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By jgrant - 9 Years Ago
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So, to better my skill set and continue my growth with IC6 and related content, I've optioned a number of short stories from friends of mine for developing as a limited manga series of crime noir comics. Have figured out a nice workflow and carving out the time now to begin. Here's some WIP scene studies today and some B/W pages as well for you to see. Nothing finished fully yet - just thinking out loud and seeing where I shall go for my final look.
I like the 20mm lens here and it's a good look for a hideout space. I'm just getting my head around the props I have available and the style of lighting I want to use.
 Here's the same room with a 35mm lens - and it's a fairly simple illustration in IC6 with minimal Photoshop tweaks (just some dirt and stain work). The toolset in IC6 is robust so I can have a lot of fun lighting these digital sets. As comics were my gateway to cinema, you can see how I try to make the frame tell a story - we know there are bad guys around - there's a tactical shotgun front and center - but what's the deal with everything else?
What kind of monsters have a bicycle, a kid's rocket ride and religious iconography spattered about? This is how I find my characters sometimes - I build their rooms and then grow from there. In the case of "Bar Scars", the series I optioned - I have some fully fleshed out scenarios so imagery like this is just an exercise in world-building and color palette finding. I cannot underscore how important it is for me to warm up and do exercises before starting any work of greater significance.
With the B/W ' manga work, I'm finding the tonal range and seeing how far I need to push detail and how well the Med Rez characters hold up. I'm happy with this kind of staging and look for a monochrome comic and it will probably end up as the look of choice for Bar Scars and the noir world.
Panel orientation, breaking the gutter margins, screen direction and tonal range tests allow me to see how best to approach the finished work. IC6 makes manipulating the new CC models a joy and adding Manga Studio 5 to the mix (I can't bring myself to calling it Clip Studio - yet) helps me define the structure I need to begin.
Looking forward to new CC hair tools and the opportunity to delve deeper into the tool kit and continue my work. Thanks to everyone here - especially Rampa - for the continued advice, insights and ideas. Any feedback, hints on IC assets I should look at and other ideas will be most appreciated.
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By primaveranz - 9 Years Ago
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This is looking great. It is always motivating to see what others are up to, especially when they do as good a job as this 
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By Peter Blood - 9 Years Ago
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I'm liking this very much.  I especially like your use of perspective in your panels. Can't wait for more.
 pete
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By mark - 9 Years Ago
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WOW! An artist at work....how refreshing!!!
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By Rampa - 9 Years Ago
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Wow! these do look great. 
Waiting to see the actual character now.
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By primaveranz - 9 Years Ago
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I think breaking the margins is important if you stick with clearly defined boxes. The "Bam Bam Bam" really improves that second page in my unqualified eye
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By jgrant - 9 Years Ago
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Thanks for your comments everyone. I greatly appreciate it. The work you see here is still unfinished (except for the color panels) - and text, dialogue bubbles, sound fx all liven up the comic pages and are usually added after the layout phase - accounting for them in thumbnails created prior to beginning.
Here's a link to the test look at a figure in the room who will figure prominently in the story, All This Will End Well, which I am tackling first.
http://youtu.be/oiO1RELRMek
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By VirtualMedia - 9 Years Ago
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Nice work JG, looking forward to seeing this in action.
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By jgrant - 9 Years Ago
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About 18 pages in - I'm running as many as I want - I'm not stopping at 22 or so (because I don't have to). Am happy with the look and the breakdowns are working well. Overall, it's a gritty noir comic that is a good lead up to my more involved work for 2016.
These two pages are a good indication of the tone and staging. I'm happy with how I can work with the characters and sets - and building upon my skill with the Face Key Wditor for performance values.
I will post the completed work online this holiday season.
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By toonarama - 9 Years Ago
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Fantastic work which works really well. Assuming the video is a fair representation of how it looks when it leaves Iclone (ie does not look like any of the processing performed in Iclone) would it be possible for you to reveal what software/techniques you are using to create your pen and ink look.
Thank you very much for sharing and inspiring others.
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By mark - 9 Years Ago
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Progressing very nicely, as far as I can tell!!! Can't wait to see the finished product!
