Heavy Metal Entertainment has announced the release of the first full episode of WonderWerk, a scripted anthology series, featuring upcoming episodes written by David Arquette & Cliff Dorfman, Dan Fogler, George C. Romero, Brendan Columbus, and Ron Marz. The podcast was created in collaboration with Heavy Metal Entertainment, as part of the ongoing partnership between Heavy Metal and DIGA Studios. The debut episode, The Black Ruins of Aramoor, was written by Bart & Michelle Sears can be seen here: https://wonderwerk.ffm.to/ep01
“WonderWerk is the sci-fi, fantasy and horror prowess of Heavy Metal in audio form. This is a pure, immersive experience for genre lovers, not a passive, time-killer podcast,” says Heavy Metal CEO Matthew Medney. “We’ve created an experience not unlike a movie, one that demands your focus and allows you to disappear within the folds of your mind.”
“We wanted to create something that combined the best qualities of audiobooks and podcasts–something that felt cinematic in the audio space,” said Patrick Smith, Lead Alternative Programming Producer for DIGA Studios. “WonderWerk does just that. Each week is a surprising, unexpected story inspired by the scary tales we’ve been telling around the campfire for centuries, and we can’t wait for the world to listen.”
When asked, Bart & Michelle Sears said this about the Episode:
The Black Ruins of Aramoor was birthed from every sword and sorcery story we consumed growing up, filled with blood and dark magic and death, imbued with a fatalism not often found in other genres, but common as the gore splattered pages filling any good, dark, barbaric saga. The amazing thing about writing this story wasn’t the writing, it was the listening, WonderWerk has done a brilliant job realizing our tale of gloom into, well, I guess what can be best described as a one-man radio play that is simply mesmerizing. The story of Barran, a Gundishman, a slayer and hunter, who appears like a revenant out of the icy blizzard, is a thriller, so pull your stump up to the fire, fill your mug with grog, and settle in for a wee bedtime tale…
Bart is a veteran of the comic industry, having spent decades illustrating stories for every major publisher, and including properties such as G.I. Joe & Justice League. Michelle comes from a different world, running a non-profit dedicated to expanding children’s education through art. They began working together at Ominous Studios, where they developed various worlds for multiple clients as well as a host of their own properties. The Black Ruins of Aramoor is only the first of many Aramoor tales to come to life on WonderWerk!. Bart and Michelle are also very excited for their creation MAIDEN, premiering in October in Heavy Metal Magazine. By the way, they are also husband and wife, proud parents and binge far too much Netflix and Amazon Prime.
WonderWerk Volume One will feature creators such as Heavy Metal’s CEO Matthew Medney, Heavy Metal’s Publisher & Chief Creative Overlord, David Erwin, along with other major creators including: Ron Marz, Blake Northcott, Dan Fogler, Brendan Columbus, George C. Romero, David Arquette, Cliff Dorfman, Patrick Smith, Morgan Rosenblum & more!
WonderWerk’s multi-talented narrator, sound designer, engineer & composure, Kyle Perrin brings the “worlds’ ‘ to life. With the Visualizer & Logo Design By Voodoo Bownz
WonderWerk is spearheaded by Heavy Metal CEO Matthew Medney, Heavy Metal Publisher & Chief Creative Overlord David Erwin alongside Head of DIGA Studios Tommy Coriale & DIGA Studios Executive Producer Patrick Smith.
Following a well-received Comic Con At Home panel titled, “Heavy Metal Presents: Forging the Future of Genre” on Thursday, Heavy Metal Entertainment exclusively premiered the trailer for their first ever narrative anthology podcast experience, WonderWerk, at SDCC @ Home. The production is in partnership with DIGA Studios.
Those who attended Heavy Metal’s virtual SD Comic Con At Home panel–which included Heavy Metal CEO Matthew Medney, Heavy Metal Publisher & Chief Creative Overlord David Erwin, and Creators Dylan Sprouse, George C. Romero and Dan Fogler–were the first to watch and hear the trailer for WonderWerk. The trailer teased a wide array of narratives with intense sound design, original music, and robust experiences. As Heavy Metal sees its historic #300 issue on the horizon, its priorities are clearly to expand beyond the page with its partner, DIGA Studios.
