In a regular feature each fortnight, Caerphilly Observer is profiling a business based at the Welsh Innovation Centre for Enterprise. Welsh ICE is a hub for new businesses at Caerphilly Business Park and is home to around 85 start-ups. This week we look at Cosmic Anvil.
Comic book characters seem to be everywhere in popular culture.
Hollywood blockbusters such as The Avengers and the Batman Dark Knight trilogy have meant interest in comic books is sky-high.
Cosmic Anvil, started by Maesycwmmer man Huw Williams and partner Hannah Collins, is confident its comic Age of Revolution could be the next big thing.
Set in a world where all scientific knowledge has been lost, it pits scientists and the military against magic spellcasters as ideological opposites.
Film studies graduate Huw, 23, explained: “The conflict leads to a war of the two ideologies and the comic follows the story of five characters who live and fight in that war.”
The comic, available in digital and print formats, has just launched and scriptwriter Huw and artist Hannah, a fine art graduate with First Class Honours, enjoyed a successful reception recently at comic book convention MCM Expo, held in London.
Huw said: “The last year has been spent building up the content with scripts and artwork and we’re now ready to start our monthly production.
“We sold lots of copies at MCM Expo and generated a lot of interest. We also signed up a lot of future subscribers and fans.
“The overall plan is to get Age of Revolution selling well and then having the time to launch a second comic. Ultimately we’d love to get other writers and artists in with their own ideas and give them the freedom to develop those.”
So with the success of comic superheroes on film, could Cosmic Anvil be the next Marvel Studios?
Huw answered: “That would be great and we would love to go into film production, but for now we’re concentrating on creating great stories for our readers.”
To find out more about Age of Revolution and to order copies, please visit www.cosmicanvil.com.