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By Rampa - 9 Years Ago
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These panels look really good! Always looking forward to seeing more of it.
Any chance they'll end being a the "story board" for live action?
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By jgrant - 9 Years Ago
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Workflow for the comic work I am doing is fairly straight forward and I'm happy to share how I do what I do.
1. Create imagery/characters/sets in IC6 and light/photograph/render as needed. Export as PNG at 4K resolution.
2. Use AKVIS plug-ins (I use Sketch) to generate pen/pencil looks. Create personal look using Custom settings.
3. Import to Comic Life or Manga Studio and Photoshop to layout/create SPFX fonts and composite as required. I tend to build elements up and add blood, gunfire and sound effects in Photoshop for greater control. Import and manipulate in comic software of choice.
4. Export to PDF as required or image based format.
I'm a filmmaker and educator by profession so I tend to think cinematically when constructing my work. B/W allows me a great tonal range and more of a Noir feel for this body of work. Every story is different and tools and tone change per creation - but these four simple steps are the basis of my work.
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By jgrant - 9 Years Ago
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RE: Storyboarding Tests
It's funny that you mention this, Rampa - as the comic work is a test for myself in constructing a much more involved web series in 2016 using the skills I am developing now. IC6 is a solid pre-viz tool and storyboarding like this is something that I am quite familiar with. Pending time and $$$, I shall keep on expanding my skill set to deliver something next year.
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By toonarama - 9 Years Ago
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jgrant (12/14/2015)
Workflow for the comic work I am doing is fairly straight forward and I'm happy to share how I do what I do. 1. Create imagery/characters/sets in IC6 and light/photograph/render as needed. Export as PNG at 4K resolution. 2. Use AKVIS plug-ins (I use Sketch) to generate pen/pencil looks. Create personal look using Custom settings. 3. Import to Comic Life or Manga Studio and Photoshop to layout/create SPFX fonts and composite as required. I tend to build elements up and add blood, gunfire and sound effects in Photoshop for greater control. Import and manipulate in comic software of choice. 4. Export to PDF as required or image based format. I'm a filmmaker and educator by profession so I tend to think cinematically when constructing my work. B/W allows me a great tonal range and more of a Noir feel for this body of work. Every story is different and tools and tone change per creation - but these four simple steps are the basis of my work.
Many thanks for that - always good to know how people who produce great results approach their work!
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By jgrant - 9 Years Ago
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I've finished my first IClone 6 Comic - This Will All End Well and am happy with this first foray using IC6, Character Creator and Akvis to generate a NSFW Noir B/W tale suitable for those who like their tales hardboiled. Adapting author Nik Korpon's work from his short story collection, Bar Scars, I have upload an EPub version suitable for Kindle and Smartphone Reading if interested. You may download for free here.
Here is some sample art for your advance look-see. This is an adult-themed comic not suitable for younger readers or those easily offended.
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By jarretttowe - 9 Years Ago
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I also use akvis sketch and comic life! This is inspirational!
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By Dragonskunk - 9 Years Ago
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This is a nice find, I was looking just a few months ago if anyone knew any comics made in 3D or iClone that wasn't porn.
Looks like her knee is in the refrigerator. In the panel where she says: "what are you talking about?"
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By jgrant - 9 Years Ago
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Knee is clear of the fridge. It's just the perspective. Yeah. comic making in IC6 is relatively painless - and I tend towards a darker, noir B/W feel for my work. Will have a look t your work if you have any available, Dragonskunk? Thx.
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By jgrant - 9 Years Ago
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I've ALSO ADDED a PDF version of the comic for those so inclined. You can get a copy of tit here. NSFW - Adult Content. Extreme Violence and Language. Not suitable for readers under the age of 18.
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By primaveranz - 9 Years Ago
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Good story, thanks for sharing it
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By TopOneTone - 9 Years Ago
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Well done,really looking forward to seeing more. Very inspiring.Congrats.
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By LarryPlane - 9 Years Ago
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Very cool.
came for the artwork, stayed for the story. Sucked me in with its economical plotline.
well done. Looking forward to more.
oh and the PDF download was a nice thought as it displays better on my win 10 tablet.
Paul
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