Character Design 101

In-Person / Full Studio Access / $1040 GST Included

(13 Weeks)

The program strives to provide a comprehensive artistic and technical education, preparing students in the art of animation and encouraging critical reflection, collaboration and professionalism.

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Course Mission

The program strives to provide a comprehensive artistic and technical education, preparing students in the art of animation and encouraging critical reflection, collaboration and professionalism. Through innovative teaching, local and international partnerships and the highest standards of artistic and academic excellence, the program seeks to ensure student success in creative careers within the animation industry.

Course Summary

Students will be introduced to the importance of design in character animation. Line, shape, negative space, volume, and colour will be studied. The relationships of these elements (proximity, balance, rhythm/repetition, proportion, variety and size) will be emphasised. Three dimensional models will be created to understand structure. Through drawn exercises, students will learn to create strong character poses that communicate effectively with the audience. Students will study various artistic styles in animation and work individually and as part of a team to create effective, original character models.

Classes Info

Term(s): Ongoing
Course Name: Character Design 101
Instructor(s):
Studio Classroom:Classroom 2 Rmd
Scheduled Days:
Weekly Hour(s): 4 + studio hours *
Total Projects:
Project Upload Link:
Class Resource Link:

*Access to portfolio students only
Course Format: In person w/ all access Discord online support

Student Learning Outcomes:

Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to…

Identify the characteristics of a strong pose;
Identify and file for appealing character designs created by industry pros
Create original characters that have appeal and personality;
Design character poses that communicate effectively and are on model;
Design and execute character design model packs to industry standards;
Work as a contributing member of a design group;
Build representational e-portfolio pieces that showcases their design work;

Required Materials

Hardware

15in + Laptops (RTX GPUs Recommended)
Graphic Displays or Pro Tablets
Studio Workstations*

*Access to portfolio students only

Software

Character Design 101

Course Content with Time Allocation

Character Studies

– 1 Week

Study the provided character to understand shapes and form for characters.

Character Brainstorming & Thumbnails- 2 Weeks

Reference gathering, story driven character design. Focus on the story of the character and create 9-12 thumbnails.

Character Rough out – 2 Weeks

Discuss with the instructor, find the best 3 of the thumbnails. Explore the potential of the characters by adding shapes and rough details.

Character Turnaround – 3 Weeks

Pick 1 out of the 3 super thumbs. Basic character design with front, 3 quarter and profile views with strong. Finished with clean rough.

Expression Sheet – 2 Weeks

Develop 12 expression thumbnails that work with the character design. Will pick 6 out of the 12 and finish the sheet of rough clean expressions.

Action Poses- 3 Weeks

Develop 3 action poses thumbnails that work with the character design.Will pick 1 out of the 3 and work on the presentation sheet of the works done in the semester.