DAVID KWON - Psychological Horror Concept Art Collection

by davidkwon on 30 May 2023 for Rookie Awards 2023

Hello! My name is David, I'm 19, and I'm just starting my studies at Gnomon School of VFX, Games, and Animation. After high school graduation, I created this project to dive deep into a personal vision of dark horror and psychological terror, and sharpen my skills as a surreal, cinematic storyteller. Enjoy :)

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DAVID KWON - Psychological Horror Concept Art Collection

by davidkwon

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SHE KEEPS SCREAMING

...is a personal project I designed to capture the dark mood and atmosphere of a twisted dream. As a fan of surreal, dream-like psychological horror, I wanted this project to feel dissociated from our world, but strangely connected to it in the darkest of ways. I approached the series from a more personal, internal perspective to bring an audience into a dream-like tragedy of family trauma, loneliness, and confusion that many can relate to.

Above all, I tried not to stray away from harrowing, dark storytelling, and to let my imagination run wild with carefully chosen cinematic presentation, composition, and lighting.

The dream takes place within what seems like an average American suburban home.

Darkness awaits.

PROCESS:

Each of my cinematic concept art paintings starts with a 3D base to establish proportions, composition, and lighting. The paint-over process is where I infuse each piece with emotion and connect them in a dark, cinematic harmony. Below you can see the breakdown from the first block-out in 3D to the final paint-over.

ETERNAL DEVOTION...

is a concept series inspired by "THE ORDER OF SPIRITUAL VIRGINS," a beautiful, dark, and terrifying song by Lingua Ignota.

I interpreted the lyrics of the song,

"Hide your children, hide your husbands...

I am relentless, I am incessant, I am the ocean...

And all who dare look upon me swear eternal devotion"

as a grand entrance of a terrifying, all-powerful, and mysterious entity directly related to the ocean through a sinister nature.

This cinematic keyframe series operates as an establishing shot for this menacing figure as she presents herself to the audience in her dark and mysterious form.

PROCESS:

Similar to the design of "SHE KEEPS SCREAMING," each of these pieces are 3D paintovers. I sourced reference of fashion, and specific film examples of cinematic framing and color grading to best tell the story of this character, and completed digital cinematic sketches to help visualize the character's entrance into the frame. Below you can see the breakdown from the 3D to the final paint-over.