proforma

1. Adventure
Part I

2. The
Hero’s
Quest

3. Use this page to
breakdown an
existing film, using
the Hero’s Quest
theory. How does
your chosen film
fit with this?
The Ordinary World Harry lives with his abusive aunt and uncle in a very ‘normal’ suburban area.
The Call to Adventure Owls start to deliver letters to the house for Harry.
The Refusal
His uncle refuses to let him open any of the letters, going as far as to move the family into a
cabin in the sea to avoid the owls.
Mentor Help
Hagrid turns up at the cabin on Harry’s 11th birthday. He reveals the truth about Harry’s
identity to him, that he is a wizard and his parent’s died at the hands of an evil wizard
‘Voldemort’. The letter is an invitation to go to Hogwarts.
Crossing the Threshold
Harry is taken through Diagon Alley and buys his school supplies. Hagrid disappears when they
arrive at King’s Cross and he must make his own way onto the platform, though he is aided by
the Weasley family.
Test/Allies/Enemies
Harry makes friends with Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger and an immediate rivalry with
Draco Malfoy. They are sorted into their houses. Harry learns magic at Hogwarts. The trio
battle a troll and become firm friends. They accidentally stumble upon a three-headed dog
who is stood on a trapdoor.
Approach
They learn about the philosopher’s stone and that the three-headed dog ‘Fluffy’ is guarding it.
Harry believes Professor Snape wants to retrieve the stone to bring Voldemort back to life.
Hagrid reveals Fluffy is calmed by music. They go to Fluffy but find he is already asleep and go
under the trapdoor as he awakes. The trio faces a series of challenges under the trapdoor
which injures Ron and Hermione stays behind to help, meaning Harry must go on alone.
Ordeal
In the last room, Professor Quirrell is revealed to be the villain. He hides Voldemort on the
back of his head under his turban. The mirror allows Harry to access the stone. Voldemort
attempts to bargain with Harry for the stone but when that fails Quirrell tries to kill him.
Harry’s touch burns his face and he is reduced to ashes. Voldemort’s soul leaves Quirrell’s
remains and passes through Harry, knocking him unconscious.
Reward
Harry has retrieved the stone and Dumbledore makes the decision to destroy it to keep its
powers safe. Gryffindor win the house cup.
Road Back
Though it is not shown, Harry is brought to the infirmary from the trapdoor to the infirmary.
He is healed by the nurse.
Atonement
Dumbledore reveals to Harry that when his mother died to protect him, a love-based
protection spell was put on Harry that protects him against Voldemort.
Return Harry returns home, believing the world to be safe from Voldemort.
Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone

4. Equilibrium
Disruption
Recognition
Attempt to repair the damage
New Equilibrium

5. Equilibrium
Harry lives in the suburbs with
his abusive aunt and uncle.
Disruption
Harry finds out he is a wizard
and goes to Hogwarts. He
learns about the philosopher’s
stone.
Recognition
The trio find out someone is trying
to steal the stone and believe it is
Snape trying to revive Voldemort
who will then kill Harry.
Attempt to repair the damage
Harry, Ron and Hermione decide to
stop Snape. They undertake a
series of tasks and Harry goes
alone to stop Snape. It is revealed
that it is Quirrell’s doing. Harry
wins the final battle.
New Equilibrium
Harry returns ‘home’, though his
family will be the same he knows
his life is different. His home is
somewhere else now.
Use this template to apply Todorov’s theory of equilibrium to your chosen film. Write in the boxes to explain what is happening in
your story at each point.

6. Character type How they appear in your story
The Hero Harry Potter
The Villain Voldemort
The Helper Ron and Hermione
The Donor Dumbledore
The Dispatcher Hagrid
The Princess or prize Philosopher’s Stone
The Princess’s Father Mirror of Erised
The False Hero Professor Quirrell
Use this template to apply Propp’s character types to your chosen film. Write in the boxes to explain which character acts as each
type in your film.

