Character Design cont.

And now... the CHAOS AGENT!

Ok, I want this guy to be based on a simple principle: he was born to hurt people! This is a being who was made as an engine of destruction, to bring about utter ruin and chaos wherever he treads. I think to convey this he should be considerably superior in stature to our two antagonistic protagonists. Say, twice or maybe three times as tall. I think also he should have a physique that would utterly put Senor Schwarzenegger to shame. These two qualitites will make a nice start towards acheiving a nice contrast to our heroes.

But what will he look like?

I think the classic demon look is a good start, as that is what he represents; hell manisfested. But there are many different kinds of demons! I think those which incorporate a more animalistic, wild appearence will be ideal, as they add even more contrast to the Chaos agent's foes.


For the sake of my poor hands and my limitied timeframe, I think a bit a combination of all of these different head designs suits our purpose quite nicely.

Studio 2 Week 3 - Storyboards

Ok, so we have some crazy characters to play around with, but what to do with them? Put them in a movie, that's what! XD

I spent this week whipping up some storyboards featuring the characters, courtesy of Toon Boom Storyboard (thx Cheryl!) The basic storyline so far is as follows:

On a charred battlefield, two fighters face off. After a brief exchange, they are accosted by a powerful monster, who quickly defeats them both. The two opponents realize their only chance of victory is to put aside their differences and fight together. The monster attacks again, but this time one fighter counters and manages to hold the foe powerless. The second fighter then leaps in with a mighty slash and finishes the monster off. After a brief exchange of mutually respectful gestures, the fighters part ways, leaving their weapons as a testament to their ongoing alliance.

The biggest difficulty by far with these storyboards has been scanning them into the computer individually, as it is very time consuming.

Toon Boom Storyboards really helped a bunch with this process, enabling me to quickly and efficiently combine my scanned storyboard images into a single video without having to resort to a program like After Effects or Final Cut.

Studio 2 Week 2 - Character Design

So, we have an agent of life and death (rebirth) vs each other, until an agent of chaos or destruction comes down to ruin their day. Cool!

But that would take a hell of a lot of dialogue or backstory to convey all of that. I don't plan on having much dialogue at all, if any in this animation. Or for that matter, a dialogue- or textual-based introduction. Hence, I need to build this backstory into the design of the characters themselves... (prepare for some super-awesome concept art too!! XD)

THE LIFE/DEATH AGENTS
The first and most important thing to convey with the design of these characters is how similar these characters are, but also fundamentally different. They are essentially light and dark, but also two sides of the same coin. Both agents are anatomically similar, what sufficiently takes care of similarities. But I think a more subtle approach to the differences is needed, to convey the differences. Here is where we can start to bring in some of their beliefs and prejudices and weave those into their costumes and props.

So, sun for life, moon for death. Good start!

I imagine the Life agent as a sort of fiery, passionate individual with a samurai-like attitude towards honour and duty. A sword would therefore be a good choice as his/her weapon of choice, but more on that later. Costume-wise, this guy/girl is going for functionality over form. His/her costume has to allow a degree of movement and finesse, as that is what he/she relies upon to be an effective fighter. Pants, therefore would be preferable over something like robes or a cloak. The Life agent would probably maintain a more sparse philosophy when it comes to accessories, as it is less practical to have things dangling off of you whilst streaking through the air landing death strokes on everyone within reach. Therefore I think he/she would incorporate his/her heraldry and identifying symbols into his/her clothing, so that it is still openly apparent to his/her foes but less constrictive. I think bright, or even majority white would make a good colour scheme for the life agent, reinforcing his/her role as a champion of the Day.

The Death agent, therefore, is the polar opposite. I envision him/her being a more mystical, priest-like type, calm, cold and calculating. Long sweeping robes and a hood come to mind, as this person is all about concealment, being an agent of darkness and shadow. From that, the mind instantly leans towards a dark, sweeping decor with bright areas to highlight any glyph or symbol important to the agent. Being mystical, the Death agent could have pendants and wards incorporated into his/her costume, as his/her strength is drawn from without rather than within.

As for a weapon, I think a staff or scythe would comfortably reinforce the reaper/priest association of the agent of Death.

coming soon...

THE CHAOS AGENT!