The Ballad of Bea and Cad

[carriecopadraws]

Saw this Nickelodeon animated short yesterday and was just blown away. I've been struggling with what sort of "style" I should try to go for and looking at artists I admire, and when I saw this animation I was like, "THIS. I want to make this."

Screenshot:

Things I like about the animation that I want to work on for myself:

• simplistic but not abstract characters, still lots of personality
• thin, uniform linework
• detailed backgrounds
• lovely color schemes
• great framing
• the fantasy/adventure subject matter

It's about 5 minutes of fantastic storytelling. Give it a watch! Sadly the animation is only a proof-of-concept, not a real show in the works, but there IS a graphic novel in the works.

The Ballad of Bea and Cad

[Heather Boyd]

I think I saw a clip of this!
I really like elements of this type of work, especially the short (5 minute) story. Its like a glimpse of a dream and I have so many of those. lols
The clip I watched was humorous but still kept me on my toes, that is something I like to see in my work down the road. Laughter heals.
I really liked the colours in certain scenes and the different settings/environments capture my eye.

Though I generally prefer more texture, blending and depth or volume/sculptural to my illustrations. I definitely see the appeal, I would need to blend this with more of what I prefer as well to be a better fit for me.

Thank you for sharing.

[Miriam]

@carriecopa I love this style, too! Thanks for sharing the video.

You should take a look at Helen Oxenbury's work. I just saved a stack of her illustrations on Pinterest for inspiration & master copy options. I'll have to add some by Tim Probert!

Google Image search for Helen Oxenbury