DVB102 IMAGE DESIGN AND PRODUCTION
WEEK 03
#oneperday2022
Comic Strip
day dreaming.
Exploring storytelling through visual representation by creating a comic strip that engages the audience to comprehend the story. The five-panel comic strip portrayed a common experience that many students face during their school years, expectations from their surrounding people.
The comic illustrates a conceptual story of daydreaming, where the main character is depicted in two versions, reality, and dream. A simple plot of a girl wanting to pursue her dream as an artist, a niche market in which her parents disagree due to the lack of security.
fig. 1: Final Comic.
overall.
Materials
B graphite pencil, fine liner pens (0.1, 0.3, 0.8mm), 110gsm cartridge paper.
Technique
The lining, outline, pen hatching, and comic paneling.
Process
Starting with a story plan that decides the characters, settings, and plot. The character in the story involved the girl, the girl in the future and the parents. Concept sketches are made to decide the appearance of the characters, settings, and plot. The fixed concept is then turned into a final sketch before being outlined with a fine liner, adding the details and dialogue.
fig. 2: Character Design.
The main character is depicted as a female Asian young adult, wearing a semi-formal shirt that portrays the typical look of an architecture student. Her older self plays as a role of a supporting character, wearing a turtleneck and cardigan, a carefree yet refined aura that represents her as an artist. In addition to her beauty spot, keeping the hair the same length with a different hairstyle creates a connection that is easily seen by readers.
fig. 3: Story Boarding.
Some of the panels have more than one pose consideration to decide which is more appropriate for the flow and the visualisation of the scene. Although ambiguous, the location of dialogue is made that way in relation to the scene depicted in the panel. Thus, having the readers ponder the story and questioned the meaning behind the words.
individual panels.
fig. 4: Panel One, Dream.
the dream.
Graphite pencil to sketch, and line art using fine liners (0.1, 0.3 and 0.8).
The first panel tells the conflict of the story, which is a depiction of the main character's older self where she is portrayed as an artist. Deciding on a gentle expression of encouragement with sparkles surrounding the character to create an unrealistic look. The word 'this is' raises questions about the character in the panel, 'who is she?', which encourages the readers to continue.
REFLECTION
Although this would be one of the best panels, there is still a lack of shading on the character, such as her left arm which is located behind the body. Due to not having to use fine liners for a long time, the lines drawn are messy and inconsistent.
fig. 5: Panel Two, Admiration.
character's admiration.
Graphite pencil to sketch, and line art using fine liners (0.1, 0.3 and 0.8).
The second panel acts as a transition panel, a thing that connects the story. This is the scene where the character daydreams, looking at her older self with adoration and desire to be her. Her expression becomes the main focus of this panel. The word 'What I' has been cut off, as panels 2 & 3 interact with one another to create a narrative.
REFLECTION
Last minute decision to only illustrates the facial expression is made, forming a stronger narrative and also narrowing down the focus. Compared to the first panel, the line art has improved more, in the sense that it becomes neater and more natural.
fig. 6: Panel Three, Realisation.
touch of reality.
Graphite pencil to sketch, and line art using fine liners (0.1, 0.3 and 0.8).
Panel three shows a transition from daydreaming to reality through the tap on the shoulder, portraying a sense of realisation. A mixture of dread and shock expressions is depicted on her face, indicating that the hand is not a welcomed present.
REFLECTION
The proportion of the head could be better, to zoom in more on her expression, generating more drama in the scene. More shading can also be another consideration to enhance the dread in the atmosphere. Creating a darker scene.
fig. 7: Panel Four, Depiction of Reality.
harsh truth.
Graphite pencil to sketch, and line art using fine liners (0.1, 0.3 and 0.8).
A splash panel that contains the most important scene in the story, the depiction of being under the pressure of high expectation, buried within one's own work. In this scene the character is drawn from a slightly top view, giving more authority to the readers. Symmetrical composition is used to highlight the two different hands.
REFLECTION
The angle could have been more dramatic, by making the top view angle more prominent and adding more shades to the bottom half of the panel. This will also grab more attention to the middle part of the panel where the readers could focus on her facial expression.
fig. 8: Panel Five, End Resolution.
story revelation.
Graphite pencil to sketch, and line art using fine liners (0.1, 0.3 and 0.8).
The last panel focuses more on the settings and how the whole narratives have taken place. Depicting that dream is out of reach and fading as the character was forced to accept her current situation. The left side of the panel is lighter, whereas the right side has more shading.
REFLECTION
The line work in this panel is messy, the shading could have been neater and more details could be added to the room. However, this panel works well as a conclusion of the story, answering the reader's question by unfolding the scene. A girl that is afraid of dreaming.
overall.
Reflection
Through the comic strip, deciding on a hierarchy between different scenes is important as it creates points of focus and significance to the parts of the story where the readers should slow down. The first panel depicts the reason for the conflict, which is the daydream itself, whereas the second and third panels are transitions. A Splash panel is used for the fourth one, as it binds all of the scenes together and the fifth panel is the climax which strengthens what happened in the fourth panel while giving an explanation as to who is the figure in the first panel. Drawing with the fine liner has its challenges when it comes to consistency, stability, and accuracy. Mistakes have been made throughout the drawing process due to incorrect proportion and line inaccuracy.
