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submitted by ArcaneTheWoof
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submitted by feilen
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I've been wondering for a while, why there are different stereotypes of foxes depending on what group of people you ask. For example, the more spiritual/religious characteristics of a fox would be;

• cunning
• smart
• quick
• non-foresighted
• etc.

but as it is typically portrayed in the fandom, they're more;

• slow
• stupid
• submissive
• etc.

Could anybody explain why this is? Or does anybody disagree with this in general?

Edit: Formatting

submitted by Arkazex
[link] [8 comments]

Been looking to change species but I don't know where to start with finding which species fits me personally. I'm curious how other furries picked their species, so I would be grateful to hear how you all chose your fursona.

submitted by carlosdanger41
[link] [50 comments]

A new contender fights her way toward her goal in a brutal urban arena…

Feral Vol. 2

Indiegogo campaign ending 9/27/14
So, I was a fan of Matt “DrDubz” Warwick’s original FERAL project from the moment I saw it on Indiegogo. At its heart, FERAL is a martial arts manga, with one-on-one combat, stuff and people getting all kinds of smashed up, a one-person vengeance crusade, and a solid balance of plot and some glorious brutality. Which, really, I don’t care much for as a category, but FERAL really stood out of the genre. I haven’t seen another furry action title with this level of professional artwork; the protagonist is a strong female lead with some actual, character-defining flaws; and I’m in it somewhere. I’d say where, but my housemate stole my copy. So if you have a copy of Feral Vol. 1, keep it away from wolves.

The campaign for Feral: Volume 2 just launched three days ago, and I’m chuffed to say as of this writing it’s $25 over its $2000 goal! Awesome! It’s also been accepted by the “Go Crowdfund Britain” campaign, a curated list of British campaigns touring around England and pimping local projects. Interesting concept.

Here’s the plot, super-brief: Protagonist Haley Rosa is a fighter and grifter, a new arrival to Alta City. Looking to make a place for herself, Rosa finds her way into the shadowy, semi-legal world of the FERAL fighting circuit–she has the power and skill to claw her way into a place in FERAL, but pride and rage don’t make a path lined with flower petals toward victory–the circuit is as much about honor and sportsmanship as blood and brutality. Rosa almost immediately pisses off the mountainous Dr. Brandt, undefeated champion of the FERAL circuit and nearly as influential in Alta City politics. Rosa has a long road ahead of her.

This is an unusually long post for me, and I talk about this later, but I’ll bring it up now too–check out the $100 pledge point. It’s a commission that will be included in the back of the book–but it’s also a FERAL style badge for your next con. I don’t think I’ve ever seen something like that before–first, the custom art is a part of the final product (awesome), and you can wear it later? Awesomer.

LOTS More about FERAL on the comic’s website, I also did a write-up of the first campaign, almost a year ago.  And you know, while I could gush on about FERAL for another several paragraphs, I’m not–really, it speaks pretty well for itself! This is the third campaign for Feral, all of which have been pretty strong, and it’s rare to see something like this evolve.

Dubz’s first campaign was a forerunner to the FERAL manga (I’ll call it FERAL 0 here), a pilot that was reprised and expanded in Feral 1. A lot of the elements in the campaigns for #1 and #2 are laid out here–the kind of cameo roles you’d hope for in a furry comic project, but limited–one large fight scene for someone with deep pockets. An awesome pledge point–that’s some real screen time! But once it’s sold, no more walk-on pieces, so audience participation in the project is kind of limited.

One thing I see as a common bugaboo for new crowdfunders is a tendency to talk about the creator more than the project, which is the case here–a fair bit about the artist’s journey and process, a bit about the difficulty of juggling a large project against bread-and-butter daily stuff. There’s also a strangely barren look to the campaign–just one pic, giving the overall project a rushed feel. That being said, Dubz did really well, getting over 3/4 of his $4K goal. Pretty strong for a first attempt! While it didn’t make goal–$4000 is hard for an unknown–I’d see this as a successful campaign.

