Giorgio Tsoukalos, the man, the myth, the legend. The harbinger of all ancient mysteries is he!

Here’s a limerick I wrote about him that sums up this image of Giorgio Tsoukalos.

Giorgio Tsoukalos had wonderful hair.

Giorgio Tsoukalos wished more people would care…

about ancient mysteries and the secrets of those long dead.

So the Occupy movement should borrow his head.

Because he knows the Extraterrestrials have always been there.

I also did a fun commercial, spoof for the soundtrack for my Webcomic, with Heavy Metal Magazine. All the proceeds of my comic go to the Ronnie James Dio Stand up and Shout Cancer fund. Please enjoy!

Click here to view the embedded video.

SOPA is the Patriot Act II  - please urge your politicians to vote against this initiative to destroy your online freedom.

SOPA is the Patriot Act II  - please urge your politicians to vote against this initiative.

My role was take the early concepts of the main character, Death and position him in various settings of the game. It was an interesting job as most of the world was just being flushed out so I had few visuals to work with…but what I did have was amazing.  I had access to several background paintings which I used to form the foundation of the paintings and then I created the image of Death, and his nasty dead horse. This was a fun assignment and I hope I get a chance to do more video game art as I love it.

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Here we have a scary TEA PARTY ALIEN!!!! AHHHHHH!!!—Michele Bachmann and the movie Alien. I think this is scarier than any alien I have EVER seen before!!!! Poor John Hurt gets another scary Tea Party monster  bursting from his stomach.
And while you’re here, please check out Gates, my new science fiction comic as well as the awesome soundtrack, where 100% of the proceeds are  dedicated to the Ronnie James Dio Stand Up And Shout Cancer Fund. 

And ironically my favorite artist of all time is in my eyes, the first illustrator, the first and original science fiction painter. He was a man who imagined heaven and hell and the creatures that frolicked there. He created strange animorphic creatures before animorphic was a word.

And that man’s name was Hieronymus Bosch. For those of you who do not know him, please let me introduce you to Hieronymus Bosch the original master of  science fiction and fantasy art.

Hieronymous Bosch is a HUGE inspiration to me, to my art, to my life and to my comic, and the budding franchise known as Gates.  I wrote an article/retrospective on the official website for Gates, my new science fiction franchise that has kicked off as a free online comic.  It is currently being presented the cult magazine, Heavy Metal and is set to begin launching in ebook format in early 2012.

Hieronymus Bosch’s art has been a big push for me since I first saw it as a kid back in the late 80′s.  So please check out my online comic, and you will see the art leading into the world that is influenced by Bosch. And you can read this article that details his history and shows a little bit of his most famous paintings. It’s new science fiction that is born from genius art such as this.

I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

Here is one of my images, directly inspired by Hieronymous Bosch:

A: I’VE BEEN THERE, DONE THAT!

…and you can see all of this on Linkedin & Gates

My name is Hal Hefner. I am the creator of Gates, a Transmedia franchise, (if you are unsure of what Transmedia is).  It is currently in comic book form and located right at http://gatesthecomic.com

Now some would consider me a comic book artist or writer…but I consider myself  a storyteller, and I use my creative abilities in writing, illustration, design and marketing  collaboratively to tell my story, a new science fiction franchise which will in full scope be a generational tale about the world’s first family of organic technology.

1) MY LIFE: HUMBLE BEGINNINGS

I grew up in a small town in upstate NY called Mohawk. Just outside of the once bustling city of Utica, I fought racism, stupidity and other small town strangeness in order to rise up and realize who I was and what I wanted to do. My parents didn’t understand art and the folks around me were divided into two distinct camps of either liking me or hating me. There was no middle ground becuase I have always been a smart ass, outspoken dude who constantly questions everything and happily fights authority. So fighting adversity, breaking away from my own participation in hatred, bullying and other stupid stuff was essential to elevating my mind to be ready to grow as an artist, writer, creator, thinker and marketing guy.

2) I GOT SCHOOLED:

In order to arrive here, to create this franchise I started off by getting a great education at a technical schoool in New York called RIT. Now RIT is mostly known for pumping out Engineers, and it had an infamous connection to the CIA and was heavily funded by Baush and Lomb and Kodak.  Here I learned how to refine my painting skills traditionally and digitally, I learned about graphic design and all about creative writing. It was technically savvy and only 2nd in teh nation to MIT in terms of technical innovation.

So I got schooled digitally in Photoshop, Illustrator and Quark. Little did I know how important this would be later on.

