Skybound Entertainment, the multiplatform entertainment company founded by The Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman's, is teaming up with IndieCade to create programs to bring more awareness to indie gaming projects and perhaps an online web series, the company announced during SXSW 2015.
"We've got this commitment both to comic books and other fields that generate original IP," Jon Goldman, Skybound Entertainment managing partner Jon Goldman during a panel at the show last week. "It's our believe that gaming has original creators and we want to support them."
Kirkman, a vocal supporter of creator activism and creator ownership, founded Skybound with longtime collaborator David Alpert in 2010 to help find and nurture creative works that could be brought to publishing, television, film, events, merchandising and video games.
The news was announced during a Saturday panel entitled Skybound: Five Years of Story, Zombies and Beyond, hosted by Wall Street Journal reporter Paul Vigna on the Geek stage at SXSW Gaming.
During the panel, which examined the history of the company, Alpert said Skybound has the ability to take the idea of creator activism and ownership and "pump it out into all of this media.
"Our difference is that we keep the creator at the center of the creation," he said. "We treat all properties with the same amount of respect."
Kirkman said the company was formed at a time when The Walking Dead's success had so exceeded their expectations that "a tremendous amount of opportunities were slipping through my fingers."
Skybound's efforts with IndieCade will include "exploring producing an online web series around the IndieCade Festival and the game makers, creating a dedicated video channel for IndieCade nominees and award winners and furthering the efforts in publishing opportunities," according to a press release.
"IndieCade's continued growth and success in championing independent games, creators and visionaries has been both rewarding and humbling," IndieCade CEO Stephanie Barish said in a prepared statement. "The incredible support we've received from publishers, industry luminaries, developers, and players has been unwavering and represents the true energy behind our mission. We are thrilled to partner with the amazing team at Skybound Entertainment to see how our collective efforts can lead independent game development to a new level of success."
Goldman added that "Many of the most successful and innovative games seemingly come from independent game makers all over the world. Because of Skybound's longstanding commitment to fostering new creators, we are delighted to help lift up the undiscovered rock stars of the independent gaming world."