We told you a few weeks ago about Platinum Studios' "American Idol"-style contest for comic creators, through which the winners will get a "multimedia development and publishing deal" based on their concept. At that time, we spoke to local guys Kevin Buckley and Marcus Thiele about their entry. We've just talked to another local writer/artist team with an entry in the Top 50: Navin Prasad and Chris Weiermiller.

Navin, the writer, describes their pitch as follows:

The graphic novel concept we've submitted to the contest is called Black Thursday, which chronicles young stockbroker Philip Broadwood's descent into madness and damnation as he searches the occult corners of 1929 London for his missing mentor during the Great Stock Market Crash. As the stock prices drop, so too do his chances of survival.

Let's see: occult? Period piece? Finance? Sounds like one of David Liss' "Benjamin Weaver" novels with a little Cthulu mixed in . . . . seriously, sign us up!

The duo took some time to answer three questions for us--after the jump, check out the guys' entry into and interest in comix, thoughts on living here in San Francisco (opium dens?) and what they're doing when not concentrating on craft.

1) How'd you get into sequential storytelling, and what are your goals? Any non-comics work?

NP: Sequential storytelling is relatively new to me, although I've been writing since I was ten or so. I read comics as a kid, but I must admit that I started out on very wholesome stuff -- Disney comics, Scrooge McDuck, all that stuff. Writing for comics only occurred to me in the last few years as I became exposed to the more literary side of graphic novels. Chris was doing a lot of research for his MFA thesis project at the time, and he would pass me some of the more interesting graphic novels he came across. I began to see how comics as an art form could could express ideas unlike anything else.

CW: I enjoyed comics as a kid, but it wasn't until I read Watchmen a few years ago that I really became a diehard fan. Reading that, along with Maus, From Hell, Blankets etc. I realized comics didn't have to be a children's medium. They could say and do more than I ever imagined. My final project in grad school ended up being a comic based on my friend's experiences as a soldier in Iraq. I've been shopping that around, so hopefully someone will take interest. I'm just getting my website up, so you can see some pages at www.chrisweiermiller.com.

2) Where are you from? How's SF treated you thus far?

CW: I was born nearby in Fremont, but grew up in Michigan. I love the midwest, but I have always wanted to come back to the Bay Area. San Francisco is just a special place. It's like one big artists' colony, plus you could eat out every night and not have a bad meal -- hopefully I didn't just jinx that.

NP: I'm a midwesterner too -- born and raised outside of Chicago. I've been out here about 3 years, and I absolutely love it. San Francisco has treated me well. I came out here for art school and have since had access to all sorts of creative pathways that just would not have been available to me back in Chicago. The people, the companies, the social and artistic environment -- it invigorates me into getting things done, putting my name out there.

3) What are you up to when you're not in the studio?

CW: When I'm not hunched over my drawing table for hours on end, I try to get out and enjoy the city. The MOMA always has great new exhibitions; the Rodin sculptures at the Legion of Honor are always an inspiration and North Beach nightlife always promises something new and possibly strange.

NP: Yeah we've definitely seen some strange things out here....maybe that's why it inspires so much art. We were researching opium dens for a while, since they play a part in the story. San Francisco has a famous affiliation with opium dens, most of them were less than a mile from where we live and work. Hell, they might still be there!

Professionally I'm a web designer and developer. I've got a pretty technical background, but I mostly use technology to enhance my creative projects. You can check out some of my work at www.navinprasad.com, as well as the sample page and synopsis that Chris and I submitted to the Comic Book Challenge. I keep myself pretty busy with personal and professional projects, but when I do take a break it's usually to explore the city for new experiences or cuisine.

Thanks for the time, fellas -- and best of luck! We hope one of the San Francisco teams wins big in the contest!