7. WWWWWH
Who Harry Potter, his two best friends are Ron and Hermione.
What He learns he is a wizard and goes to Hogwarts, a wizarding school. He discovers the philosopher’s stone is being guarded by a three-
headed dog named Fluffy.
Why The stone is being protected against Voldemort. Harry, Ron and Hermione believe Snape is helping Voldemort.
When 1995-1996.
Where London, England. Then an imaginary school called Hogwarts in Scotland.
How Harry, Ron and Hermione go through the trapdoor. They face a series of tasks which results in Harry having to go on alone. Quirrell is
found to be helping Voldemort, in the ensuing battle Harry wins and Dumbledore destroys the stone.
Use this template to apply Who, What, Where, When, Why and How to your chosen film. Write in the boxes to explain what is
happening in your story at each point.

8. Initial Ideas

9. Idea 1
Who Young witch
What On a journey to forage ingredients, encounters creatures with riddles on the way
Why Needs to make a soup – not revealed until the end
When Throughout the day, autumn
Where Forest, cottage
How She uses her magic and the assistance of other characters to acquire ingredients.

10. Idea 2
Who A teenage boy
What He discovers he has powers and has to learn how to control them in the face of an other power, a witch.
Why To save his friends from danger
When Present day
Where England
How Goes on an adventure to find out about his powers and learn from other people about how to do magic.

11. Mood board:

12. Research
Research

13. Existing Product
The cover uses the colours in
Depp’s outfit as colours for the
text which creates a cohesive
look.
Depp is looking directly at the
audience and is in costume of
one of his most recognizable
roles. He is wearing bright
coloured contacts which make
his eyes stand out against the
reds in the cover.
The title stands out against the
background which tells the
reader what type of magazine
it is immediately.
‘Johnny Depp Goes Mad’ is
a pun related to the movie
advertised ‘Alice in
Wonderland’. Having his
name in big letters , as he is
an infamous actor, is
enticing the reader.

14. Existing Product
The main colours are red,
‘white’ and blue which tends
to be associated with
American ideals. The white
being a faded beige colour
implies the movie being set
in the past.
The title ‘heroine’ appeals
to a female audience, this is
amplified by the text being
large and bold enough to
read even sideways.

15. Existing Product The yellow against the black
background is extremely effective in
catching the audience’s eye.
It is a very minimalistic cover as the
style of magazine is aimed at
artists/photographers so the focus
should be the photo and name. If the
potential reader is interested, they
can read the subtitles.

16. Existing Product
The magazine uses neutral
colours as bright colours
would draw attention from
the art on the first page.
There is a small band of red
in the artwork which still fits
with the black and white.
The word ‘Banksy’ is a different font
and much larger than the title so the
reader immediately knows who the
article is about. The backwards ‘K’
draws the eye.

17. Research Summary
• What have you learned from your research?
• I have learnt that you can still create an effective cover/spread
without much colour. However, colour palettes can imply the genre or
aspects of the film. With magazine covers, you need to immediately
tell the potential reader what is the focus of the issue.
• With a double page spread, it is still key to use eye-catching graphics
but as long as one aspect can grab the reader’s attention they will
continue to read on. It is helpful to use a large font and a full page
picture.
• What aspects of the research will you include within your own work?
• I think I will lean towards a more vibrant colour palette and will use a
large photo in my double page spread.

18. Bibliography
Pre-production and Planning

19. Style Sheet

20. Style Sheet – Film Poster

21. Style Sheet - Magazine

22. Magazine layouts
T I T L E
New film!
Actor interview!
Other articles
Other articles

23. Poster layouts
TITLE TITLE TITLE
actor
T
TITLE TITLE TITLE
B i l l i n g b o a r d
B i l l i n g b o a r d
B i l l i n g b o a r d
B i l l i n g b o a r d
B i l l i n g b o a r d
B i l l i n g b o a r d
TITLE TITLE TITLE

24. Contingency
What can go wrong? What can you do if it does?
I or my model get Covid I would have to find another model or take photos of
myself instead
Eye strain To prevent this, I should take breaks when using a
computer at home
Fatigue Don’t overwork and make sure to be sleeping enough

25. Risk Assessment
What could be a risk to you, others or the
equipment?
How can you make sure that doesn’t happen? What
will you do if it does?
Glasses of water could be spilled on equipment Move glasses out of room when photos are taken
Lifting heavy equipment could injure someone Make sure everyone is lifting correctly

