AIM- Understanding the world of children: Sensitivity in Storytelling
Animated Film- "The little prince"
Don't forget what you learnt in childhood.
Keep the child in you alive.
Don't become selfish as yo grow up, the word needs more kindness and empathy.
Curiosity, empathy, innocence
The film criticized the rigid and practical perspectives often adopted by adults. It encouraged a more open-minded and flexible approach to life, allowing room for creativity and the unexpected.
Idea/Theme-
Inspired by this idea, I started researching about the idea/theme for my book-
Shortlisted some of the prompts from the 90+ themes provided to us.
Wrote about the scope of work in all.
Shortlisted 2 and wrote a storyline.
Following this process helped me to give a kickstart and put up my thinking hats on.
Finalised prompts-
After getting the feedback, I moved forward to my story prompt of " A Rainy day from a raindrops perspective" as i thought this can be more fun, imaginative and illustrative, visually.
Finalised Storyline-
Samina Mishra ma'am
Priya Kurian ma'am
Compositions and Layouts-
Learnings\ Things to keep in mind-
Establish a clear visual hierarchy to guide readers through the story.
Ensure that the layout supports the flow of the narrative.
Maintain consistency in design elements throughout the book for a cohesive and unified look.
Prioritize simplicity in layout to avoid overwhelming young readers.
Keep in mind the reading direction based on the language (left to right, right to left). Ensure the layout accommodates this flow.
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Visual sketches and style-
Even though I am good at hand sketching as well digital illustrations, I really wanted to make something using material/tactile, 3d and not very flat.
As I thought this is the time I can experiment with a new medium, being in college we have the freedom to experiment as much as possible, in the indusrty we will be mostly working digitally.
Collaging- lecture by Pranay sir
In class Assignment-
The purpose of this assignment was to observe the painting in a group and list down observations to understand the collage technique applied.
We had a session by Pranay sir on collaging, that gave me the idea of using paper itself as my medium.
Visual reference board-
Iteration-1
I attempted this iteration at first, it was fun to make it and kind of looked nice as a first attempt, but it looked very flat to me personally as I wanted to play with textures, and have a depth in the composition of a mix of colors.
I was provided with a feedback to try paper layering, wherein each element was supposed to be on a sepearate layer of paper.
Iteration-2
Here along with separate layering I also played with textures and colors, I used crayons to add that fun childrens book vibe and the crayon texture look in my composition.
After these two mockup iterations,
learnings-
Children's books allow for creativity and playfulness. Experiment with unconventional layouts or design elements to enhance the overall experience.
Illustrations play a crucial role in children's books. Ensure they are colorful, engaging, and complement the storyline.
Opt for a vibrant color palette to capture children's attention.
Maintain consistency in design elements throughout the book for a cohesive and unified look
Typography-
For the typeface, I first went with a very basic font, Arial as I thought it would be easier to read and a simple font,
But after I researched on the typography part of children's storybook and took peer feedback, I realised Arial was too basic and would be a boring typeface for children of the my target age group (5-7).
So I decided to experiment and try other fonts as well.
I looked at other storybooks and tried similart Typefaces that goes with my storyline.
Playtime with toddlers- point size 15
Learnings-
Use clear and legible fonts with ample spacing for easy reading.
Choose age-appropriate fonts and font sizes.
As younger children benefit from larger, bold fonts, while older readers can handle smaller text.
I decided to add text in the wavy manner, to add the fun vibe and curiousity amongst children to read whats written.
POP UP-
This was the most challenging part for me as I left this for the end, thinking I would figure it out, I was more focused on completing my first and last spread first.
What helped me with pop up was Pratyush sir session, wherein I had attempted a few v folds and Parallel folds, and looking at other you tube videos nd all fastened the process a little.
Process that I followed-
sketch
practicing different folds
watching endless you tube videos
making the prototype
final pop up
Sketch-
Practicing folds-
I have made my whole pop up using the
v- fold technique and foldable flaps.
Prototype version-
It was important to make a prototype, as it gave an idea of what to place where, how will each element pop up, bend, fold etc.
Final Pop up-
Cover page nd back page-
Spread 1
Introduction of the character Ripple (raindrop) and how he decided to break free from the cloud kindom.
POP UP
Ripple's journey from the cloud kindom to the land, painting the world in colorful colors as he goes down.
Spread 3
When he reaches the ground, he meets Yetty, a pretty sunflower, both spreading happiness and colors all around.
My Learnings & Realisations-
Paper layering added a tactile dimension to the story, which can engage children's sense of touch.
I realised that Working with paper requires precision and attention to detail. Each layer contributed to the overall aesthetic and narrative.
It was necesaary to ensure that the paper layering and pop-up elements contribute to the overall flow of the narrative rather than feeling forced or disconnected.
It was really challenging to build a narrative in 3 spreads and to incoporate paper layering as a medium.
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