Pitching Highrisers:  Dissertation Project

For my Masters degree, I wrote a dissertation on designing animation and graphic fiction to entertain mature audiences and how these mediums challenge the traditional binary norm.  This provided the opportunity to research existing media like adult cartoons and comics that market juvenile designs to tell mature stories.  I learned about the background history of the different processes of animation, from the zoetrope and praxinoscope to Disney’s long-lasting input to modern-day 2D computer technology.  I also observed the 19th Century origins of illustrated books, progressing towards the comic and graphic novel industry.  Researching the process of animation and graphic fiction to convey topics on gender identities, the LGBTQIA+ community and non-monogamy defended my original concept for a series that positively promotes lifestyles otherwise demonised by the heteronormative society.  This includes designing a large cast of characters with multiple sexualities and gender identities.