The Aldinous Cave

For the world inside the book, Silas and Kaija are on a quest to slay a terrifying beast inside a magical cave. To create this otherworldly environment, artists created a cave with subtle references to some of the mysterious, exotic caves of New Zealand and added a layer of fantasy in the interior details and the creatures living within the cave. We chose to focus on a blue palette for the design, contrasting with the warm palette of the lead characters and literally taking them “out of their element.” We also wanted to bring a sense of realism to the rocks and flooring, achieved with custom textures created and painted in Photoshop, as the goal of the film was to make the world of the characters just as real as our own.