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Dieselpunk is a sub-genre of the pop surrealist art movement and a budding sub-culture that combines the aesthetics of the interbellum period through World War II, and ending before or at the early 1950s, with postmodern technology and sensibilities. First coined in 2001 as a marketing term by game designer Lewis Pollak to describe his role-playing game Children of the Sun,^[2] the term has since been applied to a wide variety of visual art, music, motion pictures, fiction, and engineering.^[3]

Origin

The name "dieselpunk" is a derivative of the 1980's science fiction genre cyberpunk,^[4] and is used to represent science fiction and art inspired by or based in the time period - or "era" (see below) - when diesel-based locomotion was the main technological focus of Western culture.^[5] The "-punk" suffix attached to the name is representative of the counterculture nature of the genre with regards to its opposition of contemporary aesthetics. The term also refers to the tongue-in-cheek name given to a similar cyberpunk derivative, "steampunk," which focuses on science fiction set within the Victorian era.^[6]

The diesel era

The term "diesel era" is a period of time that begins with the start of the interbellum era, which covers the time between the end of World War I and the start of World War II. The interbellum era is central to one school of dieselpunk often labeled "Ottensian." In addition to the interbellum period, World War II also plays a major role in dieselpunk, especially in the school of the genre referred to as "Piecraftian." The exact ending of the diesel era is in some dispute in the dieselpunk community. Depending on the source it ends either at the conclusion of World War II or continues until the early part of the 1950s with the advent of such cultural icons as the Golden Age of Television and the replacement of Big Band and Swing music with Rock and Roll in popularity.

Dieselpunk as an art movement

Although the term “dieselpunk” was not coined until 2001, a large body of art significant to the development of the genre was produced before that. Artwork (including visual arts, music, literature, and architecture) created in the dieselpunk style are heavily influenced by elements of the art movements most prevalent in Western culture during the diesel era such as:

Arts - Abstract Expressionism, Art Deco, Bauhaus, Constructivism, Cubism, Dada, De Stijl (Neo-Plasticism), Futurism, International Style, Surrealism
Music - Blues, Jazz, Ragtime, Cabaret, Swing, and Bluegrass
Literature - Symbolism, Stream of consciousness, Modernism, Pulp, Hardboiled Detective and Noir

Dieselpunk fiction and literature

Alternative history and World War II features prominently in dieselpunk literature. Examples of dieselpunk novels are Shadow in the Mist by Brian Moreland,^[7] Tales of the First Occult War by Kevin Cooney, Fiends of the Eastern Front by David Bishop, and Hard Magic: Book 1 of the Grimnoir Chronicles by New York Times bestselling novelist Larry Correia.

Dieselpunk and the gaming industry

Dieselpunk features prominently in the gaming industry, in both tabletop role-playing games and computer and console video games. Among role-playing games, GURPS Cliffhangers by Steve Jackson Games,^[8] Daredevils by FGU ^[9] and Pulp Hero by Hero Games ^[10] put the players into pulp action serials of the 1930's. Dieselpunk role-playing games have a broad range of moods; games such as Operation: Fallen Reich by Fallen Publishing,[18] which puts the players in a whimsically eccentric take on World War II, and Dust by Paolo Parente,[19] set in a fantasy Cold War, are light in tone, while games such as Call Of Cthulhu, Chaosium,^[11] and Tannhäuser, by Fantasy Flight,[20] can be dark and foreboding.

Dieselpunk video game titles have been extremely prominent in recent years, with the success of the popular Final Fantasy VII, Fallout ^[12] and Bioshock ^[13] series of games. World War II is also a popular theme in dieselpunk games. One of the more prominent of these was Activision's Return to Castle Wolfenstein; ^[14] other games set in dieselpunk versions of the World War II era include Command and Conquer: Red Alert ^[15] and Turning Point: Fall of Liberty. ^[16] The companies of Digital Reality and Grasshopper are developing a shooter game called Sine Mora that has been described as Dieselpunk.[23] The Gears of War series also features elements of diesel punk. Gatling Gears is a game released in 2011 set in a dieselpunk universe.

Dieselpunk cinema

With regard to cinema, dieselpunk combines the tropes, character archetypes, and settings of diesel era fiction genres such as Serial Adventure, Noir,[24] Pulp, and War with postmodern storytelling techniques and cinematography. Some commonly referenced examples of dieselpunk cinema include: Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow,[25] Dark City, Rocketeer, the Indiana Jones movie series, Sin City, Brazil, Inglourious Basterds and Daybreakers.[26] The imagery of the movie Captain America: The First Avenger has been described as having a "dieselpunk quality."[27] Even the popular film Star Wars has been noted as having strong dieselpunk influences, as it drew heavily on pulp and WWII iconography but mixed them with futuristic settings.[28]

Famous inspirations for dieselpunk cinema include Metropolis and Things To Come, thanks to their period visions of utopian culture and technology.

Though widely labeled as cyberpunk, the neo-noir movie Blade Runner may also be described as dieselpunk due its strong element of decodence.[29] Tim Burton's 1989 movie Batman has also been referenced as a dieselpunk movie.[13]

Dieselpunk on the small screen

Recently, dieselpunk has also been showing up on television. Batman: The Animated Series, based on the 1989 film, and its deco pulp spinoffs Superman: The Animated Series, Justice League, et. al., were popular hits. The dieselpunk style can also be found in other animated pieces such as The Big O, Last Exile, The Detective Story (The Animatrix), and B-17 (Heavy Metal).

