We did the same with the other cars

We had terrible trouble getting stuff, because the bad guy's essentially a psychopath, and people don't want their brands associated with a psychopath. And then car people and bike people want to see nice riding shots with somebody that's the right age to ride a Harley Davidson or what have you. They definitely don't want to see a complete loony dressed in women's clothing and killing people.

So we've found it difficult to do, so we've had to resort to a Justice Forever solution. I knew somebody that races cars, and they have a collector, and the collector's not about. And I said I could store it for a little while. "Store it? In what way?" "Well, I've got this big warehouse..." [Laughs]

I said we'll look after it and get it cleaned. And he just looked at me and said you'll get me sued, or sacked or whatever. I said I'd take the number plates off, we'll get some great photographs with people leaning against it. We did the same with the other cars, we sort of told them it was for a different film [Laughs].

I've known them and worked for them for a while, so it won't be as bad as that. Unless... I keep not sleeping. I have this terrible dream that the fucking bulldozers have come in early and driven over the Ferrari and there it was all flat[Laughs]. But yeah, it's good. These sort of films, to get it so it's great, kapton tape with the details, you have to go the extra mile. Especially in the current economic climate, and the producers have got a tough time, because they want to beat us into submission. "Do you really need that? Do you really need a Ferrari?" Everyone needs a Ferrari!

So with the detail of this [Kick-Ass' lair] we've expanded it as much as we can, and there are a few things here that maybe shouldn't have been here. But then the guys who did all the graphics, we've had problems with that, because people don't want to clear things - maps and Google and stuff. So we've had to make our own stuff. My son did some of this out here. My youngest son did the thing of Kick-Ass holding on to the Empire State Building.

We were filming in a school, where I'd been before to shoot some commercials for Sky, and so I got to know the headmistress there. I had to pull the odd fast one on her, so what I've done is get the kids to do Americana as projects. [Laughs] So I paid for the paper, but they've done all these pictures...

I like to see it as a strength, and we stand on the shoulders of that. So we take what Mark [Millar] and John [Romita Jr] do, and the script, and have loads of conversations with them. I'm not a corduroy jacket-type designer that would die without listening to Mahler. I like being part of a group, that team effort. The cameraman's a good friend of mine, and I don't particularly have an ego, so I don't care if it's not my drawing, or it's somebody else's.

Really, without sounding like too much of a wanker, it's for the good of the group. There's loads of things I'd have liked to have done - I could have had an artist's tantrum. "Why won't you let me fucking do it?" I'm not saying I haven't had a few. But what's really important, and nice about the first one, was that when Mark and John came, they really got it, and really liked it. They could see that we'd drawn things out and used different elements. I find colour really important, and I like using colour, and I added that to it. They could see the logic to it, because it stood on the shoulders of their work. We didn't say, "That's all shit. We'll do our own thing."

It's a difficult thing, because you don't want to be constrained too much. But we've gone off on tangents. With this, we're set in a basement, but you don't really see the basement in the books. I really like the film Fight Club, and I wanted this big oppressive weight close to your head. I wanted to do this so it went up and was just blackness beyond the pipes, so there's the weight, and the feeling that they have the weight on their shoulders. Whereas the evil lair, it's big and airy, it's got cages and sharks and what have you. It would give you some of the narrative, and reinforce it.

If I'm being really honest, I'm finding it a help, as well. Because when I get lost, and I start wandering off into wanting to spray Ferraris orange. "Why can't I spray my Ferraris orange? I want them orange!" I find a way back by looking through their stuff and talking to them.
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