I still continue to educate myself through extension classes at colleges and workshops such as Storyworld, for Transmedia storytelling

3) I MOVED TO A MAJOR CITY: LOS ANGELES:

After college and the tragic demise of my relationship with my long time girlfriend,  I decided to move to LA–because I had a DREAM.

After I came up with the first ideas for the Gates franchise I realized I needed to move to chase the dragon, so LA was logical to me due to the Hollywood connection and its appreciation for Science Fiction. So I packed up the car, took a leap of faith in my ability and found a way to get myself to Los Angeles.

Now I was Hal Hefner, artist, designer and creative gun for hire. And I had no clue what the hell I was doing. I had a dream and determination and I kept it hungry, humble and smart.

4) BEEN THERE DONE THAT: FROM ART & DESIGN TO RECRUITING ART & DESIGN

When I got here, I started working as a cartoonist, illustrator and graphic designer. Design was the most consistent and lucrative so I followed the paycheck because LA is an expensive place to live—but it’s worth every damn penny. As a designer I worked with some great companies designing everything from marketing collateral, packaging, ads and magazines to websites and banners. But I got burned out. Fourteen hour days and a burning passion to create Gates were not a good marriage. So I found a way to jump into the staffing and recruiting industry to alleviate the pain.

In 2004 I jumped onboard with a company called Creative Circle. If you haven’t heard of them, Creative Circle is a staffing agency that caters to the creative, advertising, marketing and PR industries. In my role at Creative Circle I placed graphic designers, art directors, account executives, project managers, high end developers, marketing directors and oh so much more with all the big companies in the Los Angeles market.

5) RECRUITING AND STAFFING 101:

As a recruiter I have staffed many of the major companies in Los Angeles, from FOX & NBC to Sony and Square Enix. From Walt Disney to TBWA Chiat Day to Skechers, I placed folks within many facets of many industries.  I became a trusted name in staffing because I “got it”. With expert, firsthand knowledge of the positions I was staffing, people knew I understood their requests unlike my competitors. Myself and a small core of great people, turned Creative Circle into the nationwide monster it is today form our 5 person staff of humble beginnings in a black building on the corner of Fairfax and Wilshire.

But when Creative Circle got too big and I wasn’t jiving philosophically with ownership any longer, specifically about how to treat clients, candidates and even internal employees, I moved on. I wasn’t into gauging my clients and I was tired of the internal politics. So I hit the road. Overall though it was a great experience, I worked with some great people and I learned a lot about life, sales, marketing and the psychology of people.

6) GETTING LAID OFF SUCKS:

I then helped launch the creative, advertising and marketing division of a traditional entertainment administrative staffing company named Eleventh Hour. I helped them grow nicely in a year and a half and then when the economy tanked in early 2009, they laid me off. Getting laid off was a horribly humbling experience and it was utterly embarrassing as the owner decided to tell several other people before he laid me off, and I found out I was getting laid off on Facebook from a guy who I had hired to blog for us. So for the first time since I was fifteen, I was jobless, I had two kids, a mortgage and a wife and I was angry as all hell for the way I was treated.

Getting laid off SUCKS but I used it to my advantage.

7) PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER:

In ten years I had been a designer, artist, creative recruiter, marketer and salesperson. So when I was laid off, I took ALL of those components and finally put Gates together and pitched it to Heavy Metal to utilize to launch their first digital storytelling platform. Since Hevay Metal had no digital presence or any clue about what to do with the online space, I was able to help them by allowing them to utilize my franchise to be presented as their first online comic. So finally Gates was born and really born from the ashes of my demise.

CLOSING:

Hopefully this helps, as it is just a start. I will be expanding and delving further into this so keep checking back for more info as well as please feel free to ask any questions.

Please check out Gates, drop me a line or  follow me on Twitter, or Facebook and connect on deviantART and Linkedin

May 3, 2011

By Jack Mehoff, CNN

In a stunning move on Tuesday night, G.I.Joe special forces infiltrated the secret base of Cobra, in Pakistan and systematically murdered their leader–Cobra Commander. Also killed in the attacks were Scrap Iron, Major Bludd and Cobra Commander’s mistress Sarah Palin. Cobra, a ruthless terrorist organization determined to rule the world, has been terrorizing America since the 1980′s and it was a major victory for America and the world at large to see Cobra’s leader taken down.

The hunt for Cobra Commander that went on for almost a decade led to a final mission that was completed in a matter of minutes. But how? The mission utilized specialized troops, heavy government coordination and extreme precision.

Led by Sargent Stalker and Commando Snake Eyes, a group of rag tag soldiers penetrated the compound using information they received from Cobra insiders Tomax and Xamot. The twin brothers were working as Cobra couriers and helped deliver information to Dusty, Chuckles and Tunnel Rat.

