Review 2

Friday 30^th July

Panel: Arathi, Geetu & Nupur

Feedback:

• CHOOSE YOUR FINAL PRODUCT/OUTCOME: Due to the time constraint I have been asked to make a decision of whether I want to design a series of interactive sessions through which children learn about food sustainability- and then test what works and what doesn’t; OR design a book, and through the means of a strong character (an Eco Gastronaut), narrative and activities introduce the concept of food sustainability and inspire children to become Eco Gastronauts. I think I’ll go with the book because 1) like Arathi pointed out it will be a nice summation to your years of specialising in VC 2) I really want to explore my skills at creating a character, narrative and illustration style that show how living a sustainable lifestyle is fun and easy to do, and inspires children and their parents to follow suit!

Nupur: Can you still implement the initial idea of a shopping bag that has information about Food Sustainability?

• Possibly create a “kit” that has the book about Eco Gastronauts as the main product, and complementary/supplementary products- like a Gastronaut shopping bag that reminds you about how you choose to buy your food, and an apron that has food safety instructions printed on it for as reminders for when you cook, and a table mat for when you share a meal with people. Products also work as mediums to promote and spread the message of food sustainability. They also compel you to want to do the activities of the Eco Gastronaut.

Geetu: while introducing the idea of Food Sustainability, can you figure out an obtuse way of doing it. Don’t just go to the core- sustainability- can you find more subtle methods that bring about the ideas of sustainability. E.g.: to make kids accept Gay people you introduce a Gay friend/character in a group of friends in sitcoms, or introduce a character who doesn’t drink at a party and drives home the rest to discourage teenagers from drinking and driving. Also the example of Nestle introducing coffee flavoured desserts for children so that they grow up liking the taste of coffee- to increase coffee sales in a country where tea drinkers reigned supreme.

Also what is the meta reason for sustainability? Can you try and find out the reasons beyond the apparent; the origin for the desire for sustainability- is it evolutionary?

It can help you come up with a different angle to pose your narrative that is beyond the obvious, and make it more interesting/compelling.

Arathi: you have a lot of ideas, it’s time you focus on one and try to tie in the rest with that one core idea you want to introduce.

Nupur: children’s books that have strong primary characters- series “Horrible Henry”. 

Looking at various types of children’s books that look at  a variety of methods to make a narrative more fun, exciting, compelling- illustration, interactivity, character building. Even if they are not about food they can help you think of “obtuse angles” to introduce food sustainability to kids.

Deliverables:

• Zero in on a central idea and weave a narrative around it that introduces the different ideas of food sustainability.
• Build a strong character who will lead the narrative.
• Illustration style that makes the story visually gripping.
• Format of the book- pop ups, flaps, putt outs... how can you create layers of information.