Animation Guild | We are 839 Digital Magazine
Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1521473
SUMMER 2024 27 Continuing the storyline, X-Men '97 showcases the franchise's signature blend of action with complex interpersonal dramas. It's a series that asks for emotional investment on the part of the viewer, and according to Storyboard Artist Ibraheem Jara: "When it comes to figuring out how to sell a moment visually, it starts with the storyboards." That start, though, happens well before the artist's first thumbnail sketches. For Jara, after reading the script, he will meet with the director, and depending on the director, he says he might be given freedom to explore different approaches. Other times, the director might have a specific vision to be conveyed. "Both have their merits," he says. "It's cool to have freedom, but it's also cool to have a lot of direction." Emi: Emmett Yonemura, a Storyboard Artist who also directed some X-Men '97 episodes, uses their first pass at reading a script to determine where they're confused and what's not working for them as a first-time reader and as a fan. "Then I use my skills as a storyteller to pitch back to the writers," they say. "Sometimes it's successful, sometimes it's not. But what I love is that it's always a collaboration and a conversation. I love that we get the trust to be the next step in the storytelling process." In the world of superheroes, Marvel's X-Men are among the most sympathetic—mutant humans with superhuman abilities, whose "different-ness" makes them suspect and puts their lives constantly at risk. It's no wonder they return over and over in animation and live-action iterations. This time around, X-Men '97 is a revival of the popular X-Men: The Animated Series that ran from 1992 to 1997. Episode 5 storyboard by Cassey Kuo. Images courtesy of Marvel Animation.