Animation Nation - Part Two

In this part I'll be looking at the cast of characters I created for my animation.

Rat and Ox

Naturally I started with the beginning animals of the zodiac. The rat is supposed to be the cunning, deceitful but also smooth and suave. So I tried to base his design on this as much as possible. I wanted him to look like the guy who would flash you his best grin and use smart words to get what he wants. As for the decision for his colour scheme, I based his hair and eye colour on that of an actual rat. The slightly elongated teeth was also based on a rat. As for the ox, its characteristics are strong and reliable but also naive and hardheaded. So I gave him the appearance of a farm hand. The shape of his hair took inspiration from the horns of an ox. I kept his eyes and hair brown which are also similar to that of an ox. 

Tiger and Rabbit

 The tiger took a lot of inspiration from an actual tiger, his wild messy orange hair, especially the points that seem to bunch together and  look like cat ears, came from the fur of an actual tiger. I even gave him feline eyes, with slitted pupils alongside their vibrant colour. As for his sport attire, that came from the zodiacs description of his personality. The tiger was described as someone who is sporty and hates to lose, so I thought a sports jersey was the perfect outfit for him. As for the rabbit, by now you might have noticed a common theme in that a lot of the hair designs came from the animals they were based off of. Rabbit is no exception, the long parts of her bangs I wanted to base off the idea of floppy bunny ears and although there were a few peers who thought pigtails were better suited to match ears, but I liked my concept and I thought it helped convey more of rabbits personality as rabbit is supposed to be shy and quiet cheery. To me pigtails didn't seem shy. Her bright green jumper was based on the colours of spring when you are more likely to see rabbits and her little carrot hair clip was the final clue that this was rabbit. 

Dragon and Snake

Dragon's design was a little difficult, there aren't very many real life dragons to look at and take inspiration form. So instead I based his design off standard Chinese dragons in mythology. As Chinese dragons have luxurious flowing manes, that's what I wanted to give my dragon and the thick wild looking eyebrows seemed to add a certain maturity and wisdom to him. Finally I gave him regal looking Chinese clothing. Now for the snake, the snakes personality in the zodiac was described as intelligent, dangerous and somewhat sensual, all together summed up as the original femme fatale. So I wanted to try and created a design that made her seem like a femme fatale without going completely femme fatale with her. The long hair was based on a snake's long body and her bangs were based somewhat on fangs. I gave her glasses initially but ended up ditching them in the animation as I felt she didn't really need them.

Horse and Sheep

Horse's design was supposed to make her seem wild and carefree. Her hair was based on a horse's mane and I'm actually quite pleased with her design. She was the right amount of rebellious and wild without going overboard on it. I also wanted her design to compliment snake's a little as the snake in the zodiac story did end up tricking the horse and claiming the sixth spot in the zodiac, leaving the horse in seventh. However, I'm not sure how well that went. As for Sheep, he was supposed to be a very shy, unsure of himself kind of guy. So I gave him the large hoodie he could use to hide in. That, combined with the scarf and seemingly warm clothes also brought in the feeling of a warm fleece, like that of a sheep. His short curly hair was based on wool and his pastel colouring I based mostly on the gentle aspects of his personality, as pastel colours feel much more gentle than standard colours. 

Monkey and Rooster

Monkey's character is said to be creative, energetic and well liked, so I tried to create quite a likable design. Her short hair was based on the way a monkey's fur frame's their face and, similarly, her hair colour came from a monkey's fur colour. As for Rooster, I felt like I was able to get a lot more creative with his design. His hair was based on the comb of a rooster and as for his clothing, rooster's personality is said to be somewhat aggressive but mostly misunderstood. What better stereotype for that than an angry teenager. So, a lot of his design was based off of the "misunderstood, angry teen" stereotype.

Dog and Pig

Our Dog is said to be loyal, hardworking and possessing a strong sense of justice. So his outfit's colour scheme was fitted with blue's that I felt represented "justice" pretty well. His wild hair and the fluffy ponytail took influence from a dog's fur and tail, and the colours used as well as the decision for different coloured eyes came from a Husky. Finally, Pig is said to be the most laid back member of the zodiac, so I gave him over-sized comfy clothing that he could happily settle down to take a nap in. As for his hair, I tried to make it somewhat curly, based on a pig's curly tail, and decided long hair seemed to suit a laid back attitude more.

Now that my characters were created, all I had left to do was create my animation.