Cinematic universe

I had the honor of serving as story editor and co-producer on Occult Generation, the first comic book made like a feature film.

And when I say made like a feature film, I mean it. Actors and models were cast to portray each character in photo shoots that took place in San Francisco and Los Angeles. Each prop and piece of wardrobe you see was specially ordered. The attention to detail on this project was incredible.

Written and created by Ryan Fukuda, Occult Generation is an ambitious graphic novel series that deals with powerful themes like racism, classism, and LGTBQ identity against the backdrop of the Harlem Renaissance in 1920s New York City.

After a successful month-long Kickstarter campaign, storyboard wizard James Zark took the script we collaborated on and brought it to life — and I do mean that in the literal sense.

Using the pictures he had taken of the actors and models performing scenes from our script, James transformed the participants into vividly realized comic book characters.

Thanks to our generous backers, we raised enough to fund the first two (or, technically speaking, 1.5) issues of this groundbreaking comic series. If the story were to have continued on in this format, it would have been kind of like X-Men meets Batman: The Animated Series. (Kind of.)

Story synopsis: When a private investigator stumbles into an underground war between a group of minorities with occult powers and the white supremacists who want to use them, his own psychic gifts begin to emerge.

Check out pages from the comic below or read more of it here and here.