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An Interview with Unity Press Digital
By Kasaix • 4 years ago


Kasaix: Hello Doujins Army! I have an unusual interview for this time. The fine folks at Unity Press Digital reached out to me to chat. As you guys know, I’m always happy to give talented artists a platform to show off their stuff. After getting a message on our Discord server, I talked to the owner of Unity Press Digital Seth, and here we are. Talking with Seth and Rune, I’m actually quite intrigued by the group. It’s a tight-knit group of creators helping one another get ahead. It also helps that the artists are really quite talented.


But I digress. Thanks for taking the time to hang out guys. How’s it going?



Seth: Honestly I think we’re all going through a pretty rough time right now, Rif’s just had a new kid, Rune’s mom broke a hip after a fall and he’s her caregiver, my mom broke an ankle and I care for her. So yeah, I think there’s a spate of broken mom’s going about right now lol. Business wise things are okay, we have a stable and loyal core of fans who keep us going month to month but we really do want to grow beyond the month to month business.


Rifthebit: Things are difficult for me currently but I will survive.I hope things are getting better for the others though. My 1st child is born and Im trying to stabilize my situation  so I could do more art. Aside that I’m doing well and recovering.



Kasaix: Tell us a bit about yourselves. What are your names, and what do you do at Unity Press Digital?



Seth: Well I go by Seth, or Seithon online. I’m the owner/operator of Unity Press Digital and basically wear all the non art, non writing based hats. Web design, advertising, recruitment, customer interaction, accounting, all those fun things. Sometimes I can do fun things like act as co-creator on some things, editor or world builder. 


Nick Trinidad: I’m Nick. I used to teach art, with a specialty in anatomy. I also did some freelance illustration work for a kid’s magazine and I sell postcard prints of original art in conventions sometimes. I worked on some pinups and I specialize in layouts.


Rune: I’m Rune. I’m the de facto head writer of Unity Press Digital when there’s things to write. We’re often focused on the visual media, but I’d really love to start getting some literary content going as well so that those people who want something to read can get it at the quality they deserve.


Rifthebit: I’m Rif. I’m a Digital artist, always been a passion/dream of mine to be known for what I create like personal art, comics, etc. I also wanted to be able to inspire learning artist and if able to rise up together. I also makes children's books locally but with a lot of setbacks going on that is on hold for now. For now I’m making a living from commission and providing service.



Kasaix: Rune told me something that was quite inspiring: 


“Some associates and I were upset that as aspiring artists/authors/and comics folks, we couldn't get any industry traction because things are so locked down. No one wants to give open subs, and those who do don't want to pay anymore, as though exposure alone will keep someone in business. So Unity Press was born as this idea of helping artists get a platform for commission work with a generously artist/author favoring cut, just  a fraction for the overhead of the publisher.” 


Could you elaborate on that? How did you guys get together to set up shop?



Seth: Well my uncle who is my business partner wanted me to setup a small business I could run while looking after my mother full time, so ideally online only. At the time Rune and I had been friends for some time and had been kicking around various project ideas. I also had a host of artists friends who I had worked with on and off… so it all kinda congealed from there. Started reaching out to them, pricing out project ideas and then trying to develop them. 


Between projects to keep the artist friends around I’d find them commission work to do and that side of things evolved from there. We still want to do a project and have it succeed but we’re happy to just keep active and keep the artists fed. 


Nick Trinidad: A friend named Kris linked me to Seith, and it pretty much started there.


Rune: Well, funny story, as friends we had also been complaining to one another about comic books - this is terrible, this is nice, why can't things be like this - and Seth gave me the challenge “well why don’t you just make one if you’re so smart”, so I did, and then we had this idea and nowhere to front it. We started Unity Press with the long term goal of getting our own work out there, but quickly found we weren’t the only ones making a catch as catch can living at commissions and could use some help. The rest as they say is history.


Rifthebit: Honestly I agree, even if people have all the talent in the world, that would be nothing without exposure, without connection n without consistency.  I met Seth when I was lost, stuck in a hole, there is a friend of mine that help me that time but its like a matter of getting out of those “lost situation” ya know?.Seth gave me a task/job to work with and then from there I joined in.



