Fishbowls Bowties & Diamonds - Capstone Project
Comic Sampler
Procreate | Adobe Illustrator
Overview
Fishbowls, Bowties, and Diamonds is an original story about a small gang in late 1930s/early 1940s New York. Through this project, I created an introduction, or pilot, for my overarching story and showcased the personalities of the main characters. All the characters in the story are object-heads, humans with an object for a head, allowing the story to stand apart from other narratives. The story revolves around a motley crew planning heists and running into rival gangs while uncovering the city’s mysteries. I have been researching graphic novels, authors, illustrators, and the history of the 1950s to help me write and illustrate my comic. This design project will act as a step into the comic and publishing industry and a branding and networking piece. I’ve always been enamored by stories when I was young and have worked for years to bring one of mine to life
Writing the Script
I started by writing out a script for the pilot comic. I already had a general idea of how I wanted this story to play out, but I figured that creating a separate, introductory story that took place before the narrative I created would be best. I decided that my motley crew of characters was to rob a pilot for this comic but had already failed and are retelling what happened to the leader of their gang who left them in charge for a couple of weeks. Once that idea was set in stone, I began writing a script with notes of where the characters are moving, specific scenes and perspectives to experiment in the future, and what should be happening in the background. Despite the serious subject matter of a high-stakes heist, I wanted the character’s clashing personalities and humor to shine through in the situation. What I enjoy about writing is showing not telling, and I like to do so through dialogue. There is no better way to understand a character than through their actions and how they address the people around them, stranger or not. That was the main element I wanted to achieve in this comic, and I was able to explore and practice this element by taking the time to focus on my writing.
Sketches
After the script was completed, I started thumbnailing the composition for each page of the comic. I used a variety of perspectives to make each page visually interesting to the viewer but advance the pace of the narrative. I pushed myself to be conscious of interesting panel layouts and word bubble placement to make each page legible for the reader. I’ve never done thumbnailing on this scale before. It was overwhelming and frustrating because I finally realized the size of this project and the looming deadline approaching. There was so much I wanted to include, but I had to scale it down in order to showcase my skills. This project was a huge endeavor but offered so much to learn. It was also very uplifting to look back at a day's work of thumbnailing to see how far I’ve gotten and see my story unfold in front of me.
In Progress
Once the thumbnails were completed, I uploaded my sketches into Procreate, a drawing app for the iPad, and began inking each page. During this process, I would trace over my sketches to have a clear outline of each character, object, and panel. Using these guidelines, I move on to color each page. My coloring process has three parts: flats, shadows, and highlights.
Flats refer to “flat color,” a color that is solid, uninterrupted, and completely uniform in brushstroke depth and shading. I blocked in each color for the characters while following the color palettes I previously made for them to make sure each figure is unique and stood out. For the setting and the background, I wanted to keep the tone warm and inviting by using yellows, browns, and reds since the setting is a high-end party.
After making sure the flats are correct, I begin adding shadows. I use a multiply adjustment layer that multiplies the colors of the flats, resulting in a darker color. Using this method can create harmonious colors to emphasize shadows.
For highlights, I must pay attention to where my light sources are to add lighting in its proper place. I use an overlay adjustment layer that mimics the shine and glow from light sources. Finally, I added the word bubbles and the dialogue on top of my illustrations. I enjoy adding character to the word bubbles to push the tone of what is being spoken, and to add even more personality to my characters.
The Main Characters from My Comic
From left to right: Iannuzzi, Fitzgerald, Windsorknot, Dinah, Lansky, Bellamomo, Yaku, and Chantal
Final Design
Below is the final design and layout of my Fishbowls Bowties & Diamonds.
While working on my capstone project I applied for the Student Grants for Research and Creative Activity (SGRCA) Grant, and I am incredibly grateful to have been awarded this grant. This grant gave me $400.00 to put towards my capstone project and pushed me to pursue my dreams even more. With the grant, I printed physical copies of an excerpt of Fishbowls Bowties & Diamonds. These comic samplers included fifteen pages of fully illustrated comic pages visualizing the introduction to my story, pages that showcased my talent, voiced the personalities of my characters, and a cliffhanger to hook the audience. The sampler also included all the thumbnails that I created and used to illustrate the excerpt, and about pages of the main characters.
I also used the grant to create a small plush of the original fishbowl head for my branding, Fitzgerald. I designed the mock-up for reference when creating my plush.
I was fortunate to present my work at Made in Millersville, the University's annual conference showcasing student scholarly and creative work. I displayed my comic in an exhibit where I printed 13x19 pages of my illustrated comic pages, characters, thumbnail sketches, and my script. The event was amazing and allowed me to discuss my work with students, faculty, and even the University's President, Dr. Wubah. I was so thankful for the opportunity to bring my stories to life and to hear people's interest in my work.
