Focalising A Character

We started the week off with a refresher on basic character design such as shape and colour palettes and the 12 character archetypes. We were told of the most important rule: form follows function. Our first activity was blocking out our character with bits of coloured paper. We were given Little Red Riding Hood as an example as she was represented with a red triangle – simple but identifiable. This exercise helped us understand the most important aspects of our character and how to make them recognisable from just basic shapes.

For this activity, I made an early iteration of the protagonist in my game. Her design had an emphasis on sex appeal and features that were considered attractive in the 50s (e.g. full lips, an hourglass figure, and styled hair). I named her Estrella – inspired by the name Estelle which was used in the 50s and also meant “star”. The premise of her character would stay the same; young, beautiful, talented, and selfish.

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Concept Art

Thursday was a continuation of Jake’s lecture and we were tasked with making a collage based on our game. He showed us The Art of The Incredibles, a book by Mark Cotta Vaz which included early concept art for the characters and environments. We mainly looked at the collages and how the shapes and textures, although seemingly random, came together to make a scene that would then be made in the movie.

For my collage, I used cutouts from magazines and newspapers to make an award ceremony scene to link to my theme of Hollywood glamour. To establish this idea, I used the iconography of an Oscar award statuette – an easily recognisable logo/shape. At the centre, a figure stands in the spotlight and under the crowd’s scrutiny. The contrast between the warm-toned curtains and the cool-toned stage symbolise the loneliness that comes with being at the top. To further highlight the figure on stage, the lines of the microphones and stage lighting lead your eyes to the centre.

After discussing my idea with Jake, he asked me what elements of my protagonist reflected my own experiences. He suggested making the character the same ethnicity as me and see how that could change her motivations or story (expanded upon in The Starlet page). I was told to look into the life of Shirley Bassey, a prominent artist in the late 50s onwards. A classmate also recommended Kenneth Anger’s book Hollywood Babylon which details Hollywood’s scandals from the 1900s to 1950s.