K-Content News
- August 30, 2021
Yes, Today is the Day of Claude Cattington the Third
Webtoon author “Olso”
Photos by Olso
Greetings Olso
Q. It is an honor to meet the author of ‹Knight Driver› and ‹Meow Man›. I am a big fan of both. Your first Webtoon, ‹Knight Driver›, was published by Lezhin Comics. When did you decide to become a webtoon author?
A. When I was young, I wanted to become a character designer. Then I thought I needed a story to show my characters to more people, so I became a webtoon author.
Q. There’s a reason your characters feel so alive. ‹Meow Man› has characters like the Prince of the Cat Kingdom “Claude Cattington the Third”; the Cat Kingdom’s Alfred the 4th, or Alex, who lives as a chicken delivery boy; and Claude’s sister, Abby. There are characters based on animals, like “cat people” and “dog people”
A. I wanted to make characters much more relatable, so I used familiar pets, like cats and dogs. I made the “cat people” and “dog people,” characters who can change into humans, to make them more interesting.
Q. These animal characters live among mankind by turning into humans. Why did you give your characters ordinary and old-fashioned names like Claude and Abby? How did you come up with these names?
A. I think people remember strange character names for much longer. I used meme names from the internet or the names of famous people. I put extra effort into Claude’s name. I thought it would be funny for a cute pet to have a strange name. That’s why I gave him an old-fashioned name despite his handsome face.
Q. A reader said: “The style is cute but a bit simple. But when you read it, it’s very funny and engaging.” Many webtoons that use a simple style are growing in popularity: Is there a reason you chose this particular style?
A. If you put too much effort into your drawings while working on a serialized webtoon, you’ll face serious physical and mental challenges no matter how many precautions you take. Your design will break sooner or later. If you choose a simple design, you can keep on drawing with that same style until the end. I kept a simple style for ‹Meow Man› for practical reasons—but people liked the cute and simple animal characters. The current trend skews toward simple webtoons, which explains why so many people liked it: I was lucky.
Catching the heart of young people
Q. Young readers in their teens and 20s love your humor. Since Claude is a prince, you gave him an old-fashioned way of speaking. What kind of humor do you like and how does it affect your webtoons?
A. I like situational comedies that show the oddities of everyday life. I also like puns. Puns aren’t always funny in real life, so I don’t use them too often. But I can use them freely in my webtoons, and I do just that. (laughs) I’m happy my readers like my humor. Thank you all.
Q. Is there a particular response from a fan you remember?
A. I made ‹Meow Man› thinking my main audiences would be people in their late teens to early 20s. But I got a bunch of fan letters from elementary school students. The fact that my webtoon was being read by children made me think. My webtoon wasn’t particularly child-friendly. In the beginning, there were some curse words—but I took them out in the end. I also took out much of the violent actions I used for comedy. I learned you can make characters appealing without using extreme scenes.
Q. In another interview, you said you color coded your characters for their distinct attributes. You gave Claude a white color because he has a pure mind. You gave Pepper a black color because he was overshadowed by Claude. Alex received an orange color like fried chicken because he delivers chicken for his job. Are there any other hidden components readers should know about? Is there some technical secret on how you draw?
A. Claude, Alfred the 4th, Bonnie, and other characters’ “relations” with one another remain my focus. As characters’ relationships grow, they naturally build the world. That’s why I care about making diverse characters and relations. In ‹Alice in Wonderland›, Alice follows a rabbit and goes to wonderland. I made characters interesting as a hook so that readers would invest themselves in the world.
Q. Emoticons using Claude and Abby are popular: Is there any difference in making webtoon versus making emoticons?
A. I work on a webtoon alone, but I have to work with a motion designer to make emoticons. People express their emotions with emoticons. So it has to be relatable to be popular. For example, Claude’s emoticon needs to have Claude’s basic characteristic from the webtoon—but I put him in situations people can relate to, like going to school or going to work with tired expression or studying hard.
Q. Do you have a favorite work or character?
A. My most favorite work is my first work, ‹Knight Driver›. It was rough on both style and story, but it was imbued with the heart and passion that only first timers have. It was reckless, but it was brave. I can’t recreate that now. My favorite character is Claude Cattington the Third from ‹Meow Man›. He gave me popularity and the chance to achieve my dreams as a character designer.
Q. Do you have a genre or a story you want to tell? Do you have any other plans?
A. I’ve mostly focused on comedic works. My next work will be a comedic Bildungsroman webtoon. I’m also interested in telling character stories by making social media content. I’ll tell the backstory of ‹Meow Man› characters via Instagram, Twitter, and emoticons. I’ll work on a lot of content looking forward and it’ll be great to get support from my readers.
Q. Do you have a genre or a story you want to tell? Do you have any other plans?
A. I’ve mostly focused on comedic works. My next work will be a comedic Bildungsroman webtoon. I’m also interested in telling character stories by making social media content. I’ll tell the backstory of ‹Meow Man› characters via Instagram, Twitter, and emoticons. I’ll work on a lot of content looking forward and it’ll be great to get support from my readers.
Olso
Naver Webtoon ‹Meow Man>’s main characters, Bonnie and Claude ⒸOlso
(Clockwise) Naver Webtoon ‹Meow Man›’s characters, Pepper, Doug, Claude, Abby ⒸOlso
One scene of Naver Webtoon ‹Meow Man› ⒸOlso
Emoticon “Yes, Today is the Day of Claude Cattington the Third” ⒸOlso
Emoticon “It’s me, Abby, again” ⒸOlso
