My Final Major Project will be a series of science-fiction graphic novels in the style of a space adventure opera, based on my own personal written narrative. As the format will be mainly visually-based, I shall simplify the pre-existing narrative to better fit into a short novel series.
For this project, I intend to entertain, while provoking thought about deeper philosophical and existential subjects, such as morality, purpose, and what it means to be human. I will also incorporate various mythological tales and themes in the project, to further present these moral issues. The graphic novel series is aimed toward a young adult audience, and I hope to challenge them on topics that they may have never given thought to, as well as creating an emotional connection between this audience and the characters in the story.
The graphic novels will be physical A5 15-page books, with traditionally drawn images and a digital formatting and printing process. The finished book will be printed and published externally. It will be mostly black and white with graphic detail, accompanied by text interlaced with the illustrations in a standard graphic novel style.
Some skills I might need for this project are the ability to replicate a graphic novel format through placement of text and drawings, as well as being able to apply the correct shadow and line weight to the traditional illustrations. Other skills required include proficiency in editing software, such as Photoshop, GIMP and InDesign.
(1) Page 6 from TMNT Tribute by Arena Comics. (above)
Demonstrates panel/text formatting amongst illustrations of varying sizes. Notice how the limited colour adds a focus for the reader.
The story of the graphic novels is a condensed version of a larger narrative, and as such, a lot of it will be told through the visual illustrations. The series will be titled “Invasion of the Cryp'lar Series,” with the four books reflecting the four parts of the original narrative - "Extinguish," "Vanquard," "Resolute," and "Aftermath." Together, these novels will complete the visualisation of my narrative.
The artistic techniques of creating the graphic novel are based on my own abilities to draw characters, vehicles and locations. Other techniques and ideas for the format of each page have been influenced by a book called “Artists on Comic Art” by Mark Salisbury (2) – a compilation of interviews with renowned comic artists about the creation of their work. This is a useful resource and will help me to interpret and visualise my graphic novel better.
My primary research for this project will be based around character design, including the creative differences between alien races. Added to this, I will develop my own spaceship / city structures from various pre-existing sources. Also, it will be important for me to research fiction writing techniques to better create an outline of events for the larger story, as the graphic novels will be a condensed version of the same narrative.
My secondary research for this project will highlight the narrative and visual sources of inspiration for the graphic novel. More specifically, the writings of Eric Nylund, Matthew Stover and Joseph Staten, which brought the aforementioned themes and world-building into universes of their own. The visual sources of inspiration are founded by the Halo videogame series, as well as artists working in the sci-fi genre.
(3) Cover art for Halo: Uprising Marvel comic series. (left)
The influences on my narrative can be seen here, with the alien invasion, armoured heroes, and sci-fi war.
Research methods of experimentation in this project are varying internet resources, comics, science-fiction novels, and art books where I can analyse the style of artists’ work in the same genre. The idea development strategies for my graphic novel include imagining the aesthetic of different characters, vehicles and locations in the story and creating varied styles of concepts for them. From there I will chose a particular style and form for the object I like and continue visually creating down that path. This is particularly helpful when designing the unique alien technology or world-building.
Bibliography
(1) Old.brokenfrontier.com. (2016) TMNT Tribute By Arena Comics – Broken Frontier – Comic Book and Graphic Novel News & Community | Blog. [online] Available at: http://old.brokenfrontier.com/blog/p/detail/tmnt-tribute-by-arena-comics [Accessed 26 Mar. 2016].
(2) Salisbury, M. (2000). Artists on comic art. London: Titan.
(3) Bendis, B. and Maleev A. (2008). Halo: Uprising. New York: Marvel.
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