Mangaka Interview: Gigi Murakami

Becoming a mangaka, body horror, and more with the creator of Resenter.

A brief introduction, before we get into the interview!

In case I haven’t made this abundantly clear, I adore horror in all forms. Not just in manga, not just starring monsters, not just, not just, not just. Horror across the board is my jam. So needless to say, when Resenter, a horror one-shot from the Viz one-shot program, popped up in the Viz app, I was geeked.

It more than lived up to the hype I made for myself. This was exceptional horror, body horror, afterlife, lore, and oh so much more, all in one self-contained story begging to be unleashed in a full series. As I’ll get to in the interview, there was one panel in particular that was so wild that I just stared at it for whole moments. You have to see it. You’ll know the panel when you get there.

All this to say, Gigi is awesome. So let me shut up and get to the interview.

But first! About Gigi: Gigi Murakami is an NYC native, Ignatz nominated manga artist, illustrator, writer, content creator, and small creative business owner at the intersection of horror media, alternative nerd culture, and (schlocky) film. Her work blends Japanese manga art, vintage grindhouse poster art, and pulp comic aesthetics. She specializes in traditional ink and color illustrations and manga art, focusing on dark, dramatic, and fantastical yet introspective themes.

Can you briefly walk through your history with manga, and how that led to being a mangaka yourself?

GM: I first really got into manga in junior high, but the first manga I ever read was Hideshi Hino’s Panorama of Hell. During junior high, I would read manga like Bleach, Nana, Chobits, Naruto and tons more. Ever since then, I really wanted to create my own manga and make other people feel how I felt while reading manga. However, when I was a kid, I noticed a seal of authentic Japanese manga on a copy of manga and instantly felt that I wasn’t allowed to create manga, so I didn’t. I’d continue drawing but focused on illustration instead. But I couldn’t let go of my dream to create manga.

In 2018, I decided I was going to become a mangaka and would dive head first into creating manga–I created an LLC and everything (because I was always planning to self-publish and have an online store); However, it was in 2020 that I really went deep into studying how to make manga and comics, buying reference books, reading, practicing my drawing and inking–everything. It’s been about 5 years now since I really buckled down and began on this journey.

How did you find the idea for RESENTER, what was the initial inspiration, and what inspired you along the way? 

GM: During the pandemic, I had a ton of time to think about life and some problematic experiences that I had in the past. I came to the conclusion that I was unsatisfied with how those experiences played out, but because of how much time had passed, I wasn’t able to get the vindication that I wanted, so I had to think about how I could get it healthily: by making a manga.

It then started to snowball into breaking down and questioning revenge and resentment and RESENTER slowly started to form.

How did you find your characters? Namely Rhea, Jackie and Tippi? What's your process of getting to know your characters, and have they surprised you at all as you build out their stories?

GM: When creating characters, I like thinking about archetypes to play in and build off of. I know some people don’t enjoy that kind of stuff because it feels too formulaic , but I like having that kind of structure to build familiarity for the reader. I think building off those structures is really helpful for that.

There are a lot of wonderful horror elements, dynamic characters, meaningful themes, but what is your favorite part of telling this story? And do you have a least favorite part?

GM: I really love exploring the overarching theme in different ways! It’s really fun to explore the characters' different dynamics through the theme and seeing how they’d approach something based on their own values. I love thinking about that human touch. 

I think my least favorite part, surprisingly, might be the worldbuilding, haha. The more I worked with my editor Hisashi Sasaki, the more I understood how unimportant the worldbuilding is compared to the character building in manga. I know American readers are super interested in worldbuilding—I’m so sorry haha. That part of things was definitely the most stressful.

I have to ask about the Council of Others, because they get teased but never seen. What do they look like? Who are they? Where are they from? When will we meet them? Could you tell us everything you're willing to share?

GM: So many readers are curious about the Council of Others! They are definitely the boogymen of RESENTER  haha. They were inspired by the Godhand from Berserk (which was inspired by the Cenobites from Hellraiser), but their function is slightly different within RESENTER. I’m looking forward to showing that in the future.

I love body horror, but I feel like yours is next level, namely Jackie literally ripping herself out of another fake skin. How did you learn to draw this so well? I mean, I've never seen someone rip out of the skin of another person, but this felt so real.

GM: Thanks, I’m glad you liked it! That’s also my favorite part haha. I’m a huge fan of body horror as well, and stuff like Hellraiser, but I was really inspired by Satoshi Kon’s Paprika for this imagery.

What's next for RESENTER? Where can people find more, and how can they support your work?

GM: Unfortunately, RESENTER didn’t qualify for serialization through VIZ’s one–shot program, so I’m currently in the process of finalizing RESENTER’s new home and future. At the moment, I’m considering pitching RESENTER to another publisher or self publishing it again. 

As for support, I have a new membership on my website, www.gigimurakami.art, called Midnight Cult—it’s basically a private Patreon on my website. Outside of RESENTER, I have other projects that I want to self publish, so any monthly support on my website would be greatly appreciated! I also have an online store, www.gigimurakami.store, where you can purchase the initial chapter of RESENTER and my other manga oneshots, but also apparel, stickers, art prints and more. 

For non monetary support, I have a YouTube channel( @gigimurakami) and an Instagram account (@gigi_murakami). Please follow me!