[NEohioPAL] Hero Tomorrow's spinoff comic book debuts online - featuring Cleveland's people and places.

[Ted Sikora]

Hi Everybody.

I thought you might enjoy this as so many of our film's actors came
from the Neohiopal.

Best.

Ted Sikora

(read issue 1 free online at www.herotomorrow.com)


A NEW SUPERHERO ARRIVES IN CLEVELAND - THE ORIGIN CITY OF SUPERMAN -
GET READY FOR APAMA!

Back in 1932 two guys from Cleveland Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster
created the world's first super powered crimefighter, Super-Man. Over
the years thousands of characters have been created in the genre but
almost none have ever called Cleveland home. Now longtime friends and
filmmakers Ted Sikora and Milo Miller have co-written and produced a
new comic book series entitled "Apama - The Undiscovered Animal" whose
adventures take place all over Cleveland.

Apama made his debut at San Diego's Comic Con International, in the
independent film "Hero Tomorrow" which has been an international film
festival sensation, screening at festivals everywhere from New York to
Montreal, Rome, Brazil and Australia.

In the Cleveland based film, David is a struggling comic book artist
who can't sell his original superhero idea, Apama, to a publisher. His
girlfriend, being an aspiring costume designer, makes him a costume of
Apama for Halloween. Once David's life goes to pot, he decides to
embark on various misadventures in real life dressed up as his own
superhero.

The comic book "Apama: The Undiscovered Animal" is a realization of
David's dream that imagines what David would have created had he
succeeded in his comic book creating career.

So what is an Apama? With so many great super-heroes based on
creatures from nature (Spider-Man, Bat-Man, Wolverine) the creators
asked themselves, "What if there was another creature that was so
powerful and stealth that is was still undiscovered by modern man?"
That creature is the Apama. In the comic book, Hungarian ice cream
truck driver Ilyia Zjarsky goes hiking one day and finds the ancient
Native American scroll that reveals the key to enabling the Apama's
spirit in a human. Says Sikora, "This isn't just some adaptation of a
movie. Milo and I felt that we truly had something new to say in the
genre. This book will stand on its own two feet without any knowledge
of our film."

When the team decided to make this into a comic book they put an ad
out for an illustrator on the website ConceptArt.org. "To our shock
over 100 artists from all over the world applied for the project. It
was tough to narrow it down, but Spaniard Benito Gallego was our
ultimate choice."

"Benito's art reminded us of the classic '70s comic book style we all
grew up loving." says Sikora. "His panel layouts give the story a very
seamless flow - a very rare quality. He draws beautiful females, and
does wonderful work with architecture. In the past he had done quite a
bit of animal-monster themed comic art, so he was the perfect fit."

Says Gallego of the project, "It's a very mature approach to the
superhero genre, It goes from comedy to horror passing through
romance. There are references to spiritual knowledge, ethnicities,
culture, religion, and mythology."

To help Benito capture authentic Cleveland, Sikora went all over town,
photographing various locations to create the right feel. "It was just
like scouting for our film all over again. I actually got permission
to show some actual storefronts and apartment buildings as well."

The first issue of "Apama" is available for free downloading on the
film's website (www.herotomorrow.com) The comic is expected to publish
on a quarterly basis, and is intended for mature audiences.

The DVD for Hero Tomorrow, which has over four hours of material, is
currently available for purchase on the film's website and iTunes.