Amazon is creating its first digital comic, Blackburn Burrow, with a plot that will change depending on feedback from readers. Described as, “a story set in Civil War America where supernatural horrors are infesting a small Appalachian town in Northern Georgia,” Blackburn Barrow was first submitted to Amazon Studios from writer Jay Levy in 2010.
While Levy originally intended for the story be made into a feature film, Amazon instead crowdsourced the project, and came up with the idea to make it into a comic based on community feedback.
The episodic series will give the public an opportunity to provide feedback and direction on Blackburn Burrow as the story continues to unfold.
The entire Blackburn Burrow comic will be released over a period of four months with new issues coming out every four weeks.
Each release will be accompanied by a poll related to content in that issue that encourages readers to give feedback and provide comments.
Amazon Studios’ Blackburn Burrow digital comic book is produced by 12 Gauge Comics, which teamed with renowned comics writer Ron Marz (Silver Surfer, Green Lantern, Marvel vs. DC, Batman/Aliens) and veteran illustrator Matthew Dow Smith (Doctor Who, X-Men Icons, Mirror’s Edge, Day of Judgment) to shape the story and look of the comic.
“This is a very exciting new venture for Amazon Studios. Beyond entertaining lots of comic fans, we see value in digital comics as a new way to test screenplays and learn more about fan engagement,” said Roy Price, Director of Amazon Studios. “The 12 Gauge team has done beautiful work on the Blackburn Burrow digital comic and we are thrilled to share it with audiences to see how they react to the story of Blackburn Burrow.”
The Blackburn Burrow digital comic looks and reads like a traditional book and is available for free through a variety of sites and platforms including top digital comic provider Graphicly, as well as AmazonStudios.com, Amazon Studios Facebook page and the Kindle Store.
Amazon will determine whether or not to turn the project into an actual movie based on further feedback from its users.
www.amazonstudios.com