UAL Foundation Diploma in Art and Design

Unit 3: Developing Specialist Practice

Unit 3- Illustration/Art- Game Design and Animation

Context
Games design is a very long process that not only includes elements of practicality and game play but
also aesthetics and visual interest. Games need to find a balance between the two to allow for an
enjoyable experience for the consumer/audience.

Concept art is necessary for any visual and fictional media product, such as films, games and
animations. This could be used to create character designs, environments, props, etc. It allows for
initial ideas to develop into a final design that can then be used in the next stage of the production
process, which will vary depending on the product. For moving image, often conveying a narrative,
storyboards will be created using the characters and environments to but a potential narrative into a
visual form. Alternatively, a final product could be a comic or graphic novel which is essentially a very
polished and carefully considered storyboard (usually with text).

Animation can be created in many forms, such as 2D or 3D, digital or traditional. 3D software is
commonly used at present times by large studios such as Disney, Pixar, Dreamworks, etc. However,
we still see digital 2D animation and stop-motion using models with clay and metal armatures or
traditional drawing that are used as frames. Animation is used everywhere, from advertising and
commercial graphics, to video games and TV shows/movies/short films, making it a widely used and
appreciated form of creative expression.

Brief

I would like to experiment with aspects of the animation pipeline to ultimately create a short, digital,
2D animation for a video game cinematic or marketing material, along with a fully designed game that
will either be fully produced as a prototype or as a marketing poster. I will create a series of 2D art
pieces, potentially acting as concept art, that will help to inspire or be used in this animation. This
project development allows for exploration in as many points of the studio pipeline as I can
realistically achieve in the time frame we have been given for this project.

I need to create a narrative/game idea, research target audiences, techniques and processes.

I will do research primary research from galleries and museums to see what techniques and visual
appearances I can take into my concept art for the first stage of the project.

Secondary research with be into the production pipelines of games such as Little Nightmares, and the
artists/animators who worked on these projects. I would also like to look into the work of other 2D
animation projects for films and videos that aren’t necessarily related to games to get a broader
scope of the potential of 2D animation.
Using Adobe software such as Photoshop, Illustrator and Animate, I think most of the production
process will be completed digitally, however I would like to experiment with traditional animation
and/or stop-motion.

We will be completing workshops throughout this project so I will need to find a way to incorporate
them into my practice.

I will need to record all my processes and outcomes with progress pictures and screenshots, and
evaluate any ‘finished outcomes’ that are created throughout the process. This could include sets of
concept art for a certain environment or character, etc. Evaluating these consistently will help to
discover errors or missing aspects that will help the process become more efficient.

Overview of Outcome(s)
Outcomes that SHOULD be created during this project are:
• Outcomes from workshops
• Concept art
• A final animation (Any video products will be posted on YouTube and linked onto my website)

SUBMISSION DATE:
- Friday 27th January – Interim Assessment
- Friday 17th March 2023 (work must be on virtual exhibition/class exhibition, added to your
portfolio and social media sites by this date)
Group Crits: 5th January 2023 and 27th February 2023

Suggested Research

• Tarsier Studios- Little Nightmares:

• Gorillaz:
-Illustrator, Animator - Jamie Hewlett

• Inside Pixar, The Pixar Story, A Spark Story

• Meppity and Lemoncholy

• Experimental Animators

• Illustration/Animation Books
Suggested Materials/Processes

• Sketchbook
• Pencils and fineliners
• Alcohol markers
• Watercolour and gouache
• Air-dry clay
• Adobe Photoshop
• Adobe InDesign
• Adobe Illustrator
• Adobe Animate
• Adobe Premier Pro

Checklist for Submission

• 750-word review
• Reflective diary / analysis of work
• In-depth research* and critical review into your chosen discipline looking at styles and
artists.
• A vast selection of technical and practical experimentation based on your research.
This experimentation must enhance your unit 4 work
• The experimentation work must be presented in professional way and show
development of how you got to the final pieces
• At least 6in-depth experiments must be submitted to show development of skills
• Evidence of group critic sessions
• Evidence of workshops provided (these will be specialised for student / medium) that
help you progress
• Reflective analysis of your final pieces
• Work must be presented on a website
• Final pieces as well as experimentation to be put on virtual exhibition site as well
‘classroom exhibition’
• Evidence of you submitting your work on your social media sites in order to promote
your skills

*Research can and in some cases must include interviews with professionals, Virtual gallery
tour, artist and style research from books and internet.