Designing the world for Jahela! has been a long and exciting process. Much of the base concept for the setting of the film was developed during the pre-production process and storyboarding. However, to really bring the world to life requires far more detail and insight to fully flesh out everything. We started with concept art to inspire the setting for the film, taking in consideration the themes and design opportunities to make the most of the medium.
At the same time, we also began experiments with a “look” for the final background paintings. We were looking to create a live-action anime and began several experiments into different styles.
We eventually settled on a technique that started with photography, to help better integrate the live-action actors into the scenes. We begin with layout sketches that would help determine perspective and design, to block out how the shots will look.
Once those details are agreed upon, a photographic montage is constructed based on the layouts to plan the final images.
Final painting are created using Adobe Photoshop and the mixer brush, which allows for an oil paint “look” which brings the entire film into a new world while still having enough realism to be believable.
JAHELA! 