1. Production Log
Week 1: 23-28 February
BeganprojectwithconceptualisingwhatIwantto create as a productof thisproject(the options
beinga comic,a seriesof conceptart, or a singularillustration).Ihave chosentocreate a comicas
my project, because Ithinkitwill testmyabilitytotell astorythroughillustrationandconcentrate
lessonproducingan individual high-qualityimage asanalternative tomypreviousworks.
Once I had my concept,Ibeganresearchintovariousmediaforinspiration,includingmovies,comic
books,andvideogames.Iam consideringthemes,settingsandstyles,soIwill use thisresearchto
helpwithmyconceptsandideas.
Week 2: 02-09 March
I’ve gatheredavarietyof researchmaterial,andI’ve decidedtosettle ona‘Post-Apocalyptic’styling
for the settingof my comic,usingworkssuch as ‘Mad Max’, Fistof the NorthStar’,and ‘Fallout’as
inspiration.I’malsolooking atothermediatouse as inspirationforthe visual style of the art.
Particularlynotable worksI’musinginclude the worksof Mike Mignola(artistbehindthe comic
‘Hellboy’)andthe art of ChrisBourassen(leadconceptartistof RedHook studios).
I’ve alsomovedonto the ideasgenerationstage,andI’ve decidedtouse one of earlierprojects as
the basisof thisone forthe purposesof acquiringasettingtobuildaround(thisisfroma video
game projectI have workedonto make a post-apocalyptic2dshooter).Inthisway,Ican linkthem
togetherconceptually,perhapsinthe formof a prologue.
Week 3: 09-14 March
I have completedmyideasgenerationstage,now thatIhave a relativelysolidideaof how the comic
will be structured(intermsof content,charactersthat will needtobe designed,length,andpacing).
NowI will move ontodevelopingmyvisual designand toassistme indoingthisI will be doingmore
researchon twoparticularsubjects – backgroundsandexistingcharacterdesigns.
Week 4: 16-21 March
I have drawna copyof a conceptart fromDarkestDungeon byRed HookGames.My intentionswere
to use it to developthe visual stylethatIwill use inmycomic. Asa startingeffort,I feel thatithas
beenrelativelysuccessful,asIseemtohave beenable todraw an aestheticthatusesrelativelylittle
detail while maintainingan image of relativelyhighquality.
However,Ifeel thatthe style needsfurtherdevelopment.Iwill produce anotherpiece tofollow up
thisone.
2. Week 5: 23-28 March
NowI have produceda piece basedonMike Mignola’sHellboycharacter,here Iattemptedto
produce a ‘smoother’style,withfewerindividual linesandmore collectiveshading.Idefinitelythat
thisattemptwasmore successful,andhasallowedme toreacha stage where Ibelieve Icanapplyit
to characters confidently.
NextweekIwill be givingapitchonthe concept of my project,soI will concentrate onthatand then
focuson landscape drawing.
Week 6: 30 March– 04 April
I have givena pitchwhichhasbeenrecorded(Iwill uploadthistoYouTube andpostin onthe blog
for thisprojectlater).Ifeel thatitwentfairlywell,althoughIamnot a particularlygoodpublic
speakerIhad a lot of preparedcontenttodisplayanda concrete setof plansforthe project.
I have alsobegunto workon a set of landscape drawings, startingwithone of the insideof atunnel.
The purpose of these piecesistoexperimentwithportrayingshadow anddepthusingvarious
methods.Inthe case of thisone,ithas beensuccessful inportrayingperspectives,aswell asdarker
tones,butthe gradientsbetweenlightandmediumhave notbeenaseffective.
Week 7: 06-11 April
ThisweekIhave done two landscape illustrations,one of ahillside,andone of the inside of awater
cave.
The formerpiece wasprimarilyfocusedonthe portrayal of distance betweenone ‘area’inthe
picture’sviewandanother. The picture succeedsinthataspect,butthe applicationof shadingin
thisexample issomewhatlacklustre,asitfailstoportraythe visible sidesof the hillswiththe shapes
and depthsvisible inthe source material.
