BOOM! Studios Announces Arune Singh as VP, Marketing

Newly Created Role Highlights Top Hires and Promotions
Heading Into 2017

Los Angeles, Calif. (December 5, 2016) – BOOM! Studios announced that it has hired Arune Singh as Vice President, Marketing. In this newly created role, Singh will report to Filip Sablik, President of Publishing and Marketing, while overseeing all day-to-day aspects of marketing, communications, and social media, in addition to brand development and new corporate initiatives. The BOOM! Studios marketing team includes Mel Caylo, Marketing Manager, and Stephanie Hocutt, Social Media Coordinator.

Singh began his career in the entertainment industry in 2001 as a columnist for IGN and soon joined ComicBookResources.com as a staff writer. In 2007, Singh joined Marvel Entertainment’s publishing team where he led the communications team through major launches including the introduction of Miles Morales, the landmark super hero marriage in Astonishing X-Men and record-breaking events like Avengers vs X-Men. In 2013, he was promoted to Executive Director, TV Communications and led the publicity launch of Marvel Television with series including “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.,” “Marvel’s Daredevil,” and more. In 2015, he moved to Syfy in the role of Vice President, Publicity before recently joining BOOM! Studios.

“Since I was a kid, there’s no medium I’ve loved as much as graphic fiction and I’m thrilled to re-enter the industry with BOOM! Studios,” said Singh. “From titles like LUMBERJANES to KLAUS to MOUSE GUARD to MIGHTY MORPHIN POWER RANGERS, BOOM! is creating premiere storytelling that truly brings new voices and readers to comic shops, with an unparalleled team of people behind the scenes who represent the future of the entertainment industry.”

This new hire follows other key personnel moves for BOOM! Studios in a record-setting sales year which saw the company launch one of the biggest new series of the year (MIGHTY MORPHIN POWER RANGERS) with over one million units sold; celebrating LUMBERJANES selling over 500,000 copies; and delivering the top-selling comic book in October (BIG TROUBLE IN LITTLE CHINA/ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK #1):

• Kate Henning has been hired as Operations Manager. Henning began her career at Diamond Comic Distributors as a Brand Manager in the Purchasing department. Over her 5 years there, she developed a sterling reputation of working with publishers. In 2013, Henning was hired by IDW, where she served as the publisher’s Sales & Operations Manager. In her new role, Henning will oversee BOOM!’s publishing logistics along with printer and distributor relationships.
• Dafna Pleban has been promoted to Editor, Talent Development. Pleban has been with BOOM! since 2009 and has been instrumental in discovering and developing high-performing talent for many years. This new designation reflects her continued success in identifying singular talents including Russ Manning Award nominee Vanesa R. Del Rey (THE EMPTY MAN, Black Widow) and Russ Manning Award winner Dan Mora (KLAUS, WWE: THEN. NOW. FOREVER.).
• Alex Galer has been promoted to Associate Editor. Galer started at BOOM! in 2012 and has been a passionate ambassador for titles such as BIG TROUBLE IN LITTLE CHINA, BILL & TED and POWER RANGERS. He also shepherded the Harvey Award-winning PEANUTS:  A TRIBUTE TO CHARLES M. SCHULZ HC, a book that was years in the making.
• Cameron Chittock has been promoted to Associate Editor. Chittock joined BOOM! in 2013 as part of the publisher’s acquisition of Archaia. He has played a significant role in continuing and developing the Archaia imprint, as well as working on the Eisner Award nominated maxi-series, THE SPIRE. Chittock has also been an instrumental part of the MOUSE GUARD team with David Petersen as it celebrated its 10-year anniversary.
• Stephanie Hocutt has been promoted to Social Media Coordinator. Hocutt joined BOOM! in 2013 as a PR Assistant before her title changed to Marketing Assistant in 2015 to reflect her broader role in the department. In 2016, she spearheaded the growth in the publisher’s social media channels including launching dedicated Tumblrs for BOOM! Box and KaBOOM!. Hocutt has also significantly increased BOOM!’s reach and engagement on established platforms including Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.
• Michelle Ankley has been promoted to Production Designer. After interning with the company, Ankley started with BOOM! in late 2013 in the Operations Department and moved to the Production Team in early 2015. Her design work has included the IRREDEEMABLE PREMIER HC, THE BAKER STREET PECULIARS, and LUMBERJANES/GOTHAM ACADEMY.  

Added Sablik, “This was the biggest year for BOOM! Studios in our history. We’re excited to announce the addition and development of key personnel who will all play critical roles in delivering what we believe will be an even bigger 2017.”

About BOOM! Studios
Founded by Ross Richie in 2005, Diamond Gem Award-winning “Best Publisher” BOOM! Studios (boom-studios.com) generates New York Times best-selling Eisner and Harvey Award-winning comic books and graphic novels. BOOM! Studios is comprised of four distinct imprints. The "Studios" imprint is home to Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, Grant Morrison's Klaus, and The Woods. Imprint "BOOM! Box" publishes Lumberjanes, Steve Jackson Games' Munchkin, and Giant Days. All-Ages imprint "KaBOOM!" publishes Charles M. Schulz’s Peanuts, Jim Davis’ Garfield, and Cartoon Network’s Adventure Time. And the "Archaia" imprint is home to Mouse Guard, Cow Boy, and numerous Jim Henson Company properties. Since 2013, BOOM! Studios has had a unique first-look feature film relationship with 20th Century Fox and since August 2014 BOOM! has had a similar first-look relationship with Fox's television studio to develop properties for the small screen.