Environment Design - Experimenting with lines and shadows

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I have tried experimenting with different line styles to see which would look best to create a comic-book looking world.

Superhero Character Costume Design

Superhero Character Designs Further Development

Following some feedback I developed the designs further and combined features of the designs that seemed the most successful.

Environment Concept Art Idea Development

Empire State Building Concept Art

Development of Style for my concept art, I feel it needs to be more comic-style like my influences, so that it feels like a comic book world.

Further research into Comic Design for Environments

City Style Thumbnails

Superhero Character Pose Tests

Superhero Character Designs 1-15

Superhero Designs

I have tried making the design more classic superhero, resembling a Superman type hero, so that he can be instantly recognized as that type of character in the animation.

Environment Style Idea + Colour Palette

I was looking at using a similar style to comic book backgrounds and buildings for the environment, using a colour palette similar to that used 1950's comic books.

Superhero Character Design Ideas

Superhero Character Ideas

Maya Class - Character Posing 2

Animatic Draft - Unappareciated Superhero (No SFX)

Maya Class: Character Posing

Initial Character Designs

Initial Design Sketches

These are some initial character designs for the supporting characters, who will be constantly looking down on their phones. 

Animatic First Draft in Progress

Design and Colour Palette Influence Maps

First Scene Animatic Test

Rough Test animatic to try out the idea for my animation of an unappreciated super hero, who keeps saving people from dying while using their phones.

@Alan @Phil Idea Update - Ageing Superhero

An ageing super hero is getting fed up of saving people from dying while using their phones and no one even noticing, missing the old days of being a hero for his job, so he decides to retire.

A meteor begins to head towards earth but no one notices apart from him as they are too busy looking down at their screens. He ignored it at first waiting for everyone to deal with the problem themselves, as no one notices the world is about to be destroyed, he leaves it to the last minute to come and save the day, with no one noticing still.

He sits down on a bench sulking, when the girl next to him gets up and forgets her phone, he picks it up and calls out to her but gets no reply, holding it in his hand, he decides to see what all the fuss is about and gets hooked himself.

Minor Project - Old Man Initial Sketches

Old Man - First Design

Initial Sketches #1

Initial Sketches #2

Minor Project Influences

@Alan @Phil Project Possible Script

Possible script for my project, with the aim of making a full animation of the minor and major project. Set in 50/60 years time, following a story of an old man depicting his childhood and how society fell apart due peoples addiction to mobile phones. 

Using simplified characters, with a focus on the narrative and animation rather than complex character designs.

After fully writing out my idea in full I realized it will most likely be too complex to make and will need simplifying down, but this is the script of how I originally imagined it.

INT.BOY's bedroom

A MAN in his 70's is sitting in an Arm Chair with an open kid’s book in his hand. Sat next to a bed where his Grandson aged 6 is laying.

The VOICEOVER of the man can be heard finishing up reading the book to the BOY

Man

'Mumbling finishing up story'. The End.

The MAN closes the book and puts it on the unit next to the bed on top of an old smart phone, not noticing it. Leaning over and tucking the boy in.

Man

Good night.

The MAN turns around and goes to leave, picking up the book as he goes. Now noticing his old smart phone underneath it. Stopping in his tracks and looking intrigued. Picking it up and look at it closely while squinting and backing slowly into the same chair and sitting back down.

MAN

Well, this is something I haven't seen in a long time, where did you find this? I thought they'd all gone?

The BOY shrugs, innocently looking up at the Man.

The MAN still looking at the phone in his hands.

MAN

This probably seems really primitive to you now, I bet you don't even know how to use one.

The MAN now looking at the BOY and gesturing towards him with one hand, the other holding the smart phone in his lap.

MAN

Ah these were all the rage when I was your age!

The MAN leans back in the chair and looks up beginning to reminisce about when he was young.

EXT. STREET

FADE IN showing a rose-tinted memory of a boy aged 8, the MAN (YOUNG), playing in the empty street outside of his house.

VOICE OVER of the MAN talking happily about when he was young.

MAN

Ah, they was simpler times. Oh, I remember when one of my friends first got one.