HOW DID G.I. JOE KILL COBRA COMMANDER:

Sargent Stalker, First Sargent Duke and General Hawk had worked diligently with President Obama to concoct a foolproof strategy. Snake Eyes, then penetrated the compound allowing a team of LT. Falcon, Roadblock, Gung Ho, Rock-N-Roll,  and Beachhead to attack and secure the perimeter. In the process Major Bludd and several cobra officers were killed.

After securing the compound, the group penetrated it’s innards and found Cobra Commander and his mistress Palin, in the catacombs of the basement playing Wii. They gunned them down and it was said that Rock-n-Roll delivered the fatal blow. In Roadblock’s arms, Cobra Commander uttered these final words, ” I wassssss oncccce a maaaannn”.

COBRA COMMANDER’s BURIAL AT SEA:

After the death of the ruthless leader, his body was wrapped in white sheets and brought aboard the USS FLAGG to be transported to America. But out of respect for Cobra LA customs and fearful of retaliation from Golobulus and Nemesis Enforcer, his body was dumped into the sea. “We had to do it, we wanted to show the world that Joes are compassionate and caring and respectful to other religions. It’s the only way,” said Lifeline, G.I.Joe medic and pacifist.

REACTION FROM THE JOES & WORLD:

As word of Cobra Commander’s death spread across the world, people cheered everywhere. Some of the Joes involved gave us some great comments.

“Well, we went in there and Rocked ‘em like a hurricane, then we took care of the Union of the Snake.” – Rock-n-Roll, music enthusiast.

“We cut off the head of the snake, and that’s all they could take,” – Roadblock

“It was a great day for America and the Joes. We finally got crome dome after all these years.” -  Duke

“Well, finally we got ‘em. The evil-doer and all of his “nucular” weapons are now gone. And maybe we can now put to rest that I’m the byproduct of one of Dr. Mindbender’s experiments on chimpanzees.”  – Former President George W. Bush

WHAT’S NEXT FOR COBRA?

In the wake of Cobra Commander’s death, a number of people are saying that this does not mean that Cobra has been destroyed. Some argue that the organization may, in fact, be thriving under the leadership of the Baroness and Destro. Front-page articles in both The New York Times and The Washington Post make this claim.  Many officials from Obama downward are saying this. Could this be true? Only time will tell. But as long as God blesses America and G.I.Joe is here to protect us, “knowing is half the battle.” YO JOE!

ALL CHARACTERS AND TRADEMARKS ARE COPYRIGHT HASBRO; this is a parody written by Hal Hefner, creator of Gates, Heavy Metal’s first online comic–and G.I.Joe addict.

On May 14-15 2011, Humanity+ International is partnering with Parsons The New School for Design in New York City to produce Transhumanism Meets Design, a conference exploring emerging technology, transdisciplinary design, culture and media theory, and biotech.

The conference brings together all types of thinkers including; futurists, cyberneticists, life extensionists, singularity advocates, A[G]I and robotics experts, human enhancement specialists, inventors, ethicists, philosophers, artists, writers and theorists to meet with the creativity and rigorous scholarship of design at Parsons.

This is an exciting opportunity as I have been asked to discuss my theories and philosophies behind Gates, Heavy Metal’s first online comic.

MY ABSTRACT FOR:

TRANSHUMANISM MEETS DESIGN @ PARSONS

“Controlled Genetic Management: Forecasting the future when science, religion, technology, big business and politics battle to control evolution” – Presented by Hal Hefner, creator of Gates, Heavy Metal’s 1st Webcomic

Hal Hefner is the creator of Gates a comic book that is a chronicle of high adventure, addressing ideas of identity, society, politics, and philosophy. It is the ultimate tale of man vs. nature and nature vs. technology. The theme of the story covers modern concerns, commenting on the relevant topics of environmentalism, Darwinism, creationism, and the unchecked dangers of irresponsible scientific and technological experimentation. At its most basic level, Gates is a story about the evolutionary divide of humanity brought about by science and technology.

This talk covers the findings of his research in preparation for writing Gates and the theoretical and cultural significance of the ConGenement, a science/religious based totalitarian government from the webcomic. Hal will be touching on various subjects that helped to create the idea behind this dystopian world and possible scenarios for the future while exploring the potential paths the human race may take. Hal will discuss the controversies and roadblocks we will soon be facing as a society when science, religion, technology, big business and politics collide head on in a race to control evolution.

OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASE:

Humanity+@Parsons_NYC_PressRelease-1

I will have more info to come about the conference on the official Gates website in the coming days.

ON 1.1.11 – HEAVY METAL MAGAZINE DEBUTED THEIR VERY FIRST WEB COMIC: GATES

First of all WOW! WOW! WOW! WOW!

It’s very, very excited and I am extremely honored, humbled and just plain excited about being the one to do this.

Gates, has been a gigantic undertaking, that I have been working on for a long, long time.

And sure, it’s been a lot of work, a lot of hard dedicated work but without some luck, determination, belief in myself and belief in my story, I wouldn’t be here today.

BIG THANK YOU TO HEAVY METAL:

Launching Heavy Metal’s first online comic is such an honor. I remember watching the movie with my childhood friend Justin Smith (who is the one who introduced me to it), and saying to him, how awesome it would be to work for them and draw the characters from this universe. I was enamored with Taarna, the soundtrack, Den, Stern! and zombie air force pilots. I wanted to be a part of Heavy Metal ever since I was a kid. Now I really am. And it’s an honor to be forever historically linked with them.

Yes, I’m a  professional artist but I’ll always be a fanboy. I’ll always be that seventeen year old kid, that  cranked up the soundtrack, the psychedelics and dove in.

So Kevin Eastman and Heavy Metal Magazine, it is to you that I owe the biggest thank you. Thank you so much for bestowing this honor upon me and  trusting in me to carry the torch for your franchise.

BIG THANK YOU TO MY FAMILY:

MY WIFE–In all of the craziness that always surrounds me, and those who know me personally know I always bring a little zing to the table, nobody has dealt with this as much as my wife Kim. Without Kim, I’d be nothing. Behind every good man is a good woman. That may sound like a cliche’ but it’s damn true. 100%.

2009 was one of the hardest years of my life. After, following my dream and having some really big success in the staffing industry while also maintaining a freelance illustration career, the beginning of 2009 started off with a kick in the nuts. A company I had given my tall to, ceremoniously and with the “greatest amount of class”, laid me off. For the first time since i was 15, I had lost a job. And to top to off I found out on Facebook. Yep Facebook. Nice huh? With two young daughters, a recession sweeping my country and the city of Los Angeles, not in need of staffing people, I fell back on who I REALLY was–an artist.

My wife, didn’t panic. She allowed me to grow, explore, blossom and finally take the artwork and Gates to the ultimate level. I met my wife when I was working as a graphic designer in 2000, we started dating in 2001 and have never looked back.

So Kim, it is to you I say thank you for putting up with my late nights of work, annoying habits, comic books, DVDs and other geek related junk cluttering your life. You have helped me so much by providing a voice of reason even when I never wanted to hear the reason but deep inside I appreciated it. Without you, Gates the comic, my artwork and Hal Hefner in general might be in a different place. You have been my rock and have also given me two amazing daughters. I love you, I thank you.

MY MOM–Oh Mom, where do I even begin to say thank to you? You brought me into this world and have been nagging me ever since I can remember. But that nagging was all good. We went through some rough times together when I was younger but you always believed in my art even when you had no clue what art was. You also made Gates the comic possible. It was you who bought me Heavy Metal Magazine as a kid and the movie (your money, not you personally). You  also helped me out with the little things and made sure I was okay when times were tough. When my father passed away it was tough on us all mentally, but when I needed you, you were there–always.

MY KIDS--Adena and Eva. You are the crowning achievement in my life. You are amazing and everything I do, I do it for you. I want you to have a better life than I did and I hope to build an empire for you to inherit. I want you to rock the world and live life to the fullest. I love you two more than anything in this world. You are me.

HONORABLE MENTIONS: Aunt Rosemary & Grandma, without you guys always there to pick me up and remind me who I was, I wouldn’t be here today.

Nonnie, Aunt Linda, Adam, Jeff, Karly, Sara, Barbie Jacob: You guys may not always understand me, but you always support me and I appreciate it.

FAMILY THAT HAS PASSED:

My Dad: Oh dad. You were so awesome but such a dickhead at the same time. Despite your lack of understanding of what I wanted to be, finally after all those years, you allowed me to be me. I know it was rough at times but all in all, you did a good job. You did what a dad was supposed to do. You made life tough for me so that when I got out in the real world, I would understand that things could always get worse, so don’t let them. But regardless of your shortcomings, when I needed you, you were there.

It was you dad who introduced me to the Twilight Zone, comic books and all the things that have allowed me to grow today. You helped me buy art supplies when you had no clue what the hell HB pencils were. You supported something that you didn’t understand. You wanted me to be JUST like you at first but once you saw me marching to the beat of my own drum and realized I would not be JUST like you,  you rallied to support me.

