Posted by Chris on July 16, 2011 at 12:42 PM CST
Star Wars artist Spencer Brinkerhoff is working on a brand new app for the iPad that will give comic readers an entirely unique way of viewing them.

From the ShadowBox Comics Facebook page:

ShadowBox Comics is out to create a new type of digital comic book. I know that I'm not the greatest artist out there, so the app is meant to work as a means to publish others work as well as my own. It's also a business and will eventually have a Store associated with the comics so that the content that is created can actually support the artists.

Here's the theory behind it. I've been making ...Shadow Boxes on multiple layers of acrylic and have found a way to replicate it on the iPad. The panel of the comic pages are divided into layers and as you pan and tilt your iPad the layers shift and it creates a sense of depth to the image. I've submitted a patent for what I call ShadowBox Comics and am preparing to launch a beta version of the app. It'll have a mini comic in there and a gallery of other art friends.

Eventually, the app will be a publishing platform for new comics. Since the comics are distributed on multiple layers instead of being a single image, that opens up the possibility to create animations and games from the comic that fit into the story of the comic. It extends the product into new areas and shifts the potential from simply making a comic book to developing a full comic property.

As it develops the app will also include a store to sell comics, games, original art, collectible sculpts of the characters, and actual shadow boxes created from the comic panels.

This idea has been cooking for the last few years, so this initial launch is focused on getting exposure to the concept and gearing up for the next phase.

A special thanks goes out to the Gallery participants! Atomic Robo, Katie Cook's Gronk, Jake Parker's Missle Mouse, Grant Gould's Blade Raiders, and Ben Glendenning's Tin Star Tex.



ShadowBoxComics.com will be fully armed and operational soon, but for now, check out the official Facebook page here.
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