Illustration & Visual Narrative Webcomic

 WANGJIHENG(0378904)

Bachelor of Design (Honours) in Creative Media / Taylor's University

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This is the draft and process of my designed poster

The huge monkey's paw in the center of the picture, as the core element of the novel, is a symbol of desire, greed and unknown power. Enlarged and placed in the center to emphasize its importance. The black silhouette and sharp claws create a mysterious and dangerous atmosphere, hinting at the terrifying consequences behind the wishes.

The red circular background is a key visual element. Red represents danger, warning and blood, symbolizing the bloody disaster in the process of the monkey's paw fulfilling wishes. It forms a sharp contrast with the black monkey's paw, enhancing the visual impact and firmly attracting the audience's attention. I will design the next posters in this direction.

This is the poster I designed

In terms of the artistic style, what I pursue is the perfect combination of simplicity and mystery. I don't want too many details and decorations to distract the audience's attention. 

Instead, I hope to convey the core of the story directly through simple graphics and strong color contrasts. This simple design style can not only allow the audience to quickly grasp the key elements, but also add a mysterious atmosphere to the story, triggering their curiosity and speculation about the story content.

Through this poster cover, I hope to evoke the audience's fear and curiosity. The combination of red and black, the huge monkey's paw and the simple and powerful title together create an uneasy and tense mood, allowing the audience to feel the terror and mystery in the story the moment they see the poster.

                                    

The story

On a stormy night, the old wooden house trembled in the strong wind, and the candlelight flickered erratically inside.

There were several rolls of parchment on the table, and one of them was tightly pressed by a withered monkey's paw. Clearly written on the parchment were the words "Three Wishes". This monkey's paw was obtained by Old Jack from a mysterious traveler, who had warned him that although this monkey's paw could fulfill wishes, each wish would come at a terrifying price.

Old Jack had always been half-believing and half-doubting about this monkey's paw, but tonight in this strange atmosphere, he decided to give it a try. He picked up the monkey's paw and softly made his first wish to it: "I wish I had endless wealth."

In an instant, a bolt of lightning streaked across the sky, illuminating the entire room. The monkey's paw seemed to move slightly, and then the room fell into dead silence. Old Jack looked around nervously, but nothing happened.

                                

The final draft of the static comic

In terms of the production process, I first write the script based on the plot of the novel, decomposing the story into specific scenes and plots one by one. Then I carry out the storyboard design to determine the picture content, shot size, and camera movement method of each shot. Then carefully draw the design drawings of the characters and scenes, and determine the colors, styles, etc. Then use animation software for production, add keyframes, animation special effects, etc. Finally, add sound effects and background music to make the entire atmosphere more intense.

I hope that through my efforts, the "The Monkey's Paw" animation can bring a different experience to the audience and let everyone immerse themselves in this story full of mystery and horror.

This is the GIF

​​I animated all the elements in these six storyboards and created this animation.