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An Interview with R.J. Redl, Creator and Co-Writer of the Graphic Novel The Darkest Shade

by Mike Haberfelner

January 2025

R.J. Redl on (re)Search my Trash

 

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We have talked about this before, but bring us up to speed: Your new graphic novel The Darkest Shade - in a few words, what is it about?

 

The Darkest Shade unveils a haunting tale of love and loss, where a grieving couple’s fractured marriage becomes the perfect prey for a sinister shadow, a malevolent personification of guilt and sorrow. As their reality bends and splinters, the boundaries between waking life and a nightmarish otherworld dissolve. Through the chilling lens of cosmic horror and psychological unease, they are thrust into a twilight existence where nothing is as it seems, and the weight of their despair draws them deeper into a realm they may never escape.

 

What were your sources of inspiration when writing The Darkest Shade?

 

From the award-winning short In the Pitch Black, filmed amid the 2020 pandemic, grew a feature-length screenplay rooted in human fragility. Co-written with Kim Sheil, the project became a reflection of our own complexities and fallacies, weaving personal trauma with mythology and philosophy. Beyond the supernatural, the heart of the story lies in unraveling the flawed depths of human nature, explored through relentless dives into obscure truths and shared obsessions.

 

You have to talk about your co-creator Kim Shell and your co-writer L.A. Keim for a bit, and what was your collaboration with them like?

 

We began crafting a mythology steeped in the raw emotion of two parents facing the unimaginable—losing their daughter. After a year and a half of writing and exhaustive research, Kim Sheil and I shaped a story we believed in. But when we pitched it to production companies across Australia, the strange, unclassifiable elements were rejected. In frustration, I turned to my best friend, Robert Phillips, who suggested adapting it into a comic. Initially skeptical, I pushed the screenplay through festivals, earning recognition but no industry support. It was a final gamble, but with L.A. Keim of Free Fall Comics taking a chance on us, the story found new life, transformed into a comic.

 

Do talk about The Darkest Shade's approach to horror!

 

The Darkest Shade is a chilling exploration of the human psyche, blending psychology, mythology, and quantum mechanics with personal brushes with death. It defies typical horror, forgoing gore and jump scares in favor of a haunting, melancholic narrative. Fear stems not strictly from the supernatural, but from the raw terror of real loss, vulnerability, and the fragility of life itself. The intent was always clear: to create something deeply human, unflinchingly compelling, and disturbingly real.

 

You have so far mostly worked in film - so why did you switch to the graphic novel format for The Darkest Shade?

 

Directing a film and creating a comic share a common thread: Both demand meticulous attention to detail. The key difference? In comics, we weren’t bound by the constraints of a budget. With reference images, we shaped the visual style freely, crafting a world unconstrained by effects, yet rich in vision.

 

How does dreaming up a graphic novel compare to writing a movie, and which one do you actually prefer?

 

Both film and comics demand creativity, but comics offer a unique freedom. Every page costs the same, allowing us to shape grand or subtle moments without financial limits. While we sacrificed sound and music, comics granted us the control to craft our story on our own terms, within a budget that film couldn’t match.

 

What can you tell us about The Darkest Shade's illustrators Riccardo Faccini and Rafael Ter-Stepanow, and in what way did they help shaping your graphic novel? And did the story change in any way once it was put into drawings?

 

As the project unfolded, I was compelled to deepen my approach to storytelling, pushing beyond the conventional to match the raw power of the artwork. The visuals demanded more from the narrative (darker, more layered, and more visceral) to amplify the story into something truly immersive, turning every panel into a pulse that drives the experience to a greater, more haunting depth.

 

To put the last question on its head, how much of a say did you have when it came to shape and style on your illustrators work?

 

I guided the story, not only through rewrites but by meticulously selecting visual references and overseeing the art, ensuring every detail aligned. It was a director’s approach, akin to my filmmaking process, shaping the narrative through both word and image.

 

Do talk about the rest of your creative team on The Darkest Shade for a bit, and how did they help shape your graphic novel?

 

Communication was crucial in shaping the vision, but my role was to guide, not control. The team took my ideas and surpassed them, delivering a product of unmatched quality. It was a true collaboration, a blending of imaginations where I learned just as much as I contributed.

 

The $64-question of course, where will The Darkest Shade be released?

 

Readers who are interested in purchasing the book will be able to buy it from the official Free Fall Comics website, under the creator-owned initiative

 

The Darkest Shade is the first in a 5 book series, right - so what do you have in store for us in future issues?

 

The first volume of a five-part graphic novel miniseries, using the Kubler-Ross grief cycle as a metaphor. This issue explores denial, with the next shifting into anger, followed by bargaining, depression, and acceptance. Each stage unfolds with precision, keeping the story grounded as it plunges deeper into the human experience of grief.

 

Thanks for the interview!

 

 

© by Mike Haberfelner


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In times of uncertainty of a possible zombie outbreak, a woman has to decide between two men - only one of them's one of the undead.

 

There's No Such Thing as Zombies
starring
Luana Ribeira, Rudy Barrow and Rami Hilmi
special appearances by
Debra Lamb and Lynn Lowry

 

directed by
Eddie Bammeke

written by
Michael Haberfelner

produced by
Michael Haberfelner, Luana Ribeira and Eddie Bammeke

 

now streaming at

Amazon

Amazon UK

Vimeo

 

 

 

Robots and rats,
demons and potholes,
cuddly toys and
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love and death and everything in between,
Tales to Chill
Your Bones to

is all of that.

 

Tales to Chill
Your Bones to
-
a collection of short stories and mini-plays
ranging from the horrific to the darkly humourous,
from the post-apocalyptic
to the weirdly romantic,
tales that will give you a chill and maybe a chuckle, all thought up by
the twisted mind of
screenwriter and film reviewer
Michael Haberfelner.

 

Tales to Chill
Your Bones to

the new anthology by
Michael Haberfelner

 

Out now from
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