Comic

Whatare

comics?

Michael  Turner  

Carl  Barks,  Uncle  Scrooge

Charles  Schulz,  Peanuts

Comics are aform

Meister  Bertram  von  Minden,The  Grabower  Altar,  1375-­‐1383

Comics are a formused to tell many kinds

of stories

Alan  Moore  &  Dave  Gibbons,  The  Watchmen

Neil  Gaiman  (et  al),  Sandman Brian  K.  Vaughan  (et  al),  Y:  the  Last  Man

Craig  Thompson,  Blankets

Posy  Simmonds,  Tamara  Drewe

Chester  Brown,Louis  Riel

Art  Spiegelman,Maus

Alison  Bechdel,  Fun  Home

Marjane  Satrapi,  Persepolis

Joe  Sacco,  Footnotes  in  Gaza

Apostolos  Doxiadis,  Christos  Papadimitriou,  Alecos  Papadatos  &  Annie  Di  Donna,  Logicomix:  an  Epic  Search  for  Truth

Carol  Lay,The  Big  Skinny

Making a comic

Main Elements

of a

Comic

The panelThis is the basic unit of a comic book

page, consisting of a single illustration. It's most often contained within a square or rectangular frame,

although circular and irregularly-shaped panels are also possible.

It is the element

what contains the text.

Balloons

Speech Thought

Splash

Speech balloon

Balloon

Panel

Frank  Miller,  Sin  City Daniel  Clowes,  Ghost  World

Splash Balloon

Thought balloon

Quino,  Mafalda

The Text-Related Parts of a Comic Book Page:

1.Title.  the  name  of  the  comic  on  the  front  cover.  Given  the  nature  of  comics,  the  3tle  is  nearly  always  large,  colorful,  and  especially  ornate.  

2.Credits.  the  credits  promote  the  "stars"  of  the  comic:  scriptwriter    &  comic  ar3st.

Jim  Davies,  Gardfield

Bill  Wa;erson,  Calvin  &  Hobbes

3.Le/ering.  This  refers  to  most  of  the  text  in  a  comic  book.  

4.Cap5ons.  LeBering  not  in  a  speech  or  thought  balloon  is  usually  in  a  cap3on,  in  a  separate  frame.

CAPTION

Sonia  Pulido

5.Sound  Effects.  Any  wriGng  meant  to  convey  a  noise  or  sound  is  called  a  sound  effect.  Sound  effects  are  shaped  to  suggest  the  kind  of  sound  –  loud  or  soQ,  harsh  or  mellow.

h;p://www.artsle;ers.com

Some Original Comic because of its Structure

Frank  Miller,  Sin  city,  1991

Jeffrey  Brown,  Gato  saliendo  de  una  bolsa,  2008

Jiro  Taniguchi,  The  Lonely  Gourmet,  2010

Some Original Comic because of its Plot

We´ll  see  some  example  of  comics  in  which  the  author  tells  stories  about  his  own  life  to  show  aspects  of  his  own  culture.

Marjane  Satrapi,  Persepolis,  2000

Objectives • To recognise the languages that make up static images.

• To use the textual and graphic elements of comics correctly.

Materials needed• Newspapers, magazines, catalogues

• Scissors, stick of glue

• Coloured pencils, felt pens, temperas

Presentation• This task has a high level of difficulty. •••• To make the process easier, students can start with photographs

or images they have found in magazines or newspapers whichallow them to create a story. They can also use the same shapesand modify them to match the narration.

• Remind students that their figures can have different levels oflikeness and that they can geometrise, outline or even maketheir figures and shapes abstract.

• The level of this activity can be adapted to meet the needs ofthe class:

• Students add less graphic and textual elements to the comicstrip: keeping the same appearance for all the frames; limitingshots, text, balloons and kinesthetic elements...

••• Students add more graphic and textual elements to thecomic strip: varying the formal appearance of the frames; usingdifferent balloons, bubbles and frame shots; adding kinestheticelements...

Evaluation criteria Assess the completed activity using the following criteria. Thestudent has:

1. Completed the task creatively.

2. Correctly used the skill and techniques required for their comicstrip.

3. Explained the plot, characters and script in English that is easyto understand.

4. Turned in a finished project that is neat and tidy.

(See Teacher’s Book, Introduction, page 6, Evaluation criteria.)

Moments in art...• Artists such as Roy Lichtenstein in the United States or the

Equipo Crónica in Spain, have used images similar to comicsin their representations. Their work style is, above all, rationaland cold.

1.7 Making a comic strip

28

Roy Lichtenstein, Explosion no.1, 1965. Equipo Crónica, Untitled, 1981.

GUÍA DIDÁCTICA EPV 3º 8/9/05 14:39 Página 28

Plot

The events that make up a story

Characters

ScriptThe document describing the narrative and

dialogue of a comic in detail.

Objectives • To recognise the languages that make up static images.

• To use the textual and graphic elements of comics correctly.

Materials needed• Newspapers, magazines, catalogues

• Scissors, stick of glue

• Coloured pencils, felt pens, temperas

Presentation• This task has a high level of difficulty. •••• To make the process easier, students can start with photographs

or images they have found in magazines or newspapers whichallow them to create a story. They can also use the same shapesand modify them to match the narration.

• Remind students that their figures can have different levels oflikeness and that they can geometrise, outline or even maketheir figures and shapes abstract.

• The level of this activity can be adapted to meet the needs ofthe class:

• Students add less graphic and textual elements to the comicstrip: keeping the same appearance for all the frames; limitingshots, text, balloons and kinesthetic elements...

••• Students add more graphic and textual elements to thecomic strip: varying the formal appearance of the frames; usingdifferent balloons, bubbles and frame shots; adding kinestheticelements...

Evaluation criteria Assess the completed activity using the following criteria. Thestudent has:

1. Completed the task creatively.

2. Correctly used the skill and techniques required for their comicstrip.

3. Explained the plot, characters and script in English that is easyto understand.

4. Turned in a finished project that is neat and tidy.

(See Teacher’s Book, Introduction, page 6, Evaluation criteria.)

Moments in art...• Artists such as Roy Lichtenstein in the United States or the

Equipo Crónica in Spain, have used images similar to comicsin their representations. Their work style is, above all, rationaland cold.

1.7 Making a comic strip

28

Roy Lichtenstein, Explosion no.1, 1965. Equipo Crónica, Untitled, 1981.

GUÍA DIDÁCTICA EPV 3º 8/9/05 14:39 Página 28