Most of my artist friends probably been waiting long to see the full character designs of Palestine 3000 A.D.. I could not blame them since graphic novels are very character centric. But foremost is the drawing styles. Is it going to be Marvel, DC Comics, Dark Horse, Manga or some kind of Asian experimental? Well I don’t really care about labels because I am an independent. I am more prudent about message and expression. The message is quite obvious in the title but when it comes to expression I am more inclined towards grunge.
Before I could render those grungy strokes I have to do my R & D. Previously I usually brag about my ideas came from out of nowhere because that nowhere is the future. Nobody really knows anything when it is about the future. We just imagine based on present situations. Technology will evolve but humans will remain unchanged. So are the situation in Palestine if the world remain asleep.
Abu Musa is the forefront character in this Book One story. He is the father of the boy-hero Kalifa. A strong personality character which I had visualized when I was writing the script. His exact look did not come from out of nowhere. Like Kalifa his look was inspired by real people from news photos. Abu Musa was based on a photo from AFP source which was shot during Israel assault on southern Lebanon. I like the facial expression in the photo which is quite similar what Abu Musa will go through. But the model above of Abu Musa is having a neutral expression as most 3D models at its default pose.
Abu Musa’s face was done in Poser’s Face Room. The facial texture were finalized in Photoshop. No real 3D modeling been done because Poser is not a modeling program. The face was shaped using morph target of a library model called Ryan. Ryan has a European characteristic and I molded him into an Arab which is quite close to the AFP photo.
For the modeling of his robe I have to move out of my comfort zone which is Rhino 3D and use 3ds Max instead because it seems Poser’s Cloth works well with a quad base geometry that 3ds Max produce.
The modeling of the robe is quite simple by using ‘Box’ modeling which starts with a simple box and the details are produce by extrusions. Overall it is like the draping process in fashion design. To add reality the ‘seam’ area need to be creased just like a real garment. So I made a study on how actual garments been put together. The objective is to make the robe look real with dynamics and not just a plastic mold around the character body like in games design.
The final geometry is then smoothed out by increasing the subdivisions which will increase the file size and slows down the computer. A large computer memory is needed to handle such complex geometry.
The geometry is then imported into Poser as a prop and assigned as a dynamic cloth. The character need to be posed in such a way it will show all the folds and creases during the cloth simulation. There is nothing much to it except tweaking the cloth settings to get the right folds and density. The only setback is the amount of time waiting for the simulation.
So why go through all the trouble for a graphic novel? I like a certain reality in my work especially when it adds to the drama. Just like classic artist Leonardo or the sculptor Michelangelo who rendered realistic visuals of garments. How the folds caught the lights and shadows. I could use a flat tone or texture from the comprehensive library of Manga Studio software but it is just not me. I don’t like shortcuts. But I like to break rules and disregard the norms. My work is not ruled by textbooks. I like to rewrite the textbooks. This is how real art are made.
