Tommy Yune
Encyclopedia
Korean language
Korean is the official language of the country Korea, in both South and North. It is also one of the two official languages in the Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture in People's Republic of China. There are about 78 million Korean speakers worldwide. In the 15th century, a national writing...
comic book author who became known for his manga
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...
-style work on Speed Racer
Speed Racer
Speed Racer is an English adaptation name of the Japanese manga and anime, which centered on automobile racing. Mach GoGoGo was originally serialized in print form in Shueisha's 1958 Shōnen Book, and was released in tankōbon book form by Sun Wide Comics, re-released in Japan by Fusosha...
, which was followed by a comic industry revival of classic anime shows such as Transformers, Battle of the Planets
Battle of the Planets
Battle of the Planets is an American animated television adaptation of the Japanese anime series Science Ninja Team Gatchaman . Of the 105 original Gatchaman episodes, 85 were used in the Battle of the Planets adaptation, produced by Sandy Frank Entertainment...
and Robotech
Robotech
Robotech is an 85-episode science fiction anime adaptation produced by Harmony Gold USA in association with Tatsunoko Production Co., Ltd. and first released in the United States in 1985...
. His video game credits include FX Fighter
FX Fighter
FX Fighter is a video game developed by Argonaut Games and released by GTE Entertainment in 1995. It was an early realtime 3D fighting game to be developed for the PC...
, Robotech: Battlecry
Robotech: Battlecry
Robotech: Battlecry received mostly positive reviews upon its release. Electronic Gaming Monthly gave the game an 8 out of 10, saying, "It does an incredible job of re-creating the show's fast-paced mech combat by combining slick animation and spot-on controls." GameSpy gave it a 3.0 out of 5 and...
, and the award-winning The Journeyman Project
The Journeyman Project
The Journeyman Project is a time travel adventure computer game developed by Presto Studios.-Gameplay:The game features a first-person perspective. The protagonist sees a display, a rectangle shaped visor . This user interface helps to reduce the movie size and maintain relatively high frame rates...
series.
Yune first began in comics with the 1992 cult
Cult following
A cult following is a group of fans who are highly dedicated to a specific area of pop culture. A film, book, band, or video game, among other things, will be said to have a cult following when it has a small but very passionate fan base...
anthropomorphic series Buster the Amazing Bear
Buster the Amazing Bear
Buster the Amazing Bear is a comic book series created by Tommy Yune in 1993 about a baby bear cub who is genetically altered in a laboratory accident and transforms into an anthropomorphic superhero....
and joined Jim Lee
Jim Lee
Jim Lee is a Korean-American comic book artist, writer, editor and publisher. He first broke into the industry in 1987 as an artist for Marvel Comics, illustrating titles such as Alpha Flight and Punisher War Journal, before gaining a great deal of popularity on The Uncanny X-Men...
at Wildstorm
Wildstorm
WildStorm Productions, or simply WildStorm, published American comic books. Originally an independent company established by Jim Lee and further expanded upon in subsequent years by other creators, WildStorm became a publishing imprint of DC Comics in 1999...
Productions after a number of years as a video game designer. After writing and illustrating Speed Racer
Speed Racer
Speed Racer is an English adaptation name of the Japanese manga and anime, which centered on automobile racing. Mach GoGoGo was originally serialized in print form in Shueisha's 1958 Shōnen Book, and was released in tankōbon book form by Sun Wide Comics, re-released in Japan by Fusosha...
in 1999, he followed up with two more manga-style miniseries, Racer X and the shameless cheesecake romp Danger Girl
Danger Girl
Danger Girl is an American comic book series created by J. Scott Campbell and Andy Hartnell. The comic features a group of female secret agents led by a mentor named Deuce. The series follows the James Bond and Indiana Jones action-adventure formula, with the Danger Girls being an homage to the...
: Kamikaze. His original Speed Racer
Speed Racer
Speed Racer is an English adaptation name of the Japanese manga and anime, which centered on automobile racing. Mach GoGoGo was originally serialized in print form in Shueisha's 1958 Shōnen Book, and was released in tankōbon book form by Sun Wide Comics, re-released in Japan by Fusosha...
run was also re-released in 2000 as the graphic novel titled Born to Race.
Yune's first work in feature animation was creating the computer-generated opening sequence of Kevin Altieri's Gen¹³. In 2001, he left Wildstorm to become creative director at Harmony Gold USA
Harmony Gold USA
Harmony Gold is a television production and distribution company established in 1983. It is best known as the “creator” and main distributor of the anime series Robotech. It also partially dubbed the Dragon Ball series in the late 1980s....
for the relaunch of Robotech
Robotech
Robotech is an 85-episode science fiction anime adaptation produced by Harmony Gold USA in association with Tatsunoko Production Co., Ltd. and first released in the United States in 1985...
. He joined Steve Yun, the webmaster of the official Robotech webpage who is also his brother. He is one of the persons behind the story of Robotech: The Shadow Chronicles
Robotech: The Shadow Chronicles
Robotech: The Shadow Chronicles is the 2006 animated sequel to the 1985 Robotech television series. It was released on DVD on February 6, 2007.- Plot :...
and directed the movie.
