Update for Nov 11th

Updates:
I have been watching Black Mirror season 3. That's something interesting.

So far I think that the most important ones relating to my own work are episodes 1, 3 and 4

Episode 1:
A strong start to the new season had an amazing blend of bright shiny new technology and social commentary. It isn't scary by any means, it is actually pretty low key and more about subtle drama and commentary. It really cut into the "snapchat" culture where tweens take photos of the their meals and make fun of each others clothes. I think the 3rd act is a little weak and does not deliver on it's message but it was still a very solid story where they take an abstract cultural phenomena and makes it a literal mechanic of the world.
Fun fact, there is an app coming out that lets you rate people, a YELP for people so to speak.
God help us.

Episode 3:
I think the fact that nothing blatantly supernatural about this episode made it feel a whole lot more real. There are historical cases of people being blackmailed into committing crimes. It is genuinely creepy how easily these people can be pushed into pure evil with just a few texts. The twist ending is inevitable but still shocking. This is almost exactly how I want my stories to be like, a largely unseen horror, easily understandable characters, a looming sense of dread, and subtle commentary about the modern age and how technology can be used for evil without vilifying technology as a whole.



Episode 4:
Summary: Adorable
The whole time i was laughing because it was like someone took the "dead lesbian" trope and made it literal.
I think that the concept of a virtual afterlife was interesting and I really liked the whole "pick immortality or pick death" dynamic as it could lead to a lot of interesting discussions, but it was not as fleshed out as I thought it would be.
I am not complaining though, this is the first Black Mirror episode to have a happy ending. It was too adorable for me to handle.
I love well written LGBT romances.



That is all in terms of Influences and research.
Black Mirror had a lot of great concepts to think about and some really solid "ghost story" elements that I will need to look into when completing my project.
Episode 3 was a great STORY. Even summing it up in a sentence it is still intriguing.
"Once a teens secrets are stolen from his computer by hackers, he is forced to complete a series of escalating crimes in order to keep his secret from being released."

In terms of actual work, I have a lot to present at tuesdays critque, I have a lot more concept art, and I am going to spend this weekend on digital pages and even some animated elements.
I have been in a huge slump due to the crushing depression that resulted from the election but I am forcing myself to draw again and hopefully I continue to be productive in spite of my mood.