Steven Sykora 4000
Tuesday, March 04, 2008, 06:19 PM
After reviewing Dark Labyrinth and Earth Sons, I knew creator and founder of Dark Ocean Studios, Jody Parker had to be next on my interviews hit list. Jody was kind enough to take some time to give us some unique perspectives on her up and coming Indy Company.
PF: Thanks for joining us for the interview, Jody. So tell me, when was Dark Ocean Studios founded, and how big has the company become since its creation?
<img src="http://www.projectfanboy.com/images/reviews/earthsons.jpg" align="left" hspace="10">The planning behind Dark Ocean Studios began three years ago when I came up with the idea for The Dark Labyrinth. I had written Earthsons years ago while working with another independent studio and it was never published. I decided to self-publish these two titles and that’s how the studio was first formed. Since then we’ve started production on two more comics. One of them is a humor comic called Paper People written by myself and Deirdra Welch. It has stories taken from real life experiences that might happen to you and your friends and then exaggerated for comedy. Vlad, written and produced by Ed Grimm, is a black and white story and is a psychological thriller. Our goal is to expand into a diverse company that covers a variety of different genres and tastes.
This past year we have had a lot of success. We’ve received interest from companies involved in other types of media such as animation and video games. We’ve gotten a lot of positive feedback from comic book readers and quite a few reviewers. We’ve been successful at promoting our company and letting people know we’re out there and have been exceeding our sales expectations for our first issues. Our comic, The Dark Labyrinth, in association with Middlemind Games, is also going to be featured as downloadable wallpaper on T-mobile sidekicks in the next couple of weeks.
PF: It seems you have a bustling staff of creative talent at your disposal; what issues has your team had to face to bring Dark Ocean Studios to where it is today?
Getting together the right people is one of the challenges we’ve had to face. When I hire someone new I usually look over 30-50 talented artists who apply for the position. A lot of people think they have the time to draw or ink a book in a couple of months and when they sit down to do it realize it’s impossible because of other commitments. It takes time to build a company and to really get a finalized team together that you know works well and has the time to devote to drawing a comic book. I’m very fortunate to be working with the great team of people that are in our company today.
PF: What advice would you give other Indy publishers hoping to make their mark on the Indy comic scene?
I think the most important thing is to remain positive and focused and not to let anyone discourage you. It’s not easy to start an independent company, there will be a lot of ups and downs. You’ll get good reviews and bad reviews, you’ll find people who will support you and others who will discourage you, but if your doing something you really want to do and it’s your goal and dream I believe you can accomplish it.
PF: I can’t decide which title I like more, Earth Sons or Dark Labyrinth. The artwork on Dark Labyrinth is more what I’m used to, although the artwork in Earth Sons is very good as well, but the imagination and storylines behind both titles are amazing. Which title is your personal favorite?
Well I'd probably get in trouble with some people if I picked one as my favorite. (kidding) I will say that there are different things I like about each one that stand out to me.
<img src="http://www.projectfanboy.com/images/reviews/darklabyrinth.jpg" align="right" hspace="10">I love the idea of The Dark Labyrinth and the opposite extremes it represents. On one side of the hemisphere the government controls every aspect of your life. You are told where you will live, who you will marry, and what your job is. There are some benefits to this in that there is almost no crime and everyone lives in a kind of forced peace. You find out as the story progresses that the other side of the hemisphere is the complete opposite and I enjoy the different dynamic between the two “worlds“.
Earthsons is special to me because it is the first comic story I ever wrote. A post-apocalyptic world I think is really a dangerous and interesting place to set a story in. The landscapes that Dan drew look very beautiful and tragic to me. I also enjoy the relationship between the characters and I think it’s something that gets really interesting later on. I also get a big kick out of all the secret stuff hidden in the book.
There are words written in a hidden language on walls and some of the names of characters and places are words that have been scrambled up.
PF: In Dark Labyrinth, how did you come up with the idea of a planet split down the center and yet still acting as one planet with a common orbit? When I first read that I have to admit I was impressed, and actually said out loud, “That’s so cool!”
Aww shucks, thanks! Well the idea started when I got a call from the head of another independent studio. They said they might need a sci-fi book for their line of comics and asked if I could write one. I was mostly into fantasy and had never written a science fiction story before. So I went and sat out in the backyard where I work and really the idea just came to me in a creative burst. I saw this planet in two halves and imaged most of basics of the story. I couldn’t seem to write down my ideas fast enough. I don’t think I stopped writing for hours. The studio ended up not needing a sci-fi story after all and that’s the moment when I decided I was going to become a self-publisher. This great story had come to me and I felt it was something special that I didn’t want to go to waste. I spent the next few years learning about self-publishing and the company has grown more than I could have ever imagined back then.
