Story Concept!

Hey guys, I got something really cool for you today. I did a full color concept on Illistrator for a story-line that I've been kicking around in my head since Christmas break. I had the initial ball-point sketch ready, and I just took that and added a lot of color, light, and texture.

 I really took my time on this one, finding the right visual style for the story and building up the image through numerous layers of color and shadow. The result is, I think, pretty cool/different. I'm still trying to figure out whether or not to pursue rendering the story in full. It's a bit awkward because the tone of the story is very dark, but my vision for the story would best fit into a children's book format. I see big full page illustrations with little or no accompanying text. I guess it could be some kinda weird "art" storybook but I dunno. I definitely think as a story it's worth telling though. Either way I'm really glad that I took the time to do this concept, and I had a lot of fun with it.

Here's some progression, starting with the original sketch and ending with the final piece.

Here's the original sketch. It's one of my favorite's. I wish I could come up with stuff like this all the time. It was almost like a vision. Felt great to do too, like I was unloading my mind.

Basic block colors + a little bit of shading. Also changed the legs and some of the body of the main figure, which were awkward. Starting to see the life hidden in the sketch come to life.

Contrast between light and dark. A lot more shading. I used a really textured brush to give the shading that spiky, textures quality. I wanted to make the shadows seem unpredictable or even unsafe.

Consistent lighting across the page, including shadows. Lots of detail and textures added. Working a lot of crazy line-work in to show shadows and textures.

The final piece. Strong dark outlines around the figures to the right. Lots of playing around with color and light balance to find out what worked with the composition. Lots of detail work. Improved light variation. I think it's a strong final vision.

I really, really enjoyed making this concept, and hope that you enjoy the result! When I look at it, I can see a lot of possibilities. I hope that you can too.

Thank you so much for reading!

-Joseph Smolin