26. Production

27. Using your plans, produce:
• A synopsis for your film
• A magazine front cover, promoting the film
• Additional advertising to promote the film

28. Synopsis
Use this space for your synopsis. If you have produced different drafts or alternative ideas, then include those here too.
The more work the better. Show your working.
The protagonist, a teenage boy, is at secondary school in England. He has a small but close group of 3 other friends, two girls and a
non-binary person, they consider themselves ‘outcasts’ in their school. One day, as he is walking home from school, he hears a
group of ‘popular’ people talking about one of his friends – in a fit of rage he causes a streetlight near him to bend in half with a
flash of green ‘lightning’. He decides his mind is playing tricks on him and returns home. He dreams that night of a teacher at his
school who is controlling the same green lightning from before. Come Monday, he goes to speak to this teacher about the
streetlight and his dream – the teacher discretely gives him a book describing the history of their powers.
Over the next few weeks he attempts to hone his abilities alone but is unsuccessful, barely able to move anything unless extremely
focused. One night he is leaving the cinema with a friend and they are attacked by a hooded figure who wield purple lightning and
he is unable to beat them but they are stopped by citizens walking into the scene. He sees a glimpse of the girl’s face as she leaves
and recognises her but is unsure why. He goes to the teacher for help and after some persuasion, the teacher agrees.
Eventually he is able to wield his abilities correctly. He is summoned in a dream to go to an abandoned train station. The next night
he goes there and a battle ensues between them. Upon defeat, the figure admits to a prophesy where she has to kill him, and
reveals herself as a girl from his school. They attempt to reconcile and he convinces her against the prophecy but she is overcome
by a higher power – her eyes go purple and she attacks him. In the ongoing battle he is forced to kill her. In the final scene, he is
sat at school with his friends – they are laughing and talking and he is unfocused. He looks into the camera as the laughter fades
into the background and his eyes flash green.

29. Magazine Front Cover
Use this space for your front cover. If you have produced different drafts or alternative ideas, then include those here too.
The more work the better. Show your working.

30. Advertising:
Use this space for your advertising. If you have produced different drafts or alternative ideas, then include those here too.
The more work the better. Show your working.
I selected the focus area around
the hands and removed them from
their background in the photo I
took.
To create the flame, I used
different shades of green circles
and smudged them upwards, I also
added blur. This got me to the
poster on the left. I decided it
needed to be refined so merged all
the layers of the flame into one, so
I was able to blend them together.
I put a colour correction filter over
the flame to create the purple
flame and increased the
transparency.

31. Adventure
Part II

32. Research
https://gameuidatabase.com/gameData.php?id=53

33. Coffee Talk
• Coffee Talk is a visual novel, you play as a barista in a fictional Seattle.
Monsters and humans live alongside each other. You brew drinks for
your customers and listen to their stories of navigating the world.
• It is a 2D pixel art style. The game is played through clicking through
the text; however, you can put the text as an automated mechanic.
The brewing mini games each day are click-and-point mechanics.
• The art is ‘an aesthetic inspired by 90s anime, pixel art, and the lo-fi
chillhop genre of music’.

34. Coffee Talk

35. Celeste
• Celeste is a platformer game released in 2018. You play as Madeline who
aims to climb Celeste Mountain whilst also plagued by a dark reflection of
herself known as ‘Part of Me’ in-game and ‘Badeline’ to the fanbase.
Madeline suffers from mental health issues; and it creates an emotionally
moving story alongside the gameplay.
• It is a pixel art style; and you are able to jump and climb walls. You are also
able to perform a ’mid-dash’ in your jump which becomes easier to
perform as you progress. The game was designed with ‘speedrunning’ in
mind – this is the act of trying to complete a video game within a specific
time limit and achieving the fastest time possible – which was greatly
received by the speedrunning community and has been enjoyed as a
demanding yet casual game as well.
• Celeste received ‘universal acclaim’, was nominated for 41 awards and won
11. In November 2020, the developer confirmed speculation that Madeline
is a transgender woman. This was met positively by the LGBT community
yet received backlash that was politically or religiously charged.