PF: Is there any atmosphere in between the two halves? Could there be any life on the barren sides of the planet which used to be its middle?
The atmosphere continues outward for a while from each hemisphere but there are parts in between the gap where it is pure airless space. The hemisphere’s interior is made of very strong solid bands of rock which would make it difficult for life to thrive. Because gravity pushes down on the layers of rocks and it is also exposed to the atmosphere, in the story this has created a different kind of a hardened mineral that is used in making streets and certain Ion (mech) parts. There is a possibility, however, that life can survive on some of the softer outer layers of the planet. The story takes place in a different universe with slightly different physics than our own because if you actually sliced a planet into two halves using our laws of physics, my understanding is that it would collapse.
PF: In Earth Sons, who where the mysterious visitors who flew off into the night sky from the jungle scene? And who is this Setrar Cydem, whose face bares a strange resemblance to Tarzan, they came to retrieve?
A lot of people ask me about that after reading the first issue. In the story of Earthsons, the earth is a spirit. During the “end” of H'trae, the spirit of the earth began to die. In order to save itself, it gave some of its power to certain humans. Those that awakened with these new elemental powers became known as Earthsons. Humans also have a soul, and the hope was together with the power from the earth they would be able to re-grow trees, purify the water and air and destroy the monsters that were formed during the apocalypse. Instead they used their power to create a pristine city in the sky, shunning the world below. Setrar, the one who you said resembled Tarzan, is an Earthson. He is the only Earthson who tries to help the planet and he is hated by the surface dwellers and his own people alike.
PF: It seems there is more to Aleyen than has been shown so far. Does he have some heightened characteristics that allow him to keep up with the genetically enhanced characters of the planet H’trae?
That's a little bit of a secret. I will tell you that it has something to do with the different genetic experiments that were going on way back when.
PF: When can we expect to see future issues of these titles?
In the next 1-2 months!
PF: Once the titles are well developed and circulating, do you think there could be any chance for a crossover of these two titles in the future?
It’s hard for me to really see that happening since the stories are so different.They take place in different times, and if their worlds really existed they would be in different universes where it would be almost impossible to reach one another. Many impossible things have happened so I can't completely rule it out but there's no plan in either story for that to happen right now.
PF: Once again, thanks for taking some time to speak with us about your work.
Thank you so much for the interview, and for all your kind words about our books.
PF: Thanks for joining us for the interview, Jody. So tell me, when was Dark Ocean Studios founded, and how big has the company become since its creation?
<img src="http://www.projectfanboy.com/images/reviews/earthsons.jpg" align="left" hspace="10">The planning behind Dark Ocean Studios began three years ago when I came up with the idea for The Dark Labyrinth. I had written Earthsons years ago while working with another independent studio and it was never published. I decided to self-publish these two titles and that’s how the studio was first formed. Since then we’ve started production on two more comics. One of them is a humor comic called Paper People written by myself and Deirdra Welch. It has stories taken from real life experiences that might happen to you and your friends and then exaggerated for comedy. Vlad, written and produced by Ed Grimm, is a black and white story and is a psychological thriller. Our goal is to expand into a diverse company that covers a variety of different genres and tastes.
This past year we have had a lot of success. We’ve received interest from companies involved in other types of media such as animation and video games. We’ve gotten a lot of positive feedback from comic book readers and quite a few reviewers. We’ve been successful at promoting our company and letting people know we’re out there and have been exceeding our sales expectations for our first issues. Our comic, The Dark Labyrinth, in association with Middlemind Games, is also going to be featured as downloadable wallpaper on T-mobile sidekicks in the next couple of weeks.
PF: It seems you have a bustling staff of creative talent at your disposal; what issues has your team had to face to bring Dark Ocean Studios to where it is today?
Getting together the right people is one of the challenges we’ve had to face. When I hire someone new I usually look over 30-50 talented artists who apply for the position. A lot of people think they have the time to draw or ink a book in a couple of months and when they sit down to do it realize it’s impossible because of other commitments. It takes time to build a company and to really get a finalized team together that you know works well and has the time to devote to drawing a comic book. I’m very fortunate to be working with the great team of people that are in our company today.
PF: What advice would you give other Indy publishers hoping to make their mark on the Indy comic scene?
I think the most important thing is to remain positive and focused and not to let anyone discourage you. It’s not easy to start an independent company, there will be a lot of ups and downs. You’ll get good reviews and bad reviews, you’ll find people who will support you and others who will discourage you, but if your doing something you really want to do and it’s your goal and dream I believe you can accomplish it.