The MAN (YOUNG) looks up as a GIRL of the same age enters the scene coming down the road towards him waving.

GIRL

HEY!

The MAN (YOUNG) stands up and starts slowly walking towards her.

GIRL

HEY! Look what I've just got! Look at all this cool stuff it can do!

GIRL pulls out her new smart phone and pulls the MAN (YOUNG) closer and takes a photo of the two of them.

The MAN (YOUNG) appears startled, but smiling.

Girl

Look at this App! And this App! This is such a cool Game! Ha. Look at this Cat!

FADE OUT DURING DIALOGUE

EXT. STREET - NIGHT

The MAN (YOUNG) is walking down the same street and the GIRL is walking towards him looking down at her phone, her face is lit up by the glow.

MAN (YOUNG)

HEY!

GIRL

Urh.

MAN (YOUNG)

Hey?

GIRL walks past him not looking up, pulls him in and takes a selfie together and carried on walking.

MAN (YOUNG) turns around looking at her confused. Looking around he notices other people acting the same.

INT.BOY'S BEDROOM

MAN still mumbling, looking lost in his thoughts. Starting to look confused as he realizes his memories are different to how he first thought.

BOY looks at him intently waiting to see what he says next.

MAN

People, seemed to lose touch with the real world and who they was. I guess that's when everyone started to act strange.

EXT. TOWN - NIGHT

Showing busy town center, the MAN (YOUNG) is caught up in a crowd of people busy looking at their phone screens, shoving and pushing him as he tries to get away from them.

MAN (YOUNG) looks up and sees a big advertisement poster for a new phone. Looks back down seeing a queue of people including the GIRL waiting for a new phone outside of an elevated temple-like-building.

MAN (YOUNG) empties his pockets and looks at his old damaged phone, looks back up and advertisement poster has changed to a newer model phone.

Sequence of repetitive images indicating constant stream of new phones as soon as a new one is released. Tempo speeding up during sequence, while music volume increases.

INT. KID's Bedroom

MAN leans forward towards BOY who is now starting to seem scared by the story being told but leans further in.

MAN

(Whispers)

An entire generation. They lost touch with reality and didn't notice what they was doing. Their vanity took over, all they cared about what getting the newest one and being able to take better pictures of themselves.

EXT. Town - NIGHT

Burnt out town, people stumbling around in a zombie like state. Taking photos of themselves in weird places.

MAN (YOUNG) looking lost as a camera swirls around him showing the destruction.

VOICEOVER of the MAN can be heard.

MAN

Those phones brought nothing but misery in the end. I can still remember it just as clearly now.

A figure appears entering the scene through distant haze.

The MAN (YOUNG) squints to see who it is.

The figure picks up pace coming out of the haze and is revealed as the GIRL.

The MAN (YOUNG) looks happy to see her but his expression changes to fear when he sees the look on her face as she runs towards him with her phone reached out in front of her.

GIRL

Like this picture of my cat! HA! HA! HA! HE'S SO FUNNY! SO! FUNNY!

The MAN (YOUNG) turns around and runs away from her, while looking behind him.

INT. KID's BEDROOM

MAN

They all became slaves to consumerism. No regards at all to the damage this constant technological churning was doing.

FADE IN SEQUENCE

Sequence depicting destruction and damage to cities and the earth, showing the factories churning out phones and emission and the earth slowing being destroyed.

VOICEOVER of the man continues during this sequence.

MAN

There was just no end to production. All they saw was money. Everyone turned away from the damage all this was doing. Trapped in an eternal cycle of new technology, more waste, more technology, new dumping grounds, more environmental damage, new technology, more waste, endless cycles of polluting the earth. Everyone thought it would solve itself and it would never get as bad as it did. We never stood a chance.

INT. KID'S BEDROOM

Man puts phone back on the table and gets up.

MAN

(Looking at BOY)

Well I think its way past your bedtime now.

MAN looks back down at the phone

MAN

Does this still have Angry Birds?

MAN leaves scene, turning off light.

Notification goes off and boy hides under the covers.