Illustration & Visual Narrative - Lecture & Exercise
24.9.2024 - 27.9.2024 / Week 1 - Week 6
Aw Wen Chia / 0368828
Illustration & Visual Narrative / Bachelor of Design (Honours) in
Creative Media
Task 1
TABLE OF CONTENTS
1. LECTURES
Week 1:
CHARACTER DESIGN BASICS
Stylized Design:
Iconic: Recognisable even with just their silhouettes.
Simplicity: Understandable designs to viewers.
Unique: Memorable, has an impact on viewers.
Fig 1.1, Stylized Design
Principle of Character Design:
Shapes: The identity of a character, different shapes relate to
different personality types.
Colours: Determines the basic characteristics of the character, and
relates to different emotions.
Emphasis & Contrast: Emphasize and contrast visual elements to
make characters stand out.
Harmony: All shapes, lines, colours, motifs and patterns should
harmonize with each other.
Expression & Poses: Have expressive behaviours, quirks and
personalities to appeal to viewers.
Fig 1.2, Alladins Character Designs
Week 2:
CHIAROSCURO
An Italian term which means "light-dark".
Fig 1.3, The Matchmaker (Honthorst, 1625)
Clear Tonal Contrast - The three-dimensional volume and modelling of
objects and figures.
Increases Dramatic Tension - In a scene, with the usage
Predominantly used in a dark setting - Helps focuses on the subject
Makes a scene more Emotional and Impactful
Fig 1.4, Still Life with Fruit (Caravaggio, 1601)
Negative Space: The space or background that surrounds the
subject and or object.
Fig 1.5, Positive and Negative Spaces
Week 3:
COMPOSITION THEORY
Visual Types and Shots
The photographer chooses how to arrange the object in the frame. Composed
shots should be arranged as the focus of the scene to stand out.
Fig 1.6, Establishing Shot
Basic Composition Visual Rules
Visual Narrative: Composition should compliment the subject and
reflect the narrative.
Visual Flow: Determines the path viewer's eyes through the visual.
Visual Balance: Subtly guides the viewer's eyes around the visual.
Visual Hierarchy: Visualizing and focusing on the subject matter has
a huge effect on the composition.
Different Types of Shots
Establishing: A wide shot of a location
Bird's Eyeview: An overhead shot placed above the subject
Frame within a frame: A composed frame placed within another frame
to create depth
Medium Shot: A shot placed three quaters away from the subject
Close-up: A zoomed-in shot of a subject
Worm's Eye View: A shot where the viewer is looking up at the
subject
Week 4:
COLOURS AND GRADIENT
Gradient in Adobe:
Fig 1.7, Gradient tool in Adobe
Fig 1.8, Gradient in Artworks
COMPOSITIONS:
Compositions matter when it comes to storytelling.
- Foreground, Middleground & Background
- Symmetry
- Framing
- Contrast
Week 5:
COMPOSITION THEORY
Foreground: Objects that are the nearest to the viewer.
Middle-ground: Objects in between foreground and background.
Background: Objects that are the furthest away from the viewer.
Design Flow: Using foreground, middle-ground and background should indicate a sense of movement, and rhythm in the design.
Fig 1.9, Design Flow
Week 6:
STORYTELLING BASICS
CENTRAL THEME:
The theme is what the story is really about. It is the main idea or underlying meaning. Often, it is the storyteller's personal opinion on the subject matter. A story may have both major and minor themes.
Major Theme: An idea that is intertwined and repeated throughout the whole narrative.
Minor Theme: An idea that appears more subtly, and does not necessarily repeat.
CONFLICT:
The conflict is what drives the story. It's what creates tension and builds suspense, which are the elements that make a story interesting.
CHARACTERS:
A story usually includes a number of characters, each with a different role or purpose. Regardless of how many characters a story has, however, there is almost always a protagonist and antagonist which are vital to the development of the story.
THREE-ACTS STRUCTURE
- Setup: The world prior to the protagonist jorney
- Rising Tension: The series of obstacles the protagonist face, each harder than the last
- Conflict: The point of highest tension and major decisive turning point
Resolution: The conflict's conclusion, where the protagonist finally overcome the conflict, learns to accept it, or is defeated by it. Regardless, this is where the journey ends.
Fig 1.10, Three-acts structure chart
Week 7:
TRANSITIONS
Continuity is maintained by the usage of frames, background, characters and closure.
Fig 1.11, Example of continuity
Fig 1.12, Law of Closure
SCOTT MCLOUD'S TRANSITIONS
- Moment to Moment
- Action to Action
- Subject to Subject
- Scene to Scene
- Aspect to Aspect
- Non Sequitur
2. INSTRUCTIONS
3. EXERCISE
Week 1:
My tutor gave us the materials for the semester so we could look through them.
Fig 3.1, Class Material
Week 2:
My tutor task us to play a game called The Bezier Game, where we can get use
to using the Pen Tool in Adobe Illustrator.
Fig 3.2, Bezier Game
While I may not be the best at it, I am still pretty happy with the results.
Week 3:
My tutor taught us about path finder in Adobe Illustrator and how to use it.
Fig 3.3, Pathfinder in Action
My tutor gave us some videos and slides to look through.
The class was replaced by the The Show Graduates Showcase where I entered a Mural Competition.
Week 6:
Public Holiday (Deepavali)
Week 7:
My tutor taught us how to use Intertwine and make words 3D. I lost the file, a video I randomly made is all you get
Fig 3.4, Only video I got using Intertwine and 3D before Adobe deleted my file
Week 8:
independent learning week
Week 9 - Week 15:
Worked on Task 3 & 4
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