AnimeExpo 2007 pie incident
On July 2, 2007 at the Anime ExpoAnime Expo
Anime Expo, abbreviated AX, is an American anime convention held in Los Angeles, California and organized by the non-profit Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation . With rare exceptions, the convention is traditionally held on the July 4th weekend and lasts for four days...
in Long Beach, California
Long Beach, California
Long Beach is a city situated in Los Angeles County in Southern California, on the Pacific coast of the United States. The city is the 36th-largest city in the nation and the seventh-largest in California. As of 2010, its population was 462,257...
, a disgruntled Robotech fan by the name of Mr. Schiller (who went by the username "Khyron Prime" on Robotech.com's forums) hit Yune in the face with a plate full of cream pie
Pieing
Pieing is the act of throwing a pie at a person or persons. This can be a political action when the target is an authority figure, politician, or celebrity and can be used as a means of protesting against the target's political beliefs, or against perceived arrogance or vanity. Perpetrators...
. Schiller's intended attacker was Harmony Gold employee and Robotech.com webmaster Steve Yun, with Yune as his secondary target. After being pied, Yune picked up the plate and returned the favor to Schiller before they both posed for a picture, which was ironically taken by Steve Yun. Following the incident, Schiller was permanently banned from Anime Expo.
Filmography
- Robotech: The Shadow ChroniclesRobotech: The Shadow ChroniclesRobotech: The Shadow Chronicles is the 2006 animated sequel to the 1985 Robotech television series. It was released on DVD on February 6, 2007.- Plot :...
(2006) - Director - Robotech: Remastered Extended Edition (2003) - Opening and episode titles
- Gen¹³ (2000) - Opening title animation
Published video game works
- Robotech: InvasionRobotech: InvasionRobotech: Invasion is a first-person shooter video game set in the Invid Invasion era of the Robotech saga. Developed by Vicious Cycle Software and published by Global Star , Invasion was the last Robotech game to be released on home video...
(2004) - Producer - Robotech: BattlecryRobotech: BattlecryRobotech: Battlecry received mostly positive reviews upon its release. Electronic Gaming Monthly gave the game an 8 out of 10, saying, "It does an incredible job of re-creating the show's fast-paced mech combat by combining slick animation and spot-on controls." GameSpy gave it a 3.0 out of 5 and...
(2002) - Producer, Character design - The Journeyman Project 3: Legacy of TimeThe Journeyman Project 3: Legacy of TimeThe Journeyman Project 3: Legacy of Time is a computer game developed by Presto Studios and is a sequel to The Journeyman Project and The Journeyman Project 2: Buried in Time.- Overview :...
(1998) - Creative Director, Conceptual design - The Journeyman Project: Pegasus Prime (1997) - Conceptual design, Special effects
- FX FighterFX FighterFX Fighter is a video game developed by Argonaut Games and released by GTE Entertainment in 1995. It was an early realtime 3D fighting game to be developed for the PC...
(1995) - Character design - The Journeyman ProjectThe Journeyman ProjectThe Journeyman Project is a time travel adventure computer game developed by Presto Studios.-Gameplay:The game features a first-person perspective. The protagonist sees a display, a rectangle shaped visor . This user interface helps to reduce the movie size and maintain relatively high frame rates...
(1992) - Conceptual design
Awards
- Book of the Month - August 1999 Wizard Magazine (Speed Racer)
- Award of excellence: technical & creative excellence - 1997 NewMedia Invision Awards (Journeyman Project 3)
- Gold medal: best overall design, animation - 1997 NewMedia Invision Awards (Journeyman Project 3)
- Silver medal: best animation, graphics - 1996 NewMedia Invision Awards (Journeyman Project: Pegasus Prime)
- Finalist: best action/arcade software program - 1996 Codies Awards (FX Fighter)
- Gold medal: best animation, graphics - 1993 NewMedia Invision Awards (The Journeyman Project)
- Bronze medal: best production design - 1993 NewMedia Invision Awards (The Journeyman Project)
- Award of Excellence - 1991 Society for News DesignSociety for News DesignThe Society for News Design is an international organization for professionals working in the news sector of the media industry, specifically those involved with graphic design, illustration, web design and infographics....
(Orange County Register) - 1st place: best graphics - 1990 California Newspaper Publishers AssociationCalifornia Newspaper Publishers AssociationThe California Newspaper Publishers Association is a nonprofit trade association founded in 1888 that represents the daily and weekly newspapers of California. Its diverse membership consists of over 500 newspapers that elect 35 individuals to its governing board of directors...
(UCLA Daily BruinDaily BruinThe Daily Bruin is the student newspaper at the University of California, Los Angeles.-Frequency and governance:When classes are in session, the Bruin is published Monday through Friday during the school year and once a week on Mondays in the summer quarter.It is overseen by the ASUCLA...
) - 2nd place: best graphics - 1989 California Newspaper Publishers AssociationCalifornia Newspaper Publishers AssociationThe California Newspaper Publishers Association is a nonprofit trade association founded in 1888 that represents the daily and weekly newspapers of California. Its diverse membership consists of over 500 newspapers that elect 35 individuals to its governing board of directors...
(UCLA Daily BruinDaily BruinThe Daily Bruin is the student newspaper at the University of California, Los Angeles.-Frequency and governance:When classes are in session, the Bruin is published Monday through Friday during the school year and once a week on Mondays in the summer quarter.It is overseen by the ASUCLA...
)