The Beach Chronicles Gives South Beach a Neo-Noir Facelift

Courtesy of The Beach Chronicles

​Miami gets animated in a new graphic-animated novel from creators Gianfranco Bianchi and Kevin Sharpley. The duo teamed up to create a sexy, gritty action-thriller set against the backdrop of South Beach.

Titled The Beach Chronicles, the series is the antithesis to the rampant depictions of Miami culture as being only about coke-laced, club-hopping yuppies with bad tans, and instead brings dark, edgy, fashion-forward allure to every smartly written plot. Each episode showcases upcoming local designers and artists, including everyone from KRELwear designer Karelle Levy to Mr. Clucky.

Jimmy Jean Louis, actor from NBC's Heroes, lends his voice to Jacques Jean Jille, a laid-back, fashion-forward Haitian scenester who is a reoccurring character on the show.

Courtesy of The Beach Chronicles

Creators Kevin Sharpley and Gianfranco Bianchi.

​"I didn't hesitate to come on board and become one of the characters. I think it's a cool way to go through Miami through the character's eyes. You understand the lifestyle and you feel like you're in Miami -- it's very much about the clubs and the people," Louis says.

The series debuted last month to a packed house at Miami Beach Cinematheque. Multiple screenings were promptly scheduled to accommodate all of the people who had to be turned away. Since then, the response to the series has been overwhelming. Cartoon Network's Adult Swim is courting The Beach Chronicles to release it nationally in 2010.

For more information, visit thebeachchronicles.com or jimmyjeanlouis.com.