Comics Contest

Instructions and technical specifications:

SUBJECT
Be inspired by something legendary in Chicago. Look to sports, music, art, literature, history, folklore, food, crime, and anything else you find to be inspirationally legendary. Participants can also interpret a work (a song, a poem, a speech, etc..) linked to a legend of Chicago. Use your inspiration and create a 4 page comic and the cover design. Participants are encouraged to apply their personal graphic style.

ART WORK
The making process:
1. Create a folder labeled with your first and last name.
2. Create a subfolder labeled with the title of your project (here called PROJECT), containing the following files with the details of your project. Organize it in folders with the given nomenclature.

TO PROVIDE:

• A list of your sources of inspiration and references, including pictures and website sources. (Folder named: REF)
• The Idea and the purpose. (Folder named: IDEA)
• The Plotting and the Script. Including the location and spatio-temporal contexts. (Folder named: STORY)
• The Characters and their roles in the story. (Folder named: CH)
• Concept design, studies sketches, thumbnails, and pictures of your artistic working progress. (Folder named: CONCEPT)

Comics Pages:
• In the PROJECT folder create another folder named: PAGES.
• Develop four Comics pages based on your script, including balloons, dialogues, onomatopoeic words and sound effects. Be sure to include foreground and background in your panels and decide what objects should receive the most emphasis within the scene. Plan your scenes, place characters thoughtfully in their environment, keep your drawings clean and clear. If your script is too long, don’t worry, you can choose the crucial part of your story and use 4 pages to tell it.

Techniques:
• The four pages must be developed with traditional methods, black and white, inked (pens or brushes) or just penciling and shadowing. (Digital is not allowed) Provide a scan of the pages in pencil version.

Size Restrictions:
• Industry Standard Comics Page/board: 11″ × 17″, 250 gsm.
• Create a folder for the inked version (INK) and one for penciling version (PENC) each containing the scans of the 4 pages: 300 dpi in .pdf or .jpg format.

Comics Cover:
• In the PROJECT folder create another folder named: COVER.
• The Cover book should include the main characters, the title, the logo, and the name of the author of the comic book. Make sure to find the right balance between spaces and avoid elements that overlap in order to make the images clearer.
Realize the Comics Cover and provide the following data:

• Plan the concept (folder named: CONCEPT). Start sketching; there is no restriction on size or papers. When making comic cover, position the characters as well as the other elements in their proper places. They should be doing something in a certain situation, perhaps a scenario in the story. Scan your sketches (300 dpi in .pdf or .jpg format)

Techniques:
Traditional method, black and white, inked (pens or brushes) or just penciling and shadowing. (Digitals is not allowed)