Interview with Jordan & Remo - Creators of The Adventures of Harley

April 21, 2024

When Jordan & Remo had reached a place in their project where they felt comfortable sharing it. They printed and hand-bound a copy to share with us. One sunny afternoon Jenny and I (Lucas) came over and was able to dive into their first graphic novel. We saw ourselves, our community, inspiration that we share, and a timeless tale for every-person. Jordan's heartfelt storytelling meshes so perfectly with Remo's illustration that you can feel the conversations, laughs, and intention that has gone into this project. I hope you enjoy the interview with Jordan and Remo below. - Lucas

Lucas & Jenny reading on a sunny afternoon.

Jordan & Remo - Tell us about The Adventures of Harley! What motivated you to begin this project and keep the momentum going?

J: For years I’ve tried to write. I had all these ideas but I could never complete a story. Then, during the pandemic, when it was just me and Harley, I wondered… what does Harley do when I sleep? Where does he go? What if he could travel to different worlds?

The words poured out of me and I completed my first story. Remo was the first and only one to read it. We decided we should create something and Adventures of Harley was born. I wrote the story and Remo’s imagination and talent took the ideas to new places.

It’s taken us three years to get here! The process has been nothing short of a journey and it’s been a true labor of love. I think what kept the momentum going was the intrinsic desire to share our art with the purest intentions. It’s the first time both Remo and I have taken on a creative project of this scale purely for the sake of creation… no clients, no budget, no outside feedback. Just us and whatever our wild imaginations could dream up. It’s fucking amazing.

R: I had never drawn a 40-page comic before, and Jordan believed in me and my craft from the start, even when I didn’t believe in myself and whether I could finish a monumental task. The project felt right because there was a purity to it—it didn’t seem like Jordan was in it for money or recognition, but because she had a message that needed to be channeled.

Can you describe your collaborative process in bringing this graphic novel to life?

J: Remo is my perfect creative counterpart. We have a natural flow that just works with each other. No idea or concept is too crazy for either of us. On the contrary, we just keep adding ideas and the concepts keep growing.

We first approached the graphic novel like any other project. Since we both do client work for a living, the first thing we did was set a deadline. As the date approached, I could feel Remo’s stress. He didn’t say anything but I could feel it.

One day, I told him, “Hey… this project should only bring us joy, if it brings us anything else then that, we are not doing it right. Fuck the deadline.”

Remo: “Really?!?”

Me: “Yea! This is our shit… also the artist never gets to choose when things come out, so you tell me when it’s ready.”

Remo: “Cool, because I want to start all over.”

I was surprised because we were about halfway through, but I trust Remo and his process so we started fresh.

It was the best decision we ever made because it gave us space to become students of the graphic novel medium. The way you tell a story in comics is much different than films or books. We had to take time to learn this.

So, biggest lesson for me… if you are creating something for the love of it, allow time and space for the creation to develop and evolve naturally. Take away the deadlines and slow down.

R: In the beginning, I felt like I was trying to actively “create” the artwork, that the artwork was coming from me. Now, I’ve come to realize that it doesn’t actually come from me, but in fact, I’m just a channel for something bigger to work through me. The only thing I need to do is make the time to sit down, give the work my fullest attention, and bear witness to something that is beyond me. At this point, my hands move automatically, and I don’t know when a page is finished until it is.

The same goes for the ideation process. I used to think that the ideas were coming from me and Jordan, but really, when we come together, the ideas just flow through us. The ideas are really coming from somewhere else, somewhere deeper. During these ideation sessions, Jordan and I often say, “Too easy! We’re not even trying!” Once you surrender yourself to that which is greater, everything gets easier.

Has your professional experience in Filmmaking & Illustration influenced your approach?

J: As mentioned previously, we were both working off deadlines which did not work for this project. I think for me, this project really expanded my mindset. With filmmaking, we are always constrained by physical resources. Time, space, budget. But with the graphic novel, I can imagine the wildest scenario at no extra charge. It’s been liberating to create in this way.

R: Nothing in my professional experience has influenced the artwork. Applying a professional mindset only made things worse. Contrary to what most people think, the world doesn’t run according to deadlines, fiscal quarters, and economic growth. We really messed up the natural world by trying to fit it into our professional mindset.