Save the Children: Sketchbook

Heavily inspired by Quentin Blake I focused on the style of children's book illustrations, hand drawn with pen of varying thickness on brown paper. I then photographed them and edited them on Adobe Photoshop to change the levels and add colour. I think I will use the colour scheme used in the Save the Children logo and the Read on Get on campaign. However, in the latter one the colour palette is really varied,,, I will have to experiment with either sticking to a simpler colour scheme of red and white or the more varied one.

 

IMPROVEMENTS: When I draw out my final design I will scan it in or photograph it under good lighting so that the entire page is equally lit up. My photographs above- although a good quality in line, had shadow around the bottom of the page which meant the colours looked different in relation to the drawings on the top of the page and those at the bottom. I also think it will just give it a much more professional look overall. Also seeing as the colour scheme for the Save the Children charity is red and white, I will probably use a white background, even though I like this more rustic brown paper background, the white will give it a more finished look and make the illustrations look much clearer.

Save the Children: Contextual Research

Illustrators

Quentin Blake

http://uk.pinterest.com/dearalice1/quentin-blake/

Dr. Seuss

http://uk.pinterest.com/dearalice1/dr-seuss/

Project Proposals: 10 Steps to Producing Persuasive Project Proposals.

1. Set clear aims and objectives
2. Be SMART
   (Specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and time conscious)
3. Use words from your brief
4. Justify the need for your proposal
5. Describe your audience
6. Describe your motivations 
7. Consider the reader 
8. Eliminate vagueness
9. Visualize the ending
10. Assume nothing.

Create 3-5 A3 mood boards that visually communicate my Save the Children 'Read on Get on' brief.

Save the Children: Brief Peer Review

Before I introduced my brief proposal to my peers I came up with a few specific questions I particularly wanted feedback on. After posing these questions to my focus group I then read them my brief proposal and they answered my questions with their individual ideas for my project.

My questions:

What format should I present my work in?
Animation would be good as you could portray your message successfully - it would draw parallels as your animation flicks between scenes showing the different families - the one thing in common would be fun bonding time over reading - helping the child.

If I do a GIF/animation (a really simple one) how many scenes should I include?
About 5 scenes, however experiment with trying to capture the UK general public in a simple amount of scenes.

Should I include quotes from authors such as Dr. Seuss and Roald Dahl? 
The quote would be good to reinforce the message, Font-wise it would be effective to have it in children's writing and lots of colour. The text could appear (for minimum of three seconds) at the end of the animation to reinforce the message of the animation... then a page showing the charity details/website/phone number to end the animation.

Should I also include other male role models such as brothers, stepdads, granddads, cousins, uncles? 
It would be good to include other family members for those in the public that may not have their child's dad in the picture and to acknowledge the roles of others in the family dynamics that have a huge impact on a child's upbringing.

My thoughts: 

My feedback suggested about 5 scenes but to try to represent the UK general public in this... I think this will be really hard however I could capture quite a large amount of people in the images if I don't specify skin/hair colour so I could do the people in black and white or random colours. The book could look like its irradiating colour.. this is something to be explored in my sketch book.

The authors quote was suggested to be near the end. I think this would be effective to reinforce the message within the illustrations however if I were to do a difference in scenes such as to start off with a child trying to read on their own/watching tv then I could seperate that part with the next, of dads helping their children, with the page with the quote. However I think keeping it as simple as possible would be most effective.

Thinking about flicking through scenes as simply as possible, and of the Save the Children animation for girls not getting forced in to marriage (where the girl grows up and then passes on her way of life of education down her own children from generation to generation), has made me think about the possibilities of starting off with one child trying to read... perhaps then a man/grandad comes appears... line drawing? Is he there or not - not as steady a drawing as the child- showing the potential of a male role model. Then the child grows up still reading the same book...same save the children logo however maybe the statistics can come out of it/be in the background while the child grows up. A baby appears, then grows. Another baby appears. Depending on how much time I have this cycle of growing up can continue. I think it should end with either the whole family - great grandad, grandad, dad, children all reading together or to have a more moving feeling and to target families who may be missing some male role models; end with the older child reading to the younger one.

Then the authors quote can appear to reinforce the message of the piece to encourage reading.
Finally ending on a screen showing the Read on Get on logo and Save the Children information,

Also think about the potential of having the child read out the story over the phone to a family member that cannot be there; showing that their is no excuse not to bond with your child over books/stories. Just ten minutes!!

Note: Slow down animation and keep it simple! This will allow the audience to understand and take in the messages in it and for it to have most impact.

Note: When actually creating the animation I can put multiple layers together so if I just focuss on creating the storyline, I can then add the statistics afterwards and perhaps loop them (if I want to have the font hand drawn in children's writing in different colour - can look like its moving slightly) depending how long I need each statistic up, To exaggerate the importance of reading the page could fill up with statistics (overwhelming) and then the key letters to spell 'Read on Get on' could move together to the centre of the page or to surround the child. The child could look up at it. read the letters or move the letters- reach up and grab them- put them into order - simply.

I have narrowed down the quotes I want to include in my animation to three...

