Dissertation Plan

This will be a brief post outlining the topics within the dissertation and attempting to fill in sections so as to make it easier when it comes to actually writing it.

Title


Abstract

Creatures are rife within the mythology and folklore of all cultures throughout history, and remain a prevalent area of interest within modern media. Though modernised creatures may not directly link to those within mythology and folklore, their very existence is due to such tales and it is therefore important to recognise the deep roots that permeate the culture of creature design. This project looks at these roots and aims to provide a practical response to the modern media that has arisen from them.

Introduction

• what is the project about? 

           - key questions/statements
              - interpretation of existing ideas is a key part of creature design within modern media. How does mythology play a part in this and to what extent is it utilised?
              - how do mythologies affect the methods used in creating media?

• aims (what do you want to achieve?)

           - more in-depth knowledge of real-world animal anatomy and how it can be applied to fictional designs; focusing in particular on creatures that can attain flight.
           - a greater understanding of the relationship between mythological and modern creatures; aiming, in turn, to better appreciate all designs, no matter how far they may stray from the original source of inspiration.

• objectives (how are you going to achieve the aims?)

           - extensive research into animal anatomy, utilising as many sources as possible.
           - research into methods used by practitioners within the field of creature design when applying real-world anatomy to fictional designs.
           - explore mythology as a concept and study examples of creature designs, both successful and unsuccessful, that stick to their origins, as well as those that diverge. 

Literature/Contextual Review

• the importance of mythologies

           - what is a mythology?
           - wine mythology
           - why is this important to the project?

• mythology within creature design

            - 3 states of creature design in regards to mythology

1 - straight interpretation of creatures from mythology
      - attempt to stay true to the established lore
      - modernised take on established lore
        - key example: dragons
           - sources with modernised takes: Harry Potter, Game of Thrones, Pokemon
           - sources with traditional takes: Dragonheart, How to Train Your Dragon (Toothless),
                                                           Spirited Away (Haku)
      - what do modern innovative designs mean for an artist and the fate of tradition?

2 - creatures inspired by, but not directly linked to those from mythology
         - Evolve (Kraken), Monster Hunter (Zinogre), Dark Souls (Basilisk)
      - when innovation pays respect to tradition, whilst having an emphasis on innovative design. 

3 - creatures almost entirely unrelated to mythology
      - Giger's Alien (most alien creatures in general)

            - interpretation of literature
               - Creatures with little description: Lord of the Rings (Balrog)
               - Creatures with plenty of description: Artemis Fowl (Troll)
               - relates back to artistic licence - audience expectation (understood but not explored) 
      
            - why is all this important to the project? 

• mythology within technology

            - books vs phones/tablets etc.
            - traditional methods vs digital

Methodology

• traditional methods

            - pencil sketches
            - copic markers
            - research gathered from books and first hand

• digital methods

            - scanning images
            - using Photoshop as an aid to plan tone in an image
            - enhancing, cleaning up images in Photoshop

• results of methods combined

            - final book, traditional format, created digitally

Evaluation

• reflecting on the research outcomes of the project

• reflecting on the practical outcomes of the project

• if the project were to continue . . .

Conclusion