Major Project: Logo Refinement

  I spent some time today workin out an appropriate logo for Wessex Biowonders (which could work fine as its own company. I like the WX combination but I'd say my favourites of these are 4, 6 and 7. The main angle I was going for was something that reflected the aesthetics of the 1970s so I did some digging into 60s and 70s-era branding. Company brands like Motorola and Sony have been relatively unchanged since the 1950s while others like Renault adopted an aesthetic of clean parallel tramlines.

I might stick with 7, as it is one of the stronger outcomes. The least convoluted and possibly most echoing the period-appropriate trend of bold lines and clear imagery..

Major Project: More Logos More Creature Heads

  I got drawing more logos but I feel like I'm honing in on an idea. I was drawn to the W-X combinations like 29 and 37, but also the iconography of 25. I think I can make the W-X combo distinct. I tried playing around with alternatives all the while thinking of how other companies manage it. While the common theme is it's simple and straightforward, designs themselves vary wildly from monograms (Volkswagon,Uber, Virgin, AOL, First Great Western) to iconic (Monsanto, Lloyd's, Birdseye) to abstract (Amtrak,, Ubisoft, Legendary Pictures, Mercedes-Benz). Abstract icons are interesting as there is imagery in their logos. Maybe Smithston-Wessex could simply be something like "Wessex Frontiers" or "Wessex Frontier Interests".

  As suggested by Phil, I spent the afternoon watching Splice. I thought it was going ot be a standard Alien-esque haunted house film due to the marketing angle (the back of the jewel case for instance has such lines as "an uncontrollable mistake that's about to break loose and rip their world apart into tiny pieces"). But it wasn't, and chimed with my story much more closely than I expected. I might have taken inspiration as the creature in it started off quite alien, but over the course of the film developed into something much more human. Its almost a shame the creature developed the way it did as earlier instances such as its baby phase and the first creatures shown - the latter of which were practically blobby translucent slugs - were much more bizarre. But I can understand why it developed the way that it did, as the story had tones that related to parenthood and growing up.

  The themes were there, and I find myself likely to take inspiration away that will help a lot on this project to sell a convincing creature design.

Smithston Wessex Logo Experiments

  This morning one thing cycled though my mind: I started wondering about a logo for Smithston-Wessex (Theme-wise I suppose it makes some sense the art-of document looks a bit like a corporate brochure or report document. So this logo would appear on the corners of pages.

  There is a lot of experimentation with the W because David works more specifically for Wessex Biowonders. But I wonder if a renaming is in order as there's perhaps too much of a Weyland-Yutani vibe from the branding (1, 7 and 12 especially). Though I may keep the horizon line.

Major Project: Initial Character Concepts

Smithston-Wessex

Hundred and ten year old company
Formed from merger of two companies - Wessex Organic Technologies and Smithston Frontiers.

Wessex Biowonders is a subsidiary company of Wessex Organic Technologies specialising in biotechnology and genetic engineering. Its stake on the planet is the creation of various biotechnical products from local plant and wildlife that can be used to enhance terraforming efforts on the planet. While it is a company with a strong public image, even appearing enthusiastic about establishing mankind in deep space, Smithston-Wessex is a public company whose board of directors are dedicated to the bottom line and appeasing their shareholders. This puts them at odds with their science staff as the board's demands can be unreasonable at times.

Despite a popular public image, Smithston-Wessex's board are aware of several rising deep-space companies that could surpass them. Some of its board are deeply worried that if things start becoming problematic, the terraforming project could potentially remove Smithston-Wessex from the top spot of the deep space development industry.

The base itself was developed by Smithston Frontiers subsidiary Grayston Frontier Engineering, who specialise in constructing offworld habitats. Grayston also run the base's engineering department. During the story, Grayston take an interest in the material of Four's cocoon. Its lightweight but rigid composition make it a material of interest for construction, body armour and vehicle assembly. Grayston engineers would be fascinated in analysing the creature and how it produces this compound for hibernation.

Handler

Name: David
Age: mid-fifties
Occupation: Lead biotechnician, Outpost Wessex-Choris
Marital status: Married, but relation estranged

A senior biotechnician working for Wessex Biowonders, David Stensson is the lead biotechnician for Smithston-Wessex's efforts to exploit the features of the planet for terraforming. David has worked with Wessex since being offered an apprenticeship after graduating from university. Initially a talented researcher who developed a number of organic petrochemical compounds.

In his later years however his career has fallen into stagnancy. A few years prior to the story, David was working late when his child passed away in hospital. David had been kept at work throughout the period his child was in hospital and after they passed away he took up an opening for a senior position at Wessex's Choria outpost on the far-off planet. He felt that he was not suitable for caring for a child due to company pressure and decided to fully dedicate himself to company efforts.

Although he was a man passionate about the possibilities nature provides for new technologies when he graduated with his doctorate, David has become more jaded as the excitement of his earlier projects become a more distant memory and his reality is of projects he might never gai nrecognition for. He is wholly professional in his behaviour. He is cold, focused and indifferent to the problems of people around him, but approaches his efforts with a cold enthusiasm. Never smiling until his paternal instincts are awakened in his care and excitement for Four.

Wife

Name: Amelia
Age: late forties
Occupation: Senior researcher, Orton Nanotech
Marital status: Married, but relation estranged

The wife of David, Amelia is a senior materials researcher for Orton Nanotech, a partner of Smithston-Wessex. She met David at a conference on the use of micro-scale technologies for exploring and colonising outer space.

Amelia raised a child with David when she was in her thirties. When the child fell ill, she attended it in hospital, comforting it while David was working on a project for Wessex. She has felt mild resentment for David abandoning his responsibilities as a husband and father by moving to the outpost. By the time of the story she has planned a divorce, falling for a colleague at Orton.

Unlike her husband, Amelia has a more positive outlook on life. She still enjoys her career but feels uneasy talking to her increasingly distant husband. By the time of the story, she is following though with a divorce, something she feels uncomfortable doing as it is as she is well aware of the pain it could cause, but hides these feelings aside as David's distance from her eases the pain.

Four

A native to the planet outpost Wessex-Choris is established on, Four is raised within the base overseen by David. As a creature growing up in an alien environment, Four resents his confinement, becoming bitter at the staff until David starts being kinder to him.

As a creature growing up in an alien environment, Four is highly observant of his surroundings, and becomes known for staring at new things and people to understand them. While still a beast, Four is intelligent, good at solving puzzles as the researchers discover, but always longing for the chance to explore the outside.