"So Matilda's strong young mind continued to grow, nurtured by the voices of all those authors who had sent their books out into the world like ships on the sea. These books gave Matilda a hopeful and comforting message: you are not alone." - Roald Dahl 

I love this quote because it is filled with emotion and it is clear that Roald Dahl is speaking to all the children reading his book, not just telling a story but communicating a powerful message through his literature; you are not alone. These four words are so powerful.

"The more you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you will go." - Dr Seuss

I think this quote perfectly sums up the power of reading and Save the Children's message of 'Read on Get on.'

"You're never too old, too wacky, too wild to puck up a book and read to a child." -Dr. Seuss

This quote is fantastic as it combines both literary devices, alliteration, rhyming and rhythm, and the message of the Save the Children campaign Read on Get on. It is a simple and true statement... nothing is a valid excuse to get in the way of reading to a child.


NOTE: When the last screen shows - black/dark screen... then a little light switches on from a torch - child reading book on their own or something. Really quick and cheeky.

Save the Children: Contextual Research

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u05C7bIkYm8

In this animation I like how they have used time and a motif of a clock to draw the audience in with a sense of urgency whilst portraying the message that these girls are running out of time. I also like how they have gone back in time after showing one negative route for the girl and then juxtaposing it with the positive future - what the charities aims are for. I could incorporate this into my work; before theyre 11 you should read 10 mins a day with your child to ensure they leave school with a good level of literacy and a positive attitude towards reading.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q_SAtk6qOy8

This is a hugely moving piece with a strong message. I will need to think about the emotional aspects of both the pride and love that comes with reading to your child and the embarrassment/awkwardness and rehabilitating effects that not being confident in reading could bring.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vkLmhU1lwXc

They have used illustration to convey their message to help Syria via a reliable registered charity. They succeeded in this by moving through the steps slowly, clearly and simply; they did not over complicate the imagery so everything could be taken in and understood in the first viewing of the advert,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Orb6xXPPBKo

This is the official Save the Children Read on Get on advert and I think it's really effective in showing how important it is that we learn to read when young. Some people I have spoken to think that it is unrealistic and over the top however I think this makes it more effective and engaging to the viewer as it has some shock factor involved, I also don't think it's that over the top as I believe having parents encouraging their child to read is a massive help in improving reading skills and confidence.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gN33vilOTbg

This advert is good as it targets moving the audience by showing the emotions from the children and how theyve improved. Nobody wants a child to feel ashamed (of being unable to read) knowing you can help- what stops you from helping them. This advert is a good child's perspective on learning to read.

I decided to research into authors quotes about reading...

Roald Dahl: “I have a passion for teaching kids to become readers, to become comfortable with a book, not daunted. Books shouldn't be daunting, they should be funny, exciting and wonderful; and learning to be a reader gives a terrific advantage.” 

“The books transported her into new worlds and introduced her to amazing people who lived exciting lives. She went on olden-day sailing ships with Joseph Conrad. She went to Africa with Ernest Hemingway and to India with Rudyard Kipling. She travelled all over the world while sitting in her little room in an English village.” - Maltilda

“So Matilda’s strong young mind continued to grow, nurtured by the voices of all those authors who had sent their books out into the world like ships on the sea. These books gave Matilda a hopeful and comforting message: You are not alone.”

'I find that the only way to make my characters really interesting to children is to exaggerate all their good or bad qualities, and so if a person is nasty or bad or cruel, you make them very nasty, very bad, very cruel. If they are ugly, you make them extremely ugly. That, I think, is fun and makes an impact.' I like this quote for inspiration for my illustrations in general!


Dr.Seuss - The more you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you will go.

Think left and think right and think low and think high. Oh, the thinks you can think up if only you try!'


Fantasy is a necessary ingredient in living, it's a way of looking at life through the wrong end of a telescope, and that enables you to laugh at life's realities.

You're never too old, too wacky, too wild, to pick up a book and read to a child.

I start drawing, and eventually the characters involve themselves in a situation. Then in the end, I go back and try to cut out most of the preachments. - good inspiration for the process of image making.

Save the Children: Project Proposal

SAVE THE CHILDREN – READ ON, GET ON.

What’s the problem?

Every year in the UK 130,000 children leave primary school not reading as well as they should. 40% of all children from poorer backgrounds.

What do they want you to do about it?

Deliver a creative resource that will inspire and motivate the target audience.

What are they trying to achieve?

Inspire and motivate dads to read to their children, and by 2025 to have every child as a confident reader.

Who will benefit?

Dads and kids.
Raise awareness for Save the Children Charity, UK poverty and reading.

Who is the audience?

Dads; mainly with children under 11 and those in low income families.

What are you expected to communicate?

To inspire and motivate dads to read to their children 10 minutes a day.
To include specific logos and slogans.

How will the idea/concept be delivered?

·         A creative resource that will inspire and motivate our target audience (dads) to read to their children for just 10 minutes a day.

·         Can take any form – print, online, advertising/video/ infographic.

·         Must leave audiences with an understanding of just how much of a difference 10 mins a day reading with a child can make.

Why have I chosen it?

I think it’s a great cause and it’s crucial for children to learn to read and great to improve on the amount of dads reading to their children.

What do I want to get out of it?

