I really saw Zhu Letao, but not the petite image that the reporter imagined. The tall figure makes people feel that she is like a model on the runway. With strangers, Zhu Letao doesn't talk much. She is not the very active person. The reporter took the donated Marta and asked her to sign it. She took it with a smile. In less than half a minute, a lovely "line pig" appeared on the title page. Her pen speaks better than her mouth.
Friends around Zhu Letao say that she is "very cute", but at the same time, her heart is very independent. In order to embark on the road of comics, she once sent a letter half the size of a desk to Yao Feila, just to get her attention. Later, he studied under Yao Feila without following blindly. In just a few years, he initially formed his own comic style and won a large number of fans. Since May, the popularity of five consecutive "Marta" signing parties in Beijing has caught her off guard.
There are many experts in domestic original animation, but there is a lack of idols. The beautiful and persistent "super girl" Zhu Letao may provide a possibility.
Parents objected, because comics "broke off relations" with their father.
Reporter: After reading those funny stories about your childhood passion for comics, which one should impress you the most?
Pig: At that time, my father was very opposed to my reading comics, so I tore them up as long as I saw them. The most unforgettable thing is the "guerrilla warfare" with my father in middle school. I hid all the places in my family where I could collect books, and my father could always find them. Later, my sister said, "the safest place is under the eyes of the enemy." My sister is smart and beautiful. I thought what she said must be very reasonable, so I hid a set of cartoons in my father's closet.
It worked this time, but my father never found it. Finally, I forgot this set of books myself, and I didn't find it until I moved and packed my things ... It's really amazing to think of my sister now.
Reporter: Your parents don't like you in the animation industry. Your father once threatened to "sever the relationship between father and daughter". Is that so?
Pig: Yes. When I said I would quit my job to be a comic assistant, my father said, "Then don't recognize me as a father." . I made up my mind to deny my father at that time. Actually, it's just angry words. Later I also quit my job and became an assistant. My father is still my father.
Reporter: What do you think of your parents' attitude towards you at that time?
Pig: Now parents are very supportive. In fact, at that time, my parents were still very worried about me and felt that drawing cartoons had no life guarantee. Now that I have graduated from college, my income is relatively stable, and my parents are only worried about my health.
Reporter: If there are similar girls with the same dream now, will you encourage them to stick to it?
Pig: Of course! If drawing cartoons can bring you happiness, why not draw them? However, I will also remind them whether they really like comics. Because from debut to publishing a book to becoming a professional comic writer, there are still many setbacks to experience.
Learning from the teacher, the hardest time, only 7 yuan in my pocket.
Reporter: The cartoonist Yao Feila should be a very important person on your creative path. What's the difference between you as his assistant and when you first met him?
Pig: Yes, it's very different! At first, I thought "West Lake" (she always called Master "West Lake") was very strict, and I was afraid of it. However, it was later discovered that he was actually a very funny person, often forgetful and gradually emboldened. Ha ha! However, the "West Lake" was still very strict when preaching the truth, and now it often teaches me to cry. ...
Reporter: It is reported that at the most difficult time in the studio, I only had 7 yuan in my pocket, and I said 10 yuan. Which version is more authentic? Did you want to give up?
Pig: Actually, it's only 5 yuan! No, I just wanted to get some money. I was in a hurry. Besides lack of money, I should draw. Should master teach others or teach others? Everything is the same.
I didn't expect to give up. It was very lucky and rare for me to have the opportunity to draw cartoons at that time. Why would I want to give up?
Reporter: What aspects of Yao Feila have you accepted in your artistic creation? What's so different from him?
Pig: "West Lake" has taught many things, but the most important thing is to be a man. He often spares no effort to talk about being a pig. "West Lake" told me to be an ordinary pig forever. Whether I succeed or fail in the future, I will always remember that I am just a pig. Don't overestimate yourself or underestimate yourself. Always be a simple and happy pig.
The difference is that he doesn't like cleaning the house. Besides, he has many theories, but I don't.
Reporter: Besides the works of Yao Feila, who else do you like? Who has a great influence on your creation?
Pigs: Rumiko Takahashi, Mitsuru Adachi, Mo Bisi, Herge, Osamu Tezuka. In fact, my cartoons are most influenced by movies, music and beautiful details in life. Other cartoons have little influence on me.
The new work "Marta", this film let me find the comic style.
Reporter: Can you tell the reader what story Marta told?
