IVN - Final Project / Motion Comic
28.6.2023 - 5.7.2023 (Week 13 - Week 14)
Chong Hui Yi / 0363195
Digital Photography and Imaging / Bechelor of Design (Honours) in Creative Media
Final Project / Motion Comic
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Chong Hui Yi / 0363195
Digital Photography and Imaging / Bechelor of Design (Honours) in Creative Media
Final Project / Motion Comic
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INSTRUCTIONS
Final Project: Self-Titled
"Continuing from Project 3, based on the selected story, create a ONE
PAGE introduction of your visual novel or comic to your readers… with
at least ONE animated panel."
Research:
My chosen story for Project 3 is "The Balloon Hoax," and I decided to
create a one-page comic based on Act 2 of the story. The comic will
depict the main characters' adventurous journey across the Atlantic on
a newly invented balloon.
Since I'm not skilled at drawing realistic
human figures, I want to try drawing chibi characters to give the
comic a cute and adorable feeling. To better understand the body
structure, expressions, hairstyles, clothing, and more related to
chibi characters, I conducted research on Pinterest. Although
chibi characters may appear simple to draw, mastering the right
proportions has proven to be quite challenging. Besides studying chibi
characters, I also researched various elements needed for the comic's
panels and took the opportunity to find inspiration.
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Fig. 1.0 Research chibi characters, week 13 (4/7/2023)
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Fig. 1.1 Research 2, week 13 (4/7/2023)
Sketch:
I already have a rough idea for the story, but creating the panel layout for the comic is really challenging. I'm unsure how to make the comic engaging, and despite trying various panel designs, my sketches look very messy.
Fig. 2.0 Pencil sketch, week 13 (4/7/2023)
I already have a rough idea for the story, but creating the panel layout for the comic is really challenging. I'm unsure how to make the comic engaging, and despite trying various panel designs, my sketches look very messy.
Fig. 2.0 Pencil sketch, week 13 (4/7/2023)
Fig. 2.1 Sketch, week 13 (4/7/2023)
Fourth Panel
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Fig. 2.2 Character 1's aviator cap reference, week 13 (4/7/2023)
Fig. 2.3 Character 1's clothing reference, week 13 (4/7/2023)
Fig. 2.5 Character 1 (left) in the 4th panel, line art, week 13 (4/7/2023)
Fig. 3.1 Final draft, week 13 (4/7/2023)
First Panel
In my design, Character 1 is a 19th-century European with golden hair and blue eyes. The colors of his clothing and aviator cap are based on the reference image. I sketched a simple background for the first panel, and the clouds were quickly drawn using a hard round brush. A simpler background can help convey emotions and reactions of the characters more effectively.
Fig. 4.0 1st panel coloring, week 14 (8/7/2023)
Second Panel
I designed Character 2 as an adventurer with tanned skin, brown hair, and brown eyes. By adding distorted lines to the background of the second panel, I aim to enhance the sense of tension.
Fig. 4.1 2nd panel coloring, week 14 (8/7/2023)
Third Panel
After finishing the clouds (refer to Fig. 4.2, fifth image), I felt that the right side looked too empty, as if it was split in half. So, I elongated the dark clouds to fill the entire canvas and changed my concept. Initially, the balloon was supposed to enter the dark clouds, but now it appears that the balloon is already inside the dark clouds. To convey the sense of a strong wind blowing, I added some lines with reduced opacity, weaving through the clouds. Additionally, I used the balloon image from Project 3 but adjusted its brightness and added deeper shadows.
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Fourth Panel
In the fourth panel, they are shown in an argument, discussing possible solutions. I added speed lines to intensify the tension, as they must make a quick decision to overcome the crisis. Ultimately, they decide to drift towards North America, following the wind.
Fifth Panel
To accelerate the balloon's flight, they decided to drop the ballast to reduce its weight.
Fig. 4.4 5th panel coloring, week 14 (8/7/2023)
Sixth Panel
On the next morning, they successfully passed through the region of strong winds and dark clouds, overcoming the difficulties. Character 1 is now holding a telescope, looking ahead.