Push myself to create something to persuade the audience.
In order to do this I will have to explore using devices to move the audience.
A lot of concept development and planning will be needed- something I need to improve on in my work.

What do I want to produce in response to the brief?

·         The tone will be fun, personable, enthusiastic and engaging.

·         An imagined world of learning and fun between the dad and child. After a dads hard day – escapism/relaxation/fun. After child’s day – learning to read/life skills/fun/calming before bed.

·         Could be any time of the day however… some dads may get home when their kids are already asleep – instead of a fag break ring them and tell them a story or let them read to you.

·         The dad could be in uniform/work clothes. Normal/low income jobs doesn’t necessarily have to be a suit. – Could be a gif flipping through images of dads reading to their kids in all different outfits and situations – morning/lunchtime/evening, inside/outside/in the car, to one/two/the whole family.

·         Imagined story fills room/scene…. Could be the same story throughout? Maybe with the Save the Children/Read on Get on slogan/logo on the cover?

·         Could show the child succeeding and reading successfully/retelling the story/drawing out/acting out the story without his dad showing he has learnt skills/gained emotionally from ‘story time’.

STUDIO BRIEF 1: Individual Practice

The problems I aim to solve are…

·         In the UK 130,000 children leave school unable to read as well as they should.

·         40% of these are from poorer backgrounds.

·         Dads may not think they have enough time (the campaign targets 10 minute approach).

In order to solve these problems I will…

·         Inspire and motivate dads to read by portraying it as a fun activity.

·         Engage the audience with my creative response by creating a visually exciting/imaginative scene.

·         Move the audience by including images of father and children bonding (over books) – hit the guilt nerve in caregivers and hopefully encourage them to act on it (increase reading).

I will be aiming to communicate (3 specific messages/ideas/moods)

·         A fun and enthusiastic mood.

·         A message encouraging reading.

·         Bonding time between dad and child.

To an audience of (name 3 characteristics)

·         Dads

·         Other caregivers

·         Children themselves (to ask their dads to read more to them)

Printed Pictures: Composition and Layout

Composition and layout are massive factors in illustration and areas that I find hard to properly investigate and experiment with. So for this project it was extremely important that I made a conscious effort to think carefully at many potential layout and composition options. I started off in my sketchbook by highlighting a few important features in each Act and creating a print for the separate acts. However this still left me with far too much information to process into one print with many different focuses in each print. 

I decided then to focus on just a few specific moments such as running into the woods away from the castle. However I knew I wanted to include a lot of motifs and imagery to link in the themes of the play to my prints. All my work felt a bit crammed and unorganised and I couldn't work out how I could present all the information simply and effectively to portray the correct atmosphere. I experimented with layouts and compositionally changed around the imagery however I still wasn't happy with them. 

I thought that perhaps it was because I was drawing it out in pencil and not thinking about how it would look using the process of lino printing. So I started testing the images with pen using line to convey different mark making. This made me think more about how the end result would work regarding space and how it would print as a reverse image. However I was still not happy with the composition of the prints. They did not look like a finished illustration to me and they did not hold the magical theme and mystical atmosphere that I wanted throughout my prints. 

Progress Tutorials (individual) - Formative Feedback 11.11.14

5A5 - Satisfactory
Demonstrate an informed understanding of issues relating to image, media, format and context through the delivery of solutions to identified visual problems. (Knowledge and Understanding - Critical Awareness.)

5A6 - Satisfactory
Understand the potential and limitations of a range of processes, technologies and techniques involved in the development and production of work for a print and screen based delivery. (Knowledge and Understanding - Research.)

5B4 - Good
Analyse and critically evaluate primary/secondary course material to inform the development and contextualization of ideas, concepts and products through individual responses to set briefs. (Cognitive Skills - Problem Analysis, Problem Solving.) 

5C4 - Good
Select, manipulate and apply appropriate media, processes and technologies in the development, production and presentation of ideas, concepts and products. (Practical Skills - Practical and Conceptual Development.)

5C5 - Good 
Identify, evaluate and apply practical/technical processes, materials and media in order to produce technically competent and conceptually appropriate outcomes. (Practical Skills- Visually Quality and Technical Competence)

5D4 - Insufficient 
Demonstrate the ability to communicate the development and resolution of ideas through appropriate visual and written presentation of work. (Key Transferable Skills - Presentation and Evaluation.)

Tutors Comment
Alice has identified a need to address gaps in research and reflection and blog up to date. This will aid practical development.

Student Response/Self-Evaluation
I agree. Really have to explore/experiment and get going in my sketchbooks. I have felt overwhelmed with my topics and not known where to start. I will think about how to specify and narrow down my ideas and think about media relating to messages - spider diagram/lists/thumbnails and making decisions.

FORMATIVE FEEDBACK/PROGRESS REVIEW

Issues discussed at the tutorial

• Blog needs to be evaluative but concise. 
• Use Wednesday to access blog. 
• Research inspiration for print and animation A.S.A.P. 
• Animation Sketchbooks: Integrity of materials for choice of subject/ historical and contemporary 
• Relate this research to own practice. 

Tutor Action

• Progress tutorial form - make the decisions needed and blog up to date.

Student Action

• Storyboard animation ideas be spontaneous - make decisions
• Thumbnail prints and make decisions.
• Blog (as above) // CoP Observe studies and make decisions. 

