Studying character design is certainly a multifaceted subject. There are lots of ways to approach designing original characters, and learning design principles from all angles will round out your skills and strengthen your portfolio.
My experience creating characters for TV and film has taught me the importance of balancing technical skill with creativity and imagination. Generating creative ideas and being an effective visual communicator are key to finding work in animation.
Creating expressive characters full of appeal takes practice and instincts that can be attained through focused study. Part of being an artist is understanding that your evolution is a lifelong pursuit and progress is made by taking consistent small steps. Follow along as I offer ways to show personality in your work and draw from life experiences to find your voice as a character designer.
1 BODY LANGUAGE
The body language of a character communicates their emotional state and is an essential part of creating characters packed with life. Their expression runs through the entire design and doesn't solely depend on the face. Body language can be loud and bold or soft and subtle, and the hands can be just as expressive as the eyes and face. Even the colour is a form of expression. In this case, the hummingbird's feet are acting more like hands, which brings it more personality and dexterity. The pink and gold tones of the feathers provide a softness that balances the bold, sharp beak shape.
2 KEEP IT SIMPLE
A wide range of emotions can be drawn with just a few simple lines. A great exercise is to practise drawing clear, easy-to-read facial expressions.
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Esta historia es de la edición November 2024 de ImagineFX.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
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Jan Wessbecher
Dominic Carter talks to the visual artist about creating his own comic and why sketchbooks are great for creative experiments
Kyounghwan Kim
The Korean character concept artist speaks to Dominic Carter about staying open to ideas and the value of drawing regularly
Slawek Fedorczuk
Dominic Carter talks to the concept artist about what keeps him motivated and the advantages of using physical sketchbooks.
Raquel M. Varela
Raquel is inspired by magic, fantasy and fairy tales. She loves designing female characters from distant worlds. \"My greatest reference is Loish's art, thanks to her I learned to draw the movement and fluidity I like to convey.\"
Estrela Lourenço
Estrela is a children's book author and illustrator. Her work is influenced by her background in character animation and storyboards for clients such as Cartoon Network, and she channels comic strips like Calvin and Hobbes.
Daria Widermanska
Daria, also known as Anako, has been drawing for as long as she can remember. Inspired by Disney and classic anime, she loves creating new characters and often finds that a single sketch can spark a unique story.
Allen Douglas
Allen has been painting professionally since 1994 for the publishing and gaming industries. Inspired by folklore, he distorts the size, relationships and environments of animals, and calls his paintings 'unusual wildlife'.
Thaddeus Robeck
Thaddeus has been drawing from the moment he could hold a pencil, but it was the 2020 lockdowns that gave him the time to focus on honing his skills.
DRAW FASCINATING SYMBOLIC ARTWORK
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First Impressions
The artist talks about his journey into the mythological world