Triptych

The idea for this triptych came from the bottom sequence of panels on page 5, following Anco's first solo hunt (Click here to see the rough layouts!)

For the degree show I will not be able to develop fully the look of my graphic novel layouts and panels, that will be a job for the summer. So in the last couple of weeks left before the show I will be concentrating on producing single illustrations from the panels I have roughed up, and possibly packaging them together in an artist's book type thing with relevant little excerpts from the text.

Wolfsbane - Rough page layouts

These are some initial roughs from the small thumbnails in the previous post.

The Panel layouts are rather generic at the moment, but I plan to develop these up a LOT further to suit the 18th century theme of the story and artwork.

Prologue page 1: circa 1497, short history on the tribe. Introduction of the various roles within the tribe and glimpses of the Hunters leaving.

Prologue page 2: history cont. Hunters out on the hunt. The Alpha from the 1497 pack of hunters spots something from their vantage point on a mountain. The pack (now all in human form) watch the arrival of John Cabot and start of British colonization of Newfoundland.

Page 1: Sept 23rd 1789, (approx 300 years later, British settlements in Newfoundland are prosperous.) Our story begins with Lt Bishop in his cabin.

Page 2: Splash page, reveal Lt Bishop and Pvt Hayworth on ship sailing into Newfoundland port. The composition still needs work...

Page 3: Pvt Hayworth disembarking and walking to fort.

Page 4: Back to the Tribe, Antinanco's initiation into the Warrior/Hunter clan.

Page 5: Anco's first solo hunt.

Page 6: Nashoba (Beta) and Helushka (Alpha) have a chat.

Page 7: Anco's acceptance, Helushka is not happy...

Page 8: Col. Webster's house, he and Capt. Avery are discussing the indians.

Page 9: Lt. Bishop is called in and given a briefing.

Page 10: Col. Webster asks Lt. Bishop to do something he's not all that comfortable with.

Wolfsbane Page Layouts - Rough Thumbnails

Here are some very rough thumbnails of the first 10 pages of my comic. My Boyfriend, Alex Beedie has been scripting up my story and these are the thumbnails I've worked up using the script.

Alex and I are a good team, working together and discussing how characters would speak, how events would unfold etc, so he has an idea of how to write and I have an idea of how to draw!

Colonel Richard Webster

This guy is your standard old English war veteran, the sort that has a walrus moustache and a pompous attitude. He likes the thought of gaining more turf over the Native Americans for the benefit of expanding the settlement this being so he quietly sides with the Captains suggestions, but still will not needlessly plunge his troops into a battle that will cause major loss on their side. He has a respect for the Lieutenant with whom he is on good terms, even if he cannot understand why he insists on remaining a lower rank, and humours his efforts for peace if it means he doesn’t have to worry so much about attacks from the savages on the settlement.

Webster is 58 years old and his likeness is based on Brendan Gleeson, aka Prof. Moody in Harry Potter..

Size Matters

Accompanying the Owl and the Pussy Cat on my show reel will be this little animation.

This short was done during the second year option Module, where I obviously opted to do animation!

And thus started my passion for it!

This is done the old fashioned way; pencil, paper and light box. Then laboriously scanned and composited into Toon Boom, and edited with sound in Premiere.

So for those who have not seen this already or for those who'd like a reminder, let me present to you Alex Beedie as a Giraffe and myself as a Mouse in Size matters!

OatPC final compilation for the Degree Show

This is the finished final version of the Owl and the Pussy Cat Adventures that will be playing at my Degree Show in June.

I decided to bring the two episodes; Fog and Snow together into one film to allow for a more unified look/feel, that will show off my animator-y skills at their best for any potential clients or employers that may be scouting the show.

Though it meant I had to tweak and re-work some things to ensure continuity between the two episodes.

The things that have been altered are: the re-design of the boat and transparency of the waves from Fog have been adapted into Snow, along with a different night-time background.

And as a little extra touch the lantern in the Cat's paw in Fog now sways to the boat's movement.

I'd just like to say a little thanks to Chris for her never ceasing criticism, Arril for his unmatched knowledge and advise, and Ian for his patience and life saving genius with computers! Cheers guys!

So, without further a-do...

Lance Corporal Jack Barnes

Jack Barnes has a few minor skirmishes under his belt, but for all his bluster about them you’d think that he’s lived through several world wars!

He’s cocky and arrogant and enjoys re-enacting tales of previous “glories” to the rather gullible Tom. He is a typical lad’s lad and because he’s slightly superior to the Privates he bullies them a little.

However despite all his bravado when it comes to the heat of battle he is a coward.

He is 27 years old and his likeness is based on Justin Chambers, aka Alex Karev in Grey's Anatomy.

Antinanco - Hunter

Antinanco is our Native American Hunter narrator. He is very young (only 19 years old) and inexperienced.

He looks up to and idolises the Warriors, hoping that someday he’ll be chosen to be one of them. He trains hard and is keen to impress the Alpha whenever he comes to inspect. He watches longingly when the Warriors ready themselves for battle and occasionally sneaks off in wolf form to watch.

This is when he sees what horrors they actually perform and his aspirations of becoming one of them are crushed.

He mirrors Private Thomas Hayworth, and his likeness is based on actor James Duval (aka Miguel Casse in Independance Day and Frank the bunny in Donnie Darko!)

There are only a few more characters to develop like this now (Colonel Webster, Lance Corporal Barnes and Warrior Cheveyo).

