InFurNation Rotating Header Image

Cats

By His Stripes You Shall Know Him

Another graphic novel for young readers — and cat fans! It’s the Tig and Lily series of books, written and illustrated by Dan Thompson. “What makes a tiger, a tiger? Is it the stripes? The roar? This is something that Lily, the tiger at the local zoo, has never had to worry about — until she meets the fiercest animal of them all… her new roommate. Tig might look like a house cat, might sound like a house cat, but Tig knows he is a Tiger. The competition is on as these two cats figure out what it means to be a Tiger… and a friend.” Find Tiger Trouble and more books in the series over at Penguin Random House.

image c. 2024 Random House Graphic

Brave Cat in a Big World

Thanks to Cartoon Brew we’ve learned about Brave Cat, the first animated feature film by Gabriel Osorio, Chilean director of the Academy Award-winning short film Bear Story. “The new cg film, which is currently in production, follows Kona, a teenage forest cat who decides to face her fears and search for her missing mother, who was kidnapped by the circus long ago. She is joined on her journey by Colin, an abandoned guard dog pup, and Bernard, a runaway old circus bear, who are also searching for their own families.” Like Bear Story, much of this new film is an allegory for the struggles of ordinary people in Chile. Check out the teaser trailer too. The film is in production and seeking distribution.

image c. 2024 Punkrobot

Meow on the Menu

Michele Light has spent years working to become one of the most recognizable furry artists working today. Now she’s turned her attention to a special project: Creating a series of sexy feline acrylic standees. Meet the Kitty Cat Cafe. “All my standees are solid acrylic, with an upright two-sided image secured to a thick base, which is custom fit to that particular image. All the artworks are my original creations, the actual standee production is handled by a third party in the UK. They have produced all my standees so far, and their work has been exemplary. All of the art for the initial five standees in this campaign have been submitted and proofed and are ready for production.” From now through June 21st, there’s a Kickstarter campaign to get the initial run created. It’s already (far!) surpassed its goal, but take a look to see what designs are available.

image c. 2024 by Michele Light

The Cat Carries On

One of the surprise hits at this year’s Cannes Film Festival was an animated film called Flow. It’s a CGI feature written and directed by Gints Zilbalodis, which features no humans and no dialogue. The synopsis goes like this: “The world seems to be coming to an end, teeming with the vestiges of a human presence. Cat is a solitary animal, but as his home is devastated by a great flood, he finds refuge on a boat populated by various species, and will have to team up with them despite their differences. In the lonesome boat sailing through mystical overflowed landscapes, they navigate the challenges and dangers of adapting to this new world.” And now, Cartoon Brew have let us know that Sideshow Pictures and Janus films have picked up Flow for distribution in North America.

image c. 2024 Sideshow / Janus Films

Meow and Now

And speaking of web-based comics coming to book form… Cat & Cat Adventures is a series written and illustrated by Susie Yi from Orange County, California. (Hi neighbor!) “Cat & Cat comics is a cozy, funny, and relatable comic series about more than just cats. Set in a world where pets and humans co-exist in a symbiotic relationship (much like the world we live in today!), Suzy is a human that can understand the mysterious language of cat-speak! Cat & Cat comics dives into the every day interactions between Suzy and her cats, but also the mysterious and magical scenarios that the cats encounter as well. From pancakes growing fluffier upon command to dogs being summoned out of a magical book, these comics are sure to surprise and pull you in for a sweet treat!” Find it on line, and look for the graphic novel series as well.

image c. 2024 by Susie Yi

He Does Not Eat… Mice

Recently we met the folks at Headless Gnomes, who showed us their new comic book Fangs & Foul Play. “A deserted colonel, Richard, runs into a telepathic vampiric cat, Fang, while trying to flee the horrors of war. Now Richard has to find victims to feed to Fang and serve his every whim. Will he ever escape having to commit terrible atrocities?” Only writer L.K. Ingino knows for sure, ably assisted by artists Alex Guenther and Mariam Yasser. After a successful Kickstarter campaign, issues are available now on their web site.

image c. 2024 Headless Gnomes

Cats Are Better Than People

Look, we’re just quoting the artist! Honestly! We met Helen Asia at her table at WonderCon, and admired her various feline designs on everything from t-shirts to enamel pins… to a complete Cosmic Cat Tarot Deck. You can visit her web site and see more of what she has to offer. Interestingly, we met her at a con in Southern California, but all her items are priced in British pounds…

image c. 2024 by Helen Asia

 

Winking and Blinking

Wizkit is the name of a new graphic novel for young readers, written and illustrated by Tanya J. Scott. The publisher describes it as Hilda and the Troll meets The Okay Witch. “It’s a wild, enchanted, wonderful world out there, way beyond the fjord that a one-eyed cat named Wizkit calls home. But Wizkit wouldn’t know anything about that—as a Wizard’s apprentice, all her lessons are indoors, and she’s far too lazy to go out exploring. There’s no need to—she already knows enough spells to conjure up delicious snacks whenever she’s hungry! But when an overdue library book literally cries out to be returned, Wizkit’s Teacher decides she must be the one to take it back. Reluctantly (and rather accidentally), the journey to the Library begins. With the annoyingly optimistic Book in tow, Wizkit sets off on an adventure that is full of strange characters with even stranger problems. Wizkit will soon find out that, with a little support and a new friendship, her own magical talents can be part of the solution.” You can find out more from Simon & Schuster.

image c. 2024 Simon & Schuster

Cats. Do You Trust’em?

We missed the Hairball horror mini-series last year, but now Dark Horse have released issues #1 – #4 in a very special single-volume collection. “A young girl with a black cat begins to suspect the innocuous beast is behind all her troubles: Her parents’ fighting, family plagues, and innumerable supernatural horrors. As she tries her best to rid herself of this creature, she discovers that maybe the cat is not evil after all and a greater terror may be behind these horrific events harming her life. Collects Hairball #1-#4 in a deluxe, hardcover die-cut format featuring faux cat fur.” Seriously, they did that. It’s written by Matt Kindt, with artwork by Tyler Jenkins and Hilary Jenkins.

image c. 2024 Dark Horse Press