Thursday 21 March 2013

Long Gone Don - from script to page

This morning I thought I'd show you a little behind-the-scenes process for how we create pages of Long Gone Don, hope you enjoy!
Lorenzo!

Step 1: Robin creates the script for the page. He works in a format similar to that of a screenplay, with scene descriptions, all dialogue, and panel count. This is how it looks when I get to see it for the first time:


Step 2: Using the script I create the rough page of artwork. I may make tiny tweaks here and there, but by and large I keep pretty rigidly to the script. This rough page then goes back to Robin, who checks it over and adds his superb lettering, sometimes re-writing the dialogue a little as he letters. Getting the lettering down at this stage is vital to the overall composition of the page, and helps tremendously in marrying up word and art in a visually balanced way.  
*Click Image to see at a better size*
Step 3: With the page lettered, I can set to work on the final art. I begin by putting all the speech bubbles in place, to make sure everything fits nicely and the bubbles don't feel "stuck on" the final page. I have a slightly unusual process for the final artwork, in that I like to fully paint each panel one at a time, instead of inking all panels in one go, and then colouring all panels together, as many artists do. When everything is ready, the page goes back to Robin one last time for final checks, and then it's off to The Phoenix! 
*Click image for larger version*