Amazon tends to do things in non-traditional ways, and that fact is on full display with the debut this morning of the first installment of Blackburn Burrow, a digital comic book from the company’s Amazon Studios original content group.
The free comic book, produced by 12 Gauge Comics, is actually a test for a feature film that Amazon Studios has been developing, based on a screenplay by writer Jay Levy. The comic book will be released in installments over the next four months to see how readers (and potential movie-goers) react.
Each release will have its own online survey soliciting feedback and comments.
The intro text for the first installment reads, “At Amazon Studios we want to make movies you love. Here’s where you come in. If we made this comic into a full budget feature film, would you go see it?”
Amazon Studios is using a crowdsourced model to solicit content and shape its movie projects, with financial rewards for the best work. The company says the idea to use a comic book as screen test came from community input. The comic book is available in a variety of formats and platforms, including Kindle, the Graphicly comic site and the Amazon Studios Facebook page.
Overall, Amazon Studios currently has 17 film projects and nine series in development.
