The following is an interview with writer Ernie Altbacker (Batman: Hush, Justice League: Warworld) and artist Josh White (Stranded) regarding the upcoming launch of their Kickstarter campaign for the sci-fi comedy comic book series, Area 51 Studios. In this interview, Fanbase Press Editor-in-Chief Barbra Dillon chats with Altbacker and White about their shared creative process in bringing the story and characters to life on the page, the backer rewards available to supporters of the campaign, and more!
Barbra Dillon, Fanbase Press Editor-in-Chief: Congratulations on the upcoming launch of your Kickstarter campaign for Area 51 Studios! For those who may be unfamiliar, what can you share with us about the story’s premise?
Ernie Altbacker: Basically, Area 51 is a secret government site, but not for storing alien corpses and crashed spacecraft. It’s actually a studio lot where aliens come to shoot galactic reality shows. The story centers on one down-on-his-luck alien producer whose very low-budget show, The Human Race, becomes a sensation. I was going for a Douglas Adams tone.
Josh White: Along with that, the feeling I got from my first read was Men in Black. I’m a fan of stories that respect the audience enough to let them figure out what’s going on because the characters feel real enough to exist in the universe. With Area 51 Studios there’s a good balance of darker tones with comedic moments that doesn’t take itself too seriously.
BD: How would you describe your shared creative process in bringing this larger-than-life story and characters to life on the page?
EA: Josh and I met at a panel, The Comic Creator Connection, which they do every year. I thought it was time for me to finally get off my ass and find an artist to work with and actually do a comic book, which I had been threatening for years. I saw Josh’s art and thought it was great and we kind of hit it off and started down this road.
JW: San Diego was literally the first larger con I’ve ever been to beyond our small city comic con. I had a similar thought that I need to stop talking about doing projects and start doing them, so I signed up. I’m going to be honest – I heard a LOT of weird ideas from the 15-20 writers I met that night. But then Ernie sat down, and something clicked. There was a point during the conversation where he mentioned he had a few connections with DC, which I didn’t take too seriously, hah.
We went our separate ways. The very next event I headed to with a bunch of a friends was the premier of the DC animated movie, Justice League: Warworld. I filled in my friends about the last panel, and as we sit down, they bring out people for the panel before the Warworld screening. And that’s when my jaw hit the floor because Ernie was introduced as one of the writers of the movie!
I turned to the group and pulled Ernie’s card out of my pocket. I was doing that whisper yelling thing and jabbing my finger at the card saying, “Holy hell – that’s the GUY!” My buddy turned to me and said, “I guess he really does know some people from DC.”
BD: Ernie, having written extensively for animation, what was your experience in transitioning to the sequential art medium, and do you feel that each medium has its own unique storytelling “toolkits?”
EA: There’s a great freedom in writing comics. It’s a different process than being brought in to adapt Batman: Hush, or pitch an original story for a Justice League Dark animated movie. There are many people in the room when you’re on a show or doing a movie. You need to execute sometimes opposing notes and still stick the landing and come out with something good. With this project, it’s Josh and I spitballing and talking. If we like something, it’s in. Just that simple.
BD: Why do you feel that crowdfunding has been such a valuable resource to ensuring the success of today’s comic book creators?
EA: It lets you go directly to the comic book-loving audience. Crowdfunding is also a great outlet for new talent with exciting and fun projects that, frankly, wouldn’t have a chance to get past the gatekeepers at a major studio or streamer to do it as a show. All you really need is time and drive. One thing I heard was, “This community is really nice and helpful,” and it turned out to be absolutely true! People will go to lunch or talk on the phone and give you great advice and they expect nothing from you. It’s refreshing.
JW: As a creator, I think having options is incredibly important in the industry. Not only to connect directly with your audience, but in maintaining control of our creations. Let’s imagine you have a project that becomes a run-away success. Creators now have a lot more leverage when traditional publishers become interested in distributing those stories. They can be more selective about what deals they take. Obviously, we want the relationship to be mutually beneficial, but giving creators tools to maintain more control, rights, and revenue from their projects is a huge step forward in the industry.
BD: In light of the crowdfunding campaign, are there any particular backer rewards or tiers that you would like to highlight for our readers?
JW: As this is our first campaign, trying to come up with rewards was challenging. We’re going to feature variant covers, of course, but we can also offer a tier that features Ernie’s original novella, which is kind of a bonus. We’re also going to offer a tier to actually draw a backer into the comic! This felt like a wild idea at first, but the more we talked about it, the more fun it began to sound, so we went with it.
EA: And for the novella, Josh is doing more than a dozen illustrations exclusive to that format, which is awesome.
BD: Are there any additional projects – past or current – that you would like to share for our readers?
JW: We’re kicking around ideas for a next project to do together, but I’m presently working a sci-fi adventure graphic novel with the working title Stranded.
EA: I’m really excited about a project I wrote a while ago, Batman Azteca: Clash of Empires, which I hear will be released toward the end of the year. The story is a reimagining of the Batman mythos set in 1520 before the fall of the Aztec empire. I worked on it with an amazing director, Juan Meza-Leon, and it’s produced by the fine people at Ánima Estudios, DC, and Warner Bros Animation, among others.
BD: Lastly, what is the best way for our readers to find more information about Area 51 Studios and your other work?
JW: I’m on Instagram @joshwhiteillustration and my website is JWIllustration.com.
We recently set up Area51Comic.com to keep people updated on what’s happening with the project. You can sign up for updates, and as following issues are released, we’ll continue to feed info to the website about how to get the book, when the Kickstarter will start, and when subsequent campaigns are going to launch.
EA: We promise not to bombard anyone that signs up for our Kickstarter prelaunch page, so please do. I can be reached @ErnieAltbacker, on X, Instagram, and Facebook.
