Final Shoot:

My group (group C) worked towards a round table discussion about health on Shepherd's campus. We narrowed the topic to include three basic sections; what is being taught in the health classes on this campus, what healthy eating choices are available at Shepherd, and finally what can be done to improve.

This did not, on it's face, sound like a controversial topic.

We were greeted, however, with much difficulty as we selected and approached guests.

I first approached the instructor who runs the human performance lab. He seemed enthusiastic and was on board with the project. Unfortunately due to scheduling conflicts he informed me that he would not be able to attend the shoot. I contacted several other GSPE instructors; many did not respond, many were hesitant. In the final hour I was able to lock down a guest, a GSPE instructor who was very generous and trusting of this project.

As much difficulty as I faced finding a faculty member able and willing to come into the studio, my fellow group members faced even more hardship. In short, Shepherd's dining services found our topic to be confrontational (despite eager assurances that we did not mean to host a debate, just a simple discussion) and declined our invitation into the studio.

Additionally group members had trouble finding students willing to get in front of the camera.

We all worked tirelessly, putting on our very best and convincing faces.

Today, in the studio, we will have one student guest and the GSPE instructor that I rallied to the cause. We have a clear cut time schedule, our discussion topics prepared and printed. We are hoping for less hardship in the actual studio than we faced in preparing for this shoot.

I plan to either direct or technical direct in the studio today.

Revision Process:

After the midway checkpoint with my advisor and additional department directors I was determined to be on track, with few revisions to be made. The principal of which was to pen all hand-drawn pencil panels, rescan them and replace them into the final pages. The goal being to thicken the lines and create a less washed out appearance. Initially I had thought I wanted my panels to be light, sketchy, erratic. In practice this looked poorly put together and did not reflect the hours of tedious work I had put into the project. In this revision process the lines were given more density, giving the over page a more professional and cohesive feel:

Where previously pages included scans of this quality:

The former makes for a much crisper image. I decided, instead, to convey the frantic-ness, the slips of sanity by my protagonist, through my font. Initially I had elected to use Comic Life's default font, something very thin which resembled Arial. The finished product using something more sketchy, a thicker lined font. The final feel then is a sort of disconnect between what is being seen (through image) and what is being said (through text). This may seem to be paradoxical, a sort of breach of the fourth wall, but it is absolutely intentional. The tone of a postmodernist text (which I take inspiration from in this project) is one of distrust; I intend for my audience to feel uneasy, wary of my authorial voice, to be cognisant of the work as a fiction, as unreal. 

I am able to achieve this through careful planning. I can use a sharper image and simultaneously make my readership feel Simon's anxiety pulsing from the page.