Robert Mckee's Story

When looking into producing my series bible I was directed toward Story by Robert McKee.
Story is a book in which McKee describes in detail all aspects of the writing process from principles in writing a successful story to industry and a writer being successful within the field.

While I found a lot of the book went over my head, some of the points in the book made it through this thick skull of mine.

Reading made it clear that I had been going about this part of my project the wrong way.
When it comes to writing stories I only ever get so far because I try to come up with a situation and create a character to be stuck in it. Mckee talks about working from the inside out, creating characters then building their universes around them. However all aspects of creating a story must be considered together

Part 2: The Elements of Story and Part 3: The Principles of Story Design are particularly enlightening when trying to get started on building the universe around the characters. Reading these has given me new aspects to go about creating characters, worlds and introduced me to the idea of levels of conflict. This is an aspect of story telling that in the past I have neglected or not even considered in the past.

Another term I have been introduced to through this book are beats within scenes and stories. The points at which events happen within any story that give the characters something to react to in order to move the story forward.

When looking for ways to make these ideas I have taken from McKee's writing into visual story telling I have come across a set of Gnomon Workshop DVD's Visual Storytelling with Ian McCaig.

Visual Research - Animal Anatomy

Moving forward with the character Siyok I want to move away from the "angry mutated goldfish with arms" look but I want to continue with the water dwelling/amphibous bottom feeder look.

Looking for inspiration for moving forward with the character using species such as the Hellbender and the Axolotl Salamander, features from catfish such as the Goonch may help to give a more sinister, imposing look. The character is a bit of a scum bag so I will be looking to convey the feeling of a bottom feeder.

As far as markings and colour of the character I have looked at various fish from the colourful DragonEye Moray Eel and the Grouper as well as the Blue Line Frog to the more naturally coloured Red Coris Wrasse or Lion Fish. 

More Visual Research

The characters gear is to reflect current conventions for combat equipment yet have a sci fi feel. 

The best example of this kind of aesthetic I am aiming at is from the Metal Gear Solid game series in which the equipment used by characters is in keeping with the time in which each game is set i.e. the Cold War, the 90's or the near future but has a more technologically advanced look.

Visual Research

For the redesign of the character Kara I have been looking at strong female characters from different media such as movies, comic books and games. 

Characters such as Starbuck (Battlestar Galactica) and Sara Connor (Terminator) have both been female protagonists in roles which in the past may have been reserved for male characters.
Design wise I aim to produce a character design that will suit the universe and situation where she is placed. The character will have a combat ready/militarized feel likened to modern mercenaries and military personel as in the story of Hunters Human technology has regressed to a state similar to our current level. Looking at how Commander Shepherd (Mass Effect) and Dr Shaw (Prometheus) were equipped may be too futuristic for the aesthetic I am looking at.
The 2 portrayals of Wonder Woman were done by illustrator Stjepan Sejic. The left image was his redesign of the character. He comments that this design would be difficult to recreate from panel to panel because of the complexity of the design. The second image was done as part of a style test to try and make the character more manageable. This is another aspect of the characters new design to take into account.

ALIENS!!!

Whether theyre sentient, mindless drones, big, small, aggressive or peaceful aliens all have something different to offer.  

The Xenomorph and the Predator are arguably the 2 most iconic monsters not only in sci fi but in the history of contemporary movie monsters having both spawned films, comics, games and books. 

Both with 2 completely different societal backgrounds, looks and origins in their characters and their creation.

The Predator's final design came about on a flight from Japan to America by Stan Winston while sitting next to James Cameron. Combining crustacean, reptilian and humanoid anatomical features with the look of a high tech Rastafarian warrior Winston was able to come up with one of the most recognizable monsters in movie history 

On the other hand the inspiration for the Xenomorph initially came from the surrealist imagination of H.R. Giger who fused mechanical and biological design together to give the creature a truely unique and alien look. The final Xenomorph also took influence from the natural world to make the character more believable, not only in their look but also in their behavior and social structure.

Other alien beings featured above such as the Prawn from District 9 Warhoon from John Carter as well as the Krogan from Mass Effect and The Bug from Men in black. They all have traits that follow this sort of design process. 

By using what is known in the natural world designers have been able to create some truly unique and very other worldly beings.

What is a Series Bible?

A series bible is a document that is typically produced by the creator/co creator of a series of a series concept. Series bibles are typically used for TV, Movie and Comic Book Series.
They provide guidelines for the writer/writers a set of guidelines that aid in producing consistent story lines and universe.

My Series Bible will include:

Overall Concept

Ongoing Characters

Background

Setting

Rules of the Universe

Technology

Format

Tone

Theme

Outline for an opening story.

This was taken from an guide written by Kurt Hathaway, a comic letterer editor and writer with over 20 years experience in the industry.

The article can be found at: http://forum.webcomicscommunity.com/index.php?topic=868.0;wap2

Characters to Redesign

The other part of the joint project is to redesign 2 characters from the "Hunters" universe while fleshing out the story. Having spoke to lecturers as well as my fellow students I have decided on a character for each module.

The human character, Kara Tate (for now anyway) is the lead of the team of bounty hunters and captain of their ship, "The Adruinna." She is one of the survivors of the war against humanity, born on the day the war ended. Ultimately a bad ass who prides herself as being one of the most successful bounty hunters (though the other races wont aknowledge it). She has a love for anything that provides a connection to the Earth she never knew.

The alien character, is a criminal member of an amphibious race enhabiting the galaxy named Siyok. He is guilty of a multitude of crimes ranging human trafficking and abuse to war crimes during the 'Earth Wars'. A mercenary who is called upon for only the most questionable of contracts and general all around &%$£.

While reimagining them I do want to keep aspects of the originals. Tate will retain some hint of the wild west and military influences but will also be need to be given a more sci fi aesthetic. Ultimately I want to produce a design for a unique looking character who is believable in her role as the leader of a team of hard core intergalactic bounty hunters.
I want to give Siyok a more imposing, aggressive quality rather than looking like a disgruntled mutant gold fish but still keep the merman style tail instead of legs. The idea of making him more of a bottom feeder like certain species of catfish appeals. I think that the character needs to convey more of his personality and background. The way he is portrayed here could either be a pro or antagonist and I want to redesign him so there is no boubt that he is an evil character.

Tate will be redesigned as part of Creative Research and Siyok will be as part of Computer Arts Practice.

COMIC BOOK COVERS!!!

The first thing you see when looking at comics is the front cover. Arguably they are one of the most important things to consider when trying to sell them. For this reason the best artists are highly sought after to create them.
Artists such as Jim Lee, Adi Granov and the late Michael Turner (among others) have not only created award winning comic art, characters and stories but also some of the most memorable covers.
Whatever they depict covers all have certain things in common. Bold imagery, strong composition and an element of story telling. Whether they feature a solo character, a team of heroes or villains or a single artifact from the comic's story, all of these elements must be considered.

These are a selection of my favorite and most memorable comic covers (for various reasons) I have discovered over the years. They display a wide range of styles, medium and subject matter. They serve as great sources of inspiration and a high standard of work to aim for.