According to the PR, the next big comic book movie has been announced and it's based on a comic book that you've never heard of. That doesn't mean that you've not been paying attention, though; it's because, prior to the announcement of the the movie deal, pretty much no-one knew anything about the ambitious "innovative reading experience" known as Anomaly.Anomaly, promoted in reports of the movie deal as "the longest full-color original graphic novel ever published" at 370 pages which strikes me as an odd boast (Craig Thompson's Blankets was 592 black and white pages; I wonder if those additional 222 pages equal full color in the value stakes?), is the creation of entertainment attorney and "Hollywood dealmaker" Skip Brittenham and Witchblade and Spawn veteran Brian Haberlin, the latter of whom co-illustrates the book with Geirrod Van Dyke. According to Variety, the comic tells the story of a group of humans who get involved in a conflict between the inhabitants of an exotic alien planet and the Conglomerate, a human corporation that conquers other planets to steal their resources; apparently, the name Avatar was already taken for another project.

Like the James Cameron movie, Anomaly seems to be far-reaching in its ambition; to be simultaneously released as a hardcover book and standalone iPad app this October, the comic will include input from experts in philosophy, religion and science in the development of the alien planet and its culture. "Brian and I have tried to create an action-adventure that also includes serious ideas in a deeply immersive environment, and we've designed the interface so that the consumers can choose how they wish to consume it," explained Brittenham, who has previously served on the boards of both Pixar and DreamWorks Animation.

The movie is being developed by Joe Roth, who's previously worked at 20th Century Fox, Disney and indie studio Revolution Studios and knows a hit when he sees one. Then again, Revolution is also the studio that brought the world Are We There Yet? and Christmas With The Kranks, so clearly he's not unfamiliar with flops, too.

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