You're damn right. Werewolf freakin' pirates.

SEA DOGS is a 100-page graphic novel that follows a group of passengers on a small cruise ship who must survive the night when a team of Somali pirates board their ship and turn into ravenous werewolves once the sun is down.

This story is a nonstop action comedy akin to stories like Dead Snow, Attack the Block, Piranha, Shaun of the Dead, and Slither. All great stories, however, have to be grounded in characters and a deeper meaning. Though SEA DOGS is full of pulpy fun, it also focuses on a complex sibling relationship and addresses contemporary themes of class, poverty, and race as a satirical survival story that feels new and relevant to the world we live in. It pays homage to classic werewolf and pirate tropes through a new lens.

I've always loved comic books and graphic novels but could never quite figure out how to get in as a creator. As an independent filmmaker based in Chicago, I’ll be the first to tell you that I'm pretty new to this world. I originally wrote SEA DOGS as a feature film screenplay a little over a year ago during the pandemic because it was simply the most fun idea I had dancing around in my brain. It was the best thing I could do to lift my spirits. And it sure as hell did. SEA DOGS was the most fun writing experience I’ve ever had because I simply didn’t hold back and threw in every crazy idea I had. 

I knew this would be a hard movie to pitch. It’s goofy, it’s violent, and the biggest problem of all: it’s expensive. I submitted the script to some competitions and, to my surprise, got some pretty positive feedback. The script was a second-rounder at the Austin Film Festival, Nashville Film Festival, Genre Blast Film Festival, and Launch Pad Feature Competition. 

Still, the path to the big screen seemed difficult, and now, still coming out of the writer’s strike, getting to production seems even harder. But man, I still wanted to see a werewolf with an eyepatch holding a machete. So I reached out to some amazing artists on Upwork and had concept art made. I was so impressed with what they did I thought about how I could bring the whole story to life in comic book form. I contacted another artist who drew up six amazing pages of the werewolf transformation scene.

Although the goal is still to eventually bring this story to the big screen, I know this story can live on its own as one kickass comic. Hell, it may even be better this way. Not only do I believe in its success as a comic, but in an IP-driven world, its existence in this other format may very well help get the attention of studio executives seeking the next big hit. That, however, all comes later as my primary focus creating the best damn graphic novel I can.

I’m a writer. Not a comic book artist. The brilliant creators of the images above completed those sample pages on a discounted budget but a 100-page story is a much different undertaking. Funds will primarily be used to pay the artist(s) for the pages and lettering. Should our campaign go beyond its goal, we open the door to having a fully colorized version of the comic. Additional funds will be used for the independent printing and production of the comic, distribution, and marketing. 

The impact of your contribution would be astronomical. Reaching our goal would allow me to streamline the production process and focus on this project as a top priority because I will definitively know there is an audience out there waiting for it. 

If we don’t reach our goal, I intend to plow through and look for as many supplemental funding sources as possible. Without initial funds, who knows when this project could come to life? It could be months or even years for people to finally see this awesome story on the page.

Of course, if you can’t contribute to the project now, please share it on social media or whatever other platform you may use. Tell it to your weird comic book friends or creepy uncle who likes werewolf movies. Every bit helps and you never know who is going to respond.

I had a blast writing this story and still get excited whenever I think about it. I know that you’re going to have a blast reading SEA DOGS and can’t wait for you to see it. Thank you so much for your contribution.

“Yo-Ho, mother fucker.” (actual line from the story)