Research Media Roles
How to break into character design
Obviously this is not a step by step guide into becoming a character designer because everyone makes their own path and encounters their own opportunities. The creative industry is not like others, as in most cases you cannot simply follow a straight path into a professional job. However, you can do the right tings to get yourself in beneficial situations that can further your career.
Luis Grane
•After two failed attempts at contacting character designers on social media. I decided to research Luis Grane, a character designer who has worked in animated films including Prince of Egypt, Hotel Transylvania, Ratatouille, and Boxtrolls. I wanted to find out his work and how he broke into the industry.
•Grane began by creating comic strips in Argentina later he moved to London to work on commercial animation. However he was not fully content doing this so he began to study at Sheridan College in Canada and from there he got hired by DreamWorks. Whilst at DreamWorks he began to focus on doing character design and worked in various projects in studios like Pixar, Sony, Laika, Digital Domain, Warners, Disney and Aardman.
•Judging by Grane’s career it is safe to say that character design is a very competitive role in the industry and you must jump onto any opportunity that comes your way. Even when he worked for DreamWorks he still had many side projects with other studios. Also it does not seem to matter what animation style the project Is, as Grane as worked in both Boxtrolls and Prince of Egypt. One being a stop motion film and the other a 2D animated film.
Inspirational Quotes
‘I have a studio in downtown LA where I divided my time working in commercial projects for advertising and film productions and doing my own personal work in visual arts, video projections, video installations, and paintings.’
‘I will not deny that strong drawing skills will help in this process, but throughout my career I’ve seen many artists that are technically outstanding but their designs lack appeal and charm. On the other hand, many artists with limited skills have a powerful sense of design so they are able to produce characters that immediately connect with the audience.’
‘Likewise, I think luck exists, but it has to find you working. I don’t like the concept of luck, I prefer to think of chance because, throughout your career, you get your chances.’
‘draw less, think more’
The art of The Incredibles
In the book ‘The art of the Incredibles’ production designer Lou Romano mentions that Mr. Incredibles design was very close to his earliest as from the start they had a very clear image of what they wanted. They wanted him to look like an ageing football player, past his prime. This small trait gives so much personality to the character that the audience begins to automatically fill in the gaps and familiarize themselves to cast.
As for his outfit, it was very basic. He would dress like a regular dad, it didn’t matter if he was a superhero this made him relatable to people both children with fathers like Mr. incredible and dads themselves, it also humanizes the character. This brings us back to Luis Grane who talked about the fact characters should not always be complex but filled with personality. Mr. incredible is made of very based shapes but this is what makes him so relatable and recognizable.
