1. Association for Media Education in Scotland
Teaching Comic Strips
Rick Instrell
Deep Learning
Version 1.0
1 June 2013
Association for Media Education in Scotland

2. Multimodal Approach All communication is multimodal
Every communication fulfils 3 functions:
Ideational function (ideas, experiences)
Interpersonal function (audience engagement)
Textual/compositional function (unifying modal elements to fulfil other two functions)
To analyse and create multimodally means understanding how modal elements are co-ordinated to engage the audience and communicate meaning

3. Modes A mode is a communication resource: Image Words
Audio (music, sound, dialogue)
Lettering
Colour
Layout (on a page or through time i.e. editing)
Body language
Interaction
Sensations (e.g. touch, smell)
Movement
Lifelikeness …

4. Can think of cartoon style as existing on a linear scale:
Lifelikeness
Can think of cartoon style as existing on a linear scale:
Realism
Caricature
Abstraction
Characters and setting may be similar or different
in how lifelike they are

5. COMIC STRIP TERMINOLOGY
Title
Panel/frame
Speech bubble
Sound effect/
SFX
Bleed
Symbols/
emanata
A CAPTION IS A BOX USED (USUALLY RECTANGULAR) FOR NARRATION: e.g.
“MEANWHILE…”
Speed/
motion lines
Gutter
TEXT IS USUALLY ALL IN CAPITALS

6. Cartoon Strip as Medium
Cartoon strip: page-based story-telling through a sequence of frames containing text and images
Because comic strip is a sequence of frames similar to a filmed sequence of shots it uses film conventions: use of shot distance (ELS, LS, MS, MCU, CU, ECU) and angle (high, straight, low, canted); zoom in/out; shot-reverse shot; eyeline match
Direction: left-right, top-bottom (in West)
Black and white or colour
All strips use similar basic conventions
Comic strip artistry comes from:
breaking basic conventions in expressive ways to represent character, emotion, situation, action
distinctive artwork and lifelikeness
cultural/intertextual references in image and language

7. Cartoon Strip Structures
Micro-structures: inter-frame relationships: shot-reverse shot, zoom in/out, repetition, contrast, Q/A, moment-moment, action-action, subject-subject, scene-scene, aspect-aspect, non-sequitur, flash-forwards, flashback, …
Macro-structures: Consistent style; narrative structure e.g. beginning (setting/ characters/ actions), middle (problem, effect), possible solution/cliffhanger
Comic strip narrative structure is often similar to that of mainstream film and television e.g. 4-act structure (setup, complication, development, resolution)
So comic strips are a good place for pupils to start the study of narrative

8. Manga
Style that tries to make the audience identify with rather than simply observe action
Iconic rather than realistic faces
Strong sense of place e.g. near photographic real world detail
Subjective effects e.g. motion lines, low/high angle
Broad range of character designs
Expressive design e.g. big close-ups, expressionistic montages and backgrounds

9. Analysing a Comic Strip
Analyse a comic strip:
Identify modal elements & their connotations/reasons for use
Identify genre and target reader
Identify stages in the narrative
Evaluate artistry (degree of lifelikeness, artwork, use of repetition & contrast, expressive breaking of basic conventions)
Evaluate representations e.g. stereotypes, non-stereotypes

10. Creating a Comic Strip 1. Pre-production planning
Identify purpose, target audience and genre
Create, evaluate and redraft storyboard
Decide on degrees of lifelikeness of characters and settings
2. Production
Collect/capture/create bank of images
Edit and store images in folder
3. Post-production
Use appropriate software to create and redraft comic strip
Print and save in format for distribution (e.g. pdf)

11. Six-Panel Storyboard
From Marchant, S. (2006) The Computer Cartoon Kit (with CD-ROM of images). Lewes: Ilex.
Digital images & instructions provided!

12. Design
Need to decide the style in terms of degrees of lifelikeness of characters and setting

13. Digital production
Creating/capturing/editing/storing images of characters, actions, props, settings based on style decisions
Need some images to be cut-outs i.e. have transparent backgrounds which do not obscure the background

14. Cut-outs CD-ROMs from Ilex may provide cut-outs
Some websites provide cut-outs e.g. Looney Tunes clip art (these copy and paste into PowerPoint but not ComicLife
Making background transparent can be done using advance software such as Adobe Photoshop or the cheaper Adobe Photoshop Elements and Gimp (free)
On-line tools are available to simplify the making of cut-outs e.g. free on-line image editor Lunapic

15. Cut-outs with Lunapic Go to www.lunapic.com
Click on Upload then Browse to locate and load your image
Select Edit>Transparent from menu bar (the Fuzz figure – default 5% - allows you to change the range of pixel colour to be removed (100% removes all pixels)
Click on area that you want to make transparent (a fuzz factor of 5% will remove all pixels 2.5% lighter/darker than the one you choose
Repeat 3 and 4 until desired area transparent (alter fuzz factor if area is a gradient fill)
Select File>Save Image and choose Save as PNG
A message appears at foot of screen. To the right of the Save button click on the down arrow and choose Save As… . Give the file a meaningful name and save it in a folder in the Pictures folder (on a PC Pictures is the default image folder for many other graphics programs)
N.B. If the surround colour is similar to colours in the part of the image you want it may make part of this transparent. This may need creative thinking for a workaround or better software!

16. Post-Production
Use of DTP program (e.g. Microsoft Publisher) or comic strip program (e.g. Comic Life) to produce comic and add text

17. Evaluation Evaluate in terms of: Purpose Audience engagement
Compositional unity
Technical proficiency
Artistry

18. On-line Resources
Graphic novelist Anina Bennett’s website Big Red Hair.
Education Scotland on-line resource on comics & graphic novels.
Comic scholar Mel Gibson’s website .
Looney Tunes clip art (Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck et al).
Marvel Comics on-line.
Gilles Poitras provides librarians & teachers with up-to-date resources on manga & anime.

19. Software
These are straightforward programs: (i.e. they avoid steeper learning curve for advanced tools like Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Photoshop Elements):
ComicLife for PC/Mac, $29.99 from
Microsoft PowerPoint plus Microsoft Snipping Tool
ToonDoo, free online comic creator at

20. Books
Bowkett, S. and Hitchman, T. (2012) Using Comic Art to Improve Speaking, Reading and Writing. London: Routledge.
Helsby, W. (2005) Children’s Comics: A Teacher’s Guide & Classroom Resources. Leighton Buzzard: Auteur Publishing.
Marchant, S. (2006) The Computer Cartoon Kit (with CD-ROM of images). Lewes: Ilex. Ilex Books has collections of digital clip art.
McCloud, S. (1993) Understanding Comics. New York: HarperCollins.
McCloud, S. (2006) Making Comics. New York: Harper.