36. Celeste

37. The colour scheme is quite dark and natural. It is
mainly greens and dark colours, so Madeline and
her red hair stands out.
The game uses a 2D scrolling view that follows the
character upwards.
Unless there is a scene with dialogue, there is no other
information on the screen as there is no gold or items to be
used. When a strawberry is collected there is a pop-up in the
top left corner with the number of strawberries collected.
Madeline is established as the playable
character from the beginning, she’s the
only character apart from ‘Part of Me’ (or
Badeline) in the climbing scenes.
When the player
encounters the first
enemy you must
run to the end of
the level and can’t
attack him. He tries
to kill you and you
have to dodge his
attacks.

38. Shovel Knight

39. The colour scheme is bright but not overpowering or
loud and quite natural.
There is a 2D scrolling view.
In the HUD there is the amount of ’Gold’ you have, how
many items you are holding, how many lives you have
left and the enemy health.
There is an introduction at the start of the game to
familiarize you with the character. You control his
movements on the screen and how he interacts with
objects. Every other character on the screen at the
beginning is an enemy.
As it is a scrolling view, you
are unable to get past an
enemy without killing it
first. It is beneficial to do so
rather than try and jump
over it as they drop items.
The first type of enemy
does not try and attack you
first.

40. A Short Hike
• A Short Hike is an adventure open-world game where the player must get
to the top of the mountain to get phone reception.
• The player is able to control Claire, the protagonist, and can make her jog,
climb, swim and glide. To reach the peak of the mountain the player must
find or buy golden feathers to get extra jumps and abilities. There are
animals populating the island that will offer side-quests and activities.
• The game’s soundtrack adapts based what is occurring in the world such as
weather or flying.
• The game was nominated for 7 awards and won the Seumas McNally
Grand Prize and the Audience Award at the Independent Game Festival
Awards in 2020.

41. A Short Hike

42. Eastward
• Eastward is an action-adventure roleplaying game.
• The plot follows Sam and John, who have been exiled from
underground to the outside world.
• In gameplay, John is the main offensive power of the two and Sam is a
supporter, who can heal and stun enemies. In non-combat, the two
can talk to NPCs (non-playable characters), cook food and upgrade
their equipment.
• There is a game within the game called ‘Earth Born’ which is a
homage to the Dragon Quest series.

43. Eastward

44. The colour scheme is muted and it gives the game a
soft energy, fitting into the ‘cozy game’ aesthetic.
The view is an aerial view which is useful
to the game as you control 2 separate
characters and means you can view the
entire scene.
The HUD shows how many lives the player has left,
which character you are controlling; how much
ammunition and how many bombs you have left. There
is also a hint or instruction at the top.
You control the two
characters and
sometimes only have
one on the screen.
The view follows
them about as they
move. They don’t
particularly stand out
against the
environment except
Sam’s white hair.
At one point in the
game, the enemies are
bug like creatures who
follow you. They fall
around you to indicate
they are antagonistic.
This is in the beginning
of the game so they do
not move very quickly.

45. Minit
• Minit is an adventure video game. The game is in black and white
pixel art. The premise for the game is that each of the player's lives
only lasts for one minute, resulting in "a peculiar little adventure
played sixty seconds at a time".
• The player discovers a sword which is cursed so that the player dies
every 60 seconds. The player must destroy the curse by retrieving
items and going to the factory where it was made. You keep the items
from your past lives.

46. Minit

47. Bibliography
Pre-production and Planning

48. Mind Map

49. Mind Map

50. Mood Board

51. Style Sheet
https://www.derekyu.com/makegames/pixelart.html

52. Game layouts

54. Contingency
What can go wrong? What can you do if it does?
Computer breaking Powerpoint autosaves and I regularly save Photoshop.
The Powerpoint is saved to the cloud so I would not
lose a lot of work. If this happens, I will have to switch
computers and catch up at home
Eye strain To prevent this, I should take breaks when using a
computer at home
Fatigue To prevent this, don’t overwork and make sure to
sleep enough

55. Game Summary
A quick summary of the game.
● The player starts off in an unknown location, the character is also unaware. They are lead through the world,
fighting monsters with their powers until they reach the final boss – a witch.
● The game also has scenes throughout where the protagonist speaks to friendly NPCs who help with their journey
and offer life lessons, for both in-game and in real life.
● There is no character customization, weapons upgrades or inventory as I want to keep the design simplistic and
nostalgic.

