C&C Week

Tips and Tricks on Successful Character Creation – An Interview with Wanchana “Victorior” Intrasombat

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• Hello Vic! Thank you for responding to our invitation for this interview. I’m very sure that many are excited to read your sharing, tips and tricks on successful character designs.
  

*Victorior: Thanks so much Jude for this interview and I really appreciate this opportunity for me to share my experiences in illustration and character designs. I hope that this interview will be useful to anyone who is interested in designing their own characters and illustrations in general or just getting started in this field.

  

 

• I know that you’re getting this comment from many people already but your works are really brilliant and wonderful! Where do you usually get your inspirations and ideas when making your illustrations?

*Victorior:  I normally have the inspiration from everything around me: situations, people, animals, stories that I meet and encounter and some of my inspirations are from the awesome paintings/animations/movies that I get to see from other artists or in other studios. What I mean is, the inspirations of my illustrations can come from everything and I always have them combined with my personal attitude, my imagination and my dreams in life.

• What do you think are the best things to consider when designing a character? Can you share some of the things that you usually do when developing a character and bringing it to life afterwards?

*Victorior:  There are so many things to focus when I design a character and it actually depends on what the character is for. For example, if the character is for a mobile-phone screen, there's no point of designing it to have lots of details as it has to be clear and the shape and color must be proportional to the scale of the mobile-phone resolution. For me, the most important thing to do when designing a character is to give the character its own personality. I always think that the character must be able to present its personality even if you can only see its head. The character will become more attractive and be able to explain his life through its own personality.  

*Victorior: For the process of my design, it normally comes with the topic and then research because it will hep you to have a clear direction, especially with the details that you can’t imagine and guide you further in developing the character. Then, I start with the sketch and the continuous exploration with shape and line as this process will lead me to the art and visual styles that I can think of. But, defining the character's personality isn't enough because lots of character designs are already presented out there. Your characters need to be unique and an interesting visual sense is also important. Provide your character with the best expression to make it stronger. Then take time until you finish the final rendering and your job is already done.

•  Did you ever have some moments in your life when you’re not happy with your character designs that made you depressed and sad? If yes, how did you deal with it or what should one person do when experiencing those kind of moments in their artistic lives?

*Victorior:  I have to say that the characters that I make never made me sad, but I often get disappointed with what I have done with the design as it could possibly be different from what I expected and imagined. But when that moment comes into my life, it doesn't and shouldn't destroy my spirit because I believe that it will bring me more power to make it better in the future. I think you can see this situation in the positive way. No one can succeed with just one image or just a design alone. When you were kids, I believe that your drawing was not so perfect and sometime made you disappointed but you are still drawing up until now..what I mean is, keep doing with what you love even if sometimes, it makes you feel sad or disappointed as this is part of the creative process.

• Expressions and emotions are very relevant and significant when designing a character as they give more life and value to them. Can you give us some tips on how to handle expressions and emotions in drawing?

*Victorior: I can say that life drawing, life sketching or just do a series of quick live drawing everywhere with your little sketch book. This simple practice helps me a lot to capture peoples' expressions and emotions. And another thing would be, you can be inspired by capturing the very essence of expressions from the movies with the sense that, you would want to learn from them. It only means that by looking at references, it will definitely help you a lot.

  

 

• What are the careers/job opportunities that are available to character designers and concept artists? 

*Victorior: There are lots of  job opportunities for character designers and concept artist,  such as in the field of animation, game development, illustration, movies, commercials, apps for Iphone/Ipad. It looks like all careers  in the multimedia and entertainment industry  require concept artists and maybe character designers too.

• What are the things that you do to keep yourself creative as always? And what are some of the good ways to practice character designing?

*Victorior: I love to see character designs, illustrations or paintings a lot and I usually spend around an hour just checking and seeing different kinds of arts. It always gives me the inspiration to do my personal paintings. I love to create something new and the good way to practice character designing is by watching  animated movies or cartoons, etc - or as long as it talks about everything about characters in general. It will give you the inspiration and the style. Study the shapes, colors and expressions of the characters and after that, you have to start your own. I suggest you can be inspired with some aspects from the characters that you love and learn from that and after that, do your best by doing your own characters and practice  again and again (more practice).

  

 

•  What movie/cartoon shows/etc that you think has a good set of wonderful and effective character designs and why do you think so?

