SARA: I was working with Dr Bella Starling, Director of Vocal at Manchester University NHS Trust on projects about infectious disease when Coronavirus hit. We were at a meeting in London just before lockdown and this got us talking about the missing voices in all that was happening and the sort of participatory arts project that could address this. The comic characters are inspired by my older cousins Rob and Lisa – who are mixed heritage Burmese-Trinidadian and moved to the UK from Trinidad when they were young. The story of Sanda and Champo struggling to make sense of things when they are ‘zapped’ to another planet is a metaphor for what we are facing now, mixed with a bit of family history.
2. Were you able to get everyone you wanted to be involved with this project?
SARA: Back in March we emailed a bunch of amazing comics people to see who was up for being involved. We got a brilliant response and pretty much everyone we wanted to be involved agreed to take part. Charlie Adlard agreeing to draw the first chapter was obviously an incredible honour and an inspiration for the whole team.
3. Why webtoons versus trying to get a big, or even small, print publication?
SARA: I love print comics, but Webtoons’ primary audience is 14-25, so that works for this project. Also back in March we consulted with young people in UK and Asia as to how they would read this and most of them said they would prefer it to be digital. Inclusivity was a consideration – there is no pay wall and the project has the potential to reach a global audience. We’re working with a team in India and South Africa, so this is important. Finally we picked Webtoon as it can be viewed on a phone and we can interact with the audience in the comments. Our research revealed that a lot of young people have access to a phone but not to a tablet or laptop. So again in terms of potential reach – Webtoon seemed like the right way to go. It’s a brave new world for most of us though – but excited to see how the audience responds.
4. What’s next?
SARA: Chapter 2 is written by the brilliant Charlotte Bailey and drawn by the equally amazing Nick Brokenshire. Chapter 3 – the sharp and funny UK Comics Laureate Hannah Berry takes the reigns. We have some fun Easter Eggs in the form of exclusive mixes from some brilliant DJs and Producers so keep your eyes peeled… https://www.mixcloud.
com/PlanetDivoc91/. And the cover artists we have lined up are a stunning bunch. Join us and tell us what you think in the comments section and you can help us decide what’s next….
