Arcadia
Project details
- Year
- 2020
- Programme
- animation
- Practices
- Commercial
- Minor
- Data Design
My project is the concept for an animated series which shows the consequences of climate change in the future through the eyes of animals. As soon as they escape from their perfect zoo they realize the real world has changed dramatically.
The story follows a group of animals who have been living in the zoo for their whole life. That is for one exception: The Hawksbill Turtle Mazu. She was captured and transported to the zoo years ago. Now, about a 100 years later she keeps dreaming about paradise: Arcadia. Which is the outside world. She still believes its as great as it used to be and she decides to escape the zoo together with other animals who all believe the world is better outside of their habitats. But they aren’t aware of what happended in the past 100 years…
Climate change is a very big topic these days. While some people try to
make sure it doesn’t get any worse. Other people are in denial. What’s
the most shocking thing in my eyes is that we sometimes forget we’re
not alone in this world. We share this planet with countless numbers of
animals. Animals whose existence is in great danger for many reasons.
For this project I want to create a pitch bible to tell a story, a story told
through the eyes of animals and their experience with climate change.
This with a focus on the character design and environment art. A concept
which could later be used for a movie, animated series or maybe even a
video game. I also want to create a story which dares to show the harsh
and often cruel reality these animals might face. The reason I’ve chosen
for an animated show is that I believe its an attractive way to tell a story.
And in that way appeal to more people which makes for a broader audience.
Characters
For the main characters I decided to work with endangered animals who facing extinction because of climate change. I selected animals from different biomes and each of them also has their own reason for going extinct. In contrast I also added two animals who will remain neutral or actually profit from climate change: The American Bullfrog and the Cockroach.
The Zoo
Because the story was set in the future I also did research about the future of zoo’s. What will they look like? How do they work?
Based on the results of my research I created the concept for an immersive zoo. There will be 5 “domes”, each housing a different biome. The Savanna, the mountains, the rainforest, the arctic and the Ocean. Each biome has their own dome. Because of its enclosure it’s easier to control the climate within each some by changing temperatures and creating artificial rainstorms for example. In terms of design the domes will be very immersive, people have to walk through narrow paths in the jungle to spot animals and in the Ocean and Arctic Biome’s people can use a translucent tunnel that goes underwater. In the Arctic section people even get to rent warm jackets to keep themselves warm. The domes will be connected by a main plaza where the visitors can go to each dome, but also connected underground where it’s also connected to the old underground railroad. This is where maintainance will happen bust most people, including the staff will use the top level. At last there will be also a laboratory and vet station where people can witness doctors at work, this reflects the need for education at zoo’s in the future.
