Character concept development 201

This Character concept development class will make use of the prehistoric animals and people from millions of years ago. You will create your own characters using other artist references as well as bones of long-extinct creatures.

What is Character concept development?

Character designers create the characters we love! A character concept artist creates visual ideas of what the character could look like. The drawings may or may not be seen in the final film but they do influence the general look.

As a character concept development artist, you will bring to life an assortment of very strange and odd-shaped creatures, that you can twist and tweak to create your own designs while staying consistent with the dinosaur’s basic structure.   Push a pose to a place where you feel uncomfortable and then dial it back to something you like. The art of pushing a pose and character design is perfect for dinosaurs and other prehistoric creatures. Character concept artists often influence the finished product. 

But why Dinosaurs?

Dinosaurs are naturally ugly and strange creatures. Because they are such weird creatures they are perfect to practice appealing character design! You can make a scary dino or you can make a happy dino. You must give your dino human qualities. Because people need to relate to your characters try to think of them as people. Personality is the key! Also, you must do research! Reference pictures are a must! Dinosaur Books can be a great resource for this assignment.   Also, you should take the animal drawing class so you can have a basic understanding of animal structure. Caricature the real thing and give them some emotion. Character concept development is one of the most creative processes of the animation world!

In this fun course, you will cover an array of topics including the following.

• simple geometric shapes
• fun simple shapes
• Making an appealing drawing 
• Using your imagination
• distinct personality and emotions
• gestural drawing 
• rough loose form and not a rigid flat design.