Designing a Character From Start to Finish

Part 1 of 2

Happy October!

For our first autumn art date, I thought we’d get a little spooky and create a witchy Mascot of the Month. (I just made up that term right now but it awakened something in me and there may be more of these in our future??)

Anyways, grab your favourite art supplies and let’s get to drawing! Here are the steps I take when designing a new character:

1. Rough Sketches

These sketches are not meant to be good. In fact, they should be very, very bad. This stage is to get you warmed up and producing lots of ideas. Play with shape, size and exaggeration. Have fun with it, and don’t lock yourself into your first idea! The longer you play around at each of these steps, the stronger your character will become.

2. Silhouette

Once you’ve completed your initial sketches, take note of the ones you like. Always pay attention to the silhouettes. A good character designer will produce a variety of shapes. If all your sketches have the same proportions, maybe it’s time to hit the rough stage again and push it further.

3. Narrowing it Down

Looking at your favourites, decide which one is standing out to you. What do you like about them? Take the parts you like and create a more refined sketch. I liked the long hair on #1 and the hat shape and pose on #8 and combined them. It’s a simple design, but we’re not finished yet.

4. Variation

Now it’s time to push it a little further. Think about the props, outfits and hairstyles your character might have and consider their story. A strong character design should tell a story on its own. The witch with braids looks like a farmer, whereas the one with fancy shoes tells me she puts effort into what she wears, even when she’s making messy potions. I’m intrigued.

5. Posing

When posing my character, I like to use horizontal lines to make sure my character’s weight and shape stays consistent; this type of grid is often used by animators when preparing character turnaround sheets. This is my favourite part because it feels like I’m finally getting to know who my character is.

I learned that my witch is sweet and unsuspecting…

…until she gets to scheming!

Looking back to my original roughs, you can get a sense of where she came from, but now she’s becoming more cohesive and believable.

That’s all for this week. In part 2, we’ll discuss my colour/render process and bring her to life!

See you soon,

Morg