I thought I would start December off by sharing some old and new art.
I did a redraw and slight redesign of an old goddess I came up with, who I am now going to use in Arisias's world. Fiáina is the goddess of nature and defender of nature, she fights against poachers.
She also lost her right arm in battle, and wears a prosthetic arm, that she carved out of wood.
The elves protect nature for the most part, and hunting is frowned upon.
Here is the original drawing that I reworked above.
A portrait of Ophelia, I really like how it turned out.
This was an attempt at drawing Fevvers from Nights at the Circus by Angela Carter. I like how her face turned out, but I feel that her wings don't look like bird's wings.
This is a character I haven't really introduced yet, named Kira. She is a realm traveler from the real-world to fantasy worlds. I may have her exploring some of my characters' worlds in the future.
I just got back into Death in Paradise, and decided to draw one of my favorite characters from it, Camille.
And lastly, I drew the Greek Goddess, Athena. It was fun to draw her again. It's been a while since I drew her.
Hello fellow animators and Greek mythology enthusiasts.
I've talked about my recent writing and editing projects I've been working on. So, I thought it would be a good time to do an animation project post. Two years ago I announced that I was going to be animating Pandora's Box, but I didn't give any other details about it, so I figured it was time to tell you...
The scriptwriting portion This was the first time I wrote a script for something (besides a one woman show that I had worked on more recently in the summer of 2019--more on that later...). I might have to rewrite the script in some ways, and add some scenes into it, but so far I think it is a good first draft. I would like it to make it flow in the same ways that some of my stories do. Perhaps, I could make it a little less comedic, because I want it to be more serious. I find that when I write conversations, they tend to be a little weird, often with comedic elements, even when it is not intended. The reason I might have accidentally written it that way was that I had been writing a serious story before I wrote the script and wanted to write something more light-hearted...which isn't exactly what I want the whole script to be like. (I want it to have light-hearted bits, but as a whole I want it to be serious and have an epic feel to it). I am aiming for the script itself to be a little like the the movie Clash of the Titans (the 1981 version, not the new one).
(Image from Rotten Tomatoes, https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/clash_of_the_titans)
I like how they took Greek mythology and retold it. Though, there were some minor changes to mythology, they didn't make it a different story or mess up the Greek Gods' family tree (like Disney's Hercules does). I also like the High Fantasy feel they gave the myth, and I would love to apply that to Pandora's Box. I also want to have a subplot with Athena and Artemis in animated movie, because it was not brought up as much as I would have liked in the first draft. And since Pandora was the first human woman on Earth, Artemis and Athena would be obsessed and excited over her. Another issue I still have with my script is the timeline. As far as I am aware, it is never clear in mythology when the various gods or goddesses were born, but I am sure I can create a timeline for it. For example, Artemis and Apollo have to be born before Hermes in order for him to steal the cows, and Hephaestus has to be born before Athena in order for him to crack Zeus's head open and allow her to come out of it. And since in some versions of the myth of Prometheus (which is before Pandora's Box) Athena is there and breaths life into Prometheus's creation, she has to exist around this time... The only period of time when it is clear that Artemis and Athena are not there at all is during the battle when Zeus dethroned his father Cronus. But that was only because at the time Zeus had not exactly been married yet and had no children. (And he married Metis later...) But in terms of timeline I really like how George O'Connor handled it in his comic book series Olympians, because he had certain times that all the gods came in, and he also figured out what myths the different gods should or shouldn't be in. The storyboarding
One of the panels from my storyboard.
Storyboarding is very different from actually animating but it at least helps you get from here to there. At the beginning it feels a little like you are making a comic in some ways without there being any actually speech bubbles. The thing about storyboarding is that it has to be rough drawing and you shouldn't do an overly detailed one. It's almost like plotting out a story, except that it is telling you where the characters will go, and how the character gets from A to B. And then after you're done with that, the actual animating comes in.
I began by putting the storyboard frames into the frames of the animation, though
my animation will not be drawn in the same way, as the storyboard frames are drawn. The storyboard frames are just there so I can figure out where the characters are going.
For anyone who is interested in animating and wants to know what app I am using,
I am using Sketchbook. And I used Sketchbookx (a different app) to the draw the background.
I then began inserting the images from the storyboard into the frames. This took a little while to figure out, since I had never used it for storyboards before.
Hermes will not be floating (at least not floating and unable to see his lower half) in the actual animation
My intention for the story board was to get something like this near the end:
Though I must keep in mind that the storyboard above is probably a final and complete draft story board and not what the story was originally like. There were probably many other storyboards before it. But I was aiming for the feel of it, though mine probably isn't the last storyboard because I might have to rewrite the script (and take away some of the narration).
After that I added in some keyframes, to make it move and not jump from frame to frame.
The next thing I did was to try to make basic frames in between the keyframes that showed how the characters flowed within the scene. Once I finish this one storyboarding for the whole script, I will be able to go in and make animation that feels as if it flows well.
Concept Art...
In order to actually animate the characters, however, and not rely on my quickly drawn sketches for the storyboard, I have to figure out what exactly they look like. Of course this may change and grow as I am developing them...But here is the current view of the characters...
I actually looked at several sculptures of Artemis to draw her. She will probably get a more distinct design over time, but this is what I have currently. The statue references I used were this and this.
But this is my second concept drawing for Artemis, though I might keep the statue-like face while still making her more tough and less delicate looking. Or maybe instead make her look like this (even though I didn't use a statue as a reference):
I am thinking that Aphrodite will have a different facial shape than Artemis (whether it be that I decide to make Artemis have the facial shape above or not).