I have written an outline of the story and handed it over to my lovely boyfriend, who is by far a much better writer than me, and together we are scripting up the actual dialogue/panel/pages for the comic!! Enlisting the help of my boyfriend to write the comic allows me to concentrate on drawing (the part that I'm much suited for) and I can be roughing up pages and finalizing them while he continues to write! Exactly how it would work within the industry!!

So, shortly you shall see more than just character studies! Next I shall be able to tell you my story!

Captain Charles Newport

As the title says this is Captain Charles Newport, he is 30 years old. Being of a young age for an Officer of his rank has gone to this guys head a little bit. He is annoyingly superior and sucks up to the Colonel during discussions, trying to curry favour over the Lieutenant by claiming that his attempts to meet with the Native Americans are fruitless.

He (like the Alpha) is battle hungry and will shoot an Indian on sight believing them to be vicious murdering savages and nothing more. He has a constant feud going on with the Lieutenant who despite being below him in rank carries more respect and authority with most of the soldiers, even the Colonel, and in the Captain's eyes does not show him the appropriate level of courtesy.

He directly mirrors the Alpha in the story, and his likeness is based on Gary Oldman.

Lt. James Bishop

This is Lieutenant James Arthur Bishop.

James has seen war before, he knows what it does to people and he doesn't like it. Although he is older and more experienced than the active Captain he has not moved up the military ranks, preferring to remain Lieutenant and provide support for the soldiers in the field who look to him for guidance.

Despite this however his word is respected and his opinion often called for during tactical discussions by the Colonel, much to the displeasure of the Captain.

James likes to also disassociate himself from his authority and rank over the other soldiers in the field, the bitter winter weather of Newfoundland gives him an excuse to wear a long overcoat that is not necessarily military standard issue, therefor hiding his Lieutenant's uniform. He only appears in full standard dress in front of his superior, the Colonel. He also rarely ever wears his tricorne hat...

In my story each side will intentionally mirror the other, this being so the Lieutenant will be the British equivalent of the Native American's Beta; Nashoba. James is also the one who proposes to talk and arrange a truce with the Native American tribe, meeting occasionally with Nashoba to exchange tributes.

James' likeness is based on that of Liam Neeson.

Private Thomas Hayworth

, Now that I've got a few of the Native American characters down, it is time to explore the British soldier characters.

Meet Private Thomas Hayworth, he is a fresh faced 23 year old soldier just out of the academy. The care of Newfoundland during the winter months, when our story takes place, is his first assignment. The story will be narrated by characters of mirroring status within their community, whether it be British army or Native American tribe, and Tom is going to be one of the narrators to tell the story from the Brit's point of view. He will be the one to introduce the story to us, as he is new to the situation in Newfoundland we will learn as he learns.
Although Tom is at the bottom rung of the party of soldiers that have been sailed to the island, he is enthusiastic and cheery, though slightly impressionable and naive, but his heart is in the right place!

His likeness is based on actor Sean Murray, aka Timothy McGee in NCIS.

The Leaders

The Chief, the Alpha and the Beta having a bit of a power struggle...

Uhh, I realised only while I was colouring that the Alpha's headdress is missing the wolf tails that drape over his shoulders.. oh well...

Nashoba - the Beta

Nashoba is the Alpha's younger brother, making him Beta and second in command. Although he is an accomplished fighter he does not actively participate in battle with his brother and the elite warriors. His duty is to train the younger generations of wolf-warriors and to take them out to hunt for food to feed the entire tribe.
Nashoba is like a mentor, someone you can go to for advice, and is much more approachable than his brother. He spends much more time amongst the tribe's people, and is a fair man with a very 'innocent until proven guilty' attitude.

He wears more decoration (a breast plate, wolf totem and necklaces) as his position is more ceremonial than the Alpha's, who is an active leader. All this also associates him more with the Chief and the Elders, who also wear decoration, making him the tribe's link to the 'wolf-warriors'.
The ranking tattoo on his arm shows his status as being below his brother, but higher than the other members.
Nashoba is Choctaw for Wolf, he is roughly 38 years old and his likeness is based on a very young August Schellenberg (Randolph from Free Willy, and Sitting Bull from Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee.)

The Chief of the Tribe

This is the Chief of the Native American tribe. As the Alpha is the General, this guy is his commander. The guy behind all the decision making. He is strong and can't afford to be afraid of being ruthless if it means ensuring the survival and security of his people. He's a fair man and will listen to both sides of an argument, however he won't hesitate to strike if what he hears threatens their peaceful existence.

I didn't want the Chief to have one of those typical, huge feathered headdresses as they mainly originate from the Indians of central America, and my tribe are in the North. Also there will already be some unique head-gear worn by a few of the Elders and of course the Alpha and his wolf's head. The Chief would have more of an air of power, wisdom, authority and benevolence about him that makes everyone look to him, without the need of a massive headdress to make him look important.

The Chief is roughly 63 years old, and I'm toying with the name Hiamovi, which is Cheyenne for "High Chief".

I've based his likeness on the actor Edward James Olmos, although you Battlestar fans will probably pick up on that.. Also some of you may recognise a couple of the poses, I've heavily referenced Thor a couple of times here just for the purposes of getting to grips with drawing the character. The hardest part about drawing my characters, I find, is getting the right pose for them... Obviously when drawing the comic the story will dictate the pose, but here I'm just getting a feel for the character, they way they stand, move, etc. So I get a little inspiration from my favourite comic illustrators.

The Alpha is back!!

Now I have another animation under my belt, it's back to character and concept design for my comic. And I'm picking up right where I left off!

Here are some more developed studies of the Alpha character.