Fig. 4.5 6th panel coloring, week 14 (8/7/2023)
Seventh Panel
First Panel
I drew the rough draft for the first panel, but I felt that the character looked really strange because I hadn't designed Character 1 beforehand. I'm not sure how to draw his hairstyle or what kind of clothing they should wear, so in the end, I came up with Fig. 2.4 for the first panel, but I'm not satisfied with it. Therefore, I decided not to follow the sequence of drawing the panel layouts. Instead, I started with the fourth panel, as it requires drawing two characters' upper bodies. Once I figure out how to design these two characters, then I'll continue with the rest of the panels that involve characters.
Fig. 2.4 1st panel drawing process, week 13 (4/7/2023)
Fourth Panel
Indeed, in "The Balloon Hoax" story, there is no description of the characters' clothing appearances, so I have to create their designs myself.
For Character 1, I used Fig. 2.2 as a reference for his aviator cap and Fig. 2.3 as a reference for his clothing. Drawing the aviator cap was actually quite fun, and adding the dashed lines made it look more like it's made of leather. Since the character is wearing an aviator cap, I only needed to draw some hair, which saved me a lot of time.
For Character 1, I used Fig. 2.2 as a reference for his aviator cap and Fig. 2.3 as a reference for his clothing. Drawing the aviator cap was actually quite fun, and adding the dashed lines made it look more like it's made of leather. Since the character is wearing an aviator cap, I only needed to draw some hair, which saved me a lot of time.
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Fig. 2.3 Character 1's clothing reference, week 13 (4/7/2023)
Fig. 2.5 Character 1 (left) in the 4th panel, line art, week 13 (4/7/2023)
For Character 2, I used Fig. 2.6 as a reference for his clothing. Drawing the hair was the most time-consuming part because I'm not really good at drawing character's hair
Fig. 2.6 Character 2's clothing reference, week 13 (4/7/2023)
Fig. 2.7 Character 2 (right) in the 4th panel, week 13 (4/7/2023)
Fig. 2.7 Character 2 (right) in the 4th panel, week 13 (4/7/2023)
Second Panel
The second panel depicts the balloon suddenly encountering a strong gust of wind, with Character 2 holding onto the edge of the basket, nearly being blown away. This scene is intended to convey the sense of crisis at that moment.
Fig. 2.8 Character 2 in the 2nd panel, week 13 (4/7/2023)
The second panel depicts the balloon suddenly encountering a strong gust of wind, with Character 2 holding onto the edge of the basket, nearly being blown away. This scene is intended to convey the sense of crisis at that moment.
Fig. 2.8 Character 2 in the 2nd panel, week 13 (4/7/2023)
Sixth Panel
That's a great find on Pinterest, using the aviator cap shown from the back for Character 1 in the sixth panel. It can be challenging to imagine how the back of an aviator cap should look without a reference. In this panel, it's the morning of the second day, and Character 1 has successfully overcome the strong wind. He is holding a telescope and observing the weather conditions in the distance.
Fig. 3.0 Character 1 in the 6th panel, week 13 (4/7/2023)
That's a great find on Pinterest, using the aviator cap shown from the back for Character 1 in the sixth panel. It can be challenging to imagine how the back of an aviator cap should look without a reference. In this panel, it's the morning of the second day, and Character 1 has successfully overcome the strong wind. He is holding a telescope and observing the weather conditions in the distance.
Fig. 2.9 Character 1's aviator cap reference, week
13 (4/7/2023)
Fig. 3.0 Character 1 in the 6th panel, week 13 (4/7/2023)
Final Sketch
I have almost completed the final line art for the comic, but for the third panel, I plan to use colours directly to depict the sky filled with dark clouds and insert the balloon image I created in Project 3. In the seventh panel, I intend to place the island I drew in Project 3 and add some clouds as well.
I have almost completed the final line art for the comic, but for the third panel, I plan to use colours directly to depict the sky filled with dark clouds and insert the balloon image I created in Project 3. In the seventh panel, I intend to place the island I drew in Project 3 and add some clouds as well.