The SyFy channel's Battlestar Galactica spin-off Caprica is a mix of dieselpunk and cyberpunk, and the in-story virtual game "New Cap City", which plays an important role in the series, is noir dieselpunk, with the virtual skies patrolled by zeppelin-borne P-40's. The fourth season premier of the SyFy series Eureka will also have a dieselpunk slant to it; the episode trailer is done in the style of a '40's pulp serial.

In 2010, Toyota created an ad series for their 2011 Avalon series that were decidedly dieselpunk. The first, "Train",[30] is set in an art deco train station (complete with a 20th Century Limited-inspired locomotive), where the characters are wearing 40's-inspired clothes and a cover of The Chordettes' Mr. Sandman by Pomplamoose plays in the background. The second, "Plane",[31] depicts men and women in 40's-inspired aviation uniforms as a Douglas DC-3 flies in the background.

Dieselpunk in independent film

Since April 2011 the independent film company WestHavenBrook has been seeking donations in order to produce a dieselpunk webisode serial called The Danger Element, starring John Soares and Doug Jones (who previously starred together in Sockbaby 4).[32]

Dieselpunk visual art

According to online magazine Dark Roasted Blend, in an article titled "Dieselpunk: Love Affair with a Machine", dieselpunk art "takes an interest in various bizarre machines, full of esoteric levers, cracked-glass meters - all visually intense and pretty sinister-looking, when photographed."[33] The article references Japanese artist Shunya Yamashita having created one of the definitive examples of dieselpunk art with his work "I Can't Explain."[34] The article also references Kow Yokoyama as a dieselpunk artist with his figurine series titled "Maschinen Krieger."[35]

Other prominent artists in the dieselpunk movement include: Sam Van Olffen,[36][37][38] Keith Thompson,[39] Rob Schwager,[40] Stefan Prohaczka,[1] ixlrlxi,[41][42] and Alexey Lipatov.[43]

Dieselpunk as a subculture

A person defined as a dieselpunk draws inspiration and entertainment from the aesthetics of the diesel era to achieve independence from contemporary aesthetics by blending the literature, artwork, fashion, grooming styles, modes of personal transportation, music, and technology of the diesel era with contemporary sensibilities.

Part of dieselpunk's postmodern nature can be seen in the important role that the internet as a tool of international communication plays in its development. In addition to two prominent dieselpunk online communities, Dieselpunks[44] and The Gatehouse's "Smoking Lounge",[45] there are a growing number of online magazines dedicated to the genre including The Flying Fortress,[46]Dizelpanki[47] and several blogs which are simply titled "Dieselpunk".[48][49] Another active online magazine covering the dieselpunk movement is Vintage Future: Dieselpunk,[50] which describes itself as "Retro-futuristic resources from the golden era."

While there are many web sites dedicated to the history of the diesel era, there are a growing number of sites dedicated to topics that tie directly into dieselpunk. One such website of note is RetroTimes Production,[51] which is an independent film production company dedicated to creating documentaries about "retro living, retro design, and retro style." A few sites are springing up that have a retro pulp feel as well, including Captain Spectre and The Lightning Legion,[52] which is an online comic written and drawn in the classic serial pulp fiction style of the diesel era, and Thrilling Tales of the Downright Unusual,[53] an interactive Choose Your Own Adventure-style pulp serial.

Dieselpunk music

Dieselpunk music, which has roots in the neo-swing revival,[54] combines elements of blues, jazz, ragtime, cabaret, swing, and bluegrass commonly found during the diesel era with contemporary instrumentation, production, and composition.[55] Some commonly referenced examples of dieselpunk bands are: Big Bad Voodoo Daddy,[56] Royal Crown Revue,[57][58] Squirrel Nut Zippers,[59] The Brian Setzer Orchestra, Indigo Swing, Wolfgang Parker,[54] The End Times Spasm Band, Big Rude Jake, and Lee Press-on and the Nails.[60]

Dieselpunk fashion

Dieselpunk fashion blends the styles commonly found during the diesel era with contemporary styles to create a fusion of both. The "punk" nature of the subculture comes from expressing a more complete presence in public akin to the fashion styles popular during the diesel era such as waistcoats, covered arms, hosiery, styles of shoes, and head wear to name a few. Dieselpunk emphasizes the inclusion of such accouterments to render one's look "complete," in defiance of modern custom.

Variants

Atompunk

A similar, related pop surrealist art movement, which overlaps with dieselpunk somewhat, is atompunk (sometimes called atomicpunk). Atompunk art relates to the pre-digital period of 1945-1965, including mid-century Modernism, the Atomic Age and Space Age, Communism and paranoia in the USA along with Soviet styling, underground cinema, Googie architecture, the Sputnik, Mercury and other early space programs, superhero fiction, the rise of the US military/industrial powers and the fall-out of Chernobyl. [61]

Decopunk

Decopunk is a recent subset of the Steampunk genre, centered around the Art Deco and Streamline Moderne art styles, and based around the period between the 20s and 50s. In an interview^[17] at CoyoteCon, steampunk author Sara M. Harvey made the distinctions "...shiner than DieselPunk, more like DecoPunk." and "DieselPunk is a gritty version of Steampunk set in the 1920s-1950s. The big war eras, specifically. DecoPunk is the sleek, shiny very Art Deco version; same time period, but everything is chrome!"

Aaron Diaz utilises this style in his webcomic, Dresden Codak, and refers to the style by name in one of his blog posts.^[18] The term was also independently proposed^[19] for the movie Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow and the computer game Bioshock, though the latter is set in an alternate history 1960 placing it outside the usual time period associated with decopunk.

User:Jonnybgoode44/sandbox:Dieselpunk