The Pit and the Pendulum Comic Book release to honour EA Poe's 200th Anniversary

Added: (Tue Feb 10 2009)

Pressbox (Press Release) - The Pit and the Pendulum Comic Book release to honour EA Poe's 200th Anniversary

The success of the stop motion animated film adaptation of Edgar Allan Poe's The Pit and the Pendulum has prompted the release of the comic book version of the film. Scheduled for a February 25th, 2009 release thru Bluewater Productions out of Portland, Oregon, the stop motion film to comic will be a first for production partners Bluewater Productions and Hand Made Heroes Film & Television, honoring Gothic horror maestro Edgar Allan Poe's 200th anniversary.

The comic version of Edgar Allan Poe's tale of condemnation, hope and redemption borrows images directly from the film, providing a direct correlation between the two projects; film and comic. Wrapping up production and starting on the DVD, Lougee got in contact with Darren Davis of Bluewater Productions, famous for their Ray Harryhausen Presents Signature line of comics, as well as the then newly released Vince Price Presents line. Lougee pitched the ide of producing the story as a one-off comic, using the film images, and Davis enthusiastically jumped on board, rallying the crew at Bluewater to help get the pendulum swinging.

"While we were in the throes of production on the short, I had the idea of pursuing various media outlets for the film and the story itself", explains the film's director, Marc Lougee. " So much of what we've been doing over the last couple of years to promote the film has been involving the internet, social media and 'alternate ' means of promotion for the project, so I wanted to explore the options that were available to us in pushing the story a little further out into the world, outside of the traditional channels of distibution. Doing a comic was something I've always been keen to try, and not being much of an illustrator, I realized we could use the still images from the stop motion film as 'sequential art' in comic form; what we have as a result is a sort of hybrid between the film, a graphic novel and a short story comic. I think it's a very cool-looking way of telling the story, with afresh approach."

Sequential art in comics is a familiar sight for most everyone, but utilizing the images used in the film itself and re-processing them for another type of 'sequential art' made sense to Lougee and Producer Susan Ma.

" With the multitude of delivery systems available to the audience at large, be it print, online, broadcast, et al, there are so many way of supplying a film or story to your to people." states Susan, "A short film, being what it is, faces limitations in the sense it has much less of a chance of being screened outside of niche markets and events, such as film festivals. There are few real options to see shorts outside the festival circuit (location-based and online), unless you feel inclined to send it off thru a distributor. Many times we've found the film would be sold as a package with a host of other films, which I felt would lessen the impact and the experience of seeing the film. As filmmakers, we really wanted to explore the broader potential for our film, and sought out a smaller, indy film friendly publisher. Thankfully, we found just that combination in Darren Davis and Bluewater Productions, and now with the comic set for release in February, we feel we've got another opportunity to see a broader range of visibility for EA Poe's wonderful story, and another means of getting the story into the hands of fans everywhere."

Marc adds; "We're all about making the story of The Pit and the Pendulum accessible. Students, teachers and fans of the Gothic Genre can see the film on the DVD, and then read the story in the comic book, or vice versus, seeing the images culled directly from the film. This means folks will spend that much more time with Edgar Allan Poe's classic tale, and in the case of students studying EA Poe's work, I feel this sort of approach, the combination of films & comics will, in tandem, help get kids interested in literature.This is especially relevant as we're in the midst of Edgar Allan Poe's 200th anniversary; what better time to get to know the man and his work than now?"

The story in brief:
The Pit and the Pendulum. A victim of the Spanish Inquisition is brought before a tribunal. Condemned and alone, he’s left to suffer a fate worse than death as his captors employ fiendish machinations in their efforts to unhinge him.

About The Pit and the Pendulum comic book:
Featuring images taken directly from the award-winning animated film and coupled with Poe’s original text, the graphic version of the story in comic book form ratchets up the effect of Poe’s tale of Gothic Horror, creating a spine-tingling experience not to be missed.

The Pit and the Pendulum comic book is scheduled for release in February 2009. The PIT AND THE PENDULUM DVD is available online at www.thepitandthependulumdvd.com

About Bluewater Productions:

Bluewater Productions, Inc. is one if the top independent production studios of comic, young adult books and graphic novel titles. In the tradition of great storytelling and cutting edge art, Bluewater storms onto the comic book and graphic novel scene. With more titles than ever, including smash hits such as the 10th MUSE, VSS, and THE LEGEND OF ISIS, Bluewater is poised to continue to produce engaging stories with art from both the top names in the industry alongside with up and coming stars.

As of May 2007, Bluewater Productions, Inc. moved from production studio to publisher, in conjunction with legendary filmmaker, Ray Harryhausen -- the genius behind some of the greatest movie magic of all-time while continuing to publish it's popular superhero line starring it's flagship character the 10th Muse. Bluewater has also just signed a publishing deal with William Shatner, Roger Corman and Lionsgate.

About Hand Made Heroes:
Hand Made Heroes Film & Television produces compelling & entertaining animated properties for television, film and online audiences. 

Director & Creative Producer Marc Lougee & producing partner Susan Ma share years of experience in the genre, playing part in many series & film projects, including the BBC/ Discovery Kids! series DINOSAPIEN, BBC’s ACE LIGHTNING, CBC’s WHAT IT’S LIKE BEING ALONE and MTV’s CELEBRITY DEATHMATCH. Aside form broadcast projects, Marc & Susan have produced several award-winning films, including THE PIT AND THE PENDULUM animated film (exec produced by Ray Harryhausen), available now on DVD.  For more information on the PIT AND THE PENDULUM animated film, visit the official website: http://www.thepitandthependulumshortfilm.com
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Contact:
Hand Made Heroes Film & Television
Marc Lougee
marclougee@gmail.com