JDC: It is a wonderful and enjoyable experience to see something that was once ours and is now everyone’s. How does it feel, though, to see someone else expanding your universe for the first time? JDC: It typically comes from the story side of things, but Juanjo knows jazz so well that he will sometimes make suggestions for songs for us to use.ĬBR: Obviously, as Blacksad has gone on, you have expanded the universe in each new album. I wonder, sometimes, though, whether the use of the music is coming from the story side of things or is it coming from how Juanjo visually sees a particular scene? Who says, between the two of you, “Oh, I’d like to have this song included here”? Sometimes it is more directly describing the action within the comic, while other times it is used ironically. The lyrics will often reflect what is happening in the story.ĬBR: It works together very well, especially how it changes throughout the series.

There is always a very tight link between the music and the comic book. It provided a wonderful mood for the comic book overall. Generally, we use blues and jazz - the African-American music of the era. We featured a blues musician in an early story and we were impressed by just how well it went along with the story, so we began to add more and more to the series. JDC: The use of music began progressively. When it comes to determining what music to use, where are the song choices coming from? Is it from you, from Juanjo or from the two of you together? RELATED: Went to Tell Everybody – BlacksadĬBR: One of the things that I find fascinating about Blacksad, in general, is the use of music in the book. JDC: We had always discussed doing something together in comics because we were both interested in the medium and that eventually became Blacksad. JDC: We met in an animation studio in Madrid in 1990.ĬBR: Wow, so a decade before Blacksad debuted! JDC: Yes, he was very good in animation, but nobody knows you when you’re part of a team.ĬBR: You and Juanjo knew each other before working on Blacksad, but how long ago did you first meet each other?

JDC: Animation is the work of a team, while with comics, you’re the face of the book, so the public knows who you are.ĬBR: A good example, I suppose, would be Darwyn Cooke, who worked in animation for years before doing comics and then being an “overnight sensation” twenty years into his career. JDC: Yes, we had successful careers in animation, but we weren’t well known.

Juan diaz canales blacksad