Moving Pictures: Concept Review

Discussing brief with peer:

Comment on the selection of themes, content, concepts or messages? (Are they specific enough and are they appropriate to the selected author, texts or research?)

• Shakespeare: modern youth culture, use original text in background.
• Think about collage/paper/photocopies.
• Alcohol moral message - may be too heavy.

Comment on the visual concept of the proposal. (Are the decisions about aesthetic, media, colour appropriate to the intended tone of voice, mood and/or concept.)

• Black lines/ lots of colour.
• Collages with patterns of textile design.
• Simple line work.
• Realistic drawings.

Comment on the clarity with which the audience and or context has informed decisions relating to format, duration, media and content.

• 10 second stings x4
• Focus on plays rather than life.
• Using the imagery of the plays 
• Plays chosen have themes which link together. 
• Audience - teenage, gcse - may contain adult themes. 

Comment on the extent to which the planning of time and resources has been effectively considered in order to enable the production of the proposed work in the time available. (Are the action plans and project management sheets specific with regards to workload, deadlines and timescales.)

• Clarify youth culture - using research to re-write your proposal.
• Explore the darkness within the themes.
• Focus on your interpretation of those plays. 
• Names/words must last 3 seconds on screen.
• Focus on your interpretation of those plays, brainstorm and storyboard for each play. 

What do they need to do?

• Begin mapping out a story to organise the stings -  specific key frames etc
• Experiment with creating a visual tone which fits your interpretation of the play.
• Experiment with the use of collage perhaps? Can this aid you to produce animation quicker?

TO DO: research:

• Jonathon Hodgson
• Valerie Pirson 
• Alan Solet
• Ben Barntl
• Make a plan
• Public service communication films
• Interpret and evaluate and link to own work
• E4 stings
• Polish posters
• Joshua Thorpe
• Look at trailers for skinsetc
• Underworld Cowgirl
• Neighbours - Norman Mclaren 
• oliver with jugging?
• Is that a fish in your ear - steinburg
• MYMYMY.com
• Inverted drawing - black vs white. - theme of contrasts

Printed Pictures: Peer Review on Brief

1. Make 12 lino prints at square format to show each act and scene of A Midsummer Night's Dream.
2. A magical, surreal, romantic and confusing mood. To show each act of A Midsummer Night's Dream.
3. 12 Lino prints at square format showing the acts of A Midsummer Night's Dream with rich colours.
4. Shakespeare/theatre fans.
   Anyone that likes the mood of magical, surreal, romantic and confusing in a piece of art. 
5. 'Exhibition, a book' all very different from each other... will it work on all?

TO DO

- Look at front and back and write specific brief. 

The only thing I will change about my previous brief is to specify use for a book. This means I will have to consider what binding and cover (hard or soft). 

Brief (what are you going to produce, how and for what reason)

• 12 prints - representing each act/scene from Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream and a title so that I can bind the prints together to create a book if I have time after printing them all out. I will incorporate the text into the illustrations.
• Using lino printing. 
• I will create them on to a square shape about the height of A4 which will allow them to be used as separate prints and also to be bound as a book.
• Prints for a book illustration. I will create a bound collection of the illustrations. 

Background/considerations (Tone of voice/mood, audience/context, form/format, colour, media etc)

• The mood will be magical, surreal, romantic and confusing in theme with the play.
• Audience - Shakespeare fans, students studying Shakespeare, children -picture book.
• I will be using rich colours like red, purple, royal blue, black. I will also be using metallic inks to add a magical feel to the prints. I may add more details once the prints have dried with metallic pens or paints. 
• The paper will be white.
• I want good quality paper and a nice sturdy cover for my book. I will use a black or dark purple cover with gold writing if any. 

Deliverables- what exactly do you intend to submit? (Quantity, format, scale etc.)

• Square A4 - 12 prints.
• Bound book.

Interim Deadlines

• Thumbnail ASAP - experiment with layout and composition.
• Think about how to incorporate the selected quotes into the illustrations. 
• Have them all drawn out onto lino before Christmas.
• Cut out designs onto lino over Christmas.
• Experiment with colour inks and prints with metallic pen and paints on top.
• Print after Christmas - get paper or prepare paper over Christmas. 
• Bind book once prints are done.

Printed Pictures: Creating a Brief

Brief (what are you going to produce, how and for what reason)

• 12 prints - representing each act/scene from Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream and a title so that I can bind the prints together to create a book if I have time after printing them all out. I will incorporate the text into the illustrations.
• Using lino printing. 
• I will create them on to a square shape about the height of A4 which will allow them to be used as separate prints and also to be bound as a book.

Background/considerations (Tone of voice/mood, audience/context, form/format, colour, media etc)

• The mood will be magical, surreal, romantic and confusing in theme with the play.
• Audience - Shakespeare fans, students studying Shakespeare, children -picture book.
• I will be using rich colours like red, purple, royal blue, black. I will also be using metallic inks to add a magical feel to the prints. I may add more details once the prints have dried with metallic pens or paints. 
• The paper will be white.

Deliverables- what exactly do you intend to submit? (Quantity, format, scale etc.)

