ramonn90

The Story Behind 'Cut' - An Old Friend? (PSD & Video)

Added 2024-08-30 16:00:11 +0000 UTC

'Cut' started as a simple narrative about salt and pepper, where I chose the butcher profession as a second layer based on the connection both have with meat.

In search of ideas to make this situation feel more authentic, I decided to show that the meat they were storing and butchering was from a dragon. Up to this point, I wasn’t very satisfied with the composition; they weren’t interacting with each other, just standing there doing their job.

While drawing the big guy's face, I wanted to soften his serious expression by showing him struggling with the weight. This small change sparked the idea that he might not be so happy with the situation, and then I thought, 'What if the dragon was an old friend?' This last layer felt like the missing piece. From that point, I made adjustments to push the story further, such as:

A tattoo of a dragon on the character's arm.
Depicting the heart of the dragon instead of just meat.
Switching the concepts: now the big guy would represent salt, since salt is used to preserve meat. This was a nice way to suggest that the salt character was actually taking care of the dragon.
Finally, I rotated the salt character's head towards the heart to show a very sad expression, with red eyes, emphasizing the significance of this moment.

I'm not sure if people will catch this backstory, but I feel satisfied with the result, especially since I'm aiming to create more meaningful pieces with deeper narratives and multiple layers.

Process Video: https://youtu.be/2n-p7JvbpzE

I hope you enjoy this little insight. Don’t forget to check the PSD and process video for more. Thank you for your support.