Standish913.com has been blessed to do an exclusive interview with...
"DANIELE DI NICUOLO"!
Let's get into some exclusive questions...
STANDISH: When did you first realize that drawing was something you wanted to pursue seriously?
I've always been drawing, since I was a kid. I've kept on studying and trying to improve my skills during my adolescence, drawing during classes instead of listening to the lesson, and filling sheets and diaries with sketches and drawings. It was during my senior year of high school, when I started thinking about what college major I wanted to take, that I realized how much I would miss drawing. That's when I realized that I absolutely wanted to keep drawing in my life, in any form.
STANDISH: Tell us the story behind "Jeff The LandShark"...
It was 2018, I was working on a 3-issue West Coast Avengers story arc written by Kelly Thompson, and towards the end of the third issue this little land shark appeared and Gwenpool decided to take it as a pet, calling it Jeff.
There were no specific instructions, it had to be a cute little shark with legs, and I tried to interpret it in the best way possible. It would only appear for a few panels during my run, but I wanted it to have a very strong recognizability and to be a mix of tenderness and "badness" of a shark. So I drew on my passion for manga, to give it that kawaii look typical of Japanese mascots. I never expected it to have such success and to be so loved by readers (and hated by Marvel Rivals players).
I'm a proud father!
STANDISH: What's it feel like to be a part of the "Marvel" legacy? Did you ever think they"d pick up Jeff?
It's such an honor! As I was saying, I never expected him to become so famous, loved and well-known, and also to be lucky enough to be drawn by incredible artists like Gurihiru, who gave him the definitive design that we all know today.
STANDISH: With that being said, Standish913 was a media partner last month at MEFCC Abu Dhabi w/ Spider-Man (Andrew Garfield) - Can you tell us about your work w/ Spider-Man?
One of the funniest experiences of my career! First of all, I immediately felt a strong bond with the entire creative team, and I felt at home like I hadn't felt in a long time. Cody Ziglar is also a big fan of manga and anime, so we understood each other immediately, without needing too many explanations. Unfortunately I was unable to stay on the magazine for any more issues due to other commitments previously made, but I would love to work with Miles again.
Drawing Spider-Man is quite a tough test: as an artist I was used to reading about him or seeing him on screen, but once you have to draw him, you understand the difficulty of moving such a character. I also tried to give him my own distinctive interpretation, both in the acting and in the movements and action scenes, so I added a very personal level of challenge that I would really like to return to.
STANDISH: What inspires your artwork the most?
I have looked and still look at many western artists and comics, but my biggest source of inspiration are manga and animation. At the beginning of my career I had to hold back my true nature a bit, but in the last 3-4 years manga and anime have exploded in US pop culture, and it seems to me that my style is more appreciated than it used to be, and publishers also seem to be much more open to certain types of experimentation.
STANDISH: Do you prefer traditional or digital drawing? Why?
Definitely digital, it's faster, it allows me to experiment more and I'm not a paper and ink fanatic, so I prefer the immediacy of digital.
Lately I've reconnected with paper and ink with commissions, it's a great way to connect with readers and fans at conventions, and I actually enjoy drawing on paper a lot when it's not about doing comic book pages.
STANDISH: How does it feel to be such an inspiration in the comic community?
Well, I don't know if I am one, but if so it's really rewarding! I'm grateful already to do what I love as a job, and if with my work I can be somehow useful or of inspiration to readers or aspiring comic book artists, I'm even happy!
STANDISH: What’s the biggest challenge you face as a drawing artist?
I think it's facing the art block when it comes and feeling the limit of my skill. I'm very, VERY critical about my work, and I think that sometimes I should be more proud of what I do. I don't mean to stop improving or thinking that there's no more space for growth, that would be the death of an artistic journey of any kind. I'm learning to be more self sure about what I do, more confident in doing things how I enjoy to do, not how I think readers would enjoy the most. I've adopted a more punk attitude, lately :D It's an artistic job, it's true, but we move in a market that has certain rules, and I'm trying to play in the field, respecting the rules BUT at the same time trying to find my own voice and respecting it.
STANDISH: How do you deal with creative blocks or lack of motivation?
Having deadlines, unfortunately I can't just take some days off. Sometimes I could, but the sense of guilt kicks in and I'm back to work.
I'm learning to respect and accept it, to understand what it's trying to say to me and then I try to feed my eyes and my brain with the appropriate food. Sometimes what I need is just the right comicbook, manga, anime or random drawing found on Pinterest to spark again something in my chest and reactivate all the creative systems.
STANDISH: Out of all the work you've done, which one was the hardest to work & why? Your favorite work & why?
The hardest? Power Rangers, hands down. Nothing crushed me, and at the same time taught me so much as that title did to me. Tons of characters, suits, monsters, robots, lines and references that you have to respect ALL in one panel. It's crazy. You don't know how hard it is to draw just one single helmet until you'll spend like 3 hours on it.
At the same time, I really had a lot of fun working with them, I've been lucky enough to leave a legacy there as well.
Nightwing and Miles Morales have been the most recent titles where I had the most fun. Especially Nightwing, I'd love to work with that character again!
STANDISH: Where do you see yourself in 5 years from now?
I miss being the main artist of an ongoing series, so I'd love to be one again.
I'd love becoming an artist with an even more recognizable style, and maybe doing something of mine.
STANDISH: Who are some of your mentors?
I'll drop a bunch of names of great artists and animators: Alex Toth, Stuart Immonen, Cory Walker, Roger Ibanez, Michael Sanlaville, Eiichiro Oda, Masashi Kishimoto, Katsuhiro Otomo, Shinichi Watanabe, Sushio, Koji Morimoto, Norio Matsumoto, Yutaka Nakamura, Megumi Ishitani, Akira Toriyama. I'm sure I'm forgetting a lot of them.
STANDISH: What's on Daniele's playlist?
I've been experimenting a lot lately with some Japanese music! I've started with some cool openings and closings from anime, and then I tried to listen to some albums of those groups, and I'm REALLY enjoying it.
STANDISH: What can we look forward to in the future from you?
My new creator owned project at DC, written by Tom Taylor, has just been announced, so I'll be on that for a while. We're pretty excited about it, 'cause it's a first time for DC producing an all-ages monthly series, so we want to deep dive fully into this experiment.
Meanwhile, I'm doing some covers for different publishers and continuing to think about a personal project I've been working on for several years now, and which I truly hope one day I'll be able to bring to light.
STANDISH: Anything you'd like to include?
Thanks so much for having me!
STANDISH: What are your social links?
You can find me on Instagram, X, Blue Sky and Threads!
https://www.instagram.com/daniele_dinicuolo/
https://www.instagram.com/daniele_dinicuolo/
https://bsky.app/profile/dinicuolo.bsky.social
https://www.threads.com/@daniele_dinicuolo
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