Jean Giraud

by Laurence Hamilton - 205271

Franco-Belgian comics (French: Bande dessine) experienced a surge in popularity during the 1960's and '70's, driven by a new generation of artists and writers who sought to break away from the classic styling of previous Franco-Belgian masters such as Herg (Tintin) and Uderzo (Asterix). Of these new students of the bande dessine, Jean Giraud rose above his peers to have a notable impact on not only the world of comic art both in France and worldwide, but on art across several mediums including film, anime, manga and video games. Born on May 8th, 1938 in Paris, Jean Giraud, who went by the pseudonym Gir in his earlier professional years, is most well known outside of France as the monomynous Moebius. Famous for his detailed illustrations, fantastical worlds and distinct line-work, his ability to combine traditional comic book aesthetics with subjective colour has made his output instantly recognisable and an immeasurable influence on many other notable artists that have followed. Giraud's first big break was with with artist Joeseph Gillian, known as Jij, on the Western Jerry Spring in 1961. It was with Jij that Giraud explored cultivated his use and technique with subjective colours. Use of subjective colour was rare in both US comics and bande dessines at the time, involving a deliberate and unconventional application of colour that bordered on the irrational; and example would be from the Jerry Spring comic, in which Spring meets a Mexican who is saddled on a pink donkey (Screech, 2005). Now known as Gir, Giraud rose to prominence in 1963 upon the publication of the Western-themed graphic novel series Lieutenant Blueberry; a collaboration with writer Jean-Michel Charlier. Detailed environments, interiors, characters and an emphasis on meticulous line work set himself apart from his previous work with Jij (Screech, 2005). To this day, Lieutenant Blueberry still enjoys a healthy readership and popularity throughout both France and Europe, and remains in publication, though has not been translated into English since 1995. While Giraud's pseudonym Gir is generally tied to the Lieutenant Blueberry series, he is seldom referred to as it outside of France. In reference to the name Gir and its ties to the success of Lieutenant Blueberry , Giraud goes as far as to say: An initial press run is now 200,000 copies, and over time sales can reach one million. Yet I only sell about 500 to 2,000 Moebius booksits so small as to be almost nonexistent. In the United States, its the complete oppositeno one knows Jean Giraud or Gir. When I go to Skywalker Ranch or a comics convention, people want to shake hands with Moebius. Its a bit ironic(francemagazine, 2002). After an almost decade-long hiatus, Giraud would revert back to using the nom de plume Moebius in the early-to-late 1970's, inspired by the Mbius strip which he had seen in a local French science fiction magazine (Screech 2005). Previously, as far back as 1963, he had adopted the name for the obscure satire magazine Hara Kiri, where created 21 strips ending in 1964 (Vadeboncoeur, 1999).

In December of 1974, Moebius (along with Bernard Farkas, Jean-Pierre Dionnet, Philippe Druillet and Jean-Pierre Dionnet) founded the publishing house Les Humanodes Associs in order to publish the anthological surrealist/sci-fi/horror themed Mtal Hurlant, published as Heavy Metal in the United States. It was through Mtal Hurlant that Moebius would gain international recognition as an artist. The most widely recognisable images of his career would come from the epic series Arzach, a series of 4-pannelled strips containing no dialogue showing the journey of a silent warrior riding through various landscapes on a pterodactyl. Arzach's dreamscapes and vistas would be the spark that ignited the creation of the video game Panzer Dragoon, exactly 20 years after its first publication. Developed by Team Andromeda for Sega's Sega Saturn in 1995, Moebius himself was commissioned by the game's lead artist, Manabu Kusunoki to create concepts and imagery for the game. In a later interview with the games designers, cutscene and character modelling artist Takashi Iwade recalls, Back then the team members were big fans of Moebius, and what actually happened is that Sega developed all of the game's enemies and bosses, and sent them to Moebius, who had been commissioned to do some illustrative art. He interpreted the designs and the results became the cover art for the Japanese release.(europe1.fr, 2012) Texture artist Kentaro Yoshida continutes As we were such big fans of Moebius, we were surprised with the results because they were not as abstract as we expected. It was very in keeping with the game. (europe1.fr, 2012) From 1975 onward, the name Moebius became as mainstream as Giraud himself. Heavy Metal paved the way for future recognition and as such, he was enlisted to help in a variety of film projects including costume design for Ridley Scott's Alien, design and storyboarding for Alejandro Jodorowsky's never-realised Dune, George Lucas' Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back and Disney's Tron. (io9.com, 2012) Films such as Willow, The Abyss and Masters of the Universe were all touched by the influence of Moebius. Restless on set, Dan OBannon, writer and effects expert on Jodorowsky's Dune, wrote and drew a brief futurisic-noir detective comic strip. Moebius fell in love with it and immediately set about redrawing a version of his own This resulted in the creation of sixteen page noir-extravaganza, The Long Tomorrrow. The strips influence on Ridley Scott's Blade Runner could not be understated enough. Moebius later wrote I love Blade Runner. But I am very happy, touched even, that my collaboration with Dan became one of the visual references of the film..(Tor.com, 2012) On the subject of Blade Runner's influence and ground-breaking visual style, Scott later said in a 1992 interview with Details Magazine "...Years later, I was having lunch with Ridley, and when the conversation turned to inspiration, we were both very clear about our debt to the Metal Hurlant [the original Heavy Metal magazine] school of the '70s Moebius and the others..." (cyberpunkcomics.com, 2010) Giraud's influence did not only extend to Hollywood cinema and video games. Hayao Miyazaki, founder of the acclaimed Japanese animation house Studio Ghibli, would find great

