Review Fix Exclusive: Q & A with ‘Masks’ Writer and Artist Aaron Rintoul

Check out this exclusive Q & A with “Masks” writer and artist Aaron Rintoul.

Review Fix: What was the inspiration behind Masks?

Aaron Rintoul: I had only been creating digital art seriously for about a year when I began working on Masks. I was doing a lot of digital photography and photo manipulation, I had all these images that I liked but had nothing really to use them for. My wife is a big comic fan and she suggested creating a graphic novel. The inspiration for the story evolved from the tone of the art which came first.

Review Fix: Who or what inspires you visually?

Rintoul: I’m mainly inspired by film makers and other photographers, I wanted my comic work to have a film like quality which is why I used photography so heavily in the project.

Review Fix: Who are some of your favorite writers and why?

Rintoul: I like a lot of different stuff, Chuck Palahniuk, Douglas Coupland, Hubert Selby, Jr. , Cormac McCarthy, William S. Burroughs, William Gibson, Richard Matheson, Aldous Huxley. A lot of Transgressive fiction because it’s usually never dull.

Review Fix: Do you remember when you decided to get into the comic book industry?

Rintoul: Once I finished the first issue of Masks I sent it off to Septagon Studios and they got back right away wanting to publish it, so I guess about the time I found myself suddenly in it. It’s not something I ever thought about. I was never really a big comic book fan. I read a few super hero comics when I was a kid but that was pretty much it.

Review Fix: What do you think the future holds for you and the series?

Rintoul: The first book is getting some really great reviews which is nice. I have thought about making a second Masks book that picks up where the first graphic novel leaves off but right now I am focusing on a new comic project called “Vacancy” that I am collaborating on.

Review Fix: If someone asked you what this series was about, what would you tell them?

Rintoul: I think I would say read it and draw your own conclusions. For me, it was about not really knowing who you are inside.

Review Fix: If this series was a food, what would it taste like and why?

Rintoul: Umm chicken? Everything tastes like chicken right? Or am I supposed to say something cool like a Candy apple with a razor blade in the center? I don’t know, that’s a weird question.

Review Fix: What’s your favorite part of Masks?

Rintoul: I think I still like the first issue the best.

Review Fix: If you could change one thing about the series, what would it be and why?

Rintoul: Of course I would love to be able to redo it now and make the art better, rework the writing etc. But I think that is how most artists feel looking back on early work. I finished Masks in 2008 so to me it feels and looks pretty dated.

Review Fix: Are you working on anything else right now?

Rintoul: I am collaborating on a graphic novel project called Vacancy with writer Lara Fuentes and artist Patricio Clarey the duo behind the upcoming Septagon comic series Archaeologists Of Shadow.

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About Patrick Hickey Jr. 14230 Articles
Patrick Hickey Jr. is a full-time Assistant Professor of Communication & Performing Arts and Director of the Journalism program at Kingsborough Community College and is the chairman of the City University of New York Journalism Council. He is the Founder and Editor-In-Chief of ReviewFix.com. He's also a former News Editor at NBC Local Integrated Media and National Video Games Writer at Examiner.com where his work was mentioned in National Ad campaigns by Disney, Nintendo and EA Sports. Hickey was also the Editor-In-Chief of two College Newspapers before he received his BA in Journalism from Brooklyn College. Hickey's work has been published in The New York Daily News, The New York Times, Complex, The Hockey Writers, Yahoo!, Broadway World, Examiner, NYSportScene Magazine, ProHockeyNews.com, GothamBaseball.com, The Syracuse Post-Standard, Scout.com and the official sites of the Brooklyn Aces and New York Islanders. His first book, The Minds Behind the Games: Interviews With Cult And Classic Video Game Developers was released in April 2018 and is chock full of interviews with legendary developers. His second book in the series, The Minds Behind Adventures Games, was released in December 2019. His third book, The Minds Behind Sports Games, was released in September 2020. His fourth book, The Minds Behind Shooter Games, was released in March 2021. The Minds Behind Sega Genesis Games and The Minds Behind PlayStation Games were released in 2022 and The Minds Behind PlayStation 2 was published in January 2023. Hickey is also a contracted comic book writer, currently penning his original series, "Condrey," as well as "The Job," "Brooklyn Bleeds" "Dem Gulls" and "KROOM" for Legacy Comix, where he serves as founder, owner and Editor-in-Chief. Hickey Jr. is also a voice actor, having starred in the 2018 indie hit and 2019 Switch, PS4 and Xbox One release, The Padre (also serving as English language Story Editor), from Shotgun With Glitters. The sequel, The Padre: One Shell Straight to Hell was released in February 2021- Hickey also served as a Story Editor and Lead Voiceover performer. He has also done narration and trailers for several other titles including The Kaiju Offensive, Relentless Rex and Roniu’s Tale. Hickey is also the lead voiceover performer on Mega Cat Studios’ upcoming title WrestleQuest, responsible for nearly 90 characters in the game, as well as Skybound's Renfield: Bring Your Own Blood, where he voices both Dracula and Renfield, as well as several other characters. He also stars in Ziggurat Interactive’s World Championship Boxing Manager 2, where he performs the VO of nearly every male character in the game. He also worked on the Atari VCS’s BPM Boy.

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