 2016.

From the DVD Kickstarter:

For twenty-five years, John Porcellino has been self publishing 'King-Cat Comics & Stories', a black & white (generally) 32 page comic/zine. His collected stories have been published by Drawn and Quarterly, and his work has appeared in McSweeney's, The Best American Comics, Kramer's Ergot, the Anthologies of Graphic Fiction, and in countless other anthologies and collections.

As John describes it, he seeks to illustrate the 'moments-between-moments' that make up the majority of our lives. Looking at the snow falling. Watching a bird turn its head. Looking at the moon with your parents. 

John is an artist committed to punk rock & DIY ethics, and his uncompromising vision has made his a unique voice in the comics & zine community.

John's voice, aesthetic, and moral compass have inspired me, as they have countless others. He's inspired me In the way my friend and I run Kilgore Books & Comics, in the way we pay royalties to people we publish and strive to treat people fairly, and in the way I find myself walking through the woods with my son pointing out groundhogs and birds.

For nearly five years, I've been working on the John P. documentary, 'Root Hog or Die'. My goal has been to document a little more of his story for people like me who have been inspired by his work, and to get his work to others, who may normally pass by black and white mini-comics, or, never even come into contact with them.

I toured with John in support of his book 'Map of My Heart', I walked through the woods with him and roamed around Denver chatting with him. I've interviewed over twenty of his friends, fellow cartoonists, bandmates, admirers, and confidantes.

The material is all here, and I'm wrapping up the final edits and mastering this month. I'm editing down two versions of the film. The first is the 45 minute 'screener' which John will tour with this fall, going to 17 cities around the country. The second is the 'DVD cut' which will run 90-100 minutes.

The DVD will also contain the extended interviews and a few fun outtakes on the DVD, as well as an 8-page John P. comic insert, and packaging done by John.

When this Kickstarter is over, I'll be sending the masters off to a DVD plant who'll be producing the physical copy of the movie. Then, we'll be premiering the film at The Small Press Expo (SPX) in Bethesda, MD on the weekend of September 13/14, 2014.

Right after SPX, John will be hitting the road to tour the movie alongside his first ever original graphic novel, 'The Hospital Suite', which deals with the life-threatening series of illnesses John suffered from in the late 90's.