influence in the work of Moebius which ultimately lead to a professional and personal relationship. Miyazaki acknowledged the influence Moebius had on his work, particularly on Nausica of the Valley of the Wind. There are distinct visual relationships between Nausica and Moebius' Mtal Hurlant series Arzach, especially evidenced by environment and colour tones. One such telling example is the glider Nausica rides on, which is practically an homage to the pterodactyl creature featured in the Arzach series, at least aesthetically. When questioned on the influence that Arzach had on the production of Nausica of the Valley of the Wind, Miyazaki-san would go so far as to say: I directed Nausica under Moebius' influence (nausicaa.net, 2004) Expectantly, it wasn't just Miyazaki-san that was influenced by Moebius in the world of anime. Masamune Shiro (Ghost in the Shell) and Katsuhiro Otomo (Akira) where also largely inspired by Giraud. Otomo-san went as far to attempt an anime adaption of Moebius' The Airtight Garage in the mid-90's, which sadly never came to fruition (Tor.com, 2012). Moebius and Miyazaki-san's indulgence and admiration of each others work would culminate in a joint exhibition at the Monnaie de Paris titled Miyazaki et Moebius: Deux Artistes Dont Les Dessins Prennent Vie (Two Artistss Drawings Taking on a Life of Their Own) from December 2004 to April 2005 (animiemangafilms, 2012) So strong was their bond that Giraud named his daughter Nausicaa. But perhaps the most commercially, if not controversial, significant influence Giraud's art would have on motion pictures is The Fifth Element, directed by Luc Besson in 1997. Rewind to the early-to-mid 1980's. Despite Jodowosky's Dune project never being released, He and Moebius became close friends and created a set of comic books titled The Incal; a science fiction-fantasy space opera set primarily in a large, dystopian city on a human colony. Moebius was hired as a concept artist on the film. In spite of this, Jodowosky felt that the film had done more than just pay homage to The Incal, but had directly lifted scenes, elements and costumes from his previous collaboration with Moebius and attempted to sue for plagiarism. (excusesandhalftruths.com, 2011) Unsurprisingly, the lawsuit failed due to Moebius' involvement in the film, no matter how small the role he played, but the influence of The Incal is undeniable. His imaginative words and designs have been put to recalled and reinvented in more ways, by more people, that one would struggle to recall. His use of clean lines and subjective colour make his work distinct, timeless and unlike many others. A true visionarys visionary. Jean Giraud/Gir/Moebius' influence in modern comics, film, animation and game design is immeasurable. From his work with Stan Lee on The Silver Surfer, to Hayao Miyazaki, Ridley Scott, Manabu Kusunoki, Yoshitaka Amano, George Lucas, Luc Besson and a slew of other directors, artists, game designers and comic artists, his art remains a constant reminder of the impact that one man's creative vision can have on an entire generation of creators.

To put it in his own words "They said that I changed their life," Giraud whispered in amazement. "You changed my life.' Your work is why I became an artist.' Oh, it makes me happy. But you know at same time I have an internal broom to clean it all up. It can be dangerous to believe it. Someone wrote, Moebius is a legendary artist.' I put a frame around me. A legend - now I am like a unicorn." Jean Giraud died on March 10th, 2012 at the age of 73.

Bibliography Cotillon, L 2005, A talk between Hayao Miyazaki and Moebius, Cin Live #86 <http://www.nausicaa.net/miyazaki/interviews/miyazaki_moebious.html> Screech, M, 2005 BANDES DESSINES AND FRANCO-BELGIAN IDENTITY, Liverpool University Press, Liverpool UK Vadeboncoeur, J 1999 Gir & Moebius <http://www.bpib.com/illustrat/giraud.htm> Wittmann, G, 2012 Influences <http://anime-magna-1films.blogspot.com.au/2012/07/influences.html> 2012, Jean Giraud, alias Moebius, est mort <http://www.europe1.fr/Culture/Jean-Giraudalias-Moebius-est-mort-E1-983443/> Rob, 2011 Jodorowsky Week: The Incal http://excusesandhalftruths.com/2011/11/15/jodorowsky-week-the-incal/ Cyriaque, L, 2012, Legendary French artist Moebius, the man who made The Abyss, Alien, and Tron even weirder, is dead at 73 <http://io9.com/5892148/legendary-french-artistmoebius-the-man-who-made-the-abyss-alien-and-tron-even-weirder-is-dead-at-73> Seraphex, 2010 Moebius - The Long Tomorrow <http://cyberpunkcomics.com/cyberpunkbooks/201004/moebius-the-long-tomorrow> Maughan, T, 2012 Moebius: The Visionarys Visionary <http://www.tor.com/blogs/2012/03/moebius-the-visionarys-visionary> Mikelbank, P, 2003 Twists of Fate, France Magazine <http://www.francemagazine.org/articles/issue64/article51.asp?issue_id=64&article_id=51>