Introducing Ron Ackins: Illustrator for the “Marcus Rhoder Backstory”
We're thrilled to present the accomplished illustrator, Ron Ackins, as one of three creative talents who will co-create the backstory of Marcus Rhoder, bringing it to life through their in-progress writing, art, and voice performances.
Drawing inspiration from comics during his youth and grounded by his foundational studies in graphic design at the Art Institute of Philadelphia, Ron's artistic journey has led him to collaborate with eminent brands such as Nike, UndrCrwn, and Sony Music Entertainment. Of particular note is his work with Marvel Comics, where he contributed to iconic titles like Miles Morales: Spider-Man and Moon Knight.
Ron's task is to visually manifest the backstory of one of the story’s supporting characters, Marcus Rhoder (voiced by a to-be-announced powerhouse TV actor).
As described by Alma in Chapter 1 of THE DISCO BALL, Marcus Rhoder was an “early and talented mover in the YouTube Educator space. His channel now boasts millions of subscribers and provides orders of magnitude more income than his lowly day job going to space. It should make him easy to hate, but he also happens to be endlessly positive and upbeat, and his videos really do an incredible job of making a host of nuanced and complicated scientific topics not only understandable but downright entertaining.”
Beyond his passion for space education and content creation, we’re only given a glimpse of Marcus in Chapter 1 — his age (early 40s) and his role aboard the ISS as an engineer. A to-be-announced screenwriter will set the table with an expertly crafted screenplay establishing the core narrative of the backstory, and Ron will imagine Marcus’ early days in his signature and vibrant comic book style, visualizing this pivotal epoch in the life of one of the key characters of THE DISCO BALL narrative.
Ron's creative process involves starting with pencils, followed by the application of Prisma or Copic markers, and culminating with inks. His artwork consistently showcases themes influenced by his love for sci-fi, anime, film, and comics, and a poignant focus on the representation of black individuals in art and media. As Ron puts it, "Growing up reading comics and watching action movies, I saw Black people depicted in all types of ridiculous and absurd ways. I’ve always wanted to change that and that desire heavily influences how I depict Black people and other people of color in my artwork.”
In the ever-expanding universe of THE DISCO BALL, the addition of Ron Ackins as a collaborative illustrator introduces a captivating third artistic dimension to the aesthetic of the story universe, harmoniously adding to the artistic work from Story Artists shelby and sandy and Aanu, our first Co-Create winner who created the panels for the backstory of Jora Andrevic. Ron's distinctive and colorful comic book style not only showcases his immense talent but also breathes life into the formative years of Marcus Rhoder, adding layers of depth and nuance to a character we're just beginning to get to know.