Abstract / Project Statement
My name is Jalyn, and I am an illustration major with a focus in visual development. I have curated a visual development deck celebrating the process of idea creation and execution. All content included expands upon my own original story concept titled, “Souls of the Blade.” Through extensive exploration of character, narrative, and world building, the deck will serve as a proof of concept demonstrating skills suited for the animation industry.
Set in a tarnished, post-war land inspired by 15th century Korea, the story follows a roaming warrior named Ojin. She wields a sword containing the imprisoned souls of warriors slain by its own blade.
The deck will cover 20+ characters, props, and narrative pieces. Annotated artist’s notes will accompany the images, detailing the developmental progress. I will employ a lead based character hierarchy stylistically focused on movement and textured mark making. All will culminate into a character driven action adventure of haunting spectacle.
Artist Statement
Jalyn Canlas
Character Designer | Vis Dev Artist | Illustrator
Jalyn’s work encapsulates expressive forms and dramatic silhouettes. By layering sharp, geometric shapes with expressive mark making she captures the illusion of movement within a still image. This movement and robust character detail are two of the driving forces for their work.
She enjoys embracing multiple ways to push visual style in concept and illustration imagery, favoring experimentation over repetition. Through adaptability, fluidity, and variation, she captures the elegant and the wacky.
At home when surrounded by Portland trees, Jalyn is most often absorbed in the ideation process and scribbling away at thumbnail sketches. During the occasional break, they can be found rearranging their collection of small figurines and drowsily looking out windows. She is currently working on her indie project, “Souls of the Blade,” a vis dev portfolio following a steadfast swordswoman sworn to avenging the dead.