• Square A4 - 12 prints.
• Bound book.

Interim Deadlines

• Thumbnail ASAP - experiment with layout and composition.
• Think about how to incorporate the selected quotes into the illustrations. 
• Have them all drawn out onto lino before Christmas.
• Cut out designs onto lino over Christmas.
• Experiment with colour inks and prints with metallic pen and paints on top.
• Print after Christmas - get paper or prepare paper over Christmas. 

Printed Pictures: Concept Review

Comment on the selection of themes, content, concepts or messages (are they specific enough and are they appropriate to the selected author, texts or research?)

• Good idea to focus on 5 prints - module focuses on production- you can concentrate on producing 5 high quality lino cuts. 
• Really relevant to your author - direct quotes, one from each scene. 

Comment on the visual concept of the proposal (are the decisions made about aesthetic, media, colour etc. appropriate to the intended tone of voice,mood and concept?)

• Colour scheme works well to create a magical night time atmosphere.
• Try and test colours before final prints to come up with a solid colour palette.

Comment on the clarity with which the audience and context has informed decisions relating to format, duration, media and content.

• Could work well as/in a programme or guide for the theatre. 
• Thumbnail each quote a number of times to come up with compositions- which can inform your format.

Comment on the extent to which the planning of time and resources has been effectively considered in order to enable the production of the proposed work in the time available. 

• Plan compositions.
• Buy lino.
• Draw on the lino ready to cut out over christmas.
• Think about tracing text so that it prints the right way.
• Experiment with multiple colours before christmas - different backgrounds etc. 

Printed Pictures: A Visual Journal

LINO PRINTING

I decided to investigate lino printing and used a frame from my Moving Pictures brief to inspire my design. I found lino cutting much harder than I remembered and ended up leaving lots of little scratches on the print from loosing control of the cutting tool. However I actually liked this effect in the end and I think it added to handmade quality which also added to the mystery and magical element in the image. I really liked the effect of lino printing and I love how clear and powerful the white of the paper is in contrast to the chosen inks. I really enjoyed experimenting with the inks and my favorite mixture was a strong gold with a rich purple as I think it exaggerates the emotion in the piece.

So after my time in the print room experimenting with lino and looking into etching and dry point I made my decision to continue my project following the lino printing route. With this in mind I started interpreting the motifs and quotes from A Midsummer Night's Dream in black and white pen lines using solid shapes mixed with patterns. I decided I really liked the effect of having the sky/background 

Printed Pictures: Inspiration

I have included a list of images and explanations as to why I have chosen them to relate to my work based on Shakespeare's play 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' on my Pinterest.

Link to the board below:

http://uk.pinterest.com/dearalice1/pp-a-midsummer-nights-dream/

Printed Pictures; Project Proposal

OUIL504 ILLUSTRATION 1 PROCESS AND PRODUCTION

STUDIO BRIEF 3 PROJECT PROPOSAL: PRINTED PICTURES

·         I intend to produce…

9 prints corresponding to the 9 scenes in Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. There are 5 acts. They will be a set sequence of prints based on either a summary of each scene or an important moment from each one. I will plan out the scenes and then decide on scale however seeing as I have decided to use the process of etching I should be able to get a lot of detail in which means I can create smaller images if I want to than if I used a process such as lino. In the occasion that I do create smaller prints such as A5 then I will make a publication (a small book) out of them however my main focus is making good quality prints so I may just create larger and more complex separate prints. I will be using lino print as I really like this effect and I think etching will produce a more sketchy outcome which is not the look I am going for in this project. I want to focus on symbolism and mark making more than sketching a perfectly accurate representation- As I am making up the scenes from my imagination this should work more effectively. I really want to use metallic inks – gold and silvers; to encourage the theme of magic; juxtaposing these with a darker rich colour like blue, purple, red or black. I will experiment with different ink combinations in the print room once I have created my lino cuts and I have also got some examples from some practice lino cuts I made last week in which I used purple and gold which I thought worked effectively in portraying my image. 

·         The content will focus on 3 specific themes/texts/concepts…
The texts I will focus on will be from A Midsummer Night’s Dream by Shakespeare. The themes from this play that I will be focussing on throughout my prints will be in simple terms love, confusion and magic; Loves Difficulty/Love out of Balance, Magic/fairies/love potion/supernatural power of love/surreal world, Dreams/events occurring without explanation/fantastical experience. Motif: Contrasts; groups of opposites and doubles (lino print should help with this motif as there will be a clear contrast between the cut out parts and the inked parts), and juxtaposition of extraordinary differences. Symbols: the love potion – symbol of the unreasoning, fickle, erratic power of love, Theseus and Hippolyta- represent order and stability and rationality, The Craftsmen’s Play – symbol for a Midsummer Night’s Dream itself – story involving powerful emotions that is made hilarious by its comical presentation.

·         I will be aiming to communicate 3 specific messages/moods/ideas which will be closely linked with the above themes. The mood will be magical/fantastical/supernatural, to do this I will really have to push myself to create scenes that are either unrealistically beautiful, e.g. flowers and fairies etc, powerful and strong imagery, or light and dark (things slightly hidden in the dark). Also love, lust and its irrationality and indecisiveness will also be focused on. I will be looking at communicating love and marriage, order and disorder/appearance and reality, using motifs such as nature, the moon, sleep and dreams, eyes, plays, rehearsals, roles/parts and magic.