The latterpiece focusedmore onthe shadingtechnique,andhow toportray multiple objectsthat
are close togetherasbeingdistinctfromeachotherwhile still usingthe heavy-inkartstyle thatI
have beendeveloping.Ithinkthatthishas beenalargelysuccessful attempt,especiallywithareasof
the image such as the stalactites inthe centre of the image.
Week 8: 13-18 April
NowI have producedthe firstsetof designsforthe protagonist’sweapons.Thissetof designsis
more akinto a setof sketchesratherthanthe resultof a particularthoughtprocess,thoughitis
useful inconsideringvarioustypesof weaponstylesandaestheticsthatI can use to beginfinalising
my designs.
The reasonthat I am designingthe protagonist’sweaponsbeforeI designthe charactersisthat I feel
that the weaponsare actuallya more distinctive aspectof the character thaneventheirown
appearance,soI wouldratherbase the aestheticof the latteronthe former.
3. Week 9: 20-25 April
ThisweekI’ve producedmysecondsetof weapondesigns,comingclosertoa finalisedsetof
designs.AtthispointI’ve setonthe style of the weapons(aswordand a rifle) andanaesthetic
(stylisedindustrial),andnowthe designprocessismore about the smallerdetailssuchas overall size
and shape.
Week 10: 27 April – 2 May
I have producedmyfinal weapondesigns,aswell asa reference forhow theyshouldbe positioned
on the protagonistwhennotinuse (thisdetail maybe relevant,ormaynot).
Some keydetailsaboutthe rifle include the musketpistol style grip,whichIfeltwasnecessaryto
make the weaponfeel somewhatantiquated,like ithadbeenbasedonmucholderandsimpler
designs.The rifle isintendedtohave a very‘rounded’appearance,withthe combinationof the grip,
the curvinguppersection,andhavingas few hardedgesaspossible aroundthe outlineof the rifle.
The sword alsoincludesasheathdesign,whichIincludedaswell whenIrealisedthatImay needa
wayto realisticallyattachthe weapontothe protagonist.The sheathisdesignedtolookblockyand
clunky,almostasif it has functionsbeyondwhatmaybe showninthe comic;By comparison,the
swordis rathersimple andsleekappearing,basicallyconsistingof ablade andsome wrappings
aroundthe handle –thismakesit easiertoimagine beinginmultiple positionsandperspectives.
Week 11: 4-9 May
I have nowproduceda setof character designsforthe comic(one forthe protagonist,one forthe
antagonist,andone for a character whoonlyappearssparselyinthe comic,a ‘king’character).Since
the character’s designsmostlyfocusonthe face anduppertorso,the main character designsare the
bustsof the firstand secondcharacter.ThoughI have includedaquicksketchof both the antagonist
and the protagonisttohelpdifferentiate whatthey‘should’looklike inthe comic.
The designsare somewhatvague inthiswaybecause theyare intended tobe alwaysatleast
partiallyindarkness,whichmeansthatmostof the characters will be obscured invariousways.Due
to this,I can be somewhatlooserwithmycharacterdesigns.
Week 12: 11-16 May
ThisweekIhave createda setof planninganddesignworksforthe comic itself,whichIwill produce
overthe course of nextweek.The planningincludes areference withthe numberpages,whatthe
contentof those pageswill be,howthe comicshouldbe paced,whenthe characterswill appear
throughoutthe comic,and whatthe layoutof the panelsshouldlooklikeinthe final product.
Week 13: 18-23 May
ThisweekIhave concludedthe projectandcreatedmy final product,whichisa five page comic.I
have experiencedvariousissuesduringthe productionof thisoutcome,particularlyspanningfrom
time constraints,whichhave meantthatIcould notproduce the originallyintendedamountof
pagesthat I had plannedto,andhave had to shortenthe comicto compensate.
4. However,Idofeel thatthe artstyle that I hadbeendevelopingoverthe course of the projecthas
beenappliedsuccessfullytothe outcome,andmanagestoachieve the mainobjectivesthatIwanted
the designstohave – a distinctive artsyle thatalsomakesupforshortcomingsIhave interms of
proportionsof charactersand details,thatalsoputsmore emphasisoneventsthatoccurin the
centerof each panel.
