MISSION STATEMENT
Yes, Malison is meant to be a horror-show for children (10 years and up), so I think it would only be fair to at least have a mission statement to peace our minds.
For sure I will try not to back down on the horror-stuff, but I also will make sure that the thrills will not be more impactful then, say, a rollercoaster-ride.
I have children myself and I DO want Malison to be very, very scary, but totally safe at the same time. A lot of thought has been gone into where I would be comfortable with. And without getting into any detail over rules that I have, I can assure you that I feel fully responsible for the content.
And that includes listening. We might differ in flavour or even in good taste, but I also am open to any suggestion to be better at this. Just drop me an e-mail.
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Why horror?
Well, first of all, I like horror-stories.
I also tend to approach any pet project as an investigation. Looking around in (at least to me) uncharted yet comfortable territory is how my clock ticks and Malison is no exception.
Good horror, as with good comedy, provokes a physical reaction and I am fascinated by that effect. Their stories focus heavily on timing and FX and although I will have to find a way around timing I believe a motion comic to be the medium where I will find maximum freedom to play around with at least the FX.
Its the medium that I have control over anyway. And it could be a match.
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Why children?
On a practical level, children are more open-minded and naturally curious. I could go crazy with the material and the children will still be forgiving as long as my intentions and quality remain genuine.
If they trust me, I can certainly trust them and that is what I will need.
The project will evoke some fears with me too, I will have to learn a lot, doubt a lot and fail a lot. It will be scary for me as well.
On a more philosophical level I see horror-stories as a healthy vaccine against fear. Something I believe is hardly needed and often forgotten in preparing children for adult life.
In psychology the default therapy with phobias is confrontation. So I offer a confrontation with fear as an antidote to the general fear that has been exploited for ever by populists, bad parents, many religions and marketeers alike.
It only seems just to me to help a new generation be tooled up and conscious that tiny bit more. Horror-practice, but in a playful way.