Digital Graphic Narrative Planning

Use this booklet to help structure your planning and collate your planning documents.

Considerations:

There are lots of things to consider in this project. Fill out each section in detail to show you have thought about each one. You should imagine that this is a live project, so considerations like cost, quantity and codes of practice must be thought about in that context rather than just as a college project.

Costs:As all the resources I will require in order to produce my project are available to me at College or at home, there will not be any costs.

Available resources:The resources I need for my assignment are all at College; these include a Mac, Photoshop software on the Mac, pens and paper (if needed), and internet connection.

Quantity:I initially plan for there to be a limited amount of books available to purchase, however, if the book was popular and all copies were sold, I would increase the quantity to meet demands of consumers and also to allow a larger mainstream audience the opportunity to buy it.

Audience and Target Market:The target audience of my story will be the parents of children (as they are the ones buying the book and deciding whether or not it is suitable, and will most likely be reading the book with their child) and children aged six to eight. This age group allows for the inclusion of images and text because, while they are still learning to read, they have a do have some reading ability. The book will be aimed at both genders, however, due to the content of the book, it may be better enjoyed by girls; some boys, but not all, are generally not interested in Princesses. As my book will be written in English, it will be suitable for English-speaking countries.

Quality Factors:In order for my product to be of the highest possible standard I need to make sure I manage my time effectively and work quickly, without compromising the quality of my work. I should also stick closely to my original plans and not deviate too far from them so that I know the direction I need to be going. I need to stay focussed and not become distracted, otherwise I may get behind and have to rush through the creation of some of the pages of my book, which could result in a loss of quality and inconsistency in my work.

Codes of Practice:‘Where appropriate the publisher must give the author a proper opportunity to share in the success of the work’- This means that, generally, I, as the author, should receive the same rewards as the publisher, as stated in the publishing contract. ‘The publisher must not cancel a contract without good and proper reason’- If the reasons stated by the publisher for the termination of the contract are not sufficient, I will still be paid for my work. However, if I fail to meet requirements, such as my deadline and the fact that my work is not at a high enough standard, the publisher is within their rights to cancel the contract and I will not receive payment.

Regulation:As my book falls under the definition of a toy, when it is completed and sold it will have to be compliant with the Toy Safety Directive 2009/48/EC. My book won’t contain any sharp or pop-up features that could cause potential harm to children.

Copyright:My book is based on a fairytale that is out of copyright; therefore I won’t be breaching any copyright laws. The area of my work that I may need to check is acceptable with regards to the copyright law is my source images that I found on the internet due to the fact that they have been created, designed or photographed by someone else. However, I will be significantly altering the images I use by means of Photoshop, and therefore I feel that I won’t be violating any copyright laws.

Ethical Issues:Due to the fact that my book will be mainly aimed at a young audience, I have made sure that the content is ethically suitable for children, for example the story has a happy ending. Rather than the King having a central role, my story has the Queen instead as a main character, this prevents gender stereotypes. However, some people may be offended on cultural grounds due to the fact all the characters are white.

Resources:A successful project relies on good planning. Considering all the resources you will need for a project and then assessing which you already have and which you need will help ensure you are ready to start your project.

If there is a resource you don’t currently have, then consider how you are going to get it before you go in to production.

Resource:Do you have it? What do you need to do to get it?

 A Mac or computer with Photoshop. Yes, at College.  I can use it at College.

The internet (for information and source images).  Yes.  I can access it at home and at College.

 Storyboards.  Yes.  Can be accessed through Development Pro Forma.

 Script.  Yes.  Can be accessed through Development Pro Forma.

 Flat Plans.  Yes.  Can be accessed through Development Pro Forma.

 Test Pages.  Yes. Can be accessed through Development Pro Forma.

     

Production Schedule:Delivering your project on time is vital. In order to do this, you need a solid plan of action. This will help you divide up your work in to manageable chunks to be tackled one at a time. It will also allow you to plan which tasks need to be done in which order. It will also allow you to track your progress each day. If you are falling behind, you will need to modify the way you work. If you work faster than expected, you can clearly see what the next steps you need to take are.

Each session is a half day of college.

Session 1:

 Create the character of the Prince using rotoscope- use image from test page.

 

 

 

Session 2:

 Create rotoscope of the world using source image or illustration- use texturing.

 

 

 

Session 3:

 Put page one together- Prince on top of the globe with track marks from country to country. Possibly source images of Princesses (in public domain) and shrink them to fit on countries.

 Text at the top or left-hand side of the page.

 

 

Session 4:

 Use mood board images of storm to rotoscope the background for page two.

 Decide whether or not to include the castle.

 Put page two together.

 Text at bottom of page.

Session 5:

Rotoscope the Queen using source image- side profile.

 Rotoscope dishevelled Princess- possibly use test page Princess.

 

 

Session 6:

Create doorway for the Queen to be standing in.

 Put page three together.

 Text in left-hand corner.

 

Session 7:

Create page four- living room scene with Princess sat in front of the fire.

 Text at the bottom of the page.

 

 

Session 8:

 Create mattresses for page five- use patterns and source images from mood board.

 Create bedroom for background- find background source image and put it through a filter.

 Use bedroom background for page six. Use Queen for page six. Alter dishevelled Princess for page six.

 

Session 9:

 Create wedding scene with Prince and Princess. Refer to test page.

 Text at the top of the page.

 

 

Session 10:

 Make last page- rotoscope or shape warp pea cabinet.

 

 

 

Health and safety:Your health and safety and that of those around you is very important. Just like in industry, an accident could prevent you from working. Whilst we don’t work in a highly dangerous environment, there are still risks. Some are short term, such as trips and spillages whilst others, such as long term damage to eyesight or back problems, may affect you much later in life.

Consider the risks based on the activities you will be undertaking during the project. Explain how you could prevent them from happening.

Ensure you reference appropriate pieces of legislation, design to protect people at work.

Health and Safety Issue How can you prevent it?

Looking at a display screen for too long could possibly cause long-term damage to your eyes.

To prevent this from happening, the Display Screen Equipment Regulations 1992 suggests that you should take a five minute break from looking at the screen every hour or so. Also, using an adjustable desk chair prevents back problems and also a chair that spins allows you to easily turn away from the computer screen.

Tripping hazards due to bags, chairs and wires.

Bags should not block or obstruct any entrances or walkways and should stay tucked away. Chairs should remain pushed in. Wires should either be kept out of the way or taped to the floor to prevent tripping. The Safe Practices in Studios and Workshops and the Health and Safety at work act 1974 have their own set of regulations that take adequate steps to reduce the risk of accidents happening.

Using substances used that could be harmful to your health.

The Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002 covers hazardous substances and advice on how to use them safely. This act doesn’t apply

to me personally because I won’t be using any of the hazardous substances stated in the regulations, but it would if anyone else in the class was.

Spilling drinks on electrical equipment, wires and sockets could cause malfunctions or electric shocks.

To avoid this happening you should ensure that you only drink water near equipment and you should make sure that bottle caps are screwed on tightly.