*Victorior:  I love the characters from different animated films such as the characters from Pixar, Dreamworks, Blue sky..and more. They are so attractive with the expressions, lines, shapes and personalities. I love the character from the movie "Up" the most as I love the sets of shape that defines the personalities of the main character which even makes it an even stronger and effective character design.

•  Any last words that you want to say before we wrap things up?

*Victorior:  I want to say thank you for this opportunity that you gave for the interview and share some of my experience about character design and concept art industry. Keep drawing everyone!!

 

C&C Week

• Hello Sam! It’s such a great honor to have you here for this interview. Much thanks for responding to our invitation as you share you wonderful experiences in life through this interview. 
  

 Sam Kallis: Hi! Thank you for asking me to take part in Project Educate – I will try to make my answers as educational as possible!

• By being successful, I’m sure that people have a whirlpool of experiences as they try to reach their dreams in life. Some may be sad experiences but there are funny experiences too! What were some of the sad and depressing and the most fun experience that you encountered in your life when you were just starting in making your dreams come true and how did you deal with them?
  

 Sam Kallis: This is a difficult question for me because, as I look back, even my more depressing experiences seem colored by later successes. For example, even the disappointment of not being hired to work at a major studio upon graduating from Art Center seems less terrible now, because that experience taught me to persevere and trust myself. These are lessons I might not have internalized had I been met with immediate success. But, I suppose the two year period after I graduated of freelance work and rejection letters was fairly depressing – certainly I found freelance life very lonely. One of the ways I dealt with that was, I made myself a promise to keep a well-updated online sketch blog. Not only did the sketch blog hone my skills, keep me focused on drawing, and introduce me to new friends, but it also eventually led to the bulk of my freelance work. As far as the “most fun experiences I encountered” – well, drawing everyday for the sketch blog usually ended up in a fun experience!

    

• When an opportunity arises, some people might actually think about, “Oh maybe I should pass this time. I think I’m not good enough for this one.” or “There are better artists than me for this spot”. Are there any words of encouragement that you can give to some people who think that way? [or to “us” because I think that way most of the times too ]
  

 Sam Kallis: Every artist experiences self-doubt. It’s an inescapable part of being a working artist – but another inescapable part of making a living as an artist is developing a certain amount of business sense. Here I would like to quote the old saying especially popular in Hollywood: fake it ‘till you make it. By this I mean, have confidence in yourself, because if you don’t, no one else will. I never turned down a job because I didn’t feel like I was good enough. I have always trusted that I will be able to figure it out. Everyday in my job, I am asked to paint things I’ve never painted before or have no idea how to even begin to paint. That’s the wonderful and terrifying thing about being an artist – every project is a new puzzle to work out, and no two jobs are the same. There is no instructions manual for being an artist – every job requires new adaptations. It’s a little scary, but it’s never boring.

Don’t worry if there are “better artists for the job” – whoever hired you chose you – they had faith in you, so you should too. Just do as best a job as you can – work hard – you never truly know what you can do until you push yourself. The worst thing would not be getting fired, but rather, to miss out on a wonderful experience because you were too afraid to even try.

 

• Can you tell us more about your experiences with the Nick Artist Program? Were you scared or nervous when you applied? What pushed you to continue your application and how did everything turn out after the fellowship?
  

 Sam Kallis: The Nick Artist Program was one of the best experiences I had as an artist after college. It really is a unique opportunity – I got to work on “SpongeBob SquarePants,” which was amazing because it’s one of the last shows still on TV that paints their backgrounds by hand with actual acrylic paint; and I also worked on their new show “Monsters vs. Aliens,” based on the Dreamworks movie of the same name. I was mentored by some of the most talented artists in the business; and the Nickelodeon campus is truly one of the best places to work… And did I mention it was a paid fellowship? So, yes, it was quite magical!

I was definitely nervous when I applied, but I also had been working really hard in the two years since college on a number of really exciting projects, so I definitely also felt very ready for the job. I knew that my portfolio had never looked better, and I also knew that I was ready for the rigorous television schedule. I was very nervous, but I also felt confident.

After the fellowship, I left Nickelodeon to work on the feature film “Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2” for Sony Pictures Animation as a visual development artist, and I absolutely love going to work everyday!   

• Your ADVENTURE! Timelapse Art for Art Attack! Soul Pancake is very inspirational. Not only that we were able to know how you work, but you even mentioned about the importance of Adventure in the life of an artist. Again, why do you think that being adventurous is important? And what is the most exciting adventure that you encountered as an artist?
  

