CMYK (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Key) are the four inks most commonly used in colour printing. 300dpi is a resolution size used to print, which keeps files at a high quality without sacrificing too much file size. A PDF can be opened without use of the original program (i.e Photoshop), and so can be printed from anywhere.
For my graphic narrative, I used the Prada Candy TV advert (directed by Roman Coppola and Wes Anderson) for its use of colour and excellent cinematography as a placeholder. Much of the buildings were designed using LA street photography to gain the correct proportions. The story's protagonist, simply named "The Actress", was designed with a bright colour palette; her hair, clothing, shoes, and makeup all used vibrant colours intended to stand out from the background to show off the wealth and luxury she surrounds herself in. I think this effect worked well, as in many scenes the main character stands out as the sole focus of the narrative.
After conducting some research into the types of fonts certain luxury fashion labels use, I decided to narrate the story using the font "Times", which is reminiscent of the typography in the Louis Vuitton logo. Not only did this suit the storyline, but it was convenient in how the font remained synonymous with 'high fashion', 'wealth' and 'luxury', and is highly recognisable by my target audience. I utilised highly recognisable locations in Los Angeles for the graphic narrative. Rodeo Drive, Hollywood Boulevard and Venice Beach are all popular destinations in the city, and are all individually renowned for the amount of celebrities they attract. All of the images were designed to stay simplistic and clean, (a theme in the fashion industry) as well as realistic. I designed every image in Adobe Illustrator using the pen tool and various effects to add an element of realism.
The very first thing I created was the protagonist herself; I was incredibly inspired by the actress Léa Seyoux, whom I modelled my main character off of. I was initially drawn to her in the previously mentioned Prada Candy advertisement.
Using the pen tool in Illustrator, I designed each individual scene using LA street photography as a template. Whenever an additional character was produced, I made sure that the face was covered or they were heavily blurred, much like the scenery in the narrative. This was a conscious decision that was intended to be symbolic of the main character's narcissism and self-absorbed nature.
I feel like the character design was the strongest part of my narrative, partially because I thoroughly enjoyed designing her. If I had to alter the narrative in any way I would go back an re-design some of the background images, spending more time shading and making everything more lifelike. However, I'd like to think the character design and selective pops of colour make the narrative stand out, as it otherwise might not have if I hadn't enjoyed it.
