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Week 8: The Dichotomy Duo

character dichotomy game art game art design presentation university So the sentry gun project has come to an end, which can only mean one thing...CHARACTER PROJECT! Not one, two characters. I'm in my element here!

The project was actually set on Thursday but due to finishing off the turret, I'd done very little in terms of research. Just a few pins here and there. This meant I had a couple of days of catching up to do after hand-in on Monday! Welp. 

I started off by creating a board on Pinterest full of generic dichotomous characters - Mike/Sully, Joel/Ellie etc. This then meant I could compile them into one HUGE mood board in Photoshop! Now this project is only 3 weeks long, so I'm not planning on spending too much time on the concepts. We only have to model one of the characters, however if we have time, one of the stretch goals is to model the second character. My initial idea was to do something generic like 'Cowboys & Indians' but after looking back at my moodboard, I realised this didn't really interest me that much. However, I came across an old GCSE history book which inspired me to research further into the Women's Army Corps and evacuees.

I decided to stick with this idea as I felt it could be developed into something much stronger and personal. I'd like the female character to be some form of colonel - in a high up position so she comes across as extremely powerful - as I imagine her being quite serious, her posture, expressions and overall style are going to be angular and sharp. Basically I'm trying to make her seem like the boss that terrifies everyone...hmm.
Now, for the small boy/evacuee, I want him to be the total opposite. Seven or eight years old, he's lost all of his family during an air raid and is totally lost. His father was a warden so this boy wears a lot of his father's possessions to remind him of the past. For example, in one of the hair & accessories concepts, I've given him an over sized hat - similar to that of a wardens - which belonged to his father. (1)

(1) Bottom row, second in from the left

To be honest, this whole idea is rather depressing but I actually feel really excited about it! I've never given as much thought into a back story of a character before so I'm already feeling this idea could be quite strong already. Hopefully.

I've started producing some clothing concepts too, starting with some super basic silhouettes. I then chose my favourites and worked into them a bit more, this time, including the boy. I suck at drawing hands so apologies in advance.

Following on from the presentation on Thursday, I've decided to change my idea slightly. I received some awesome feedback and crits which have really helped to strengthen my idea. Mike and Emma said that I needed to try and identify what it was that interested me about this era, and how I could make the relationship between the two characters more obvious. In the end, after much thought, I realised it was the fashion that I found interesting. I went away and made even more moodboards about the style and decided to keep my female character the way she was, but completely revamp the boy. At the moment he's looking like a bit of a man-child. Fab. 

I asked for peer feedback to gain opinions on which costume/character worked the best. So, instead of doing the WAC/evacuee idea, I've decided to produce a mother & son - still in the same era. I want him to come across as being quite playful whereas the mother seems to be more interested in her cigarette...