Press Release
BOOM! Studios announced today the promotion of Filip Sablik from Vice President of Publishing and Marketing to President of Publishing and Marketing at the company.
Since stepping down as Publisher of Top Cow and coming aboard BOOM! in June of 2012, Sablik has overseen the company’s Publishing Operations and Marketing department.
As the head of Publishing, Sablik manages BOOM!’s relationship with Diamond Comic Distributors for the Direct Market and International English language book trade; Simon and Schuster for the US book trade; HarperCollins Canada for Canadian book distribution; and Titan Distribution for the U.K. book market. In the digital space, Sablik oversees BOOM!’s relationships with ComiXology, iVerse, Overdrive, Follett, Kobo, Madefire, and Nook, among others. BOOM!’s relationships with their printing partners, licensing partners, and retail partners, along with new business development, also fall under Sablik’s purview.
Sablik launched the highly successful #WeAreBOOM campaign in 2013, architected a rebranded boom-studios.com website which saw a 100% increase in sales, and supervised BOOM!’s appearance at 22 conventions domestically as well as in Canada, Dubai, Germany, Italy, and the U.K. In the direct market, Sablik spearheaded several new retailer initiatives, including BOOM!’s “All You Need To Know” e-newsletter and video, an ongoing limited-edition promo item initiative, and the BOOM! Innovators program.
“There’s a reason Filip Sablik is recognized as one of the most respected executives in the business,” said BOOM! Studios CEO and Founder, Ross Richie. “The guy’s a force to be reckoned with and has been instrumental to the company’s growth and critical to our operational excellence as BOOM! expanded.”
Under Sablik’s leadership, the Publishing and Marketing departments have grown from two employees to a total of nine in just 22 months. Since coming on board, Sablik has played a key role in establishing licensing relationships with MGM, Core Music, and Surge Entertainment, alongside expanding BOOM!’s highly successful relationship with Cartoon Network to include the only publishing first-look deal in the studio’’s history. Additionally, he has brought new creators into the BOOM! Studios fold and was key in the assimilation of the Archaia team post-acquisition in 2013. Working alongside Chief Executive Officer and Founder Ross Richie, Editor-in-Chief Matt Gagnon, and the rest of the BOOM! executive team, Sablik has been instrumental in growing all facets of the publisher’s business. Sablik will continue to report directly to Richie.
“Filip has been an essential part of our team from the moment he came on board and continues to be an incredible leader for us,” said Gagnon. “He has all the smarts, work ethic, and integrity that you want in an executive and has proven time and again to be an invaluable teammate.”
Sablik got his start in comics working at Diamond Comics Distributors in 2000. In August of 2006, he joined Top Cow as VP of Marketing and Sales before eventually being promoted to Publisher in early 2008 and transitioning to BOOM! in June of 2012.
ABOUT BOOM! STUDIOS
Founded by Ross Richie in 2005, Diamond Gem Award-winning “Best Publisher” BOOM! Studios (boom-studios.com) generates a constellation of best-selling Eisner and Harvey Award-winning original and licensed comic books and graphic novels with the industry’s top talent. BOOM! Studios is the home of Mike Carey’s SUICIDE RISK, Clive Barker’s NEXT TESTAMENT and HELLRAISER, Paul Jenkins and Humberto Ramos’ FAIRY QUEST, PLANET OF THE APES, Max Bemis’ POLARITY and Mark Waid’s IRREDEEMABLE. Steven Grant’s graphic novel 2 GUNS was recently released as a feature film from Universal Pictures, starring Denzel Washington and Mark Wahlberg. BOOM!’s all-ages imprint KaBOOM! publishes Charles Schulz’ PEANUTS, Jim Davis’ GARFIELD, Cartoon Network’s ADVENTURE TIME and REGULAR SHOW, Mike Kunkel’s HEROBEAR AND THE KID, and Roger Langridge’s Eisner Award-winning SNARKED. In June 2013, BOOM! acquired Archaia Entertainment (archaia.com). Archaia is the Eisner and Harvey Award-winning graphic novel publisher of MOUSE GUARD, COW BOY, GUNNERKRIGG COURT, RUST, SPERA, JIM HENSON’S TALE OF SAND, and many other great titles. In October 2013, BOOM! Studios entered into a unique first-look relationship with 20th Century Fox, giving the studio access to its library of titles and giving the publisher access to Fox’s vast catalog of films.
1 Comment
He sure has come a long way from being the single worst Diamond CSR we ever dealt with. Never asked him a question that the answer wasn’t ‘I don’t know.’ Never called back with answers to anything.
Obviously, he’s come a long way, so I wonder how much of his stunning incompetence was Diamond’s training. Given how much I love some of Boom’s offerings, I hope all of it.