As for her hair, I was trying to give her two different shades of red that made a cool pattern throughout. However I also seem to be referencing in her hair the fact that she was a cause of a war, the Trojan War to be exact, and that a lot of blood was spilled over that. (Also one of the people she loves is Ares the god of war).
I think when I draw Hermes again, I'm going to make him tanner since he is the messenger of the gods, which would mean he would travel a lot. But this is a basic starting point for his concept art...
The next thing I want to do is what I did in the photo above, drawing the character multiple times. This was very helpful in developing Gletta's current appearance. So I assume this will also work with the concept art for the Greek gods and goddesses, and even for Pandora herself.
You might know Oak from my older posts, she is a half dryad ranger:
(An old drawing of Oak)
Her story was one of my first novels...that didn't end up working. But since I eventually plan to rewrite it (not now, but later), I decided I would get to know Oak. She will remain a character in the story (along with Delphi and Emily Stella), who will be the three female leads. (There will possibly be a fourth, but I don't know for sure right now).
So, it is time for another character interview! *A neon sign lights up*
*Audience applauds, and Oak walks in*
Me: It's wonderful to see you again, Oak. It's been a long time...and you look very different. Oak: *Nods* Indeed, *sits down on the seat and remains very alert* Indeed, it has been... Me: So...to start, I'll just simply ask, how are you? Oak: I'm fine, I just to need to make sure no one followed me here...*looks around the room* Me: Why would someone be following you? Oak: *Brings out bow and arrow* I don't know, but it would be better to be safe than sorry-- Me: *Looks over at the people who let Oak in* Weren't you supposed to take her weapons away from her? That's one of the rules. Security Officer Two: *Popping out from behind the curtain* It's been a long time since we have had one of these interviews, why do you expect us to remember these things? Me: Because you're security!
*A shrieking noise comes out from the left side of the stage, Oak aims her bow at it and shoots it* Security Officer one: Uhh... Me: So you let a creature in too? Oak: Don't blame them...these beings are very good at hiding. Anyway, you were going to interview me? Security officer one & two: If you want to fire us, because she is better-- Me: Shh...not now, we have an interview to do....
If you were to pick a song, what song do you think would describe you the most?
I do know some ballads, but they are mostly romantic ones, which hardly describes myself, but...
I do think this song sort of describes the energy I feel when fighting in battle: Underground by Lindsey Stirling
I suppose this is now three songs instead of one song.
But this song reminds me of the feeling I have when I go hunting in the forest.
What, do you think of romance, yes or no?
I'm not particularly interested in romance at the moment. Other girls may be interested in talking about what they think of romance on stage *makes a disgusted face* but I don't think it is something really worth talking about. I would rather be friends with boys than being in love with them. Can we please talk about something like weapons as opposed to romance? Me: Sure...here is a question you might like instead: Sword or bow?
Oh good! I've used bows and arrows more often, but I am not limited to only that.
I do use daggers and swords if my opponent sneaks up on me and I am unprepared...
So to answer your question, I like both. If you were going to a party, what would you wear?
Even if it was a festive party, I can't let my guard down. And wearing a dress would limit my abilities to protect myself. Yes people would expect me to wear one...
but for safety...I would wear something else...
My first option would be this toga:
(Image from wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_William_Waterhouse#/media/File:Circe_Offering_the_Cup_to_Odysseus.jpg (if you are uncomfortable with nudity, there is some nudity in a few of John William Waterhouse's paintings. I just wanted to warn you, if you decide to put the link into your search-bar.) )
Though it would be comfortable, it wouldn't provide much protection from possible attackers. Especially since it is easy to tell if one is hiding weapons in it.
And then I would consider this one:
(Image from wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tauriel)
It would protect me, but everyone would wonder why I was not wearing something fancy for the party and why I was being on guard.
So in the end to fulfill my need for comfort during a party, and my need for safety I would wear this:
(Image from wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_William_Waterhouse#/media/File:Miranda_-_John_William_Waterhouse.jpg (if you are uncomfortable with nudity, there is some nudity in a few of John William Waterhouse's paintings. I just wanted to warn you, if you decide to put the link into your search-bar.) )
This isn't a see-through dress so I can hide daggers around my legs,
(Image from Pixabay, https://pixabay.com/photos/knife-weapon-middle-ages-blade-1730010/)
because carrying around a bow and arrow wouldn't exactly make everyone in the party feel comfortable.
A man out of nowhere. Asks you to marry him. What do you do? (Note that he happens to be a prince from a kingdom, and is looking for someone to marry and be his queen).
I would decline, though ruling a kingdom might be an interesting thing, its not for me.
I know many girls would gladly give anything to marry a prince out of nowhere, so that they could rule a kingdom. But ruling a kingdom wouldn't be of much use to me, for it wouldn't help the world, because I would be helping but a single kingdom, and not the whole world itself.
(Last question) Who is your favorite Greek goddess? And why?
This is probably very obvious.
(Image from wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artemis#/media/File:Diane_de_Versailles_Leochares.jpg (warning: if you are uncomfortable with nudity, there are a few nude paintings of Greek gods in the article, so be warned.))
But Artemis the goddess of the hunt, childbirth, and the wild is my favorite. I've always looked up to her archery abilities, and especially the fact that she loves nature.
Me: Well...that is all the time we have for now. But the next two characters who are going to be interviewed are Riona "Fire" and Celtiere*points to the audience* and I need your questions for them! I am going to make Character Interviews something that the audience (readers) can participate in. So it would be very helpful if you could leave comments asking questions for Riona and Celtiere.
See you next time! *Curtain closes and fades to black*
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Who is your favorite Greek goddess? How would your own characters react to the questions I asked Oak?
-Quinley
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