Tradigital mythmaking : Baia

Abstract

Tradigital Mythmaking: Baia is a comic project that seeks to tell the story of a negotiation between tradition and change. The story features Baia, the main character and a youth of the Crocodile Tribe that dwells deep underwater, who encounters Lita, a human girl who saves his life.

‘Baia’ seeks to be primarily an entertainment and exploratory piece that can act as a spark of interest in investigating traditional motifs with contemporary comic styles and sequential storytelling formats. These visual motifs are derived from research on the traditional woven crafts of the Iban people of Borneo. The project’s visual development studies the reptilian motifs in the Iban woven crafts and seeks to investigate potential graphic novel design process deviations and the effects of traditional meanings imposed on a contemporary comic style.

These motifs could possibly hold the key to greater awareness of Southeast Asian meanings and cultures, if granted a chance to be meticulously adapted for visual entertainment modes better aligned with the digital-centric lifestyles today.

The outcome of the project is a fully coloured 34-page graphic novel and a visual development booklet.