Pig: Marta is a lively and lovely little girl in Grade Five. With her pet and good friend Ba Du, she moved from the big city to the beautiful Mediterranean island of Reno with her parents. On the island, she met the postman Anzuo, classmate Ada, pilot Mi You and a bunch of seemingly strange but enthusiastic islanders, and many interesting stories happened.
Reporter: Marta and other stories have a lovely pig. What does it have to do with yourself?
Pig: Is that me? Or my brother? hahaha ......
Reporter: Marta's scene has a strong Mediterranean style. Why not your hometown, the beautiful Xishuangbanna?
Pig: Because I saw a French film Blue Sea and Blue Sky a long time ago. This film helped me find the direction of the current comic style, and Marta was born with Posanova's music. (Editor's Note: Posanova is Portuguese, which refers to a kind of "new jazz music" that combines Brazilian samba and American cool jazz. )
Reporter: What are your settings for the style of your work? What do you want readers to get from reading your works?
Pig: I just want to draw everything I like into my work, and there is no special setting. I hope readers will like them as much as I do. There is also music. I especially like Bosanova's light and warm feeling. I hope I can draw Bosanova into my own paintings.
Reporter: What great creations will there be in the future? What do you expect from yourself?
Pig: Marta and Huang Jinguo (Marta's long story) are being serialized in Xinlei story 100. This is an adventure cartoon with strong story. My expectation for myself is to draw cartoons healthily and happily, do yoga, swim, travel ... and music, food ... In short, I am happy.
"Pig" has a long history, and my family has called me "winter melon pig" since I was a child.
Reporter: Because of your parents' working relationship, you went from Yunnan to Yangzhou to Shanghai and then to Beijing. Do you like this "migration"?
Life?
Pig: I felt lonely at that time and never had any friends. But in retrospect, the life experiences in many different cities are also a good memory. Sometimes walking in the street somewhere, I suddenly feel "Ah, like Yangzhou" and suddenly miss the life of moving around when I was a child.
Reporter: Your pen name is Zhu Letao. There are many versions of this name on the Internet. Can I have an authoritative version?
Pig: When I lived in Xishuangbanna Botanical Garden as a child, my neighbors saw that I was as fat as a pig and called me "wax gourd pig". Later, my parents thought it was a good name, and my family kept calling me that until I was in junior high school. After a long struggle, my family finally stopped calling me "pig".
But later, when I became Yao Feila's assistant, "West Lake" once said that everyone can be described as an animal. I asked what animal I was, and "West Lake" thought about it and said "pig". At that time, I was a little sad and decided to be a pig with the idea of giving up on myself. Later, I wanted to publish my own work. "West Lake" gave me a pen name of Zhu Letao, which was also written as Zhu Letao at the beginning. The two names were mixed together, and Master said that everyone should choose for themselves. As a result, everyone shouted and shouted, and they became a walnut.
Reporter: What do you think of the title of "Super Girl" in "Beach"? Do you like being called a "beautiful girl cartoonist"?
Pig: Probably because I am the winner of the Golden Dragon Award in PK. Ha ha! "Beautiful girl cartoonist" or "beautiful cartoonist" sounds a little strange to themselves, and they feel more comfortable calling me piggy. "West Lake" called me piggy, and the editor also called me piggy, piggy, but now they all call me piggy with "West Lake" ... It seems that they have no status. ...
Gossip about life and become a yoga instructor by doing nothing.
Reporter: You are not only a cartoonist, but also a yoga instructor, which is a great thing. How did you do that?
Pig: I don't know. Sometimes I feel that I have done nothing.
Reporter: Knowing that you like movie star Jean Reno, what moved you?
Pig: ... I am impressed everywhere!
Reporter: You said, "I hope to travel to the Mediterranean with people who look like Jean Reno!" Is this a declaration of love?
Pig: Is this imagination? I never thought about what would happen if it really happened.
Reporter: Look at your writing. You have childish fantasies. Is the character in life the same?
Pig: "West Lake" always calls me stupid, and I don't think my works are naive. It should be a fairy tale feeling. I don't have a work summary. In life, the attitude towards annoying people will be very bad, and this character will make people even more annoying and is being corrected. Otherwise, I have the same personality as other girls.
Reporter: Did you draw columns and sign Marta tired during this period? How to pass the bad mood?
Pig: Since May, all kinds of signing parties and exhibitions have made me very tired, but I thought I would get better after the summer, and then I will get back on my feet and continue to catch up with the manuscript ... to vent? Make snacks, chat with friends, exercise, sleep and cry.