·         To an audience of viewers that may either be Shakespeare fans, may think that Shakespeare is irrelevant (hopefully my work will help to show it for its timeless themes) and so open them up to him or even just being aware of his work, teenagers/adults; the themes are complex and about love and lust, not for children. I want to produce some unique prints that provide emotion and a sense of a dream like quality.  

Moving Pictures: Text and Sound

Select two animated stings, shorts or adverts that you feel will be helpful in informing your production/choice of sound/music. Deconstruct the soundtrack and consider the effectiveness of the sound in relation to the image. Write a concise/critcally evaluate blog post with image/ link to the moving image research (ouil504) look at presentation.

I have experimented on a really small scale with part of my practice animation by just playing around with pausing and playing the animation while a song was playing to see how it could work in time to music. I chose a song with some emotional connection - romantically- which would link into my illustration of 'Juliet'.

PROCESS & PRODUCTION

Introduces, explores and develops an understanding of the impact of creative, industrial and commercial production methods on the process of Illustration for print and screen based delivery. Learners will investigate a range of contexts and functions relating to contemporary practices in Illustration including print and screen based production and distribution. Brief led problems will encourage individuals to develop an increasingly informed understanding of the breadth of creative opportunities available to an illustrator as well as the knowledge and skills required to operate professionally and flexibly in the creative industries. The module will run concurrently with OUIL501 Context of Practice, OUIL502 PPP2 Creative Industries and OUIL503 Responsive. Learners will be encouraged to consider the integration of professional and theoretical concerns in the development and contextualisation of practical skills and technical understanding.

Study Task 1 - Brief Selection - What is the Problem?

Part 1 - Based on the discussions in the studio session that focussed on your criteria for success within the module and the reasons for entering competitions, evaluate the three briefs that you brought to the session. You will need to reflect on

• To what extent  will the briefs allow you to your criteria for success within the module
• To what extent will the briefs benefit you with regards to the benefits of entering competition briefs
• Any problems that you can foresee with the briefs in relation to the issue discussed in the session.

Part 2 - Based on your response to Part 1, select a brief from the YCN 2014/15 Student competition briefs (see the link below) that you think will provide an opportunity to fulfil the criteria discussed in the studio session. In selecting a brief you should aim to focus on the problem, context audience, opportunities etc. as discussed in the session and not purely a the discipline specific content. Having selected the brief, you are asked to analyse it using the following questions as prompts.

• What problem(s) are identified by the brief 
• What is the brief asking you to do about it/them?
• What is the brief trying to achieve?
• Who will benefit?
• What is the message?
• Who is the audience?
• How will the message be delivered?
• Can you foresee any problems in responding to the brief?

Studio Brief 1 - INDIVIDUAL PRACTICE: A Creative Response

This module enables you to respond flexibly to external opportunities raised by emerging events such as  international partnerships, industrial links, cultural opportunities or professional organisations. This may involve collaboration between students, across programmes or institutions, locally, regionally or internationally or alternatively enable the programme to respond to emerging issues from its own sector. This may be in the form of specific practices that are at risk of underrepresentation within the programme or the defined need to address a specific cohort area of development. The direction of the module will be determined by programme areas to meet the needs of their students.

Using the list of websites provided below as a starting point, identify and respond to a range of live & competition briefs that reflect your emerging creative interests and professional ambitions within Illustration. You will need to select one main brief that will become the focus of the taught sessions and studio workshops for the duration of the first part of this module.

In addition to this you will need to select a number of smaller/quicker briefs that will allow you to demonstrate your ability to develop effective responses within professionally realistic deadlines

When selecting and responding to briefs you will need to consider the following:

How do you balance what you want to do, design or produce with what the brief requires?

Do the briefs offer enough breadth and scope for the development of a range of responses whilst at the same time allowing you to focus your practice?

What are the realistic timescales for completing the brief? Are you working to these?

Have you clearly identified what the problem is before you start?

Where is the challenge in the brief and what will you get out of doing it?

What do you need to present and how wil you preesent it?

These questions should underpin the decisions that you make and will form the basis of the studio workshops

Moving and Printed Pictures: Ideas for Media and Tone of Voice

• Modern day Romeo n Jules
• Motif- alcohol-poison-love potion, thumb biting, 
• Picasso style for atmosphere

• Collage- pics of juxtapositions- romantic scene with violent drawing or violent scene with romantic drawing 
• Modern day headlines - joint deaths etc

Moving Pictures: Getting Started: Group Work

You are asked to produce either: a) a thirty to sixty-second sting to advertise a forthcoming documentary programme about your chosen author’s life and works. b) between 3 and 6 ten-second animated stings promoting prominent literary work/s by your chosen author. This may be for application across a range of contexts: some examples might include: on-line promotion for a set of re-packaged books or plays, or an educational resource.  These outcomes should be conceptually driven and informed by your summer brief 3 research into the social / cultural / political background of your chosen author. Group and peer group crits will help you to explore and critically extend your ideas and themes for creative production. Stings are eye-catching and dynamic in nature and should effectively capture the essence of what they promote within a limited time.