 Sam Kallis: Well, I’ve always believed, and I said in the video, that the life you lead informs the art you make. If you don’t have any experiences to draw from in your mental library of memories… then it is my opinion that your art will, in turn, be a little life-less. Now, when I say adventure, I don’t mean you need to go sail across an ocean or anything – a road trip would suffice! Or even an adventure in your everyday life – make a new friend, try a new restaurant, sign up for a class! As for me, as cheesy as it sounds, the greatest adventure I’ve had so far has been falling in love – but that’s a whole other story!

• What are some of the most memorable opportunities that you grabbed before that helped you a lot in getting such significant experiences that you need to have a steady and wonderful artistic career?
  

Sam Kallis: I’m not sure if it’s an opportunity, but definitely going to conventions like CTN or ComicCon have been memorable… They helped me form lasting friendships that eventually lead to jobs. I think the best thing you can do for yourself as an artist is to get out of your studio, go outside, and make some friends! So many artists today don’t realize that the biggest factor in getting work, other than your skill, is networking (sometimes it’s an even bigger factor than skill, unfortunately).

 

• What are some of the philosophies in life that you keep in heart and mind that you think can also play a significant role in the lives of the artists who are reading this interview now?
  

 Sam Kallis: Whenever I was feeling “down” or in a rut, my mom would always say I needed to find a way to “shake up the universe.” This could be a big change or a small change, or maybe just a shift in perspective, but it had to be something to shake the dust off your life. This philosophy definitely served me well as an artist. When I was feeling depressed about not having my dream job in a big studio, my mom suggested I move out to where the studios were anyway – even without the job. This change of pace (or rather, place) was exactly the motivation I needed. Somehow being in the shadow of Disney’s giant hat building and Nick’s slime gate inspired me to keep chasing my dreams.

• What are the things that you usually do to keep your creative juices flowing? 

 Sam Kallis: I’m going to sound like a broken record, but usually the thing that best shakes me out of a creative slump is to go outside and find a new thing to experience. When my fiancé and I first started dating, we made this (really) long list of things to do in Los Angeles. Even though both of us grew up here, there was still so much the city had to offer that we hadn’t seen or done. We try and do at least one thing from the list on the weekends. It’s been over two years and we still haven’t crossed everything off the list! The one other thing I will say, is that I have found that looking at other animation or cartoons does NOT work in getting me out of a rut. I end up just reproducing what other people have drawn. I think this is why my favorite artists are usually people who make art that looks nothing like mine.

• How does it feel to work in a very big animation studio and to help produce such great animated movies/shorts/shows that help many people to be always young at heart?
  

 Sam Kallis: In short – I feel blessed. I truly have no complaints; everyday I am paid do what I love, and everyday I am surrounded by talented, kind and brilliant people.

  

• Are there any things that you wish to tell before we end this interview?
  

 Sam Kallis: I’d like to share a quote by artist Gary Panter – the quote is regarding art and style, but I think it also says something about growing up in general… “Don’t worry about a style. It will creep up on you and eventually you will have to undo it in order to go further. Be like a river and accept everything.”

Synopsis:

The veil is only as deep as a dream. It conceals the worries of daytime with the curtains of night. Behind it are nightmares, monsters and magic. In Reaping of the Wicked there is one little girl, cursed with a power to see behind the veil. She meets a boy with violet eyes, who tells her the secrets to magic and the power it can hold. He seems friendly at first, wanting nothing in return for the knowledge. Yet the girl soon discovers, that the knowledge itself was the price she had to pay.


To get to know more about the author and her novel, I took the time to ask her some questions that were both generic to many writers, as well as others that were more specific to her story.

When did you begin writing?

I began writing at the age of 14 with some classical "good and evil" stories. Reading them now is quite hilarious. Something along the lines of: "...the evil spirit has returned to this world once again. He was born evil and he killed his parents. Your ancestors killed him before you and now you must kill him again!"

Where did the idea for your novel come from? Were there any particular inspirations?

The idea for the novel struck me quite randomly as I walked through a forest while listening to some music. It felt very epic and it's hard to describe. I guess the best word for it is "Eureka!" In other words, the smell and sound of the nature, the music and anything that has ever influenced me aligned with the stars, hehe. Then it kept growing in my head. Ah, I recall now that the first thing about this novel that I conjured was a poetic piece of prophecy. It formed by itself in my head and I just took it from there. Created a lore around the prophecy.

