They say a picture is worth a thousand words, and in the case of Gustavo Duarte’s DC Silent Tales, there are about a million of ’em. The new one-shot (released just last week) features six stories, all captured expertly with Duarte’s fun and cartoony art and dynamic storytelling ability (and all without a shred of dialogue).
If you’re like me and loved Duarte’s work on Dear Justice League, you probably loved DC Silent Tales. Each story is funny in its own right, exploring adventures with Harley Quinn, Superman, Lobo, Zatanna, Joker, and Cyborg. And, much like in a silent film, Duarte captures the spirit of the characters with clever ways of progressing the story and even delivering “dialogue” without the actual words.
Opening up the can of words that is his artistry, I had the opportunity to chat with Duarte to gain insights into the project. We explore the title’s development, the unique challenges and opportunities, and much more.
Courtesy of DC Comics.
AIPT: To start, I was curious how long this project has been in the works?
Gustavo Duarte: One year ago, I had an idea for a silent short story about a DC character that would be around 40-50 pages. So, I sent an email about it to my editor, Andrew Marino. He liked the idea of doing something like it at DC. A couple of days after that email, he called me suggesting a little tweak: “What about six short stories that are eight pages each?” I needed to create six new stories, but I loved the idea. Some months after, we got the official approval for the project. I started to draw the first story in October, finishing everything in February.
AIPT: With six tales, each of which is funny and expressive, do they take equal time to write and draw?
Gustavo: Drawing always takes much more time than writing. Always. But some scripts take a little more time than others to write. Normally, after I come up with the basic idea and the path I want for the short story, I write it in one or two days. Creating the art for each story takes me around three weeks to do eight pages.
Courtesy of DC Comics.
AIPT: Can you tell us about your process? Did you write a full script before drawing?
Gustavo: First, I chose the six characters that I wanted to work with. After that, I thought of a basic idea that would fit well with each character. Then I thought about what I wanted to see them doing and what I wanted to tell about each character. With these basic ideas in mind, I sat and wrote the stories. After I was done writing, Andrew read and approved the scripts. Then, I started the graphic part. So, I divided the script to fit well with eight pages of little thumbnails. And after that, I did the pencils and inks on my drawing board and the colors, titles, and graphic design on my computer.
AIPT: A fun way to learn about an artist like yourself is an age-old question: What six people, living or dead, would you invite for dinner?
Gustavo: That is a difficult question. I could have a lot of dinners with a lot of different kinds of people. But I’ll try it only with American people, with an exception to the last person, who is Australian/American. I choose Frank Sinatra, Jerry Lewis, Magic Johnson, Jim Henson, Reid Miles, and Flea.
Courtesy of DC Comics.
AIPT: How do you find the comedic hook of the story? Each one is so creative!
Gustavo: I don’t have a formula, but I love to work with comedy and humor. So, if I write something, the likelihood that it will have humor in it is big. I even use humor when I write a horror, thriller, or an adventure story. These six stories, more or less, are all humor stories.
In some of these stories, I put the characters in their normal habitat—in these cases, the comedic hook comes from outside of this world. In other stories, I put the characters outside of their normal habitat. In these cases, the comedic hook comes from what we know about the character and how he or she would deal with a scenario in a different world.
Courtesy of DC Comics.
AIPT: Do you have a favorite DC character to draw, and if so, which one?
Gustavo: My favorite DC characters are The Joker and Lobo. That’s why they are in the book.
AIPT: You clearly are a master of silent storytelling. Do you have a favorite silent film?
Gustavo: I don’t think I have a particular one. I watched lot of Buster Keaton and Laurel and Hardy silent films when I was a kid. But if I had to choose one, I would cheat a little and choose a Marx Brothers’ one: A Night at the Opera. It’s not a silent movie, but it has Harpo.
AIPT: What’s next for you? Might we get another six silent tales or something else?
Gustavo: I would love to do a new season of DC Silent Tales. Or maybe an entire silent graphic novel. Besides that, I have some ideas for new stories with words. I’ll let you know once we can announce my next project.
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