Figure Invention for Animation - Character Design

For this week, we made some themed character designs. I decided that I wanted to center my designs around the tortoise and the hare. I think there's more to be told about that story, and I can relate to it on a very personal level. Plus, there are built in design conventions because these characters are traditionally opposites.

The tortoise and the hare in their most literal forms. I was thinking that this would be a 1930s kind of era, where the hare is a smooth talking conman and the turtle is a mild mannered bank teller, something of that nature. Of course they get involved in some kind of crazy heist, maybe the furry critter mafia... haha.

Here are the tortoise and the hare as... sort of, RPG type characters. The hare has legendary precision and a bladed bow. Her eyes can see the finest detail, and she's fast! Hares have distinctive feet, so I had her store her arrows in bands attached to her boots. It looks kind of impractical, but I feel like it's interesting! Meanwhile, the tortoise is a brute-strength, slow moving kind of guy. Defense is the best offense; when he takes his shell off his back, he can protect himself easily! And when he's not protecting himself, he bangs his shield like a taiko drum to attract enemy attention.

Finally, the pair appear as a high school mystery crime fighting duo! I designed the hair as a peppy, "alternative" kind of girl with her own sense of fashion. She wears a pair of jet boots... what else would go with her theme? The tortoise is a time-sensitive jock who reluctantly finds himself involved in the crazy mysteries of the town, often serving as the voice of reason and the more responsible of the duo. He's got a futuristic shield made from the same technology as those jet boots, maybe it has some other functions, like lock picking.

Figure Invention for Animation - Historical Redraws

So, our assignment this week was to take some famous photos from history and re-draw them, and to use value. Here is my first approach.

So this is actually a picture of a woman visiting Pablo Picasso during his studies... but artists drawing artists is pretty boring. So I decided I wanted to depict a father daughter relationship at the dinner table. I started the piece thinking that they'd just be eating, but then I wondered why the girl was hovering over him in my piece. Can you decipher what's going on here? It's subtle!

If you hadn't guessed, don't feel bad. I placed the fork in the father's hand the wrong way after watching Planet of the Apes. Getting warmer? It's a daughter trying to help her father battle Alzheimer's. I hope the emotion comes across!

Last of all, I had to take a stab at the photo that literally everyone knows... the famous sailor kissing photo. During my research, I found that apparently this wasn't a romantic reunion at all, but rather it was a sexual assault on an unsuspecting nurse by a drunken sailor. America, you disappoint me. Luckily, the Disney romantic in me tells me to ignore that and create my own story... a post-war lover's kiss. All their friends are happy for them!