Who is your favourite character from the novel and why?

My favourites keep bouncing around as I write multiple stories at the same time. I favourite the one I am currently working on. But generally, I would say my most loved character is one that keeps reoccurring throughout all of the stories. Sometimes he is a main character, sometimes barely mentioned, but he is always there. In the Reaping of the Wicked he is known as the voice in Hantei's head. Technically speaking the voice is named Hantei and the girl has decided to call herself by that name. The voice has many names through all of my stories so it's pretty difficult to pinpoint him without too many spoilers. I like him because he was the first I created and everything about him links to everything in the stories. Without him, I would have no stories to write. I like that his story that unfolds through all the books, slowly revealing every side of his multiple faces. I love, hate and pity him most of the time.

Who do you think the hardest character to write has been?

The hardest character has been my favourite character's counterpart, only known as "She". There's not much information known about her to the readers so she's difficult to get across without the use of a name. To make the reader understand that "She" can refer to only one entity and make it unmistakable. Everything about her is in my head and I have to be very selective about what I write down. Sometimes I mess up and add information I assume readers would know, though there is no way they could. That can be very confusing.

Your story has a lot of Japanese names and references in it. What is your connection to Japan and choosing to write within the culture?

While I admit to my nerdy fangirl love, it was not the reason I chose Japan to be the setting for Reaping of the Wicked. Japan has a lot of demon stories and quite possibly one of the richest mythologies that fit's my story's history. Reaping of the Wicked does not take place in nowadays Japan, though. Not even medieval Japan as my writings might suggest. The era of the story dates back as far as a few millennia. In my alternate universe, the culture and language of the Japanese people simply survived long enough to form the population we know today. Other stories feature characters of different origin, such as English, Romanian and Greek.

Magic plays a major part in your story. If you were given the choice of being granted with magical powers, would you accept them? Why or why not.

If the choice came with the knowledge of how magic works, maybe not. If I knew that a puppy could only gain it's eyesight if another puppy lost it, no I would not want to use magic. Then again, I'm selfish enough to accept the powers for "just in case". When it comes to my friends and family, I doubt any price would be too high to pay. I think I'd be one of those who intends to use magic for good, but still does evil, because that's how magic in my world works in the end.

Is there a certain lesson that you want to teach in the novel?

I don't think I'm trying to teach a lesson in particular. Perhaps I try to introduce an alternate view on the world or spread my own. The lessons it might or might not teach in the process are unintentional. I'm sure I've managed to include a few by accident. "Don't do to others what you don't want to be done to you" being the most prominent one. It often counters itself, though. The world is not that black and white and neither is my story. Sometimes being a good person simply isn't enough. Most of my characters strive towards personal goals and are willing to go over corpses to make them happen. It reflects my own personality a lot. "Nobody loves you more than you love yourself."


To read Reaping of the Wicked for yourself, please check out the first few chapters below:




Thank you again, *Anzelya for taking the time to answer the questions for our interview!

Aside from the news article feature and interview, my featured author will also have a month-long feature on my page, highlighting their first chapters and linking to their interview here.

If you have an author of a novel/series here on dA that you would like to see featured, feel free to send me a note with your suggestion. I would be happy to read over their work and consider it. Be on the look out for next month's feature with an all new author and novel!

C&C Week

Modern Day Cartoons: Insights with Arthur Fong

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DeviantART community, I am very honored and very pleased to announce that for today, we will be having Arthur Fong, a visual development artist at DreamWorks Animation Studios. He is part of the team who made us giggle with The Croods and made us feel with so much awe in The Rise of the Guardians especially to all the Jack Frost Fans out there. The interview will be all about some insights on the modern day cartoons and to see how the persons behind the cartoon shows that we love work and how they put so much effort in making us smiles each time we watch such great movies and shows.

Website | Facebook

 © All images and artwork are copyrighted Arthur Fong

Images were grabbed from Arthur's website (with permission)

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• Good day Arthur! First of all, thank you so much for giving us this wonderful opportunity of having you for this interview. I’m very sure that the deviantART community is very excited to read your insights, experiences and sharings to us  
  

Arthur Fong: Thank you for having me! 

•   As a person, do you also love watching cartoon shows/movies? What’s your most favorite cartoon show ever since and why?
  

