Creative-collective studio Black Market Narrative and development and production company ZQ Entertainment are teaming up for a feature film ad of NO/ONE, the critically-acclaimed comic book series by Kyle Higgins, Brian Buccellato and Geraldo Borges, and published by Image Comics, as well as its accompanying scripted podcast, WHO IS NO/ONE, which features a star-studded voice cast including Rachael Leigh Cook, Patton Oswalt, and Todd Stashwick. The true-crime found-footage feature, I AM NO/ONE will be produced by Higgins and Buccellato, ZQ Entertainment’s Ara Keshishian and Petr Jákl, and Steven Schneider, known for his work on genre-defining films such as Paranormal Activity, Insidious and Late Night with the Devil. Stuart Manashil of Novo will serve as Executive Producer. The teaser trailerwas revealed at Friday’s “Image Comics Presents: Enter the MASSIVE-VERSE” panel at San Diego Comic-Con International.
Higgins and Buccellato, the creative minds behind the Image Comics NO/ONEcomic book series and its accompanying podcast, will write the screenplay for the film with Higgins also serving as director, bringing his unique vision and the team’s multi-narrative approach to the big screen.
NO/ONE chronicles the story of a digital hacktivist’s attempts to root out corruption amongst Pittsburgh politicians and leaders of industry, as well as the resulting movement of murderous accountability that jumpstarts a media maelstrom.
Debuting in March of 2023, the series became an instant critical and commercial hit, selling out of multiple printings, and has been lauded for pushing the boundaries of immersive storytelling with its utilization of an in-universe scripted podcast, along with in-universe websites, newspaper articles, data drops and viral videos.
The film will be comprised of sit down interviews, phone and drone footage, news coverage, and first-person GoPro and helmet videography from the NO/ONE operation itself; I AM NO/ONE is the final chapter in this visionary multi-narrative experience.
“Unconventional storytelling makes for the most compelling narratives, particularly when it comes to film. Even when playing within the rules of genre convention, audiences want to be surprised. They deserve it,” said Schneider. “I AM NO/ONE being structured as a documentary, that is also in-universe with the comic and podcast, is something that has never been done before. And that alone is incredibly exciting to me.”
“As both a storyteller and a world-builder, immersion is incredibly important to me,” said Higgins. “From day one, when Brian and I embarked on this journey nearly three years ago, we planned this multi-narrative approach in a way that would allow us to play to the strengths of our favorite mediums, designing a story that—while standing on its own in each format—became incredibly additive when experiencing all aspects of it together. I am incredibly excited to make my feature-film directing debut on a project so intensely personal and that speaks to the type of boundary-pushing, outside-the-box storytelling that I pride myself on trying to achieve.”
“This film is a culmination of over three years of meticulous planning and world building and I am so excited to be embarking on the final leg of this journey,” said Buccellato. “Executing a superhero murder-mystery across multiple mediums is the biggest creative swing we’ve ever taken. We’re proud that each element stands on its own, and can’t wait to bring it all together for a truly one-of-a-kind storytelling experience.”
NO/ONE and WHO IS NO/ONE finished its ten-part run on Wednesday, with the final moments of both the comic book series and the podcast laying the groundwork for the story’s next evolution in I AM NO/ONE. All issues and episodes are available now. The NO/ONE comic books are now available at comic book shops and across many digital platforms, including Amazon Kindle, Apple Books, and Google Play. The podcast is available on all podcast platforms as well as the WHO IS NO/ONE in-universe website, The Drop.
A collected edition of all ten issues, all ten episodes and all in-universe storytelling material is slated for release in November. The ten issue multi-narrative story is part of Image Comics and Black Market Narrative’s ever-expanding Massive-Verse, alongside titles Radiant Black, Rogue Sun, Radiant Red, The Dead Lucky, Radiant Pink, Inferno Girl Red, and C.O.W.L.
To read more about NO/ONE and the WHO IS NO/ONE podcast, head to http://blackmarket.la/no-one. For more information about The Massive-Verse, head to http://massive-verse.com. For news and updates, subscribe to the Black Market Narrative newsletter http://blackmarket.la/newsletter.