Character Design Crash Course

We talk about how to design striking character illustrations by iterating on silhouette and body language!

Twitter: @kylelatino

[sydney]

I've never seen a character design artist talk about gestures or body language as an integral part of the character design process. But now that I hear your explanation, it makes total sense.

[Doofball]

The subtle tilt of the left foot is the kind of detail that brings a gesture to life. Good job.

[Deadflower]

See, maybe a shield with a handle facing your adversary is a bad idea, but maybe a creative player might notice it and take advantage of it.

[Stuffman]

I can honestly see this character in a Souls game. The hat especially gives me Abyss Watcher vibes

[TronHammer]

That list for what you wanted to combine with your knight included so many entrances that I’d never have thought of and the execution really adds a lot of character and story! Out of interest, what is your approach when writing character stories? And do you start with the image or the story?

[Sharkakaka]

A REALLY good tip about character design: If you can identify all your characters by their shadow/silhouette alone it's good character design. A good example? Bad apple video, Tohou series is the perfect how to do.

[Felder]

Absolutely love the design you ended up with!

[PeachPuppy]

Omg, that laugh about the cauldron parts being witchy and knight like was adorable haha

[DrakeSavage]

Oh man....I didn't realize how much I actually liked your artstyle. Do you take commissions? Haha

I really like the idea of the silhouettes, I've been struggling with my wizard character and this sounds like a great place to start

[cossetta]

100% agree with the T-pose stuff, those are only good for reference sheet of an already designed character's visuals, and shouldn't be used for establishing a new design!

[Derpity]

Map Crow: *I like to look at Pokemon for good silhouettes*

Meanwhile Pokemon: It's a jigglypuff viewed from above!

[psavares]

I like this creator because he talks a lot about character design. He’s got many years of experience, and he's really good at drawing ANYTHING. For example maps, monsters, and such. In this video he talks about character design in general. He mentions silhouettes, body language, gestures and the like. He’s also got a great art style, which I like a lot. He’s very knowledgeable about art. I love the finished design, because it’s dynamic and very interesting-looking!

[aurumdy]

Team Fortess 2 has incredible silhouette and body language with its characters

[literallyalois]

Man be like "silhouette" and starts creating every possible combination of things my brain can't come up with.

[BubbyBoy]

As someone who gets overwhelmed and distracted easily, this has been a godsend. Thank you

[justinfabela]

This is genuinely incredible. It's like unraveling arcan secrets about drawing but in such a small video. Simply incredible

[fiercekitty]

i genuinely feel like this changed my outlook for character design. The shape iteration was an eye opening thing to learn.

[void-creature]

The approach I usually start off with is a very pragmatic consideration of who this character is, and how they would equip themselves as a result, prioritizing functionality over aesthetics, which I think can work quite well if you are aiming for a more grounded style.

[irvin_moe]

I really love this video, so helpful. Also, gives tons of inspiration to do some art, thanks!

[gebatron]

i just found your channel through the questing beast newsletter and i backed your zine and im glad i did