David Gaskell A Collection Of Concept Boards
Concept Produce a graphic novel representation of Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace and a set of four collectable figurines based on the characters in the show.
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Garth Marenghis Darkplace ‘This spoof TV series is an unearthed 80’s horror TV show, complete with poor production values, awful dialogue and hilarious violence. The series is set in a Hospital in Romford, which is situated over the gates of Hell.’ A 6-part television series, episodes titles are; Once Upon A Beginning Hell Hath Fury Skipper the Eyechild The Apes of Wrath Scotch Mist The Creeping Moss from the Shores of Shuggoth Filmed in Romford, Essex, UK. Ran for 1 season on channel 4, this aired on January 29th 2004. Garth Marenghi is a comedy character devised by comedian Matthew Holness, who won a Perrier Award at the 2001 Edinburgh Fringe Festival with the character. Avalon Television and Channel 4 Television Corportation produced the show. The DVD of the series was released on 16th October 2006.
Dr. Rick Dagless M.D A maverick doctor haunted by the demons of his past. Dagless is an ex-warlock, having renounced the occult in favour of the stability of the medical profession. A veteran of ‘Nam and the Falklands, he now specialises as a paedeatrician and dreams of one day completing the Darkplace Dagless Kiddy Wing. Following the tragic deaths of his three wives, six brothers, four children, and various pets/best buddies, Dagless wages a one man war against scum, freeloaders and the forces of darkness, whilst dealing with the burden of day-to-day admin. He is also a tireless campaigner for the re-introuction of the death penalty.
David Gaskell A Collection Of Concept Boards
Thornton Reed Dagless’ boss, professional ballbuster and former POW in Korea, forced by his injuries into pushing paper behind a desk. Reed longs to be back on the ward with the young bucks, but his hands are tied with constant pressure from the Fifth Floor and Won Ton. A gifted marksmen, he is still haunted by the memories of his 832 confirmed kills. A pioneering expert in “sack surgery”, Reed is also a tireless campaigner for the re-introduction of the death penalty.
Dr. Lucien Sanchez Hot-shot surgeon Sanchez served alongside best buddy Dagless in ‘Nam and the Falklands. A student of martial arts and Eastern lore, he has pledged a sacred oath to uphold justice, which he often keeps. When he isn’t flirting with nurses in the operating theatre. Sanchez can usually be found administrating bed baths or local anaesthetics to female patients. An expert fencing instructor and masseuse, he is the only surgeon allowed to drive a motorbike on the ward.
Dr. Liz Asher Lady doctor with psychic powers. Liz joins Dagless’s team after seeing Hell opening beneath Darkplace Hospital. Able to perform stunning feats of telekinesis, Liz is never theless afflicted with emotional instability, like most women. Despite having slept with Dagless on numerous occasions, Liz has yet to form any kind of meaningful relationship with her hero. Dagless refuses to acknowledge their intimacies in public, and Liz hopes in vain to one day arrange a meeting somewhere other than the rear seat of his buggy.
Research I made some research into the show and it’s characters.
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Scott Pilgrim Full colour cover is followed by one colour interior pages. A thick line, flat illustration style is used throughout the book. Shading is added by adding different sized dots to areas.
Preacher A graphic novel with full colour illustrations and an intricate illustrations. I will not have the time, nor money to print full colour intricate illustraions in my novel.
Illustration Styles Seeking inspiration from illustrators was my next step. I am designing the novel in a restricted time period considering what I am aiming to achieve with the graphic novel and figurines. I want the graphics of the novel and figurines to be bold and simplified. For this reason I researched this style of illustration. The main reasons for me choosing this approach to the illustrations for the novel is the limited time for design and production I have. The second reason is the boldness and block colour fit with the screen printing process I want to use to print the novel. Using this style of illustration in the novel will allow make the figurine production more feasable. As the figurines are going to be 100mm tall I will be restricted with the amount of detailing I can include in my character illustrations and subsequent figurines.
David Gaskell A Collection Of Concept Boards
Research I researched graphic novels and illustration styles I can use in my Garth Marenghi graphic novel.
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POP! Figurine As part of my deliverables is a set of collectable figurines. I looked at a variety of models and toys and decided upon designing a set of figurines myself. There are a wide variety of toys and figurines on the market. These vary in size, materials, detailing and whether the model does or does not having moving parts. There are certain restrictions I have facing me,. Materials, cost and time. However, the first two are the biggest factors in the project which have dictate the outcome. Material and machinery are a huge factor. I do not have access to an injection moulding machine. Without one of these, creating a model with moving parts is very improbable when combined with the time restrictions I have. The solution to this problem is to make a one piece figurine. Not having moveable parts will allow me to mold and cast the figurines without the use of expensive production processes.
POP! Edward Scissorhands The packaging can stay uniformed in appearence whilst making subtle changes to individualise the packaging for each figurine. This is the direction I will take with my packaging. The figurine is 100mm tall.
Kidrobot Dunny A closed packaging. This make it hard to buy a product in confidence. Also the packaging is very busy. The figurine is 75mm high put the scale of the product in perspective.
David Gaskell A Collection Of Concept Boards
Research Research into figurines and figurine packaging.
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Binding I will be using open binding, a binding method that allows for the graphic novel to lay completely flat when opened.
Stock As with The Democratic Lecture book, having a extra heavy stock gives the book a more hefty and luxury feel. The manufacturing process in creating greyboard links with the pulp fiction subject matter and format I am presenting the graphic novel in.
Format The format for the book was glaringly obvious to me after just moments of research. The format I am using is pulp fiction (112mm x 175mm), I chose to use this format as the tone of voice, and subjects covered in the show ring true to much pulp fiction literature. The size of the book is shown via the crop marks on the opposing page. Image on the left is 75% scale of actual format.
David Gaskell A Collection Of Concept Boards
Design Decisions Binding, stock and format decisions were required for the graphic novel.
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Initial Illustration Style Illustration style development for the graphic novel. I have kept within the illustration styles I looked into. The thick line flat illsutration is here. This style of illustration is transferable to the figutine design. The use of block colour in the design is appropriate for screen print. A decision I need to make is full colour digital print, or 1 colour screen print. I will be able to make this decision after further development work.w
Possible Outlets Through my research I came to the conclusion that Forbidden Planet, Travelling Man and OK Comics. They all sell comics, graphic novels and collectables.
David Gaskell A Collection Of Concept Boards
Design Development Illustration style development for the graphic novel and where the novel and figurines could be purchased.
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