Irish-born illustrator Dave McElfatrick of popular Explosm.net web comic Cyanide & Happiness is asking for help in obtaining a work visa to the United States so he can continue working on animated shorts with co-creators Matt Melvin and Rob DenBleyker.
The only problem is that the U.S. doesn’t think C&H is legitimately popular enough to merit the type of visa McElfatrick would need to work in the country, which just seems insane until you realize how ridiculous it would sound trying to explain the humor of some of their comics to your grandma and/or crochety old uncle.
A little background on C&H for all of you who might be unfamiliar with it right off the bat: According to Alexa, Explosm.net is ranked #2,773 most popular website globally and #1,358 most popular in the U.S. America accounts for over 40 percent of the site’s total traffic. Yet, this isn’t sufficient enough to prove that he’s worthy of the visa apparently.
McElfatrick is asking fans who want to help to sign a petition and spread the word about his plight.
Via Explosm.net:
Hey guys, just posting to say that right now I REALLY need all your help. I am currently petitioning for a US Visa so that I may work in the US for a while with Rob and the other guys on new Cyanide & Happiness animated cartoons. This particular Visa is an O1 Visa, a Visa specifically given to artists who have achieved a lot in their chosen field. Sadly, the ‘powers that be’ have recently informed me that they don’t believe Cyanide & Happiness to be worthy of this Visa, claiming that it is not world-renowned.
[Image Credit: Explosm.net]
