Kethelavia: Promoting and branding an original cartoon using interactive website design

Abstract

How to design and promote a cartoon brand are always interesting questions to contemporary cartoon industry. To the rising Chinese cartoon business, they need to find a suitable way for its continuous development. Through reviewing the evolution process of some classical cartoon brands in the world, the history and current status of Chinese cartoon industry, I have found that, cartoon making is no longer purely an art work, but rather a concept of brand design. Like fashion, cartoon brand design asks for a constant self-re-innovation to meet the change in culture and aesthetic standards.

On the other hand, new technology innovations always influence the concept of cartoon and its artistic style. Application of novel techniques into cartoon making has already propelled the cartoon industry in fascinating speed. This thesis work will also review some best examples to illustrate such relationship between technology innovation and cartoon industry evolution.

As the main body of this thesis work, I will present my original cartoon brand creation-the world of "Kethelavia"-to demonstrate my vision of cartoon brand making. Kethelavia has a plot and role design derived from a popular Chinese ideology. It incorporates western graphical design style and popular digital techniques in its artistic form. ActionScript3 is one way of the core techniques that is used to power the interactive interface between the designer and the customers. Kethelavia concept and its products will be promoted in the form of interactive webpage through Internet. Its potential customers are actively engaged to experience the world of Kethelavia in multiple ways online.