Wallace and Gromit: A Matter of Loaf and Death - Clip "Roman

The Twilight Saga

I've recently been reading these books and I thoroughly enjoyed them. It conjures a lot of imagery in my mind with the werewolves and the vampires as well as including a North American Red Indian culture.

I also really like the images on the book covers. I like the colour scheme of the red, black and white. I also love the ideas behind them for example, the first book ' Twilight' with the image of the hands offering the red apple which seems to resemble the vampires luring the main human character Bella in, it's similar to the Bible story (where Eve is offered a forbidden apple by the snake in the garden of Eden), or the story of Snow White (with the witch offering Snow White a poisoned apple).

The second book 'New Moon' illustration of the wilted flower looks as though it symbolizes Bella's pain when Edward dumps her.

The third illustration for the book 'Eclipse' shows a torn red ribbon, this could represent how Bella is feeling, that fact that she feels torn between chosing Edward the vampire or Jacob the werewolf. She loves them both but she sees Jacob as more of a friend and yet she doesn't want to lose him.

The fourth illustration for the book 'Breaking Dawn' could perhaps resemble how 'Bella' is closer to becoming a vampire with the idea of the chess pieces on a chessboard. It could also symbolise the Volturi who are a group of leaders for the vampires (you could say the bad guys) and this chess piece could be emphasizing that threat, and how they are after Bella who is symbolised by the red chess piece full of blood.

I like these images as they seem to create an atmosphere. I like the use of photography and the close ups of the elements. I love how simple the images are, using one or two objects to produce a strong and eye catching image.

'9' by Tim Burton- Coming Soon!

The trailer

Tim Burton's characters in this new film look absolutely amazing! They have a real, classic Tim Burton feel to them, really dark and mysterious. I think its great the way they look as though they have been constructed using real materials or haberdashery. A good example is the main character who has been created with buttons and zips.

The style of the characters really reminds me of the Sackboys from Little Big Planet in the sense that they both have a woven rustic look to them. I really wish I had seen this trailer before I had created my characters as I could have used this as a reference for the ones we were tasked to design.

Weasley Wizard Wheezes! - Nicholas Saunders (Graphic Designer)

A link to the website

This work was produced for the sixth Harry Potter film (Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince) and features products from Fred and George Weasley's joke shop 'Weasley's Wizard Wheezes".

This would have been my dream project as I love the Harry Potter franchise. Although, to be fair, the graphic designer 'Nicholas Saunders' has done a brilliant job. I love the elements which he has used to create these magical products, especially on the 'Weasley and Weasley' image. I think he has captured the characters essence and personality through his use of colour and juxtapositions.

DRENCH Spring Water Advert 2008 (Brains Thunderbirds)

Lord of the Rings (Part 4)

Personally I think the black riders in this animated version are really terrifying, I'm not sure whether it's the music, the sounds that they make or the way the figures have been drawn and made to move in an odd way. In my opinion the black riders in this cartoon are a lot more traumatising than the ones in Peter Jackson's Lord Of The Rings. Even though I did still enjoy the newer versions of the films! I think this animated version does a very good job of portraying the darkness of Tolkien's novels.

Ice Age 3 - Scrat Meets Girl

Little Big Planet - Sackboy Video- John Bergerman

I really like the way these characters have been illustrated and animated for a PS3 game, I think they have a lot of humour and there's something quite playful and fun about them. By looking at them they seem to have been made from real materials like a 'woolly cardigan' and then maybe scanned into the computer.

They have a lot of character even though their quite a simple design. There's something really cute about them, maybe it's to do with the way they're animated for example the way they move, the noises they make and the mannerisms that the have etc.

Casino Royale Opening (Best Audio)

I think this sequence is amazing! I belive it's really effective and portrays the theme of James Bond really well. In my opinion it's a very complex idea (but this might be to do with me not being technically very good with computers) especially with all the moving patterns in the background (the clubs, spades and hearts) that represented the 'casino' theme in the film.

I really like the slow motion effect that you get when watching it, you still get the idea that this film has a lot of action and it shows that you don't have to make the animations really fast and complicated to get that effect.

I like the idea that when Bond shoots something, it shatters into hearts (still on the theme of playing cards) which might represent the splattering blood and shattered bodies (a nice way of portraying the violence in this film).

I also noticed that whoever made this animation used real materials such as playing cards and then scanned them into the computer. There's a moment in this animation where it actually looks as though a playing card is being shot at, I thought that the use of these 'real' materials made it seem a lot more 3D and realistic.