There’s some minor stuff here that evolves over time–Flexible Funding is turned on, which personally I always feel is Indiegogo’s security blanket–it feels good to hold onto, but isn’t something you’d take to a job interview. Still, Dubz says that regardless of funding the project is going to be launched, so there’s a chance that it’s appropriate here. There’s also a very short list of backer awards, a digital bundle, then jumping up to $50 for a signed copy of the manga with some extra goodies, then some “Cadillac” level stuff (commissions, etc.). Not a lot of options for customers doing their christmas smackdown shopping–and no “shopping cart” item that you can take home without feeling some pocketbook sting.
The campaign for Feral #1 has clearly learned a few things about presentation, personalization, and price points. LOTS of walk-on roles available–20 cameo appearances instead of just one long fight scene, and 10+ other opportunities for custom pieces that don’t actually appear in the book. The “cadillac” slots aren’t tied into the book itself–no glorious three-page smackdown with Hayley in the final product, but you get your own stand-alone titles, which is probably easier to manage.  Overall, a huge increase in the amount of art on the page itself, more pledge points too. Awesomeness level raised by at least 20%, but overall goal raised to $6000 from $4000. Unfortunately the returns didn’t scale up, about the same amount of money raised from the campaign.Weirdly, there was the same number of backers in both campaigns, but it looks like the $200 commissions, good sellers from #0 weren’t as hot as the $70 walk-on crowd scene stuff in #1 , so those cheaper illos may have actually cost Dubz a bit of money from his overall goal? Hard to say. Overall, with only half the goal met, this doesn’t feel like a successful campaign, from an outsider point of view. The audience didn’t follow the artist with his expanded vision.

Feral #2 is out now, with some ch-ch-changes. I had a chance to see some earlier versions of the Indiegogo page, and it started with lot of fun graphics created for the campaign, giving it a whimsical look and feel–the revision Dubz put together still has some of that unified look, but the art is grittier and more relevant to the dark tone of the book itself. Both are valid options, but for a newbie, this is more informative. Either way, the graphics designed for the campaign really help the professional tone of the project page. Most of the text is focused on the project itself (that’s good!) with lots of gritty details.

Pledge points: Dubz seems to have been compensating for that weird $70 shift with the price points, with an interesting hybrid: $100 commissions that will be included in the back of the book. I’m…I’m tempted by this. They’re also badges, which is pretty neat, since badges are the great furry underground economy. Those have been pretty popular, carrying a lot of the weight of the project’s funding beyond the big one-off $700 price point.

Of the three campaigns, this one has the lowest goal, but it’s fixed funding, not flexible–so Dubz gets about 5% more money from this one. $2000 may not be his ultimate goal–it looks more like at its heart this is a $5000 campaign–but the lower goal costs less to process, with fewer fees, and gives the audience a sense of satisfaction and being part of a winning team, which is a Good Thing overall.

Images used in this post are owned by the creator and are used with something resembling tacit approval possibly. He certainly knows what I’m up to. And THANK YOU for the pic of Corbeau, Dubz :)

 

submitted by TophLion
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Pro wrestling is fake! Anyone with “good taste” sneers at it, right? But if wrestling is fake fighting, they do real falling. That’s tough performance. As Roger Ebert said, the sport isn’t real, but the activity is. “The Wrestler”, 2008 movie directed by Darren Aronofsky, impressed me more than 99% of movies I’ve ever seen. […]

Not at a furry convention just for fun.

submitted by Ame28
[link] [16 comments]

submitted by kinilkyway
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submitted by Slycan
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submitted by HappyWulf
[link] [18 comments]

At this year’s San Diego Comic Con there was a 30 year celebration of Usagi Yojimbo — created by Stan Sakai, of course. One of the items featured during the event was a screening of Usagi Yojimbo: The Last Request, an animated short film created by Lintika Films (using both 2D and stop motion techniques) and directed by Roel Robles. The big news is that Mr. Sakai was impressed enough with the project that he has allowed the studio to use Last Request as a proof-of-concept film for a possible Usagi feature. Now they’re out seeking funds to work on that project. Over at Cartoon Brew they have an article about the project that also includes a link to the short.

image c. 2014 Lintika Films

submitted by HayPanda
[link] [1 comment]

Dear Papabear,

How are you? I found your website while browsing the internet searching for a solution to my problem, and from what I can gather, you seem to be the right person to assist me.

I have been a furry for many years now. I often participated in furry events and was also a member of several furry websites, including FurAffinity. I have always used a cat fursona, as cats are some of my favourite animals and I related to them in many ways, especially when it comes to hygiene, considering that I am somewhat obsessed with cleanliness.

However, after an unexpected incident drove me to back away from the Furry Fandom for many years, my personality changed drastically. 

Now I finally feel ready to return, and have planned the whole process like a military operation. It might be a bit exaggerated, I admit, but I want to make sure that everything goes according to plan.

The only problem I have found, however, is of paramount importance in this ordeal: I am having doubts about my fursona!

Finding an adequate fursona is a central piece in my comeback. While I am fully aware that a fursona is meant to be created out of fun rather than duty, I absolutely need to feel that my fursona's personality reflects my own. This is why it has been so difficult to find the adequate animal to represent me.