Competition Project Proposal

• Be specific!
• 10 mins reading makes a difference
• To the dads aswell!
• Having a rubbish day
• Get home and fall into a world of escape with child 
• Hug/play
• Doesnt have to be a tactile dad
• Reading to your child great way to show you care and your love
• Pat on the head

• Document, Evaluate, Reflect, Present.
• Before you summit work post it and development work to yourself with date,
• 5 competition briefs minimum.
• 11 second club - pixar/disney?
• Quertee
• Secret 7 

Moving Picures: Animation

Using Dragon Frame I photographed my frames and then uploaded them to After Effects where I edited the image sequence before turning it into a animated film.
I edited the images by changing levels slightly to increase darkness of the mid tones and shadows and then I increased saturation slightly and made the hue a more turquoise-blue.
As it had to be widescreen I also cropped the unwanted background out of my image and replaced the background with just white fading into my image. This gave it much cleaner effect.

https://onedrive.live.com/redir?resid=C9608FF9F405C4C3!1176&authkey=!AI2wZYJB50fyXdI&ithint=video%2cmp4

I also did a slower version:

https://onedrive.live.com/redir?resid=C9608FF9F405C4C3!1175&authkey=!AAfn2GfW95TM-mA&ithint=video%2cmp4

Printed Pictures: Lino printing

One of the outcomes from my first go at creating a lino print with two colours. Here I chose to use purple because I wanted a high contrast between the ink and the blank paper to make a clear and powerful print. I also chose to pair this with a metallic gold to emphasis the romance and mysterious glamour/power of love in the play. I really liked how this came out however during the process of cutting the lino print I was extremely concerned as I found it really difficult to control the tools and ended up making all of the scratches across the print. In the final outcome I think the scratches fit in well with the details in the print. However for future prints I will try to master my tools through lots of practice with lino and perhaps cut less deeply so that there is less force to scratch the rest of the surface. 

Printed Pictures

You are asked to identify a theme/s and visual imagery developed from your research into your chosen author’s work/s and or life to develop and produce either

a)    a set, series or sequence of 5-10 prints (dependant on scale, process and content)

b)   a publication, book or zine*

c)    a print-based product or products

Themes and imagery will be generated through a combination of independent practice, workshops in printing processes and techniques and concept / ideas development in studio groups. The way in which you approach this is entirely open. This brief is designed to encourage both the development of your individual voice and consideration of informed and thoughtful / appropriate application through creative production, exploration and crafting.

.* if choosing to make a zine you are still expected to show a significant understanding of (and ability to use) traditional print media, stock choice, format and production to an appropriate level.




This resource is designed as a reference guide for teachers. We have listed the major themes and motifs within A Midsummer Night's Dream and provided examples of scenes where they can be studied.

Themes

• Love and marriage
• Order and disorder
• Appearance and reality
• Creative imagination

Motifs(Recurring elements and patterns of imagery in A Midsummer Night's Dream which support the play's themes)

• Nature
• The Moon
• Sleep and dreams
• Eyes
• Plays, rehearsals and roles/parts
• Magic

Download a printer-friendly verison of this page:
Themes in A Midsumer Night's Dream (PDF 81KB) »
This document is designed as a resource for teachers which can be adapted to use with your students.

Themes

Love and Marriage and the difficulty of making relationships work.
Some related scenes:

• Act 1 Scene 1: Theseus describes his courtship of Hippolyta and the confusion of the four lovers begins with Egeus' formal complaint about his daughter's involvement with Lysander.
• Act 2 Scene 1: Oberon and Titania quarrel over the Indian boy; Helena confronts Demetrius in the wood.
• Act 3 Scene 2: Lysander falls in love with Helena on awakening with the love juice in his eyes: the lovers are in great confusion.
• Act 4 Scene 1: Titania expresses her love for Bottom who has been transformed into a donkey.
• Act 5 Scene 1: Three weddings and a fairy blessing bring all to a happy conclusion.

Order and disorder and the need for a balance between the rational and irrational, between rules and magic, in the interests of love, harmony and creativity.
Some related scenes:

• Act 1 Scene 1: Theseus describes Hermia's punishment if she disobeys her father, prompting the lovers' escape to the woods.
• Act 2 Scene 1: Titania describes the consequences for the natural world of her quarrel with Oberon.
• Act 3 Scene 1: Bottom's transformation disrupts the Mechanicals' rehearsal.
• Act 3 Scene 2: Puck's mistakes bring the lovers to great confusion.
• Act 4 Scene 1: Titania expresses her love for Bottom who has been transformed into a donkey.
• Act 5 Scene 1: Three weddings and a fairy blessing bring all to a happy conclusion.

Appearance and reality and how people and events are often not as they seem.
Some related scenes:

• Act 3 Scene 1: Bottom's transformation disrupts the Mechanicals' rehearsal.
• Act 3 Scene 2: Puck's mistakes bring the lovers to great confusion.
• Act 4 Scene 1: Titania awakes from her fantasy and the lovers comment on how like a dream recent events seem to them now.
• Act 5 Scene 1: The play within the play highlights the theme of illusion and reality.