56. Game Overview
Theme / Setting / Genre
Show some example images or similar games / movies / books / TV shows with similar themes.
Core Gameplay Mechanics
Point to other games that this is similar to.
The game is set in present times and in a fantasy genre. It is similar to things such as Umbrella Academy and Harry Potter.
The game has similar mechanics to Mario as it is a 2D side-sweeper. It is also similar to Shovel Knight and Celeste, but
simpler than Celeste.

57. Story and Gameplay
Story
Once upon a time, in a universe far away…
Explain how the story will be told -- cut-scenes? A ‘talking head’?
Core Gameplay
A description of the game ‘loop.’
A flowchart is nice:
There are cutscenes throughout the game
where he talks to characters and they lead
you to the next step. They are no different
in design to the gameplay, however and
represented through textboxes.
Each loop is each scene before cutting to
the next, the main character can either
interact with an item in the area, attack an
enemy, talk to a friend or occasionally just
walks through the scene with nothing to do.

58. Enemies
Once Killed:

59. Character Designs

60. Evaluation

61. Research
• I researched two magazine covers and two double page spreads to understand different layouts
and the look of a busy magazine and a more minimalistic one – like the Aesthetica cover. This
research was helpful as we looked into film magazines as well as others outside the genre which
gave me an idea of the conventions that are used.
• For the animation, I researched multiple games within the pixel-art style with different
complexities and perspectives. This helped me understand how I wanted my game to look. I also
looked into Youtube videos of different pixel art animators so I could understand the intricacy of
some designs and understand the time and ability limitations.
• I believe I could have researched more low-level pixel art games that do not have a lot of detail so
I would have been able to see what other projects similar to mine look like. This would have
meant my animation would have probably used more pixels as I realised I could not use a lot of
detail due to the small character size.

62. Planning
• My planning meant I could explore how I wanted my game to look and feel. It was helpful in
deciding the layout of the game and was useful at looking at fonts and colour schemes. This was
helpful as I used the colour scheme of my character’s look within the game. The title page and his
text bubble being the colour of his shirt.
• I think I could have planned more for the plotline of the part of the game I would create so the
clip would show the main character fighting an opponent or using an ‘ability’. However I think the
interactions within the animation would be a good general idea of the game’s design and plot.

63. Time Management
• I did not manage my time well for this project, I did not complete it on time but was able to
complete it before the final deadline.
• I think my projects would have benefitted from more time dedicated to them and if I had had
more time I would’ve liked to create multiple styles of the magazine and the poster. I would have
also been able to add more detail into my animation project and spent longer on the music.

64. Technical Qualities
• I definitely believe my animation could be a lot more detailed, I only
used a soundtrack and did not use any sound effects which would
have added more detail to the end product.
• For my prints I think they are technically proficient for the skillset I
have. My most complicated section of the prints was the poster,
specifically the ‘fireball’. I had to create it entirely in Photoshop using
layers of the paintbrush tool. I also had to change the colours in the
reflection of it which proved harder than expected.

65. Aesthetic Qualities
• My prints are aesthetically pleasing and easy to read. The poster
reflects similar ‘teaser’ posters that don’t want to reveal too much of
the plot. The magazine prints are minimalistic but effective.
• The game art is aesthetically pleasing and has a nostalgic element to
it due to its simplistic art style. The art style remains consistent
throughout.

66. Aural Qualities
• I believe the audio sounds good and reflects the game’s nature well. If
I were to improve the audio, I would like to use a different website to
create it so that the I could create more of a score than the 8-bit style
we used. I am able to read sheet music; so, I use ‘Noteflight’ usually
when creating music.

67. Audience Appeal
• I believe I have appealed to my target audience well. I used a
simplistic art style that has a nostalgic element to the style and music.
I also made sure there was humour within the animation as games
made nowadays with older art styles tend to have comedy within.

68. Overall strengths and weaknesses of the final
package.
• I think the aesthetics of the package are the main strength of my
project. There is a link between the actor in my prints and the game
character in the hair colour.
• I think the main weakness is the complexity of my animation,
especially compared to the ideas I had for it. This is due to my time
management of the animation; underestimating how long it would
take and overestimating my creative abilities.