Creative Character Design for Animation, Games and Comics

For over ten years, I've been reviewing character design portfolios online, at comic cons and art school Q&A sessions.

In that time, I've met many artists with charming personalities and impressive technical skills.

…but a true Character Designer is extremely hard to find.

True Character Designers get consistent work.

True Character Designers sell lots of books and prints at cons.

…and some of them create characters who will outlive us all.

Here are some of my favorite articles and interviews that will help you transcend the trends and begin to create characters with soul...

Interview With Character Designer Justin Rodrigues (Part 1) :: ArtCast #86

By Chris Oatley

Justin Rodrigues is a good friend and one of my favorite current artists.

In this episode, we discuss the most productive way to respond to rejection and how his character design style blends 2D sensibility with 3D structure.

After Justin’s interview, Spanish concept artist Juan Francisco Bautista Zambrana shares the story of a recent career breakthrough and what he learned while breaking into game design!

7 Upcoming Visual Development Artists Who Impressed At CTN-X

By Chris Oatley

I made some new friends at CTN-X 2014.

Today, I want to spotlight seven young visual development artists who visited The Oatley Academy booth and impressed us with their wonderful portfolios and personalities.

These artists are creative and clever but most importantly, they’re humble and full of passion.

Check out their links and share their work if you like it.

…and I’m pretty sure you will.

Interview With Sarah Marino: Visual Development Artist For Nickelodeon & Reel FX (Part 2) :: ArtCast #77

By Chris Oatley

In part one of this interview, Sarah Marino told the story of the struggle to find her calling as a professional artist and how she got her first animation job – not in the art department – but as a production assistant.

In this episode Sarah talks about her success in both animation and kidlit, her new gig as a background painter and VisDev artist at Nickelodeon, her new course at The Oatley Academy and how a single post-it-note doodle changed her life forever…

[Transcript] Interview With Sarah Marino: Visual Development Artist For Nickelodeon & Reel FX (Part 2) :: ArtCast #77

By Chris Oatley

This is the transcript for the podcast episode Interview With Sarah Marino: Visual Development Artist For Nickelodeon & Reel FX (Part 2) :: ArtCast #77 To listen to the podcast click here.

Chris: This is Chris Oatley’s Artcast, episode 77, an interview with Sarah Marino, Visual Development Artist for Nickelodeon and Reel FX, part 2.

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Interview With Sarah Marino: Visual Development Artist For Nickelodeon & Reel FX (Part 1) :: ArtCast #76

By Chris Oatley

Two years ago, my friend and Oatley Academy colleague Sarah Marino appeared on what is, to date, the most frequently downloaded episode of The ArtCast: The Rising Stars Of Animation.

Like every other guest on that show, Sarah has, as I predicted, gone on to great success.

After wrapping as a visual development artist on The Book Of Life (the gorgeous new animated feature from Reel FX) she moved to Burbank to join the art department on Nickelodeon’s new preschool series Shimmer and Shine.

In this episode, Sarah shares the story of her happy, creative childhood, her positive experience at Ringling College Of Art and Design and the subsequent, disarming struggle of breaking into the animation industry.

…and in the Q&A segment, we respond to a listener question about developing your concept art portfolio.

Creative Character Design for Animation, Games and Comics

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