Without your passing, I could not be here today. Your death shook me hard but inspired me to just go for it. Your upbringing taught me to set goals, to never give up and when people kicked me down to get right back up and punch them in the mouth. I don’t take shit from people because you made it so. So thanks dad, this is for you and I know you’d be proud.

Grandpop: You are the one that drove me to Utica whenever I wanted. You took me to the Ravenswood and bought me comics. You bought me art supplies, you helped me grow and you called me , “sonny”. Thanks Frankie. You were a hell of a guy and I miss you. I know you’d be proud as well.Without you, Gates would not be possible.

Uncle Carl: You would be proud. It’s you who introduced me to Erik Von Daniken, Chariots of the Gods and all the bizarre happenings of the world. You showed me another side of life that I already saw, but without opened eyes. You  showed me it was okay to believe in things that others didn’t.  You showed me the negative Utopian world we were moving into. Without you, Gates would not be possible.

Pop: Wish you were here! You blazed a trail and began the Hefner movement to the East. You sacrificed a lot but made it all possible. Thank you.

MY FRIENDS:

Justin Smith – You introduced me to Heavy Metal back in the day my childhood friend. You’ve been there since day one. I’m doing this for you! Thanks brother!

Paul Wiernicki -You’re my best pal, you have always been there, always will be. You and I share a brain and we have shared a lot. Thanks for being a great friend when others have let me down.

Jimmy Jay – You are awesome. A great friend, that has helped me in any way he could from the first day we met, You rock man. Thank you

Dan LuVisi – My little brother, you are one of the most amazingly talented people I know. You opened the Heavy Metal door for me and I appreciate your friendship and I know together we will be blazing a trail.

Stephan Lokotsch – There is no doubt, I need to thank the kraut. This is one man who has always listened to my crazy schemes, ideas and plans and has always tried to help me make them happen. You are a great dude and I appreciate you.

Sara Allison & Ralph Greco: You are the brother and sister I never had. You always supported me and helped me. Love you guys.

David Sager and Brian Anderson Churchill: You two are awesome. Your support has been amazing. Love you guys so much.

Cookie-ING, Rodent Perkett, Blow Job Murphy, Heath King, Marsha Nardi-Montgomery, Christina Brewer-Hall, Lizanne Webb, Declan Gerhaty, Ebi Saberi, Shawn Bullock, Erica Sturges, Mindy Worel, Dezzi Marshall, Sabrina–thanks for the support.

Mat Nastos: You were the evil big brother I never wanted but needed. Your guidance and friendship has been integral in the development of Gates and my education on what it takes to make a comic.

Scott Hunter: My man! You have been huge in the success of Gates, thanks for your support.

Manny Banayo: Dude you have been a lifesaver and have done a lot for me. Thank you so much. Words cannot describe how much I appreciate you.

David Hirsch: DUDE! What can I say. Without your input, Gates would be much different. Thank you for being a great, great friend and someone who I could share ideas with, personal moments with and a fellowship with. Gates blossomed from the stuff we did many years ago, and I thank you for that.

Drowemos: Your Yoda-like skills of the web comic industry are much appreciated and you helped a great deal. Thanks for your time and looking forward to working with you in the future!

And there are more, I’m just running out of brainpower. So to those of you not named here, I’m sorry.

MY FANS:

You guys/gals are awesome! I’m so, so grateful for you!  Thanks for the love. I can’t wait to deliver more great work for you. Your support and kind words and adoration of my work are awesome and motivate me to put out the best possible work I possibly can. I am humbled and greatly appreciate you. Thank you so much!

THE HATERS:

Ahhh…the haters.

It’s you who I owe the biggest thanks.

It’s you who belittled me every chance you could. It’s you who told me I’d never amount to anything. It’s you who told me I sucked, wasn’t good enough, wasn’t smart enough. It’s you who projected your fears and failures on me.

I grew up in a small town and for every one supporter I had, I had two haters.

But even when I moved to LA, I’ve encountered the haters. Haters that were afraid, jealous or threatened. Haters that tried to ruin my life, haters that used me, haters that belittled me and put me down and most of all, haters that humiliated me and showed me the lowest point of life.

But without all of you people, I would have no motivation. Sure I have been stung, blindsided and clearly upset by things over the years but you have all provided one major word. Inspiration. Your hate fuels me. I eat it. I thrive on it.

So thank you, YOU know who you are.

THANK YOU ALL! Now it’s time to crank out some amazing work and a embark on a very awesome 2011!