Inspiration came from multiple sources. For a while I toyed with the idea of a Faun creature playing the pipes...

Then there was the subject of ware to set the story?

I prefered the idea of an Autumn woodland

A model of Pan from Pans Labrynth which was a very big reference and one of the big reasons the Nymph girl has horns...

5 Images of woods which I liked. Trying to find the right atmosphere in my minds eye.

Great colour. My 2nd and 1st year animations were black and white. year three was going to have colour. 

Any of these images are submitted as they have some sort of reason for being here for one influence or another..

Tooth Fairy from Hell boy 2.

 Of course Jim Hensons Labrynth was an influence.

Model making and sculpture has all ways appealed to me. Laika are great at it. I really get so much enjoyment that much of there work is hand crafted.

One of the many images (Im only showing a selection) that turned my attention to make the main character more youthful and femineine....

An earlyer idea prompted by an image like this one featured a fairy character receiving wisdom from an aged tree-like character... It wasnt practical for what could be achieved. 

Another image of inspiration. at first I hadnt thought about the character having too much appeal... even thought about having the story about Monsters (see sketch book 1)

Originally the main character was a forrest dweller kind of character but was more of a mystical story teller. later it became female and more youthfull as the single character needed to fulfill a particular role.

In early stages of the concept process (sketchbook 1) there were many ideas that I thought Would this or that work? should it be abstract? should it be fantasy or should it be real?

The company Laika were a huge reason I wanted to do my FMP in stop-motion.

Laika are who I am writing my Dissertation about.