Ever since the start of the progression of the idea I've always wanted something to represent mental health, as I suffer from an anxiety and depressive I always wonder what my mental health would look like in a physical form. I thought as mental health can put you in a very dark place, why not implement this in design. I have decided to give this character a monochrome tone, having the body black and the eyes in white. Originally the character had a mouth but after some discussions with the lecturer I decided upon removing the mouth and just have the white eyes. I think this was the best decision as it creates a powerful yet simple design with the character showing expression through the eyes shape as well as changing in size.
As the story goes on the character is designed to get smaller, as if the mental health of the character is getting under control and not becoming over empowering to the young woman it is attached to/a part of. At the start the visual representation is very large in size and is quite heavy on the woman's back causing it her to walk with a slight slouch. As time goes on it become smaller and smaller due to the interaction with Kitty and the young woman to the point it should just about fit on her shoulder.
As the basic of design are now completed on the character the decision of what texture needs to be considered before the production stage begins. I have been looking through animated film and other references online and have found that I really like the idea of soft edging similar to the film Soul. This will be the best for when it comes to the production stage as a soft edge will give it not too much attention compared to the young woman or Kitty. As the edging will most likely be nice and softened the eyes i think should pop more so hence these will be given a harsh edge almost like the eyes are made out of paper.
Comments