Scarygirl started as a hit online concept and exploded into a world of limited-edition toys, accessories, games, and artwork. Its graphic novel debuted as a sought-after designer edition.
In 2019, Dark Slope brought Scarygirl into the future with a groundbreaking free-roam VR experience across 18 countries. The brand’s reach soared with its flash game, attracting 1.4 million players in just 8 months, and its wildly successful toy lines.
Vertigo Releasing is bringing the animation, which features the voices of Jillian Nguyen, Sam Neill, Rob Collins, Remy Hii, Anna Torv, Tim Minchin, Deborah Mailman, Liv Hewson, Mark Coles Smith, and Dylan Alcott, to the big screen in just a few weeks.
When her world is threatened by a loss of sunlight, a young girl must overcome her fears and journey to a fantastical city, save her father from a mysterious scientist and prevent the destruction of her planet.
Scarygirl synopsis
Arkie is a tech-savvy girl with a unique tentacle arm. She lives with her kind but cautious giant octopus father, Blister, on a secluded peninsula. Their peaceful life is threatened when sunlight inexplicably fades, which in turn threatens the local plants. Despite Blister’s regenerative gift, Arkie is unable to revive the plants. Her attempts to tinker with technology to help them backfire when she accidentally attracts a skycraft crash, exposing their previously hidden home.
Blister, the last of his kind, becomes a target. Arkie flees with Bunniguru and Egg, quirky bounty hunters who see a chance in their predicament. Blister is kidnapped, and Arkie embarks on a rescue mission to the dazzling City of Light, ruled by the enigmatic Doctor Maybee. This new world, kept secret by Blister, holds hidden dangers and startling revelations Arkie never imagined.
Creator Nathan Jurevicius said in a press release;
Scarygirl was born out of a deep love for a new daughter and a passion for making art, telling fantastical stories and aquatic life. One of the biggest themes for me in this ever-expanding folktale is what it means to be part of a family in all its shapes and forms and calling on childhood days spent with my fisherman grandfather; Sunday afternoon films like Jason and the Argonauts and Sinbad; my Baltic roots; and most importantly my daughter, Arkie.
Since it’s first drawing 21 year ago the Scarygirl world has expanded into a kind of multiverse: its had multiple ranges of vinyl toys, flash, console and VR games, and two books. But from the very beginning I always wanted to adapt the story of Arkie into an animated feature film.
Scarygirl’s story is set against contemporary issues such as the climate crisis, genetic engineering, and mortality. However, its underlying themes are timeless and simple: embracing one’s true self and accepting others as they are, being proud of one’s uniqueness, believing that there’s always something one can do to make the world a better place, and understanding the importance of family and love.
You can buy the book on Kindle and in Paperback from Amazon now.
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