The plant
Project Title: 3D Illustration – Piranha Plant
Client Name: Toronto Film School – Student Work
Brief: Based on the video game Super Mario Brothers, an isometric illustration to demonstrate the role of gardeners in caring for the evil “Piranha Plant”. With a top view, the three gardeners take on different roles in caring for the plant; trying to escape, attack, and feed.
Roll and Skills: I designed and developed an isometric illustration using various techniques in Adobe Illustration with shapes and paths creating the illusion of a 3D scene. Using the scale, shear, and rotate tools, shapes are transformed to the desired perspective, top, right, or left. The 3D Classic – Extrude & Bevel effect creates depth within objects, a top-down perspective. Cone shapes created with the 3D Classic – Revolve applies the isometric perspective to build the central elements of the objects.
Results: Using illustration tools and effects, an isometric illustration, with a top view perspective, tells the story of gardeners caring for a very challenging plant.
Case Study
Ideation
Bringing the elements of the story together in one cohesive design, where the layout of the background and the subjects, the plant and gardeners are envisioned to effectively tell a story.
Colour
Inspired by the video game, a complementary colour pairing of red, and green is accented with gold to create simplicity, interest, and a cohesive illustration. Tonal changes of the colour palette help achieve a 3D appearance of the illustration, tinted when close to the light source and shaded as the surface of the object moves away from the light source.
The platform is inspired by the video game, a cube with details in isometric form serves as the ground for the central object.
The central object is the “Piranha Plant”, positioned to fill most of the layout, to be the focus of the story.
“Feeding”
“Attacking”
“Running”
Elements to add context to the story are included in the scene, including a hamburger, watering can, rake, and flagpole, all indicating the roles of the gardeners.
