VISUAL DEVELOPMENT
As Below So Above
A Fantasy Horror Tale of Redemption
This story follows Connor. An angsty teen who's better at getting into trouble then he is at getting out of it. Connor and a close friend go to get high, but when he wakes up lost and confused in the Underworld — he finds out the hard way the drugs were laced. Now he needs to find a way back to save his friend, and prevent her from suffering the same fate. Though along the way he manages to unwittingly trigger the start of the apocalypse and the only way to stop it is for Connor to face the mistakes he has made.
The Hideaway
2021 | 9x13 | Photoshop
Connor's story starts in the late 90's to early 2000's Chicago.
He's a troubled teen who had ran away from home when he was 16.
Now he squats in an abandoned factory. This has been his home for the past 3 years.
​
This is his hideaway.
Rough Sketch Options
Connor
2021 | Photoshop
The Main Protagonist of the story. Though in the beginning he may be mistaken for the villain — Connor is the reluctant hero.
He embarks on a journey to undo the mistakes he has made and save his friend, and then the world.
If a 19 year old had a personalty that mainly consisted of smoking, drinking and fighting — Well, it would be Connor.
The Arrival
2021 | 9x13 | Photoshop
Connor finds himself in a new world of trouble. As he is sailed up the River of Styx and dumped in the middle of one of the Underworld's many overcrowded housing districts.
Rough Sketch Options
Building Callout
2022 | 9x12 | Photoshop
The writing on the signs is gibberish. I very roughly combined the shapes of the English alphabet and the katakana structure of Japanese characters.
I took inspiration from the favelas of South America and the Kowloon Walled City from China when designing buildings for
the Underworld.
​
I wanted to create these makeshift skyscrapers that feel as if they might topple over at any point.
Perspective Sketch
New Digs
2021 | 9x13 | Photoshop
Connor never thought he would get over the shock or fear
of his arrival in a place he never believed existed. He most certainly never thought he would adjust
to the idea that he was not only dead, but damned. Yet here he is, outside his new apartment,
having a smoke like it was
any other day; and in some ways, it almost felt like an improvement.​
For this project I was required to design an exterior environment in perspective, with believable scale. So I used this opportunity to illustrate a story moment.
Judgment
2021 | 9x13 | Photoshop
Connor's first meeting with Zotz. He'd really rather be anywhere else. And he's beginning to think writing 'DEAD' on his hat wasn't quite as funny as he had originally thought.
Value and Color Studies
Pursuit
Featured in CCAD Virtual Chroma 2021 | Illustration
2021 | 26x17 | Photoshop
Connor has stepped in it now — with his friends safe and the apocalypse looming, he can no longer run from the problems he creates. Connor has grown a lot since when he first arrived in the underworld. Now when the fight comes to him, Connor's ready to face it head on.
For this project I was required to design an environment with at least 50 unique objects. Similar to 'New Digs' I used this opportunity to illustrate a story moment.
LEFTOVERS
Environment and Character Design
Odds and ends
Below is a collection of individual pieces, that are either personal projects or school projects, that I used as an exercise in Environment or Character Design. Most of the artwork below are meant to be a stand alone pieces and do not contribute to world building, but do show a variety outside of the above project.
Winter Woods
2021 | 9x12 | Eno Color Lead Pencil (red), Graphite, Photoshop
For this project I started with a red pencil underdrawing to map out the perspective and work in the details. Once all that was sorted I went in with a 2B pencil and finalized the line drawing.
I decided to do the value study digitally so I scanned it in, then I painted in the base values before adding a few overlay and multiple layers to get the lighting right.