Kasaix: For the creators in the house, how did you first get into your professions? Are you self-taught, or did you attend a school?



Nick Trinidad: Despite having gone to art school, the skills and techniques I use are self taught. After graduation I just went around. 


Rune: Almost all writers are self taught on some level. I’ve taken courses, read lots of books, but by and large it’s just a combination of wanting to be part of the media I love. I’m also a contrarian who hates being told I can’t do things, so one of the surest ways to get me off of my duff is to say something can’t be done.


Rifthebit: Its when I was in my secondary school I started to realize that I know I can make a living on drawing and also make this as my career path, but as all things are rough. Even though a lot of people said that I am resourceful, my current situation that time was difficult, everything is pulling me to a different path that I didn't need to take and I barely have anything to start, I also don't have the luxury to go to art college. Anyway, during that time I just scrap anything I could learn and build from there. So yeah mostly self taught.



Kasaix: What are your favorite characters and themes to create?



Nick Trinidad: I’m into a lot of things, but mostly girls and mechs. Some of my personal work involves science fiction themes with a bit of esotericism thrown in.


Rune: I’m one of those creepy goth people, and I like a fine combination of action, drama, and horror. The occasional bit of ecchi is nice too!


Rifthebit: I like alot of stuff though, but what I like most is making my own stories ,character design and concept etc. Any thing related to magic, sci-fi and fantasy is my go to. I also really love world building but I haven't had the chance to work on it sadly for now.



One of my old character / art that I still like.



Kasaix: What do you feel is your best work yet, and why?



Nick Trinidad: I can’t really tell. I think I’m still on that road to finding it.


Rune: It’s called THE EXECUTIONER and I’d love to show it off if we can ever get it published. As Seth mentioned, my mom is still around, and being an itinerant mama’s boy I really like producing work that she can look at without being embarrassed.


Rifthebit: I have some old work that im proud of but as time moves on, I think the one that I feel the best is the one that I felt I Improve/learn something  even a bit when I finish the piece.



Something like this one.



Kasaix: How do you first tackle a project, and how long does a project typically take to finish?



Nick Trinidad: I get emailed a brief with instructions with specifications. As for how long, it depends. Sometimes it can take a bit if I’m trying out a new way of coloring, for instance; or if I need to use other software.


Rifthebit: Mostly it depends on what I’m working on, and how may workload is currently on the list. Sometimes the simple one with full colored n no background/ simple one, mostly took like 1-4 hrs. Also depends on the detail and stuff.




Kasaix: Where do you get your inspiration for all your projects from?



Seth: When it comes to making a comic or something, we ask “what do we want to see” and we go from there typically. We generally want to explore interesting ideas, or just have fun with something we don’t see mainstream doing. Mostly Rune or I will talk to one another and an idea will come out of the discussion. 


Rifthebit:  Mostly browsing through other artist that their work that I admire and I look up too, but sometimes that backfired. Other than that is watching movies, reading comics and read books, or sometimes watching other artists work their art on stream.



Kasaix: Do you have a project you really want to work on in the future?



Seth: Well we’ve spent time in the past working on two comics, one a 80’s scifi webcomic (www.marsproject.black) and the other a “to print” honest to goodness heroic comic. We’d really like to present them to a larger audience and hopefully continue them.


We’ve also started looking into the feasibility of making custom resin printed statues in 1/6th scale for people of Original Characters and other one off designs.


Rifthebit: Yes a lot, I always wanted to work on my own worldbuilding, stories character , comics and making games or animation. I also want to make the comic Seth and the others working on.



Kasaix: Let’s wrap it up here for now. Do you have any parting words?



Nick Trinidad: Just keep drawing. And reading. It helps a lot.


Rifthebit: If you have the consistency, the will and the dedication. “You don't have to be great to get started, but you do need to get started to be great”. Les Brown.




I’d like to thank the fine folks at Unity Press Digital for hanging out. If you’d like to follow their work, take a look at the sites below:



www.unitypressdigital.com 

https://www.deviantart.com/rifthebit

http://www.furaffinity.net/user/unitypressdigitalafterdark/