Creative imagination and its reliance on the unconscious, the magical, the mysterious.
Some related scenes:

• Act 4 Scene 1: Titania awakes from her fantasy, the lovers comment on how like a dream recent events seem to them now and Bottom tells of his vision.
• Act 5 Scene 1: Theseus describes the poet's art, the play within the play provides its comment on artistic enterprise and all ends in harmony with the fairies' blessing of the sleeping house.

Motifs

Nature representing the magical world of the forest in contrast to Theseus's court; also as disrupted by the disharmony between the fairy king and queen.
For example:

• 'And through this distemperature we see/The seasons alter...'
  Act 2 Scene 1
• 'I know a bank where the wild thyme grows...'
  Act 2 Scene 1
• 'You spotted snakes with double tongue...'
  Act 2 Scene 2
• 'Out of this wood do not desire to go: / Thou shalt remain here, whether thou wilt or no. / I am a spirit of no common rate...'
  Act 3 Scene 1
• 'I'll follow you, I'll lead you about a round, / Through bog, through bush, through brake, through briar: / Sometime a horse I'll be, sometime a hound...'
  Act 3 Scene 1

The Moon reflecting change, disruption and unpredictability, romance, the magical and mysterious, a journey.
For example:

• 'Four happy days bring in/Another moon'
  Act 1 Scene 1
• 'I'll met by moonlight, proud Titania'
  Act 2 Scene 1
• 'Therefore the moon, the governess of floods, / Pale in her anger, washes all the air...'
  Act 2 Scene 2
• 'We the globe can compass soon, / Swifter than the wandering moon'
  Act 4 Scene 1
• 'Now the hungry lion roars, / And the wolf behowls the moon'
  Act 5 Scene 1

Sleep and dreams which take us to mysterious places, are states of innocence and vulnerability, cause confusion and the blurring of boundaries between fantasy and reality.
For example:

• 'Ay me, for pity! what a dream was here!'
  Act 2 Scene 2
• 'Tell me how it came this night / That I sleeping here was found / With these mortals on the ground'
  Act 4 Scene 1
• 'It seems to me / That yet we sleep, we dream'
  Act 4 Scene 1
• 'God's my life, stolen hence, and left me asleep! I have had a most rare vision. I have had a dream...'
  Act 4 Scene 1
• 'Why, then, we are awake: let's follow him / And by the way let us recount our dreams'
  Act 4 Scene 1
• 'I will get Peter Quince to write a ballad of this dream: it shall be called Bottom's Dream, because it hath no bottom'
  Act 4 Scene 1

Eyes as emblems of perception and perspective, as entryways to the heart, windows on the soul
For example:

• 'I would my father look'd but with my eyes'
  Act 1 Scene 1
• 'Love looks not with the eyes, but with the mind'
  Act 1 Scene 1
• 'Reason becomes the marshal to my will / And leads me to your eyes, where I o'erlook / Love's stories written in love's richest book'
  Act 2 Scene 2
• 'And then I will her charmed eye release / From monster's view, and all things shall be peace'
  Act 3 Scene 2
• 'Methinks I see these things with parted eye, / When every thing seems double'
  Act 4 Scene 1
• 'The poet's eye, in a fine frenzy rolling, / Doth glance from heaven to earth, from earth to heaven...'
  Act5 Scene 1

Plays, rehearsals and roles/parts as symbols of magical transformation and of experimentation and preparation; also as ironic comment on the insubstantiality of A Midsummer Night's Dream and its themes.
For example:

• 'Nay, faith, let me not play a woman; I have a beard coming'
  Act1 Scene 2
• 'You can play no part but Pyramus'
  Act 1 Scene 2
• 'We will meet; and there we may rehearse most obscenely and courageously. Take pains; be perfect: adieu'
  Act 1 Scene 2
• 'Thus have I, Wall, my part discharged so; / And, being done, thus Wall away doth go'
  Act 5 Scene 1
• 'If we shadows have offended, / Think but this, and all is mended: / That you have but slumbered here / While these visions did appear'
  Act 5 Scene 1

Magic as representing the unseen, the unpredictable, the irrational and inexplicable.
For example:

• 'And this same progeny of evils comes/From our debate, from our dissension'
  Act 2 Scene 2
• 'That very time I saw, but thou couldst not, / Flying between the cold moon and the earth, / Cupid all arm'd...'
  Act 2 Scene 1
• 'The juice of it on sleeping eye-lids laid / Will make or man or woman madly dote / Upon the next live creature that it sees'
  Act 2 Scene 1
• 'I'll put a girdle round the earth/In forty minutes'
  Act 2 Scene 1
• 'But who comes here? I am invisible; / And I will overhear their conference'
  Act 2 Scene 1
• 'Churl, upon thy eyes I throw / All the power this charm doth owe'
  Act 2 Scene 2
• ' Sometime a horse I'll be, sometime a hound...'
  Act 3 Scene 1
• 'Bless thee, Bottom! bless thee! thou art translated'
  Act 3 Scene 1
• 'Now, until the break of day, / Through this house each fairy stray. To be best bride-bed will we, / Which by us shall blessed be'
  Act 5 Scene 1

http://www.rsc.org.uk/explore/a-midsummer-nights-dream/teachers-resources/themes.aspx