Arthur Fong: My Mom loves to tell me the story of how I got lost at the mall at the age of 2.  She panicked, called security, ran everywhere, just to finally find me sitting in front of a television set, watching who knows what type of horrible infomercial they had at the mall.  But yes, I love cartoons and always have even as I got older.  One cartoon I obsessed over as a kid was Pokémon (gotta catch'em all!).

 

 

• People tend to compare modern day cartoons to the cartoon shows that they used to watch in their younger years and the former tends to be viewed in a negative light. What do you think is pushing them to have such ideas towards some cartoon shows that we have now? 

Arthur Fong: My opinion is based off of absolutely nothing, but I feel technology has played a huge role in changing the animation industry.  When cartoons still had to be drawn on paper and painted on cels, it was still considered a form of art that audiences can appreciate.  With the age of computer animation, there is no longer a need for someone who is passionate and skillful enough to craft such a cartoon, only someone who understands the software.  The art form is not completely lost today, but we do see far less of it.

•  For many people, cartoon shows can give them lots of inspirations and can even influence them as they continue life. In your own opinion, what do you think is the best influence that a cartoon show can offer to its viewers?
  

Arthur Fong: Most cartoon shows are already doing a great job of influencing children and/or adults in a positive way.  "Adventure Time" is a great example of something so whacky even adults can enjoy (some adults), but still teaches the basic lessons of: lying is bad, sharing is good, conquer your fears, etc.  

 

• From your personal experiences, what is the greatest impact that a cartoon show gave so much in your life that you are still cherishing now?
  

Arthur Fong:   That Belle can love a Beast.  And I continue to wait for my Belle.  

•  What is the life behind one of the biggest producers of animated movies that we have in our time? What were your feelings when you first stepped in Dream Works, not as someone who will be watching their animated movies, but as someone who will be working with them for the billions of cartoon lovers all over the world?
  

Arthur Fong: Oh you know, coffee breaks and Street Fighter.  Actually I'm completely terrified.  And still as terrified as I was when I first step foot onto the studio.  It is impossible to even begin to explain the type of talent within the walls of DreamWorks Animation.  But I do not let that affect my work.  Instead, I am inspire to grow as an artist and reminded I still have so much to learn.  

 

•  How do you see and envision the animated movies and shows 10 years from now?
  

Arthur Fong: I do think we will be seeing less and less 2D animated movies and shows in the future (at least produced in the United States or at a large studio).  Right now, there are only a few studios dominating the animation industry, but because of the pace technology is growing, I wouldn't be surprised to see a rise in smaller studios that can produce the same quality of work in the years to come.  

•  I’m pretty sure that most of the people who work in the cartoon industry were influenced with their love for cartoons which helped them choose a career in line with that. And somewhere out there, there are some people who also share the same love and passion and who have big dreams in stepping into the cartoon/animation industry one day (some of them might be reading this too!). Any thoughts and words of inspiration that you can give to them? 

Arthur Fong: Don't force it.  The more badly you want it, the more likely you will miss greater opportunities that may be knocking on your door.  I told myself at the age of 12 that I will become an animator at Disney.  In the next 8 years, I did absolutely nothing related to animation.  And all it took was a few signs to point me back in the right direction.  But along the entire way, any job I took up, whether it's folding clothes at a retail store, wiping tables clean at a restaurant, sanding fiberglass at an autobody shop, I always gave 110%.  So when the dream opportunity came for me to prove myself, I've already developed a dynamite work ethic.  

•  Any tips and tricks that you can share to everyone that you usually do in order to keep your creative juices flowing?
  

Arthur Fong: You won't become a great artist by spending 12 hours in front of a computer or in a room playing video games all day.  Go out and socialize, travel, see the world, breathe nature, listen to people, volunteer, try new food, seek new adventures, be a friend, be a foe, pretty much anything but art.  The more you experience life, the more your stories and ideas will translate fluidly into your work.  

•  Any last words that you wanted to share? 
  

Arthur Fong:  I wish I started a deviantART account long ago.  It’s too late I guess.  I post most of my work and updates on both my Facebook and Blogger.  Stop by and say hello!  Thanks for reading my nonsense!

 

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Special Sneak Peek:

Here's a sneak peek of "Ze Idiot": a graphic novel that Arthur Fong and Christophe Lautrette are developing. So be sure to check their blogs from time to time so you will be updated with the release of this 'i-know-it's-gonna-be-awesome' graphic novel from these two amazing artists!

 

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