I have tried to answer multiple tests online and find the right animal for me, all to no avail. I obtained several different results, such as cat, fox, beaver, wolf and even elephant.

I relate to foxes much more nowadays, but I still feel like I 'am not worthy' of being one. That my personality does not appear to be that of a fox's, not to mention that a fox is more of a canine rather than a feline, and I have always harbored some contempt towards canines, seeing then as 'dirty', although I myself cannot explain why.

In order to find my animal, I will try and explain my personality so that perhaps you can help me find out what animal better suits me:

I am a loner, as I prefer to stay alone. However, I sympathize with others, and others often see me as kind, organised and very intelligent, if somewhat distant and unable to relax, for I am always too focused on maintaining a serious appearance.

I am not a leader. If I were to lead, I would use someone to be a front and to carry out my will, so that if my ideas were to ever draw out enemies, they would focus on him and not me.

I favour intelligence over brute force. I myself am not what you would call physically intimidating. My strength resides on my ability to speak and to bend words and sentences to my will. Therefore I love to debate, and I often win. But I can hold my own in a fight nonetheless, and am stronger that I appear.

I am a epicurist. I do not seek great thrills or adventures, but rather find pleasure in normal and reasonable activities. However, normality somewhat bores me, as I find myself wishing that the superheroes that we often see on TV where real.

I am a romantic man, and prefer to maintain a classical approach towards love. 

I am not violent, but if I am physically harmed, I will defend myself, and to my disappointment, I find pleasure in punishing those who have wronged me. A sadistic side of my personality, if you will.

I am also an open-minded person. I have done volunteer work before, and love animals. I also enjoy helping others.

That is all that I can recall. Considering all that I have written here, what animal do you think I should represent myself as?

Thank you for your help, and have a nice day.

Best wishes,

Anonymous Entity (age 21)

* * *

Dear Anonymous,

It is my belief that picking a fursona is a very personal endeavor, and, therefore, one to be pursued alone. I have written on the topic of choosing one a number of times in this column, and, if you would like to learn more, simply go to the Ask Papabear Letters page and select fursonas under Categories and it will give you several useful hits.

Be that as it may, I thought it would be fun to try and pick a fursona for you as an amusing mental exercise. Reading about your qualities, I have selected one: Crow. Here’s why:

1. You value intelligence, and the crow, a member of the Corvid family, which includes jays, is extremely intelligent. I’ve seen videos where a crow has fashioned a hook out of a bit of wire in order to fish out a piece of food from a bottle. Crows figured out, too, how to use cars to crush nuts for them, and they have mastered the duffle bag zipper, among other accomplishments.

2. You are a loner: While crows can flock into a “murder” of their kind, they are very independent souls as well.

3. You’re a romantic: Crows mate for life, and they have quite a romantic display when they are courting involving formal bows and mutual preening, which I find charming.

4. While you have your independent side, you are also charitable and like to volunteer: Crows will work together for protection. Gathering in small groups of perhaps a half dozen or so, several crows will feed on the ground while one or two others keep watch for dangers. They then rotate duties.

5. Generally nonviolent, you can be fierce: Crows don’t go looking for fights, but they will chase off fierce raptors such as hawks and owls.

6. They’re clean: while not too picky about their food, eating everything from seeds and insects to carrion, crows have been seen washing their food. Although some scientists speculate they are just softening the food a bit for eating, many others believe crows are a bit fastidious.

7. You like some normalcy in your life: Crows have regular fixed routes for flying about to feeding areas and then back to roost each day, so they do like their routines.

8. But you also have an adventurous side and like stories of superheroes: Crows enjoy a rich presence throughout human mythology. To the Greeks, the Crow was a creature of prophecy and was associated with Apollo. In the Mabinogian the Crow is a harbinger of death. In Celtic myths, the Crow was associated with the warrior goddess Morrighan. In the Eddas, two crows serve as Odin’s spies.

9. Your tongue as weapon: And, of course, the Crow appears in many Native American stories as a clever trickster on a par with Coyote. Your ability to “speak and bend words” goes perfectly with the clever Crow of these tales.

So, if I were to pick for you, I’d pick Crow. However, what I think is completely irrelevant. Perhaps, though, you can learn a bit from my method of reasoning this out and emulate that to select your fursona.

Remember not to stress out about it. It will come to you eventually.

Hugs,

Papabear

submitted by themaceez
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submitted by RaptorTheJesus2
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submitted by EmilyThePenguin
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submitted by Dragon314ever
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submitted by Goliath_Gamer
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submitted by Dragon314ever
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