Fig. 3.1 Final draft, week 13 (4/7/2023)
Coloring:
I find coloring much more enjoyable than drawing the line art, but I think the most challenging part is coloring the third panel.
I find coloring much more enjoyable than drawing the line art, but I think the most challenging part is coloring the third panel.
First Panel
In my design, Character 1 is a 19th-century European with golden hair and blue eyes. The colors of his clothing and aviator cap are based on the reference image. I sketched a simple background for the first panel, and the clouds were quickly drawn using a hard round brush. A simpler background can help convey emotions and reactions of the characters more effectively.
Fig. 4.0 1st panel coloring, week 14 (8/7/2023)
Second Panel
I designed Character 2 as an adventurer with tanned skin, brown hair, and brown eyes. By adding distorted lines to the background of the second panel, I aim to enhance the sense of tension.
Fig. 4.1 2nd panel coloring, week 14 (8/7/2023)
After finishing the clouds (refer to Fig. 4.2, fifth image), I felt that the right side looked too empty, as if it was split in half. So, I elongated the dark clouds to fill the entire canvas and changed my concept. Initially, the balloon was supposed to enter the dark clouds, but now it appears that the balloon is already inside the dark clouds. To convey the sense of a strong wind blowing, I added some lines with reduced opacity, weaving through the clouds. Additionally, I used the balloon image from Project 3 but adjusted its brightness and added deeper shadows.
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Fig. 4.2 3rd panel coloring, week 14 (8/7/2023)
In the fourth panel, they are shown in an argument, discussing possible solutions. I added speed lines to intensify the tension, as they must make a quick decision to overcome the crisis. Ultimately, they decide to drift towards North America, following the wind.
Fig. 4.3 4th panel coloring, week 14 (8/7/2023)
Fifth Panel
To accelerate the balloon's flight, they decided to drop the ballast to reduce its weight.
Fig. 4.4 5th panel coloring, week 14 (8/7/2023)
Sixth Panel
On the next morning, they successfully passed through the region of strong winds and dark clouds, overcoming the difficulties. Character 1 is now holding a telescope, looking ahead.
Fig. 4.5 6th panel coloring, week 14 (8/7/2023)
Seventh Panel
In the seventh panel, the scene is depicted through the telescope's view. The island image from Project 3, Act 2, is used as the reference for the island, and then I used a soft round brush to draw the clouds.
Fig. 4.6 7th panel coloring, week 14 (8/7/2023)
Animation:
I chose to use Photoshop to create the animation because I am more familiar with it compared to After Effects. Also, in my concept, the animation won't be too complex. I have made simple animations for the second, fifth, and seventh panels.
I chose to use Photoshop to create the animation because I am more familiar with it compared to After Effects. Also, in my concept, the animation won't be too complex. I have made simple animations for the second, fifth, and seventh panels.
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Fig. 5.0 Photoshop animation screenshot 2, week 15 (16/7/2023)
For the fifth panel, I created an animation of dropping the ballast.
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Fig. 5.1 Photoshop animation screenshot 3, week 15 (16/7/2023)
I created an animation for the clouds in the seventh panel, making them spread outward. Additionally, I moved the sea and the island backward, giving the illusion that the balloon is moving forward.
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Fig. 5.2 Photoshop animation screenshot 1, week 15 (16/7/2023)
Final Result:
Fig. 6.0 Final Motion Comic - JPG, week 15 (16/7/2023)
Fig. 6.1 Final Motion Comic - PDF, week 15 (16/7/2023)
Google Slide Link:
FEEDBACK
REFLECTIONS
I usually enjoy reading manga a lot, but I find drawing manga to be an entirely different and painful experience. The most challenging part for me is designing the panel layout and drawing the characters in the line art. Drawing the human body is truly difficult, even when it comes to chibi or simplified characters, it remains quite challenging. Although I've looked up references and resources about chibi characters, I haven't practiced enough, and drawing people still feels agonizing. I never expected that creating manga would require so much time. Experiencing it firsthand made me realize just how skilled manga artists are producing a good manga undoubtedly demands an enormous amount of dedication and effort.
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