#mfa_justdance

I love film noir and how cinematographers use lighting to tell a dramatic story. This is a very rough concept of representing an idea I had to show a sad and trapped Ellen. The shadows from the blinds make her look broken, while the shadows from the falling rain make her look as if she’s crying. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ . . . #milifayart #mfa_justdance #cinematography #conceptart #filmnoir #storysketch #storyconcept #visualdevelopment https://www.instagram.com/p/CYR5bpaL-4L/?utm_medium=tumblr

Ellen and Christopher — Ellen saves Christopher from bullies and the become best friends and dance partners. 💕 ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ JUST DANCE concept art. 😊 ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ . . . #milifayart #mfa_justdance #conceptart #animationart #2danimationart #storyart #balletart #picturebookillustration #coloursketch #procreateart https://www.instagram.com/p/CX96AzTLmct/?utm_medium=tumblr

Some concept art for my animated film, 🩰Just Dance🩰. Still working on the proposal. 🤞🏻 ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ The idea for this sequence is that we see the child’s dream of who they may become in the future. The animation of the dream will be rough, because the dream is not yet a reality. 😊 ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ MERRY CHRISTMAS to everyone celebrating today! Happy Holidays. 💕💕💕💕 ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ #milifayart #mfa_justdance #conceptart #conceptsketch #animatedshort #dreamsvsreality #keepdreaming #artistslife #sketchdaily #mydreams https://www.instagram.com/p/CX7H0GmrWyL/?utm_medium=tumblr

🙏🏻 If you’re reading this, please let me know which do you like best as the name of Ellen’s dance teacher: Mme Pirouette or Mme Chassé? 🩰 ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ When DESIGNING CHARACTERS , try to think of a basic shape for each character. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ At rest, Ellen is a triangle, Čupko is a rectangle/square and Christopher is a circle. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ As promised, I’m including the blurbs so you have enough time to read them. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Note: These designs are still in development. 😊 ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ . . . #milifayart #mfa_justdance #characterdesign #designtip #animationart #balletart #ballerinaart #cutecharacters #illustrationart https://www.instagram.com/p/CXzFCRRulti/?utm_medium=tumblr

🩰JUST DANCE 🩰 ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ The Beginning and The End ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Ellen solves problems by dancing until the day she may never dance again. A new picture book about how life can derail our dreams and what we can do to keep on dreaming. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ In this carousel you see some of the sketches and colour tests — those for the beginning and the end of the book. I didn’t color the second last sketch, because I’m not happy with the layout. It shows Ellen’s POV and her acceptance of the invitation. The last image may suggest that she can dance again, or that she’s returned to dancing. Her life is back ON POINT. 😁 ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ I still need to illustrate the peanut butter and jelly of this story sandwich, but I’ve included an action list to give you an idea. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ I’m working on getting ready for the SCBWI Conference. After the Conference MerMay will return. 😘 ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ #milifayart #mfa_justdance #newpicturebook #picturebookillustration #picturebookillustrator #workinprogess #authorillustrator #dancing #ballet #wheelchairdance #wheelchairgirl #illustrationsketches #colortest #illustration https://www.instagram.com/p/CC6h3_TjqSr/?igshid=1v6d5naiye9xt

🩰JUST DANCE: Color Test Page Anatomy🩰 ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ For the newcomers #mfa_justdance story is about Ellen who solves all problems by dancing until the moment she may never dance again. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ This is the third last pagespread of the book. Ellen is in a 🦽 after a car accident. Her bright, cheerful world has lost its color (literally in the illustrations). Then one day, her best friends Čupko, the monster, and Cookie, the boy, surprise her by performing a wheelchair dance in front of her window (the dance is inspired by Marisa Hamamoto’s and Piotr Iwanicki’s dance I saw on YouTube — last two images). ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ As they dance we can see color returning to Ellen’s life, as hope returns with it. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ The ribbon also tells the story. It snapped with the car accident, but now it begins to flow again. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ We don’t know if Ellen will dance again. The point of this picture book is that life can take unexpected turns that crush our dreams and nudge us from our path. That does not mean we have to stop dreaming. Dreams can change and move in other directions. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ The story is inspired by @theellenshow where I first thought, “Wouldn’t I’d be nice if I can solve my problems by dancing?” It is also inspired by my sister, whose Olympic career as a rhythmic gymnast ended due to a growth spurt and resulting injuries. Finally, it is my own story: I wanted to be a classical animator @disneystudios until life forced me to change direction. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ COVID-19 is forcing us to change directions again. I invite you to share how your path changed in the comments. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ 😘 M ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ #newpicturebook #behindthestory #behindthescenes🎬 #dreamschange #lifehappens #courage #wheelchairdance #dance #ballerinaart #illustrationdaily #milifayart #instaartistic #digitalillustrations #digitalillustrationsart #illustrationsketch #illustrationgram #illustrationwork #authorillustrator #publishing #publishinglife #publishorperish #illustrationartwork #picturebooks #picturebookillustration #picturebookillustrator #picturebookart #picturebookartist https://www.instagram.com/p/CCtZtf7jvKv/?igshid=1j0chdyauiq4

🩰JUST DANCE 🩰 Color Test | Near the end of the picture book. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Color and Light = Mood ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ My idea is that after the accident, Ellen’s life loses color. I’m still not sure if I will do this as I paint, or if I will paint with color and saturation, then remove color with filters digitally as I did in this painting. It is easier to remove color than it is to add color. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Previous to this scene, Ellen is blue, because due to her injury (my sister will provide medical terms) she may never dance again. Then one day, her friends (Čupko the monster and Cookie — Christopher S’mores) surprise her with a wheelchair dance that brings back hope (color) back into Ellen’s life. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ 🤔What do you feel when you see this painting? ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ My Internet connection is on the fritz. Been a frustrating day. 😖 I’ll post details of this illustration soon. Now, I’m going to get back to Phantom. 🥰 ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ #mfa_justdance #illustration #illustrationoftheday #instaart #picturebookillustration #authorillustrator #colortest #digitalpainting #timelapseart #wheelchairdance #workinprogress #newpicturebook #originalpicturebook #milifayart #dancing #illustrationartists #illustrationart #illustrationwork #art🎨🎨 https://www.instagram.com/p/CCeVGkGDty5/?igshid=1oz8y10ac1f3j

🩰JUST DANCE🩰 | Page 2-3 ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ The official hashtag for this project is #mfa_justdance 😊 ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ My original idea was to have a ballet still-life as a background image, but then I decided: I prefer to draw people to things. So, instead the background is a Swan Lake prima ballerina — which I believe is the role every ballet dancer longs for — having seen many ballets @nationalballet and most of the dance movies ever produced 😁. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Recently, I’ve also seen a presentation for “Bunheads” by @mistyonpointe at BookCon, so I decided to use her as the dream inspiration. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ The ribbon that tells Ellen’s timeline is actually SPOILER ALERT 🚨 a ribbon from her ballet shoe which is shown on the last page of the book🚨 SPOILER ALERT ENDS. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ 📝 This is not the final illustration but another Final Sketch/Color Test. The final illustration will be painted in watercolor. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ 🤔 So, what do you think? Constructive criticism is always welcome. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ . . . #ballerinaart #balletpicturebooks #balletbook #newpicturebook #milifayart #cutepicturebook #cute #authorillustrator #illustrationoftheday #illustrationinprogress #illustrationinspiration #illustration #art #instaart #artinprogress #oc #babyballerina #swanlake #growingup #dancerslife #conceptart #characterdesign #storytelling https://www.instagram.com/p/CB3qc9LDkPT/?igshid=n5jkw3s6rc3f