We were most excited when this limited edition Bogus Journey print featuring the unique and exciting artwork of Bill & Ted fan Matt Tobin was commissioned by London 1888 to create for Alex Winter's appearance at the May 2011 Spooky Empire's May-Hem Convention in Orlando, Florida (and copies are still available for sale!)  Alex received a copy of the poster and also signed one for the artist (who could not be in attendance . . . bogus!  Keanu Reeves, Ed Solomon and Chris Matheson also received copies of the poster!)  We were even more non-non-non-non-excited when we had the chance to interview this artistic Bill & Ted enthusiast exclusively for our website!  Not bad!

Our Outstanding Interview with Matt Tobin

Bill & Ted's Excellent Online Adventure: Could you tell us something about your background in art?

Matt: Well, I've been drawing as far back as I can remember.  I drew in books, on walls, mostly WWF wrestlers and Ninja Turtles.  I used to draw their muscles by making figure 8's.  Throughout school I was always more of the art oriented breed.  Once I picked up a guitar music became my whole life and art kind of fell on the back burner.  It wasn't until it came to printing t-shirts for my band Dead & Divine, did I start designing / drawing digitally.  That was 2004; I've been doing this seriously for the last 2 - 3 years.  It keeps the creative juices flowing when I'm not on tour.  It's a different kind of artistic release, which is also refreshing.  I design for bands all over the world, big and small as well as clothing companies and more.

B&TEOA: Artwork-wise, who were some of your inspirations?

Matt: I cant really name anyone specifically.  I found a lot of bands I liked had great album artwork.  Smashing Pumpkins album artwork always intrigued me.  It was always so not-of-this-world.  So much in fact that I have one of their album booklets tattooed up one entire arm and onto my neck.  I think I get inspiration from everything, things I see, hear, other artists I'm friends with . . . .

B&TEOA: Same question as above, music-wise!

Matt: Well, Smashing Pumpkins!  My biggest influence by far.  I grew up on a lot of 90's grunge and alt-rock like Soundgarden, Silverchair, Alice in Chains, Pearl Jam etc.  I'd like to think I was part of a last generation of a dying breed of people who will fully appreciate that music ha ha.  I love all kinds of music, I play in a heavy punk band, and I also listen to Taylor Swift.  Its awesome.  Ha ha.

B&TEOA: How did you come to design the Bogus Journey poster for London 1888?

Matt: Long story short, I ordered a Nightmare On Elm Street poster Chris Ott had designed for his company (London 1888.)  Being a massive Freddy fan (almost damn near as much as B&T) I had to have my hands on it.  Somewhere along those lines Chris and I got to talking.  He was a rad dude, and we both appreciated each others' work.  He asked me if I would ever be interested in doing some sort of collaboration with him at some point and I was more than willing.  Chris knew that I had designed Bill & Ted themed shirts and a baseball cap (available from 8-bit Zombie) and I think he got the vibe I would be the right guy for the job.  As soon as he told me what the project was AND the fact that Alex Winter would see it, it was on.

B&TEOA: How did you decide which characters and scenes to include in the poster?

Matt: It was really a kind of stressful process.  I had always wanted someone to release a silk screened poster for Bogus Journey, and now I was the dude to do it.  A lot of pressure.  I was drawing entire large pieces and scrapping them over and over.  I did it over the course of two days.  I knew I had to have the Vasquez Rocks in the poster cause of its famous ties to so many films / tv shows.  As well as if not both, either Evil Bill or Evil Ted pulling their face off (a scene from which I would have my dad fast forward passed cause being 5 years old, that terrified me) - so that was important.

B&TEOA: Whoa!  How do you think the movie would have played on your innocent youthful mind if the original scenes of the scary, exaggerated Colonel Oates, Granny S. Preston, Esq. and the Hippity Hoppity Easter Bunny Behemoth had been left in the final cut?

Matt: I know about those scenes.  I had the Bill & Ted trading cards, and if I'm not mistaken some of those images were actually on the cards.  I would've loved to see that scene kept in the film.  It's weird, as much as I was scared of that part, I would then put on Child's Play or Nightmare on Elm Street and be relatively fine.  I grew up on horror mostly, but I don't know . . . haha . . . that one scene just shook me!

B&TEOA: Were there any scenes or characters you wanted to incorporate but didn't get a chance to?

Matt: I think I got everything in I wanted to.  We got the good robots, Granny, Oats, Bunny.  One thing I knew from the get-go was I wanted the top of the poster to be the cliff scene.
 
B&TEOA: Were you excited when you saw the actual print of the poster with the silver metallic ink?  They look so cool!

Matt: Ya!  That was a suggestion I made to Chris.  I had seen it done before, and it looked awesome.  I felt it would give the poster even that much more of a special / limited feel.  I also thought it seemed fitting 'cause, it looked like metal and well, Bill & Ted are "total Metal-heads!"

B&TEOA: You didn't attend the convention, I take it, but Alex signed a copy of the poster for you.  What was that like?
 
Matt: I live in Canada which is verrrry unfortunate for someone like me who heavily enjoys conventions.  We don't get smaller more intimate conventions so much here.  We do have the FanExpo every summer, but its insanely massive.  It's every genre slammed into one; Comics, Sci Fi, Anime, Horror etc.  I would've loved to meet Alex in person - but Chris did me a big solid and told Alex about me and got him to sign a copy.  Pretty stellar, if you ask me.  I grew up watching / idolizing this guy as a kid and growing to respect him as an actor and filmmaker (I love Freaked as well) and now the dude knows my name.  Ha!

Many thanks to Matt for taking the time to answer our questions!
And by sure to check out Dead and Divine's New Album, Antimacy!