Evan Gardner

Writer and Illustrator | Work Samples

About These Samples

These two projects were developed for upper-division English and animation courses. They both forefront my ability to write compelling stories, maintain tone, and take advantage of medium. The first is Hounded! a murder-mystery parody game. The story uses aspects of the visual novel form to both involve the reader and elevate the comedy. The second is Drowning, a short film animatic, a piece that showcases my proficiency in dramatic tone and pacing.

My process from idea to finished piece is similar regardless of medium. I start with an idea, taking into consideration any limitations. For Hounded! I designed a project that would be feasible to complete within a semester, and utilized a genre that I thought would benefit from a shorter play time. Drowning was also made in a semester, and was scripted around my limited access to voice actors. With ideas in place, I consider the story beats that need to happen throughout the piece. I ideate visual aspects early on, making sure that they develop alongside the written side of the project rather than after. This dual process helps my finished work appear more cohesive and thought out than it would if it were segmented into different procedures.

Hounded!

Mystery Parody Visual Novel | Fall 2024

This visual novel is a comedy parodying the murder mystery and film noir genres. It displays a grasp on both the genres that it references and satire. It also uses form to give the reader agency, allowing them to make decisions in the case they were sent to investigate along with the mystery of a bar owner’s death.

Revisions

An earlier draft of the game featured more contemporary humor and a narrator that refused to seriously engage with the premise of the story. After feedback from peers, I replaced the ineffective jokes with more period-specific ones, and rewrote the narrator to be less incredulous, giving the player more agency in how they engaged with the story.

What it shows an employer

Parody requires an engagement with and understanding of its subject matter. Hounded! shows my ability to make setting and genre clear through visuals and writing, giving it a stronger foundation for comedy.

  • Comedic Writing
  • Player Autonomy
  • Multimedia Projects
  • Genre Understanding
Play Online

Drowning

Dramatic Mystery Short Film Animatic | Fall 2025

Drowning centers around two students passing notes in class after a recent tragedy at their school. It exemplifies my ability to tell a clear but complex story without betraying the atmosphere of the piece. It also displays my multimedia abilities, as I scripted, illustrated, and composed the music for this project.

Revisions

My character designs were revised heavily to align better with the goals of the story. My initial designs were very similar and were differentiated only by hair color and height. After feedback from peers and my professor, I incorporated more shape language into the characters, giving Caz a more straight-laced look and SJ an erratic unpredictability through sharp edges and triangles.

What it shows an employer

This animatic is a strong example of my storytelling abilities. It encapsulates the importance that I place on visuals to communicate, and my ability to convey meaning and complexities without compromising mystery or atmosphere. This piece best represents my multimedia studies that I’ve focused on throughout my academic career.

  • Script Writing
  • Concept Development
  • Storyboarding
  • Multimedia Projects
View on YouTube

Want to see something shorter? My 75-second video essay is a sample of scripting and multimedia production.