Minor/Major Project: Fae Folk - Development

My original idea was to make the fae a twist on the well-known image of small people with butterfly wings, possibly exploring goblins. I've decided to make the fae spirits, who can sit amongst the woodlands and wildlife almost unnoticed. Some forms will be obviously non-human, while others may require more inspection.

Minor/Major Project: The Jersey Devil - Studies and Initial Ideas

Initial influence map.

My initial influence map focuses heavily on the "demonic" or "devil-ish" aspect of the Jersey Devil, but since then I've wanted to look more into the "kangaroo-like" descriptions of the creature.

Goat and kangaroo head studies.

 Most notably, the Jersey Devil is described as having "clawed hands", which in my mind match those of a kangaroo. With this it seemed best to look at the similarities between goats and kangaroos, and consider how the two animals can be combined to create the Jersey Devil. In terms of facial structure, the animals already resemble each other (dependent on goat breed).
For the lower half of the body, I feel the leg structure can be combined quite easily, though I will need to look more into making the hooves work for the Devil to walk and hop on. 

Kangaroo and goat leg studies.

Minor/Major Project: The Beast of Loch Ness - Development

Rough sketches exploring head and body.

Head ideas.

Minor/Major Project: List of Creatures and Direction of Travel (Revised)

After some thought I've decided to remove five creatures from the list, and only model two. This will allow me to focus on designing and writing for Adelaide's journal and put more time into the creatures awaiting finalised designs. 

Locations to be visited and creatures found there:

London, England - Spring-Heeled Jack.

Suffolk, England - Black Shuck.

Loch Ness, Scotland - The Beast of Loch Ness.

Galway, Ireland - Fae.

Connemara, Ireland - Dobhar-chú.

The Danube River, Srem District, Serbia - Bukavac.

Masovia, Poland - Leshy.

Tehran, Persia (Iran) - Manticore.

Nepal, Himalayas - Yeti.

Yichang, Hubei, China - Dragons.

Luzon, Philippines - Tikbalang.

Northern Maine (nr. St John River), USA - Wendigo.

Pineland Ghost Town (name unknown), New Jersey, USA - Jersey Devil

Mandeville, Jamaica - Rolling Calf.

White River, Ocho Rio, Jamaica - River Mumma.

Removed: Gargoyles, Yali, Jackalope, J'ba Fofi, Man-Eating Trees.

Minor/Major Project: The Beast of Loch Ness - Studies and Initial Ideas

A lot of the imagery surrounding the Beast of Loch Ness resembles that of a plesiosaur, a marine reptile from the mesozoic era (around 252 to 66 million years ago). I decided to look at plesiosaurs and pikes for inspiration, eventually I'll combine the million year old beast with the modern day one.

Studies looking at pikes and artist renditions of the plesiosaur.

Minor Project Schedule and Submission Inventory

Submission Inventory:

• All creatures fully designed.
• Fully written journal.
• Completed models with textures for Wendigo, Bukavac and book + turnaround videos.
• Storyboard plan outlining events of video, showing how the journal would work as an interactive book.

Minor/Major Project: Wendigo Head - Planned Fixes

Looking at the Wendigo head, my main problem right now is the gums. I plan to remodel them completely to match human gum form. The molars also need changing to be more packed together. Though the Wendigo is a creature of myth, the idea of it being a possessed/corrupted human is what makes the Wendigo frightening. Restructuring the face will show the remnants of who the creature once was.

After fixing the gums, I'll work on making the nose part more concave to match a human skull, and form the eyelids. The eyes may need further remodeling, though I'm hoping the creases and wrinkles of the eyelids will help the eyes seem less spaced. The Wendigo's body is far closer to being finished, and I'm looking forward to piecing the creature together and starting on textures.

Maya Tutorial - Five Minute Moom Pose

5 Minute Pose

Pose Reference

First attempt posing Moom in five minutes. The angle of the bent leg is a little off, and they need more bend at the waist to match the reference image. Hopefully as I do this more regularly, I'll get faster and more accurate at posing.