Broken Frontier

Randy Queen's Darkchylde was once one of the most successful independent comic book series around, and now it's on its way to the silver screen. The series tells the story of a young girl with nightmares that come alive to haunt her and her loved ones.

In late October, Randy revealed that renowned director John Carpenter is attached to the project. BF wanted to know more about the meaning of all of this as well as the future of Ariel Chylde, a.k.a. Darkchylde.

BROKEN FRONTIER: Randy, congrats on this amazing achievement! Getting Carpenter to direct this must be a dream come true since I know how old school your love for movies is! How did this happen?
 
RANDY QUEEN: Thank you; we're over the moon to be working with John and Sandy at Stormking. I love well-crafted, atmospheric films like Alien, The Thing, or Halloween, and you have to wonder why we haven't gotten too many more like those down the pipeline. Although, interestingly, both The Thing and Alien have prequels in production.

There is a quick cut, videogame-ification to most movies now that seems to be more about bombast and showy computer savvy than earnest craftsmanship and mood setting. So it's almost like going the other way now becomes more interesting. I personally respond more to stories that take the time to establish a rythym to completely absorb you in a specific world with specific characters. Carpenter is an absolute master at that.

BF: Getting Carpenter attached, does this also imply you have a studio, funding, and you can move into casting and such? Or how does this work? Do tell this layman.
 
QUEEN: Having a director of stature onboard is certainly crucial to the creative process of making a film like this, and I'm elated John responded to the material. That Weta is also onboard is significant in helping realize the nightmare world of Ariel's dreamscapes. It's getting all the puzzle pieces together. With everything, the challenge is always getting the right people in the room.
 
BF: I know you have been busy for years to get Ariel Chylde to the silver screen and with Carpenter attached and Weta doing the first trailer, it suddenly seems like a reality. How does this make you feel?
 
QUEEN: It's an all-star sports team scenario. John Carpenter is a beloved director, and Richard Taylor's Weta Workshop is a beloved FX House, so it's tremendously exciting for genre fans. It's akin to putting the best rock guitarist and the best blues singer on a stage: you know you're going to get something interesting and of high artistic merit.

John's work continues to influence the pop culture landscape, and Weta continually raises the bar. So it makes good sense for everyone to have a terrific combination with incredible possibility. There's been talk of a film since the book was first released in '96, and it's taken blood, sweat, and tears just to get this far, so we can only feel gratitude.
 
BF: Do you already have actresses and actors in your head for the various roles?
 
QUEEN: None we could mention at the time.

BF: Are you attached as executive producer or am I moving too fast?
 
QUEEN: Sarah Queen and myself for Darkchylde Ent. are producing with Sandy King and John Carpenter for Storm King Productions.

BF: What does this mean for new Darkchylde material, aside from the soon-to-be-released second Darkchylde collection via Image Comics?
 
QUEEN: I'm excited about the new book coming In January from Image that collects the "Legacy" and "Redemption" storylines, which have never been released as a trade paperback for American audiences. We're including new art and selected poetry from Ariel Chylde as a bonus. Over the years fans have asked for a book solely devoted to her poetry, similar to what we did with "Darkchylde: Diary," so we thought that would be nice bonus material. This is currently available for pre-order at your local comic shop or at Amazon.

We're releasing the "Dreams of the Darkchylde" collection later in the year, which will also feature new material, perhaps a new story; we're still trying to figure out what we'll have time for as there are various things in motion right now. I'm blown out that 2011 marks the 15th Anniversary for Ariel, so in addition to the trades we'll be celebrating with a gorgeous new PVC statue from Diamond Select toys in the summer, a Mini-Mates toy, as well as a high-end 1/4 scale piece from Pop Culture Shock Toys.

We're discussing new books, so we'll see what happens. Seems like a good time to ride the wave, and you sort of go where life and opportunity take you, all the while simultaneously working very hard to make those opportunities congeal, because no one is ever lined up to hand you anything. Fans can find me on Facebook and we appreciate everyone who's been along for the ride, and here's to the future.