The Jackson's agency approached Stephen with the creative brief for a new commercial it was shooting for TAFE NSW. The concept was based around the trials and tribulations of discovering a new career path, in the form of a live action snakes and ladders game. The hero in this story would move from square to square, sometimes rising quickly up a ladder only to be confronted by a lack of skills in the form of a snake, forcing them to slide back down to where they came from. This was the metaphor used to show how levelling up at TAFE NSW can reduce the risks of these setbacks. To shoot this scene Jackson's needed a full-size Snakes and ladders board for the actor to work their way around, confronting the central snake on square eighty-six. A 3D artist would later animate this snake. Stephen began the process of creating this oversized piece by designing the base game board, along with sketches of the snake poses and positions. Once the base artwork was approved Franklin moved on to developing the individual snake illustrations. The outcome was a rich, imaginative background that allowed the actor to play the role of the intrepid student traversing the difficulties of their career path.

Creative Direction: Jackson’s Agency
Illustration: Stephen Franklin
Snakes and ladders board game.
Complete illustration with a final print size of 3000 mm x 3000 mm.
Stephen created custom brushes in Photoshop for the snakeskin patterns.
Illustration of long wriggling light brown snake with dark brown stripes.
All the snakes were produced as individual high-resolution files for use in post-production.

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College Portfolio
Portfolio submitted as a requirement for graduating from the KvB College of Visual communication, Sydney Australia. Stephen received a diploma in Graphic Design on the 7th of December 1987.
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Retouching of the front of pack hero image for the Norwegian frozen pizza brand Grandiosa.
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Cover illustration created for a Microsoft Windows Server NT sales brochure for the Frontline agency, Sydney. 
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