Hello! I’m Danielle and I am a communication design student and this work is a part of my capstone project at university. Bound is a story about the inevitability of loss but also connection, within this work I wanted to seek a different way of displaying and exploring grief in media directed towards children. Underestimating children’s capability of understanding complexity of navigating loss. Through this story I aim to not draw conclusions or define lessons but let it be a moment for reflection and relatability.
A special thanks to Lucy, Calvin, Jana and Tonya for all the help, advice and feedback on this project.
Process
I drew all the illustrations digitally in Photoshop using textured brushes to get a similar texture found in traditional mediums. Through texture and colour, I wanted to create an atmosphere of uncertainty but also warmth and playfulness. The animations were made frame by frame in Photoshop to have the same painterly effect as the illustrations and then made into a video in premiere pro.
No generative AI tools were used at any point in the creation of this work.
Inspiration
The inspiration behind this project is the relationship between myself and my childhood cat. Pulling the guilt and grief of my own experience with the anticipation of losing my cat with the near-death experiences he has had and recent diagnosis.