From concept through execution including character creation,
back-stories, scripts, storyboards, thumbnails, pencils, inks, coloring,
print-production and accompanying ad campaign, this program ran for three years (initially only planned for one).
We used premium stocks/weights to emulate "collector's edition" quality.
With multiple recurring components, a multi-panel direct mail piece and 16x20 poster, personalized to the recipient and their company kicked things off. Each new comic book was followed by another multi-panel piece containing die-cut characters, and by the end you'd have them all –
the mighty CG Force and all of their foes.
Not being steeped in comic book production when we pitched the concept, I'll be honest, we never really thought they'd pick this of the three
concepts shown. This client was conservative and traditional.
Surprised and happy, we did a lot of research, combined some of
our favorite stylistic approaches and added something that wasn't evident in comic books at the time, but is commonplace today, and that's the use of photoshop to blend classic lines with advanced coloring techniques and special FX treatments, rather than flat color-cutting alone.
If you were a client, we wanted you to actually recognize the real and symbolic elements of the people it represented. I flew up to interview employees from executives to pressman, and took a lot of reference photos of their headquarters (both internal and external) to use in the series.
And, I felt we HAD to have a "J. Jonah Jameson" style illustration
of the president in the welcome letter.
The characters in CG Force are an amalgamation of people and qualities representing each area of expertise and core of business offered.