PF: I can’t decide which title I like more, Earth Sons or Dark Labyrinth. The artwork on Dark Labyrinth is more what I’m used to, although the artwork in Earth Sons is very good as well, but the imagination and storylines behind both titles are amazing. Which title is your personal favorite?
Well I'd probably get in trouble with some people if I picked one as my favorite. (kidding) I will say that there are different things I like about each one that stand out to me.
<img src="http://www.projectfanboy.com/images/reviews/darklabyrinth.jpg" align="right" hspace="10">I love the idea of The Dark Labyrinth and the opposite extremes it represents. On one side of the hemisphere the government controls every aspect of your life. You are told where you will live, who you will marry, and what your job is. There are some benefits to this in that there is almost no crime and everyone lives in a kind of forced peace. You find out as the story progresses that the other side of the hemisphere is the complete opposite and I enjoy the different dynamic between the two “worlds“.
Earthsons is special to me because it is the first comic story I ever wrote. A post-apocalyptic world I think is really a dangerous and interesting place to set a story in. The landscapes that Dan drew look very beautiful and tragic to me. I also enjoy the relationship between the characters and I think it’s something that gets really interesting later on. I also get a big kick out of all the secret stuff hidden in the book.
There are words written in a hidden language on walls and some of the names of characters and places are words that have been scrambled up.
PF: In Dark Labyrinth, how did you come up with the idea of a planet split down the center and yet still acting as one planet with a common orbit? When I first read that I have to admit I was impressed, and actually said out loud, “That’s so cool!”
Aww shucks, thanks! Well the idea started when I got a call from the head of another independent studio. They said they might need a sci-fi book for their line of comics and asked if I could write one. I was mostly into fantasy and had never written a science fiction story before. So I went and sat out in the backyard where I work and really the idea just came to me in a creative burst. I saw this planet in two halves and imaged most of basics of the story. I couldn’t seem to write down my ideas fast enough. I don’t think I stopped writing for hours. The studio ended up not needing a sci-fi story after all and that’s the moment when I decided I was going to become a self-publisher. This great story had come to me and I felt it was something special that I didn’t want to go to waste. I spent the next few years learning about self-publishing and the company has grown more than I could have ever imagined back then.
PF: Is there any atmosphere in between the two halves? Could there be any life on the barren sides of the planet which used to be its middle?
The atmosphere continues outward for a while from each hemisphere but there are parts in between the gap where it is pure airless space. The hemisphere’s interior is made of very strong solid bands of rock which would make it difficult for life to thrive. Because gravity pushes down on the layers of rocks and it is also exposed to the atmosphere, in the story this has created a different kind of a hardened mineral that is used in making streets and certain Ion (mech) parts. There is a possibility, however, that life can survive on some of the softer outer layers of the planet. The story takes place in a different universe with slightly different physics than our own because if you actually sliced a planet into two halves using our laws of physics, my understanding is that it would collapse.
PF: In Earth Sons, who where the mysterious visitors who flew off into the night sky from the jungle scene? And who is this Setrar Cydem, whose face bares a strange resemblance to Tarzan, they came to retrieve?
A lot of people ask me about that after reading the first issue. In the story of Earthsons, the earth is a spirit. During the “end” of H'trae, the spirit of the earth began to die. In order to save itself, it gave some of its power to certain humans. Those that awakened with these new elemental powers became known as Earthsons. Humans also have a soul, and the hope was together with the power from the earth they would be able to re-grow trees, purify the water and air and destroy the monsters that were formed during the apocalypse. Instead they used their power to create a pristine city in the sky, shunning the world below. Setrar, the one who you said resembled Tarzan, is an Earthson. He is the only Earthson who tries to help the planet and he is hated by the surface dwellers and his own people alike.
PF: It seems there is more to Aleyen than has been shown so far. Does he have some heightened characteristics that allow him to keep up with the genetically enhanced characters of the planet H’trae?
That's a little bit of a secret. I will tell you that it has something to do with the different genetic experiments that were going on way back when.
PF: When can we expect to see future issues of these titles?
In the next 1-2 months!
PF: Once the titles are well developed and circulating, do you think there could be any chance for a crossover of these two titles in the future?
It’s hard for me to really see that happening since the stories are so different.They take place in different times, and if their worlds really existed they would be in different universes where it would be almost impossible to reach one another. Many impossible things have happened so I can't completely rule it out but there's no plan in either story for that to happen right now.
PF: Once again, thanks for taking some time to speak with us about your work.
Thank you so much for the interview, and for all your kind words about our books.