Josephine Wall- Fantasy Fine artist

Josephine Wall's Gallery

Josephine's imagination is truly amazing, I think she is so talented in the way she paints and in the sense that she can paint something this realistic and yet it be a fantasy from her own mind. It's crazy but awesome!

What's This????

I'd to love to get into Tim Burton's mind! I think he is a fantastic director, producer, writer and artist.

I really like all Burton's work such as 'Batman begins', 'Sweeney Todd' and especially Nightmare Before Christmas, the contrast/clash between the idea of Christmas and then the creepy skeleton characters and scary creatures is just bizarre but I think it works really well. I enjoy the Gothic style/element he has added to his characters, I think this idea has a unique quality and i think he does this with anything he creates, he has his own original style which everyone recognizes instantly .

The Dark Crystal (1982) Movie Trailer

This is the weirdest film I think I have ever seen, it's utterly terrifying! Directed by Jim Henson and Frank Oz and the main concept artist being Brian Froud (who i have a book on and he has created his own fantasy world full of different creatures, it's utterly fascinating!)
I will upload some of Brian Froud 's work later on.

The Labyrinth- M.C. Escher

Within you- M.C Escher's stairs

A great fantasy film with David Bowie! Very weird but strangely artistic, It has lots of optical illusions in the film, one of them is M.C Eshers work ' Ascending and Descending'

M.C Escher is a true genius, His work is very accurate and he is an illusionist. He explores metamorphism and has created a lot of tessellations ( patterns that interlock). He is a very clever man and a lot of his work is based in mathematics and accurate in terms of geometry.

Harry Potter

I added these because they are one of my favourite series of books, I started reading them when I was 9 years old and it has only been a couple of years since the 7th (last) book came out. I have never changed my opinion about them, they're absolutely amazing! I love the plot and the well thought out characters. J.k Rowling has an amazing imagination and I only hope that I can be that creative with my illustrations.

Suddenly (It Happens to You)

I have included this as one of my favourite childhood films. It was a film that was originally made in honor of the Queen in 1976. I love musicals and I also take a great interest into fairytales. I love the Renaissance setting for the film, i think it tells the true tale of Cinderella.

I have a clip from the film which is one that i favor, i think it's a very crucial point to film (when Cinderella is getting ready for the ball) I think it's great that they turn a mop into her wig/hair and the dancing mice that turn into horses! Its great!

I Love a Bit of Meatloaf!

I'll do anything for love

This links in with my interest for fairy tales and this music video and song remind me of the tale of Beauty and the Beast and The Phantom of the Opera. I think the video is very Gothic and dark, I like the use of light and shadows throughout the video not to mention the objects smashing in slow motion.

This cover for the song 'bat out of hell' is really cool, I like the way it looks like a comic and I think the image really conveys that it's illustrating a song- the image looks loud!

Phantom of the Opera

Masquerade

Phantom of the opera- nightwish
Phantom of the opera masquerade

I love this film! I have added two clips from the film which have stuck with me since the first time i watched it. I love the atmosphere and the style of the costumes! There's a lot of tension and the use of masks is very effective, in my opinion, not only does it work well with the story but it also comes across as visually exciting!

I added the 'masquerade' clip because I really enjoy the business of it and the way it has been choreographed with the masks and fans to create patterns.

The 'nightwish' clip, has a lot of tension/atmosphere with the candles and mist, it looks like a dream!

I really like the theatre and the atmosphere that is created through an effective set, in my work I enjoy creating scenes or work that has a sense of magic or a certain mood to it.

Personal Photographs Taken from my Garden

'My' garden is my dad's 'pride and joy' and being very artistic himself, this garden has taken him years to create ( he has still not finished!) There are clashes of styles and cultures in it, the main ones being Japanese and Mediterranean, from his Japanese maple trees and trellis to the Mediterranean plant pots and palm trees, 'My' garden has a great feel with loads of textures, lines and patterns everywhere you look.

As a child I was always taken to garden centers and parks which i think has had an influence on me, the one that sticks out most in my mind is Portmeirion in Wales, this place has fantastic architecture and scenery (I will upload some photographs soon!). Stapeley water gardens in Nantwich also has great natural scenery. At the time when i was a child i found myself going insane and i didn't fully appreciate the different aspects to a garden especially when i was made to look at the same plant for hours but now i really appreciate the beauty and uniqueness of each garden.

Haha i cant believe I'm talking about gardens! Alan Titchmarsh move over!