This course is a more advanced look at character design through the lens of a storyteller and is designed for those looking to improve their skills as concept artists and illustrators.
The ten-week course covers a wide range of related topics, and students will have the opportunity to develop an entire portfolio while developing a story of their own. Students may select a story that already exists, but will be required to change it in some way - genre-bend it, change the time period, make it a sweeping epic fantasy, or mash two stories together! If a student is already developing a story, they may use it as their theme for this course.
Class 1- Intro to Character Design
What is it? How does an artist create a character with story? What is shape language and how does it help in creating clear design choices? Students will use whatever methods they’re familiar with to create a character from scratch either traditionally or digitally. They will demonstrate their individual ideas on what story-driven character design is. These characters can be based in reality, or branch off into sci-fi and fantasy. Students will be required to have a story idea for the next class. This story will be one that they will develop over the course of this class. The class will shift to digital for the remaining classes.
Class 2- Using Reference
Students will follow a demonstration from the instructor on how a character can be designed from scratch using collected reference photos. They will learn the importance of reference not only as aspiring concept artists, but as professional artists as well. They will learn the importance of selecting proper reference materials to help support their character design and the overall story.
Class 3- Designing with Line
Students will begin fine-tuning their skills and their selected stories by learning to design a character from a rough sketch all the way to a polished piece of line art. They will begin working on their own characters using the demonstrated method, their references, along with guidance from the instructor.
Class 4- Style exploration
Students will learn how to use a selected palette to help support their character. Complimentary colors, limited palettes, use of basic lighting as well as starting to think in 3D will be some of the topics covered during this class.
Class 5- Using Color
Students will learn how to use a selected palette to help support their character. Complimentary colors, limited palettes, use of basic lighting as well as starting to think in 3D will be some of the topics covered during this class.
Class 6- Rendering
This class will cover the instructor’s process for rendering a character. The students will learn how to think like a designer and adapt their original ideas on the fly in order to best support their character designs. Students will continue working on their cast of characters.
Class 7- Designing Character Props
Class 8- Character Portraits
While not common in character design, character portraits allow the artist to discover even more about their characters’ stories. Paying particular attention to the finer details such as scars, hair, facial features, etc...the students will begin working on portraits of their characters and fine-tune their designs.
Class 9 - Orthographic Turns
The use of orthographic turns in design allows the 3D modeler to understand the intention of the concept artist and faithfully recreate the 2D design in 3D. Students will learn how to create orthographic turns that pay careful attention to how a costumed design fits together. This will also include finding and using material callouts.
Class 10- The Action Pose
