Comic Books and Graphic

NovelsDrawing male characters

Starter- Creative drawing warm up

• Choose a shape and use it in a rough character design:

Learning Aims:

• MUST be able to explain concept art and the typical features of various male character types.

• SHOULD be able to generate ideas for the look of a male character in sketches and image boards.

• COULD use image references to draw out a male character body shape.

What is concept art?

ConceptsConcept art is the development process for the visual elements of the Comic Book or Graphic Novel.

Concept art is about evolution and experimentation

Concepts for comic books or graphic novels.

• This includes drawing by hand, in Photoshop and documenting concept models through photography.

Can you remember the artistic processes involved in creating comic book characters?- Pencilling - Inking - Colouring

How Pixar develop concepts:

• What has happened to Carl as he has aged?

• How have they incorporate the original square shape?

• Why does Carl’s character look different when he is young?

• What are Carl’s features?

Activity: Generate Ideas • Use Pinterest to find some initial images for a male

human style character design

• This might be a side character or one of your main characters.

• You might want to look at:- Body types- Costume- Faces- Age- Anatomy

• Use the Moodle lesson if you need help setting up a Pinterest account.

What you would normally expect to see in each of the following male character types?

- Hero- Villain- Evil Genius- Regular Joe- The love interest- Trickster- The brute- The large guy- Old man- Child

HeroHe has a V shaped body, his muscles pop. His posture is strong and commanding.

Regular JoeHe’s not an action hero, just your typical guy. He’s the type who transforms into an action hero or plays the confidant. No great muscles or definition, he’ slightly taller than average.

Evil GeniusHe’s slim, but with small defined muscles. This gives him a crafty look. His posture is usually poor, with a sunken chest- a sure sign of a comic book villain. On skinny characters like this, the ribs stick out, but not the muscles of the ribs.

VillainSlightly more powerful looking than the hero (making fight scenes more interesting), but he is less graceful and has a thicker, less athletic build.

large Guyheavy people are stereotyped as jolly but in comics heavier body types can play villains well. You can see the character has wide shoulders and his body tapers in towards his ankles. He has rounded shoulders and a wider middle.

Brutehe has thick, massive body with an apelike posture, as his arms are often much longer than they should be and his legs are shorter. His head looks pasted onto his body with no neck, making him look hunched.

Discuss and write down ideas for a possible male character from your comic book or graphic novel In Pairs

• Name• Age• Height• Weight• Body Shape• Features• Stance/ body language• Facial features

Drawing exercise- Breaking down anatomy into simple figures

• http://www.bbc.co.uk/education/clips/zkpvcdm

Drawing guides for body shape• How would you or develop the

drawing for the different body shapes?

- Brute- Villain- Evil genius- Average Joe- Large man- Hero

TASK: Drawing out character concepts

• Have a go at experimenting with your male character.

• Use your ideas and visual research to help develop your ideas.

• Use your skeleton to build on your characters look.

Learning Aims:

• MUST be able to explain concept art and the typical features of various male character types.

• SHOULD be able to generate ideas for the look of a male character in sketches and image boards.

• COULD use image references to draw out a male character body shape.